Tag: Political Rhetoric

American crossroads: Reagan, Trump and the devil down south

Last night was the big Dem debate…..and it was what I expected….total crap!  If you are looking for more than that….buy a newspaper!

After the Civil Rights thing the Dems lost the South to the Repubs……ever since those days the GOP has used a wide variety of dog whistle slogans and campaigns to be sure that the South stays in their column……with each election the covert bigotry gets worse and worse…..the people change but the song remains the same.

How the Republican party’s dog-whistle appeal to racism, refined by Richard Nixon and perfected by Ronald Reagan, led inexorably to Donald Trump

Source: American crossroads: Reagan, Trump and the devil down south | US news | The Guardian

All this rhetoric smacks of racist overtones…..whether intentional or not……and this type of thinking plays well….especially in the South….please NO one tell me I am wrong….all you have to do is take a trip South and see for yourself……regardless of what you think….reality will surprise you.

The Myth of the Reagan Democrat

I am an old fart so I can remember the 1980 election when it was Carter versus Reagan……I also can recall some of the dirty tricks and some of the media slogans that accompanied the election……it was a vote for either a true statesman and a movie star hardliner that worked closely with HUAC to “uncover” Commies in Hollywood….

But the election was about Carter….all the events that took place under his guidance of the country…..the hostage thing was the most pronounced….but there were economics involved and of course the ever present energy crisis….back in those days the media had to explain the popularity of Reagan and his eventual win and in doing so they came up with the term “Reagan Democrats”…..

The easiest definition of a Reagan Democrat…….A media term referring to blue collar voters who are thought to vote for Democratic presidential candidates but who actually vote for Republicans due to their conservative social views.

The problem is that the media has never let the term die a natural death…..every election they attempt to resurrect the term to explain a candidates popularity…..but is the situation as simple as the MSM wants it to be?

Of course it is not as simple as the media would like it to be….and in most cases there is NO validity to the claim…….

Reagan Democrats originally described blue collar white men who left their traditional allegiance to the Democratic Party to back Reagan over Democrat Jimmy Carter in the 1980 election. The phenomenon was vastly overstated from the start, as many blue collar Democrats began voting Republican in presidential elections in 1968 when they backed Richard Nixon. These so-called Reagan Democrats supported Nixon again in 1972, and were Democrats in registration only by the time of Reagan’s 1980 election.

Source: The Myth of the Reagan Democrat – LA Progressive

Blue Dog Democrats were these same voters but since they voted for Bill Clinton a new term had to be found….it was Dems voting for Dems……and then in 2010 the Blue Dogs lost their butts in the mid-term and the media needed to find a way to explain it…..so re-enter the term “Reagan Democrats”……

The term is still in use today by the pundits in the MSM……

It is as silly now as it was in 1980……

Next time you are listening to the media analyze the vote….listen closely and you will find the “Reagan Democrats” are back……

Here’s another thought to keep in your mind……

Clinton’s the only candidate left who holds faith with the platform that’s guided the U.S. since WWII: classic liberal interventionism, more familiar as the globocop policy that fueled both Bush presidencies.

Source: Hillary Clinton Trumps the Republicans on Foreign Policy – Haaretz – Israeli News Source Haaretz.com

It seems that Clinton is the only Republican left in the election race of 2016……

Is Trump a Fascist?

I am sure that this post will chap the butts of some readers…..but please read before you go off on some mindless babbling……

Before I begin let me say…..CALM DOWN!

I know….since I am not a Trump supporter I must be trying to defame him in some way or another…..you are WRONG!

I got to thinking about this when I heard the all the diatribes about Bernie being a socialist and then the ones that call him a Marxist….first that shows me that these people have NO idea what a Marxist is or what they believe…..

Then I have heard the “F” word batted around when some write about Donald  Trump….

There have been many attempts to equate Trump with Fascism….his xenophobia, his speeches on religion or his world overview….while I admit that some of his rhetoric is somewhat nationalistic and, at least to me, a bit disturbing….I do not think he is a fascist……mainly because I do not think he understands the label to begin with……I am not writing about the insult but rather the political ideology…….

