Quick Note
My schedule has been pretty full, but before I dash off to work (yes, I start late some days), I wanted to make a note of something: the McCain campaign is selling some pretty outrageous lies about Palin recently.
First, they’re claiming that Palin opposed the “bridge to nowhere.” It is plainly evident that she didn’t; she only killed it after it was already dead, and before that time, she heartily endorsed it.
Second, they’re claiming that she opposed Ted Stevens, the corrupt senator from Alaska currently under indictment. Also plainly false; she supported him and worked for his 527 group.
Third, they’re making a barrage of claims about Palin’s “executive” experience, as if her having the official role of “commander in chief” of Alaska’s national guard makes her qualified in a range of areas, including foreign policy. This claim is patently absurd, to the point of being laughable.
There’s more, but you get the idea. Now, probably they’re doing this because they simply have no choice; Palin has almost nothing to support her, so they have to use whatever crap they can make up, no matter how tissue-thin the support.
But I think there’s a strategy behind the claims, and it speaks to the neoconservative principles the McCain campaign is working from: create a narrative that serves you, no matter how demonstrably false it may be; simply claim it’s true, and enough people will believe you to make it a de facto “truth.”
It’s a matter of creating uncertainty and doubt: yes, she was for the bridge to nowhere, yes, she supported Stevens, and no, she has no credible experience to qualify her. But say the opposites with enough volume and sincerity, over and over on major platforms, and it will become yet another case of “maybe it’s true,” like “global warming does not exist” or “there were WMD in Iraq.”
And I think it’s true that they really just don’t have a choice here, so they’re going with all that they have and–perhaps literally–praying for the best.
But I think it’s kind of hard to succeed at something like this when so many people are laughing at you.
It also helps if you own the media from which “truth” is disseminated.
Corporate officers prefer Republicans, regardless of their merit to the nation, so corporations prefer Republicans, and Corporations own the media and so the employees of corporations working in the media spread the lie, and so on.
Essentially, what you describe them doing is a ‘reverse Al Gore’. As you may recall, the wingnuts defined Al Gore and the media spread the word. It was common knowledge that Al Gore said that he invented the internet. It was also a lie.
If they could do it in the negative to Al Gore, and again to John Kerry, why can’t they do it in the affirmative for Palin?
Think about that.
i can’t believe you were so fucking right! First it was the baby thing that any decent minded person would want left alone and focus on the issues but u pointed out that killing an easy rumor might erase harder rumors too. well not 24 hours after you posted that, the thing with the 17 year old daughter came out. another easier point of concern. so she has 2 points of concern that are easy to dismiss (obama obviously dismissed them too). but to be honest, there is a part of me that is slow to criticize her because it seems almost too easy. she worked for big oil, comes across as a small town beauty queen who wears the pants in the family. but she is vengeful and rash, quick to go along with the prevailing winds. so of course she accepted the vp nod. so all of this leads me to believe that she is being used by the republican party. so on the other hand, i feel bad for her! this cute stay at home mom is being taken advantage(she is an adult so maybe not) by the republican oil campaign machine. i am afraid that although we want to keep gender out of this, she will end up looking like a struggling mother( five kids, grandchild on the way, alleged scandal, etc) fighting against ol’ Biden. i CAN’T believe that they will appear as two equals in the debates or in the media as hillary and obama did(imo). so wtf? meh. as of right now, maybe we should just ignore her… what do i know. so confused.
oh and wtf is up with japan? how many prime ministers does a country need? the news said today that through Bush I, Clinton and miniBush, Japan had 13 prime ministers(including whoever is going to be voted into office in the next month). I am personally hoping the Obama impersonator gets voted in 😉