Don’t Shoot the Messenger Pt. 2

 debate, GOP, government, media, Politics, Truth  Comments Off
Nov 292010
 

So we have been over how the approach to messaging creates a clearer path to unity for the right than the left but beyond unity, what advantage does the right glean from their rigid adherence to doctrine? Understanding… The right has been running on a few established memes for better than three decades, it is these memes that allow them to communicate whole belief structures in few words.

First a brief discussion of memes; A meme is a postulated unit of cultural ideas, symbols or practices, which can be transmitted from one mind to another through writing, speech, gestures, rituals or other imitable phenomena (Wikipedia definition).

Memes like;

“small government”

“the sanctity of life”

“lower taxes creates jobs”

“free markets”

“tax and spend liberals”

“right of center country”

“let you keep more of your own money”

“we trust the American people with their money”

“patriotism”

These memes have been repeated and ingrained for the better part of thirty years, there is an agreed upon definition that is built into the hearing of the audience making it possible for complete idiots to communicate to their audience even when they are barely able to communicate at all. Seriously, look at the last election and tell me without the heavy use of these memes people like Sharron Angle, Joe Miller and Christine O’Donnell could possibly make a coherent argument for their candidacy (and I realize we are only talking coherent to those who buy into the meme). So the right can field any old idiot and as long as they keep hammering the memes, their base nods in agreement and the media buys into their credibility.

At times it truly feels like the invasion of the Borg, resistance IS futile they just keep coming, or even more apt, it feels like zombies, it’s exhausting they just keep on coming and even when you completely eviscerate them in a debate, they come back to life blurting a thirty year old meme that still manages to net them a large portion of “likely” voters. What can be done? How do you combat the stupid when it has been institutionalized?

Don’t Shoot the Messenger…

I don’t mean me, don’t shoot the messenger in this case means that you can take out candidate after candidate, you win some and you lose some but we will never achieve enough traction on the strength of facts to change the tide as long as we allow the right to play the game by their rules…

What makes the right so effective at communicating a unified message? Their memes…

Don’t shoot the messenger, dismantle the message. Trying to kill every zombie that can repeat a talking point is tedious, time consuming, expensive and ultimately futile. Only by tearing down the meme will we accomplish long term gains in political discourse in this country so desperately needs.

Don’t shoot the messenger, dismantle the message, because until we can tear down these memes and make the right run on their ideas as they relate to the real world the sheer effort to overcome the zombies will sap our strength, fracture our coalitions and damage our democracy.

Progressives, tear down these memes!

Don’t Shoot the Messenger Pt. 1

 debate, Global Warming, GOP, government, Hypocrisy, Politics, Religion, Truth  1 Response »
Nov 282010
 

In politics there is what you say and there is what you do… what you do could justifiably be called policy, what you “say” about what you are doing, have done or will do, well that’s the “message”.

The” message” is the daily scorecard of politics in this country. Success or failure of the “message” wins and loses elections far more frequently than policy even though it has no actual impact and policy bears directly on our lives and livelihoods. Success of a “message” often depends on widespread adoption by the talking heads and endless repetition, even in the face of facts that clearly refute the so called “message”, and this is where we find the vast difference between the left and the right the effectiveness of their “messaging” and why we will never be able to beat them if we keep playing their game.

The main difference between the left and the right boils down to approach. It is the approach that amplifies the “message” and the fact is that the rights “message” will always be louder and more cohesive than the left and there is not one damn thing that we can do about it.

The right has a world view built around ideology. Facts that don’t fit into that ideology are discarded without a second thought while facts that fit are paraded as proof positive of their point. It is this approach that makes it possible to ignore centuries of geological science and profess a belief that the earth is six thousand years old or to find a few dubious emails proof positive that more than two thousand scientists with the IPCC are lying about climate change.  It is not difficult to understand how this approach lends itself to unified voices and consistent “messaging”, something happens that fits into the overall ideology and the whole chorus starts singing the same tune.

The left by and large have a world view that is shaped by fact, as more information becomes available we are willing to change our minds. Being able to let go of a previously held belief in the face of new facts is a natural process for those who share this world view. Not that we don’t get invested in our beliefs, far from it, we will fight tooth and nail to try to convince each other we have the right read on the facts, that we understand what it means. The “messaging” from the left therefore is nuanced, there are flavors of an overall theme, and when the information changes, the “message” shifts, amplification is lost, consistency broken, repetition impossible.

The upshot is that while the right is focused on black and white the left is painting with a thousand shades of gray, and we’ll fight about every bit of it, including how to spell grey. It is our nature, it informs our approach and though it seems at times to be the worst kind of political liability, it only truly is if we limit ourselves to playing their game with their rules.