I will admit in my younger days as a radical and a protester I had used the term liberally to describe many within our government…but that was when I was young, dumb and full of hate…..these days I have a more laid back approach to analyzing the crap we call government……

Many of Trump’s opponents both Right and Left have tried to make the jump to calling him a fascist……I do not think they use the term for no other reason than a way to try and stop his rise to the nomination…..

I bring this up because I read a good piece in the LA Progressive recently and wanted to press it to see what types of comments I would get……

Source: Is Trump a Fascist? – LA Progressive

Again I AM NOT accusing Trump of being a fascist…..I pressed this article purely as an FYI of what is being said about the candidate….so please read it before you jump to moronic conclusions……

But for the sake of argument let us say that he is a Fascist…..could anything be worse?

God yes!  A Cruz presidency!

The Texas senator is a conniving, fanatical, power-hungry demagogue whose policies would serve America’s 1 percent

Source: Donald Trump may be an actual fascist. Ted Cruz is still more dangerous – Salon.com

Fascism is about the most powerful epithet one can use — but it fits with Donald Trump. A historian explains why

Source: Trump’s not Hitler, he’s Mussolini: How GOP anti-intellectualism created a modern fascist movement in America – Salon.com

Again!  I am NOT accusing anyone of anything….I am just passing on some thoughts others have had on this subject……but as an analyst I can see lots of similarities between 2016 and the 1930’s Europe…..especially the rhetoric….

If you would like to comment….then now would be the perfect time……

US Hawks Ignore Top Israeli Official on Iran

The Hawks in the GOP for the 2016 election are still thumping their chest about how they will go about killing the Iran nuke deal…..regardless of what anyone says are the benefits…they are opposed….well it does make good political fodder for their campaigns….but is any of it really true….I mean all the visuals they give the voting public?

Neoconservatives and other right-wing pro-Israel hawks have ignored the fact that some (current) officials from Israel’s security establishment never viewed Iran—even armed with a nuclear bomb—as an existential threat. They have instead taken whatever Netanyahu says as articles of faith, faithfully repeating his talking points across any number of media and platforms. Of course, everyone is entitled to his or her opinion.

Source: US Hawks Ignore Top Israeli Official on Iran « LobeLog

These politicians are dangerous and will lead the US into a situation that will be our eventual downfall (my personal opinion)……..

Are You An “Apologist”?

An op-ed I wrote for Ace News Room…../after years of writing my opinions I have been called many things….but the one that has irritated me the most is when some mindless drone calls me an “apologist”…..below op-ed  is my thoughts on the use of the term……

BTW, if you are a news junkie then I suggest that you visit Ace News Room….an excellent source of worldwide news…..you will not be disappointed……

Source: Are You An “Apologist”?

Trump, The Video Star

Think back to last year….cannot be that hard it was 5 days ago……the last Dem debate of the year and our lady of the web, Clinton, made her now famous or maybe infamous (that will depend on your political persuasion I guess) statement about Mr. Trump…..Hillary Clinton Says Trump Is ‘Becoming ISIS’s Best Recruiter’

And that lead to a firestorm of accusations and rebuttals from the Trump side of this silly little coin……Trump Calls Clinton a ‘Liar’ Over Video Claim

All this drama did was give the fact checkers something to do and the media had their story for the next couple of days…..

Can you remember this or did all that turkey go to your brain instead of your ass?

Anyway the fact checkers pointed out that Clinton’s accusation was a…well I should I put it?  A lie.  Trump is not being used as a recruitment tool…..But then over the holiday break we had a oops moment……

Donald Trump’s call for a “complete shutdown” of Muslims entering the US has made it into a jihadist recruitment video. The video released Friday by Somalian al-Qaeda affiliate al-Shabab focuses on racial issues in the US and features video of Trump’s speech sandwiched between old clips of militant leader Anwar al-Awlaki warning that the US would turn against its Muslim citizens, reports Reuters. “Yesterday, America was a land of slavery, segregation, lynching, and Ku Klux Klan, and tomorrow, it will be a land of religious discrimination and concentration camps,” says al-Awlaki, an American citizen who was killed in a 2011 drone strike in Yemen.

