Jonathan Chait on more wretched symbolism: The article seems to be about why racial preferences survive politically despite the fact that most voters oppose them, but he goes on to say, the main reason

is that the substance of racial preferences matters less than the symbolism. In this, the politics of affirmative action resemble the politics of gun control. Most actual gun measures concern egregious cases, such as assault weapons, where support runs so wide that even gun owners support a ban. Yet Democrats have found that even proposing such modest steps hurts them at the polls. Even in cases where voters support the specific regulation, it gets translated--with the help of the National Rifle Association's (NRA) deep pockets--into a generalized support for gun control, which rural and Southern voters in turn interpret as a sign of disrespect for their values.

That was exquisite. I believe similar symbolic thinking impacts many other hot-button issues, e.g. abortion. (via Eugene Volokh)