So since “messaging” has gotten so important in politics, how are we to overcome this “messaging” Achilles heel? I shall attempt an answer to that in my next post…

Thanks

 Uncategorized  2 Responses »
Nov 242010
 

In our busy lives it is difficult to grab a little perspective on where we really stand.

This week is the perfect opportunity to regain our perspective, if only for a moment, and to acknowledge just how fortunate we truly are.

Of the many things that I am thankful for, it is these for which I am most grateful:

I’m alive. I know it’s fashionable to say that we have the best healthcare in the world but it just isn’t true and I’ve gotten far too close to be casual about it.

I have a job, as a bonus it’s a good one, many Americans are not so fortunate.

I have the love of perhaps the most wonderful woman in the world, something I’m grateful for everyday.

I never want for food, shockingly this is not the case for far too many Americans today.

Though I lost my father this year I was able to spend my vacation with him only weeks before he passed.

I’m thankful for the Veterans Administration, though we may have been fast and loose with the truth going to war, we never should be with our commitment to those who have served.

In these extraordinarily challenging times we have a President who has the intellectual chops to seriously consider serious issues.

The conversation, I’m grateful for the conversation. As loud and rancorous as it can be, it is the heart of our democracy. Hopefully we will find a way to move forward that rewards ideas and solutions as much as money is rewarded now, but the conversation is still vital to keeping the experiment moving forward.

Blessings to you and yours,

Say <> Do = “News”

 government, Hypocrisy, media, MediaFail, Politics, Rachel Maddow, Truth  1 Response »
Nov 172010
 

This brilliant clip from The Rachel Maddow Show should be required viewing for all “journalists” engaged in the reporting of news related to politics and the economy.

Please do what you can to share this here or at The Maddow Blog, holding those we count on for the news accountable for reporting and not publicizing is the least we should expect from those bound to serve “public interest, convenience and necessity.”

Priorities

 George W. Bush, government, Midterms, Obama, Politics, Taxes, Truth  Comments Off
Nov 152010
 

The GOP used reconciliation to pass the so called “Bush tax cuts”. In order to utilize the process of reconciliation, the GOP was forced to insert a sunset clause because the rules of the Senate don’t allow the reconciliation to be used if the underlying legislation will increase the budget deficit beyond ten years…  Let that sink in for a moment. The GOP knew, absolutely knew that the “Bush tax cuts” would have a negative impact on the deficit and the debt. They gamed the system using techniques that they vilified to the point of hysteria during the health care debate even when they knew that it was fiscally irresponsible. They knew it, and they did it anyway…

They passed the tax cuts knowing that the tax cuts would wipe out the surpluses of the Clinton era.

They passed the tax cuts knowing that a disproportionate benefit was given to the wealthy.

They passed the tax cuts knowing that the national debt would increase despite claiming it a primary concern.

They passed the tax cuts and once again told the Average American that they can have a crumb while giving the whole damn cake to the rich.

If the GOP believed or had any credible evidence that the Bush tax cuts would not negatively impact the deficit and the debt, then why put the sunset measures in the bill in the first place? Don’t bother attempting an answer, despite the talking points, the GOP knew that the Bush tax cuts would explode the debt, they were told so and they acted accordingly all the while spewing the same old crap that Americans have swallowed for decades.

The current administration has not had the luxury of choice, the economic crisis dealt most of the cards that the administration has had to play, and yet THIS administration was able to cut the deficit in the worst recession since the depression.

So first the GOP passes irresponsible tax cuts that they KNEW were going to have a negative impact on the deficit and now the GOP says that it is irresponsible to raise taxes in a recession, that is pretty damn convenient… Functionally the GOP is saying that they were knowingly irresponsible, but the only responsible path to to double down on stupid…

Do NOT let a single Republican continue spewing the fantasy that these tax cuts will spur the economy to the point that revenue will overcome deficit pressures. The GOP knows it isn’t true, of course that won’t stop them from saying it is so…

It is time that persons of good conscience step up and have adult conversations about adult matters. Priorities must be set and policy needs to be crafted to reach those priorities. The stakes are too high to not demand that our representation in Washington D.C. cut the demonstrably false talking points and get serious about governance, it has to be a priority, we have to make sure it remains a priority.

Republicans don’t believe the things they say, they believe the things they say will get them elected. Eventually the truth will catch up to them, believe me.

Tic Tax Doh!

 government, Hypocrisy, Obama, Politics, Taxes, Truth  Comments Off
Nov 112010
 

Can the Democrats put aside their pathological fear of being simultaneously right and politically potent at the same time? Yes we can.

Is it possible to do the right thing and reap the political benefit of the Republicans getting it completely wrong and looking like the uberwealthy lapdogs that they truly are? Yes we can.

Could it be that the Democrats can do that which is necessary for the betterment of the country and NOT be forced to fall on their swords for the effort? Yes we can!

