Posted on 11/28/2012 7:05:38 AM PST by Lakeshark
I contend that much of the problem with current right-of-center electoral efforts involves conservatism as currently practiced. This has nothing to do with conservative principles, or any public preference for moderation in politics. It has to do with how conservatism is expressed, and can be summed up as conservatism's failure to sell itself.
**snip**
Several common stereotypes of conservatism exist and are utilized to define and destroy conservative candidates and movements.**snip** What all these have in common is that they are clown images -- laughable, easily caricatured, and, like all clowns, sinister and menacing at base..virtually any GOP or conservative spokesman or candidate can be slotted into a particular stereotype, and often more than one.**snip** These images have become received wisdom among the public at large, beyond debate or necessity of proof. They are fully integrated into public consciousness and have virtually become matters of instinct**snip** You can look long and hard to find any sign of effort by the conservative movement to combat or correct these stereotypes**snip** Palin's case marked the nadir of character assassination by the left and in a saner epoch will be looked back on as a milestone in the deterioration of American progressive politics.**snip** The conservative reaction can only be viewed as an expression of cowardice. So the public views it, and they are quite correct. A politician or party that will not stand up for its own reputation is unlikely to stand up for anything at all -- principle, tradition, or the interests of the voters.
**snip**
Leftist control of the conservative image is no longer acceptable.
Conservatives must seize control of their own image, or risk becoming the Mensheviks of the 21st century
(Excerpt) Read more at americanthinker.com ...
Many still do. They sided with Peggy Noonan, Mike Murphy, and lots of other so called conservative fools.
Kowtowing to leftist manipulation is the mark of cowardice, the article clearly points that out, and it's correct. Breitbart called those people on the right who didn't step up to the plate and defend her "eunuchs".
He was right.
While I agree with the authors premise I think that it is secondary to a more basic point - no party - not the Constitution party, the Libertarian party, or (especially) the Republican party - can compete with the Free Shyt party.
The Free Shyt party spends every day of every year actively working their game, preparing for the next contest and the next controversy - all on the taxpayer dime. Who can compete with that?
The Free Shyt party appeals to people’s baser emotions while those other parties attempt to reach out to folks based on reasoning and common sense. Who can compete with that?
The Free Shyt party hands out freebies, trinkets, and entitlements right out in the open and without fear of remonstration. And all they ask is a little piece of your soul. After all, most Amerikans don’t even believe they have one anymore. I ask you - who can compete with that?!
The Medium is the Message.
aka The Medium is the Massage.
it is a brief book which is a road guide to the modern media.
Reagan used this.
It does not matter what we say, the IMMAGE is obama as president. Visuals count.
Just like they manipulated GBush’s images. (ala juxtaposing him with marine one’s tail rotor warning of “keep away”)
then redefine free stuff.
make it toxic.
But the free shyt party is also allied with the Hollywood/Academic/Media image manipulation machine.
It's a tough enough sell to overcome free shyte, but add the image manipulation machine, those conservatives who buy in to the image, plus a bit of cowardice and you have:
A rout.
I hope to God we do see “saner” times ahead.
Public relations, branding... Means conservatives need to understand, espouse, and STAND FIRM ON core non-negotiable principles. Looks like a job for the T.E.A. Party.
This should be printed and taped to the mirror of every Republican politician.
Seriously, EVERY SINGLE ONE.
Either FIGHT BACK or get out of the ring!
Without the media Bambi wouldn't have gotten 40% of the vote this time around.
It's a problem......
ping
Now if they just weren't such redneck racist old white people.......
:-)
Good points. If I had to sum up the major reason why romney lost in one word it would be “image”. In politics image is everything. The MSM twarted our efforts. We have to find ways through facebook, youtube, etc to go around them.
The very name “conservative” is a liability. “Conservative” connotes old, old-fashioned, stodgy, boring, unimaginative, bland, drab, no fun, out-of-date, etc.,etc. The very image is a big negative.
The media has to be taken out before anything changes.
ObaMao has a very predictable speech pattern. When he's constructing a strawman, he starts with a phony base that is supposed to be taken as settled fact, then from that preposterous position, he builds on it with emotion charged rhetoric that is relatively logical if the original supposition is conceded.
Count the number of times ObaMo starts his delivery with "it is an undeniable fact", "every serious economist agrees that", "we all know", and so on. It's not something the person hearing it can prove or disprove, but it's spoken with such conviction that the person will file it away for later contemplation (which never occurs) and their mind is much more open to the following ideas after his subliminal, but authoritative and convincing rhetorical manipulation. He learned this technique as a community organizer to create anger, then action.
When responding to him, first chop away the base supposition (e.g. "that every serious economist believes") - and then that resets what this article says is the caricature that's painted, so the listener will refocus on the substance of the argument and not the fallacious base of the ObaMao strawman.
Liberals started calling themselves progressives when liberal became a dirty word, what should we rebrand conservatives as?
Hint: Not Inclusives.
” But the free shyt party is also allied with the Hollywood/Academic/Media image manipulation machine.”
And they are POWERFUL. The only way to beat them is
1) Run a fighter, who takes his conservative arguments to the streets.
2) Run a conservative, who doesn’t have to hide the past.
We lost conservative purists, the squishy middle, and probably some who wouldn’t vote for a mormon. Also, Romney played nice guy to Obama. Obama was not “a nice guy who didn’t succeed”. He is a Marxist thug, and it would have been easy to expose him. All of the statistics were HORRIBLE
under Obama, and they should have been wrapped around his neck!
Reagan was a nice guy, but he ATTACKED liberalism everywhere he went, AND his opponent, Carter, for his miserable record.
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