by B. D. Schiers
Right wing propagandist, Frank Luntz, was awarded the 2010 PolitiFact Lie of the Year award for his promotion of the phrase 'government takeover.'* The distinction hasn’t stopped him from creating even bigger whoppers since then.
In a recent meeting with the Republican Governor’s Association, Luntz announced that he thought telling the 99 Percenters to “occupy a job and take a bath” was cute, but not effective. He is admittedly “scared of this anti-Wall Street effort,” and its “impact on what the American people think of capitalism.”**
To bolster the GOP’s defense of the 1% and it’s war on the middle class, Luntz has proposed a series of linguistic manipulations. His hope is that Republican politicians, right wing talk shows, and the corporate elite, will echo his Orwellian speak in goose-step repetition.
In order to prevent this attempt to occupy the narrative, it is essential to know the catch phrases as they slither into the national dialog. My hope is that the pundits of plutocracy will be called out on every attempt they make to control the discussion.
Here are nine linguistic manipulations you should be familiar with:
1. “Job Killers” and “Job-Creators”
When John Boehner became Speaker of the House, the first item on the agenda was to repeal “Obama’s ‘Job-Killing’ Healthcare Bill.” From that point on you heard righties labeling everything they don’t like as a “job-killer.”
Likewise, in order to avoid being seen as the defenders of the rich & the super-rich, Luntz suggests the GOP call their benefactors “job-creators.” The implication being that if the 1% have to pay their fair share, it will hurt the economy and there will be less jobs. Of course nothing is further from the truth.
Even though the CBO and other independent analysts have proved otherwise, this “job creator” myth has been very effective in swaying people away from the truth. But, that is quickly changing as the Occupy Movement has raised public awareness. People now see that corporate America is sitting on record-breaking stockpiles of cash with little or no jobs being created.
2. Turn “Paying Your Fair Share” Into “Taking From the Rich”
The whole Robin Hood idea of taking from the rich and giving to the poor frightens the corporate elite to no end. It always has. Right wing propagandists have long enjoyed accusing liberals of wanting to “redistribute the wealth.” They even had Joe the Plumber and other low-information voters saying it. Now the tide has turned and the public is realizing there have already been 30 solid years of wealth redistribution going upward and not down to them.
So Luntz has come up with the new term, “taking from the rich.” Which I assume he’s hoping people will associate with stealing instead of fairness. We prefer calling it “paying their fair share” and that is not stealing no matter how much Luntz tries to twist its meaning.
3. Dissociate From the Word “Capitalism”
Luntz recognizes that one of the major successes brought about by the Occupy Movement is the increased awareness of the injustices of corporate controlled capitalism. His own research shows that the public is beginning to “think capitalism is immoral.”
At a recent gathering of the Republican Governors Association, Luntz warned, “if we’re seen as defenders of quote, Wall Street, end quote, we’ve got a problem.” In order to pretend they aren’t the defenders of something “immoral,” which they are, Luntz urges his Republican friends to dissociate themselves from the word “capitalism.”
He has two suggestions for replacement: “economic freedom” and “free market”, both of which are actually complete opposites of what corporate controlled economics is all about. In fact, “economic freedom” is exactly what the economically oppressed would love to have.
4. Abandon the Term “Middle Class” And Use the Term “Hard Working Taxpayers”
If you have seen any of the GOP Presidential debates, you’ll notice the term, “middle class” is rarely, if ever, used. It is not by accident.
As the GOP finds the middle class support on the decline, Luntz suggests “hard working taxpayers” has a more appealing ring. The idea is to give the impression that the 99 Percenters are a threat to people who work hard and pay their taxes. Of course, nothing is further from the truth.
Contrary to the right wing claim of the Occupy Movement being a “lazy” bunch of “dirty hippies,” most of the support actually comes from “hard working taxpayers” and people looking for jobs so they can become “hard working taxpayers” again. So we think the change in terminology could very well backfire.
5. “Government Spending” Didn’t Work So Let’s Try “Government Waste”
The GOP has been clamoring about government spending ever since the Reagan-era. And for the most part, they have been able to convince people that government spending is (1) a bad thing (2) something only Democrats do. But people are waking up to fact that they like having roads and bridges. They like having schools and police officers to protect their children. They like most of the things the government spends money on.
They also realize that the Republicans are by far the largest contributors to the national debt. And worse, that the Republicans don’t really care about the national debt as much as they do protecting the 1%.
So to shift the focus, Luntz suggests using the term “government waste” to spark the ire of the low-information voters the GOP depends on. After all, every one hates “waste,” and every politician promises to “cut waste.”
6. “Compromise” Is Bad, Bad, Bad – “Cooperate” Is Oh, So Nice
One of the major hurdles the GOP has to face is the fact that they are unwilling to compromise on almost anything. So rather than compromise, Luntz has decided to make compromise a dirty word. Unlike Reagan who was famous for compromising with Tip O’Neill and the Democrats, today’s Republicans see it as a “sign of weakness” and a “sell-out of principles.”
As far as Luntz is concerned, not only should the GOP refuse to compromise, they should also vilify the very word. In it’s place, “cooperate” has a more enticing ring.
7. “I Get It, I Get It, I Get”
This is one of the most condescending phrases Luntz has ever come up with, and he’s come up with some disgraceful ones throughout his life. His suggestion for any discussion with an Occupy sympathizer is to respond with “I get it...”
Not only is it dismissive, it is very reminiscent of “I’m not a racist, but...” Or, “I feel your pain, but...”
What is evident is they have no real argument to go against the Occupiers. Rather than confront them directly, they dismiss with a simple sleight-of-mouth technique.
8. “Sacrifice” Is Sacrilegious
It is almost funny how the word “sacrifice” is such a frightening idea to the 1%. They don’t like the word “sacrifice” because it can easily be used by those who are truly doing the sacrificing. The irony being that the 99% have had to sacrifice immense burdens throughout the recession while the 1% have continued to prosper at an alarming rate.
Every time a cut back is made in social programs, people sacrifice. The whole debt reduction debate was about cutting social programs, but you never heard Republicans express a bit of concern over the individuals who would suffer from the consequences.
9. Don’t Blame Me, Blame Washington
I just love it when politicians, consultants & lobbyists who live in Washington, who work in Washington, who make their careers in Washington, never take accountability for their actions. But who can blame them when Frank Luntz told them not to?
Luntz’s other contention is that “corporations are not to blame, government is.” That may go over well with the misinformed, but as the Occupy Movement so accurately points out, corporations own and control the government.
10. Bonus
I know I said there were going to be nine linguistic manipulations, but this one is a bonus. “Don’t use the word ‘bonus’.” Frank Luntz doesn’t like that word. It implies that CEOs are getting something for nothing. Instead he prefers you use “pay for performance.”
Notice he didn’t say “pay for good performance.” Even when CEOs bring their corporations to near collapse, or even to bankruptcy, they get enormous bonuses. The biggest irony of all concerns the Tea Party. Remember how the Tea Party was outraged that taxpayer money was being used to bail out Wall Street. But when corporate contributions started coming in, they quickly elected politicians who did Wall Street’s bidding. Not only do they support the practice of record breaking compensations, but they also want to reduce corporate taxes even more, leaving the 99% (including the Tea Party) holding the short end of the stick.
*Wikipedia.org
**From a report by Chris Moody, Yahoo News
© B. D. Schiers, 1v99 & 1v99.blogspot.com
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