And how is this perfect storm of political nirvana possible? The George W. Bush tax cuts, passed (or shall I say jammed down our throats) by the Republicans leveraging the slimmest of margins using the most reviled process in democracy known to man, aka reconciliation, are, at long last expiring.

The damage of these tax cuts, two unfunded wars, Medicare part D and reckless deregulation of the financial industry will take its toll on the deficit for years, but the 700 billion given away to the wealthiest 2% of earners need not and should not continue.

True American patriots are willing to sacrifice to secure the future of the nation, if that means that I need to give up MY tax cut to force the wealthiest 2% to step up, so be it. I would rather pay more than see the people that have gained more than any other segment in the last decade shirk their responsibility to the nation that has blessed them with such fortune. I will stand up to secure our children’s future, their education the infrastructure that will make their American Dream a possibility.

I cannot and will not accept that those who are most fortunate among us cannot relieve a portion of the burden for the nation that has rewarded them so generously. I will accept the necessity to pay more myself if it means that they will not dodge this responsibility. I will not accept an extension of the tax cuts for these individuals for one moment beyond the sunset that the Republicans set when they kneecapped the budget for this foray in fiscal irresponsibility. I will not accept an extension for two years, or one year, or six months, or six minutes.

If Democrats believe that the “politics” of keeping the tax cuts for the middle class and letting them expire for the wealthiest Americans is too hard I have a suggestion… Do nothing. The tax cuts will expire and the Democrats will be responsible for plugging a huge hole in the deficit.  If the Democrats feel like “do nothing” is just too “Republican” try this, pass a tax cut for people earning less than 250k in the lame duck session and let the “Bush” tax cuts die with the legacy.

The point is this, there is a line that the democratic base will not cross, we are marching right up to it and it is desperately important that our representation both in the Congress and the White House understand… We WILL accept our responsibility and pay more if we must, we WILL NOT accept the most fortunate or you shirking your responsibility… Really, we will NOT.

Veterans Day

 Dick Cheney, George W. Bush, GOP, Hypocrisy, Politics, Truth  1 Response »
Nov 102010
 

On the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month 1918 the armistice went into effect to end what was then thought to be “the war to end all wars” This is the day that America now reserves to honor the sacrifice that veterans have made in service of the nation.

Veterans Day means different things to Americans based on their relationship to service and relationships to those who have or are serving in uniform. As I have not served this post is admittedly and necessarily naive but my father served in Vietnam and my wife’s youngest brother is currently serving in the Air Force so my thoughts and words are not devoid of a frame of reference.

My father was a veteran, there is nobody that he ever knew that was surprised for one moment when they discovered that he directed planes on the flight deck of an aircraft carrier, the way that he moved his hands, gestured, shuffled a deck of card, precise, specific and decidedly unambiguous. I never knew how much my father’s military service shaped his perceptions of himself until I discovered that he wanted to be buried in a Veterans National Cemetery with the honors that he had earned with his service a service that he literally barely mentioned my whole life.

President Woodrow Wilson declared the first armistice day (the celebration that would become Veterans Day) with these words.

“To us in America, the reflections of Armistice Day will be filled with lots of pride in the heroism of those who died in the country’s service and with gratitude for the victory, both because of the thing from which it has freed us and because of the opportunity it has given America to show her sympathy with peace and justice in the councils of the nations.”

This is the spirit with which Veterans Day was declared and the spirit with which it should be celebrated. There is no more just manner to celebrate the spirit of national military service than to defend the intelligent application, the deliberate, wise, considered, studied deployment of that force in the name of justice, peace and in the honest council of the nations, our nation.

The callous manner in which George W. Bush and Dick Cheney plunged this nation and many others into war in Iraq defiles the spirit of that service. I find no fault with any member of the armed services that prosecuted the war that they were charged with waging. However, I cannot see how we honor military service unless we call out those who would utilize the finest of our youth as though they were cannon fodder, pawns…

“good enough to toss; food for powder, food for powder; they’ll fill a pit as well as better [men]…” - William Shakespeare

I will honor the service of those who step up to defend this nation by acknowledging the enormous sacrifice they have made and vowing that such sacrifices shall only be requested when required and after every viable alternative has been exhausted.

I have news for both George W. Bush and Dick Cheney, they were all better men than you.

You go and then I’ll go…

 GOP, government, Hypocrisy, media, Midterms, Obama, Politics, Truth  Comments Off
Nov 072010
 

Jon Stewart wrapped up the Rally for Sanity with an interesting if irrelevant analogy… He equated the American people cooperating with each other by the traffic entering a tunnel going into New York city. The idea is that we cooperate with each other to achieve a common goal because we all have to merge for any of us to merge, we all have to get to work and collect a paycheck, we all have to plow our way through the tunnel… Except we ALL don’t. There are a select few that are swept by helicopter to the rooftop of the building they need to be at minutes before they need to arrive. They don’t sweat the commute on a daily basis, they spend tens of thousands of dollars per week to stay in the city in the lap of luxury should their schedules require it.