The video, which cites recent police shootings in the US, urges African-Americans to convert to Islam and fight either overseas or at home, reports the New York Times, which notes that this appears to be the first time Trump has featured in a militant video, despite what Hillary Clinton claimed during a debate last month. ISIS and al-Qaeda are rivals, but the recruitment video linked to the latter group has been gaining traction among ISIS-linked groups online, CBS reports.

To be fair…..Trump is not the only focus of this video…..

Clinton, while telling a lie has become prophetic….sadly it was only going to be a matter of time before Trump’s words showed up somewhere on the net to incite others…..

I know that many Americans are worried about the future and for our nation…….I personally think that making Americans fear, distrust and yes hate our neighbors is not the way to insure our safety…..

Source: Trump Makes America Hate, Not Great – LA Progressive

All this rhetoric is nothing new…..it was heard about the Italians, Irish, Chinese, Germans, Cubans, Haitians and Vietnamese…..we are better than this division that is occurring….I just hope that we wake up and realize what we are doing before it is too late and the damage is done……..

Are You Politically Correct?

A subject that begs a few words.

These days of political rhetoric the term “politically correct” and variations of the word are everywhere…..especially it one is prone to what pretends to be conservatism……and this election is ripe for the use of the term.  It is a term when used the wombats on the Right cheer and applaud…..

But what is meant by the term “politically correct”?

In today’s usage it is an off-handed insult to anyone that disagrees with Right minded individuals.  In other words if you do not use the terminology that the GOP uses then you are suffering from “political correctness”…..if you do not use the term “radical Islamic terrorism” then you are being PC……so if you disagree with these people on any subject then you are being PC while they feel they are well informed……no matter how many times they are proven to be mistaken.

The use of the term is in place of other terms they like but try to be somehow intellectual….terms like “panty waste” or  “bleeding heart” or “apologist” and other such derogatory forms of name calling.

The election of 2016 is full of the term PC…..for example….if you refer to undocumented aliens instead of illegal aliens…… then you are being PC…..if you use Happy Holidays instead of Merry Christmas…..then you are being PC…..or so on and so on….(you probably have others)…..

Basically it boils down to one simple fact…..if you do not use the term they want you to use then you are suffering from “political correctness”.  And if you choose not to use their demented terminology then you are the worst kind of PC….a LIBERAL.

Another thing I find fascinating……has anyone (people who think Trump is some sort of messiah) taken the time to listen to all the low class rhetoric surrounding Trump?

Apparently not.  If they had then they would worried about the direction he would take this country if he were successful…..as it is most of these people are so concerned with what is happening in the US because of all the PC talk……and all the time Trump is talking about taking this country down the path they are so afraid the country will follow if he is not elected….

I would say it is because they will not take the time to think about what is happening…..but I know that is not the case…..sadly I know exactly why…..and so do they.

Open The (Overton) Window….We Need Fresh Air

By now the whole world is reeling at the comments of GOP front runner Donald Trump……although he has made many similar comments his newest has everyone (those that worship at the feet of the messiah) having to either justify the comment or condemn…..

About 5 years ago here on IST I offered up some philosophical techniques used in politics…..nowadays politics is full of innuendo and in some cases out right lies…….but this does have a practical side…..

Source: Argumentum ad populum–Revisited | In Saner Thought

Source: Argumentum Ad Hominem | In Saner Thought

It is nothing new….Trump likes to drive the conversation and will say whatever it takes from him to be the center of media attention…..just remember the statements he has made in the past 6 months or so…..since the beginning of his candidacy he has been the dominant voice in the coverage and the conversation……just read about his technique…….

Source: How does Trump do it? Understanding the psychology of a demagogue’s rally

Are there any PoliSci majors out there?  If there are then the traditional ideas of an election are flying in the face of everything you have been thought up to this point…..especially on the Right side of the spectrum.

The reason I ask is there is a theory in PoliSci first proposed by Joseph Overton…..it is called the Overton Window.

