James Arthur Ray, the New Age impresario who urged his ghastly ill followers not to leave a Sweat Lodge — leaving three to die — was no marginal figure in that huge American subculture that political strategists generally overlook.

Ray made a name for himself and a $9.4 million business as a regular on Oprah and a guru showcased in “The Secret,” the hit New Age book/DVD. The Sweat Lodge purging was part of his “spiritual warrior” experience in Sedona, Arizona, for which he charged nearly $10,000 a head.

The political media tend to ignore the world of rebirthing, channeling and finding “energy fields” in pretty rocks because New Age practitioners tend to ignore them.  New Age followers are mostly white, college-educated women who are liberal-to-the-heart. They almost always vote for Democrats…when they vote.

Democrats would do well to monitor the messages beamed to this natural constituency. Here's a passage from “The Secret”: “When I discovered The Secret, I made a decision that I would not watch the news or read newspapers anymore, because it did not make me feel good.”

I have some dear New Age friends and blood relatives. They won't be reading this because though they love me, I write about political strife, and that doesn't make them feel good.

One didn't know that there was a governor's race in her state. Another couldn't name her congressman. That's the level of their political engagement. They are involved enough to vote in presidential elections but not enough to care (or know) about the midterms.

Apolitical women routinely tell pollsters that what they most hate about politics is the nastiness. Smart Democrats will find a gentle means of activating these sometime-voters. Note that “The Secret” has sold over 16 million copies.

www.fromaharrop.com