The reason that Stewart’s analogy fails is that there really is a philosophical difference with how the left and the right approach the role of government and ultimately how that philosophy manifests their actions and policies… The left still believes that government can perform vital and necessary functions for the American populace. The right is convinced that only the private sector can rule the world and in the last thirty years they have almost completely relegated control to corporate interests… The brutal truth is that “you go and then I’ll go” is really the fleecing of the American people by the most powerful companies in the world:

Wellpoint and then Halliburton – You go and then I’ll go…

Mosanto and then BP – You go and then I’ll go…

Exxon-Mobil and then Wal-Mart – You go and then I’ll go…

Merck and then Wells Fargo – You go and then I’ll go…

You go and then I’ll go, you go and then I’ll go.

When will we go? When will we recognize the American dream were being sold now is stamped “made in China”? Corporations in a global economy are global… Government of, by and for the people is OF, BY AND FOR THE PEOPLE!

The realization of Republican economic policies has the American people being repeatedly slapped by the largest, most profitable and powerful corporations that do business in this nation… You go and then I’ll go, you go and then I’ll go.

Sanity was not restored Oct. 30th 2010, it was not evident Nov. 2 2010, it is not likely to return in the near future…

I will however struggle with all my might to bring it back. I will blog, discuss, tweet, argue. You can too, have a conversation, diffuse a delusion. I’ll spread the truth and you can too.

You go and then I’ll go, you go and then I’ll go.

Sisyphus Shrugged

 astroturfing, Hope, Hypocrisy, Politics, the media, Truth  4 Responses »
Nov 032010
 

Progressive angst, irritation and ultimate victory…

When I was a very young man it was still shocking to the general population to see interracial couples, the civil rights amendment was shiny new and almost all homosexuals were deep in the closet.

Almost my whole life I have known that it wasn’t cool to treat people differently based on the color of their skin. People who love each other should be allowed to love each other even if they came from divergent racial backgrounds.

Almost my whole life I recognized that individual qualifications were exactly that, individual! Skills, knowledge and talent were a factor of luck and desire and had no connection to race other than access. I knew that it was wrong to deprive anyone the access and opportunity of fully realizing potential.

From very early on I recognized that homosexuality wasn’t about a perversion it was about self and identity. People say “be true to yourself” yet shrink when that truth is at odds with what their religion says about human behavior. I knew that that these humans were just as American, honorable, fragile, human, valuable and necessary as any other in our union and that perfection of that union would never be complete until they enjoyed the same rights, freedoms and respect that every other member of this society should enjoy.

The point is that enormous progress has been made in all these issues, and though it has been frustratingly slow and ridiculously uneven, (particularly from the standpoint of KNOWING what the right thing was), progress has been made. We always knew that eventually a majority of people would come to the same conclusion but that didn’t make the struggle any less difficult or painful.

So now we stand on the edge of the most recent battle looking at the carnage and we ask, (logically, cause that IS what progressives do), what now?

What now?

You don’t stop fighting for the things that you know are right just because you didn’t win the argument

You don’t stop fighting for the things that you know are right just because someone else convinced enough people that we were just not ready for that truth

You don’t stop fighting for the things that you know are right just because someone bet the American people would vote emotionally and not logically, and won that bet.

You don’t stop fighting for the things you know are right until enough people acknowledge that it IS right and you can take up the cause further down the road to progress.

They beat us back this time. They beat us back with hate. They beat us back with fear. Most of all they beat us back with a relentless assault on the truth, a media enhanced, fact optional, trigger phrase, dog whistle assault on the truth. Eventually we will win, we know it, they do NOT. They have not the vision, they have not the imagination, they have not the facility to escape their fear to recognize the awesome potential of human beings…
Truth will eventually prevail… The earth is not flat, it is also not the center of the universe, Galileo would have had to lived almost four hundred years to experience an acknowledgment of that with respect to the Church.  Hopefully we won’t have to wait so long…
I’d like to leave you with a thought from The Talking Heads…

Facts are simple and facts are straight
Facts are lazy and facts are late
Facts all come with points of view
Facts don’t do what I want them to
Facts just twist the truth around
Facts are living turned inside out
Facts are getting the best of them
I’m still waiting, I’m still waiting, I’m still waiting, I’m still waiting
I’m still waiting, I’m still waiting, I’m still waiting, I’m still waiting
I’m still waiting, I’m still waiting, I’m still waiting, I’m still waiting
I’m still waiting, I’m still waiting

It is not enough to be right… we still have to struggle to MAKE IT RIGHT!

We still fight because it is our calling, our curse and our quest (Monty Python reference deliberately avoided…)

I’m not dead yet! (damn!)