 A political theory invented by arch-conservative Joseph Overton, VP of the anti-tax Mackinac Center for Public Policy in Midland, Michigan.
In theory, the Overton Window represents the boundaries of “acceptable” public policy and discourse — what a politician can support without seeming too “extreme.” Opposing forces try to broaden this window (or shift it to one side) to make formerly “radical” ideas seem more “mainstream.”
Overton’s theory has a decidedly pro-business, anti-regulation slant. Something is either “more free” or “less free” in his view. He never mentions “more just” or “more fair” or “more practical.” In fact, the entire theory tailor made for paranoid people and right-wing lunatics who think Obama is a totalitarian Marxist dictator bent on world domination.
Trump is showing the classic signs of the Overton Window and his rival is doing exactly what was predicted…..He, Cruz, is not saying Trump is wrong but he is positioning himself as an ally so if Trump crashes then he can step in to the candidate’s donors and supporters.  Cruz will wait for an opening before he makes his move….that weakness will be first in poll numbers….

Trump Is Just Too Right Wing

I know my readers know what I think of the Donald…….I believe that he is wrong on so many levels and his popularity scares me and I worry about the future of my country.

I am sorry but he sounds all too familiar to some of the rhetoric from a past time…..his thoughts on immigrants….his thoughts on closing religious buildings…..and his idea of making a portion of the society made to carry a special ID system (whatever that is)…..again all too familiar.

Plus he made a statement the other day about what to do about the families of “terrorists” (the word is in parenthesis because I am talking about accusations not conviction) ……

Donald Trump told the hosts of “Fox and Friends” on Wednesday that he would “take out” the families of terrorists as President.

Asked how he could prevent civilian casualties while carrying out his plan to “bomb the hell” out of the Islamic State terrorist group, the Republican presidential frontrunner said America was “fighting a very politically correct war” and needed to focus on neutralizing the associates of terrorist……

“When you get these terrorists, you have to take out their families,” Trump said. “They care about their lives. Don’t kid yourself. But they say they don’t care about their lives. You have to take out their families.”

This sounds like guilty by association…..and it also sounds like the Israeli policy of punishing families of rock throwers by destroying their homes….sorry that is just wrong……

Of course we all have heard his account of thousands of thousands of people cheering at the attacks on 9/11, right?

I read an article about this situation and thought I would press it for this post……

Trump was right about 9/11 but they weren’t Muslims

Source: The Dancing Israelis – The Unz Review

Is Trump speaking truth or is this article?  I guess that will depend on which side of the ugly fence you stand.

This Is Why

I have dragged myself into the gutter with those that use insulting words to talk about others…..I had not realized just how bad it had gotten until another blogger pointed it out to me…..I was a bit pissed at first but as we exchanged thoughts I could see where he/she was going and he/she was right (thanx you…..the lonelyauthorblog)…….. and I shall try to do better in the future.

Yesterday I read something that just cheesed my grits…..do you remember during one of the Democratic debates when Clinton was asked about the enemies that she was proud to have?  Her response was Republicans.  That sent the net into I stroke on the Right….she was belittled for her answer saying that Americans should not be a presidential wannabe’s enemies……

Yesterday, as I said, I read a piece about something Sen. Ted Cruz had to say…..

Texas Sen. Ted Cruz claimed Monday during a radio appearance that “the overwhelming majority of violent criminals are Democrats.”

The Republican presidential contender told radio host Hugh Hewitt that Democrats — aided by a “salivating” media — attempt to use mass killings to damage

“Every time you have some sort of violent crime or mass killing, you could almost see the media salivating, hoping desperately that the murderer happens to be a Republican so they can use it to try to paint their political enemies,” Cruz said.

He continued: “Now, listen, here’s the simple and undeniable facts: The overwhelming majority of violent criminals are Democrats. The media doesn’t report that.”

(CNN)

I realize that it is fashionable to blame the media for all your perceived wrongs but a blanket statement like this is what he, among others, we bitching about when Clinton answered the debate question last month….

This is the type of stuff that can make a rational person go ballistic…..even if I were a conservative it is statements like that that would make me look elsewhere for a candidate to support.

This is one reason I have NO faith in the system anymore….when wild statements are held up as somehow a characteristic of a good candidate…..all it shows me is the shallowness of the American voter.

Elections are now about a candidate’s performance not substance……

I weep for this country’s future.