Peak Wingnut theory

Last October, American blogger John Cole suggested a new theory called 'Peak Wingnut'.

Peak Wingnut theory states the extremism and sheer volume of anti-progressive rhetoric, and attempts to mainstream slander into the mainstream media, by the American conservative attack machine is peaking or had peaked. The idea behind this theory was that American conservatives had seen their ideas turn out to be a total disaster, and that this would discourage them.

Ten months later, roughly a quarter of Americans answer 'no' or 'not sure' to the question 'do you believe Barack Obama was born in the USA?'; there are angry and violent demonstrations against attempts by the government to provide better healthcare; and Investors' Business Daily claims that "People such as scientist Stephen Hawking wouldn’t have a chance in the U.K., where the National Health Service would say the life of this brilliant man, because of his physical handicaps, is essentially worthless".

But then it is not surprising that Peak Wingnut theory didn't work out, since just one day after Cole first wrote about it, Republican activists were writing about how Obama had "an underage, gay affair with a pedophile".