MEME MEMO: Neocons are shamefully exploiting Reagan's death...

[ClassWarrior]

...to further their political agenda.

Let's "Wellstone" them. Pass on this bit of wisdom to everyone you know.



And keep this thread kicked!

[Cooley Hurd]

1. How so?

:shrug:

[MallRat]

2. HEAR, HEAR!

:kick:

[blm]

3. I wouldn't sully Wellstone's great name by using it in a negative way.

.

[ClassWarrior]

4. No intention to sully Wellstone's name.

He's a hero of mine.

[blm]

6. I didn't think you would do so intentionally.

Sometimes the unintentional can have consequences not bargained for.

It's not like we own the media.

[Joanne98]

5. They planned to exploit it years ago.

Let's ruin it for them. :)

[Somawas]

7. Lets leave them alone

And let them have their orgy of grief over a man whose body died ten years after his brain did (at least). And if we need to have a grief show of our own, we can have it for the 820 Americans who have died pontlessly in the neocon "War" on terror. Or we can celebrate, tomorrow, the capture of Osama just 1,000 days after he attack on the WTC. We have caught him, haven't we?

[cliss]

13. Agreed, S.

I couldn't care less what the Repugnant pugs do. They have already cast their fate. Let them dance on his grave. They remind me of amoebas which float in a drop of water under the microscope. Soon, you can see the amoeba move up to some other amoeba and it swallows it up.

That's what they remind me of. Amoebas.

Welcome to the DU, by the way. Nice 11th post.

:party:

:toast:

[ClassWarrior]

14. Yes, let's just ignore them.

Maybe they'll go away.




<sarcasm off>

[ClassWarrior]

11. True. The disgusting thing is...

...if this was a Democratic president, they'd be accusing us of doing it whether we were doing it or not.

[Vickers]

8. Man, who saw THAT coming, huh?

Knock me over with a feather!

[Waverley_Hills_Hiker]

9. Folks, I posted this very thing on one of the "death threads"/

This is going to be a big right-wing political fest. The Great Ronald Reagan.

Thiis is why I dont have any compunctions about speaking the truth about his presidency, and not going on some 'mourning" or "show some repsect" silencing trip.

[ClassWarrior]

10. Yes, there is a difference between being disrespectful and truthful.

I say we do the latter, but refrain from the former.

[Vickers]

15. Sadly, being truthful about RR *will* be called disrespectful

Remember, NEVER BADMOUTH A PRESIDENT!*















*unless it's Carter or Clinton

[checks-n-balances]

20. " *unless it's Carter or Clinton..."

** or sometimes even FDR or LBJ (in order to discredit & dismantle what's left of the NEW DEAL and GREAT SOCIETY)

[ClassWarrior]

12. kick

n/t

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

16. It was a foregone conclusion that would happen

Perhaps we can be grateful for the timing...they won't be able to milk it through November as anything can happen between now and then...hell it won't even last through their convention.

[ClassWarrior]

17. Of course it was.

But we have to make sure the public sees it for what it is.

[union_maid]

18. If we could have done that..

..he wouldn't have won a second term. He wouldn't have been elected in the first place, if we had the power to make sure the public saw things for what they were. If we want to do something constructive and can get a message out at all, it should be about how Bush is no Reagan. Reagan is loved by a lot of the same people his policies hurt and the good news is that we don't have to fight him, but only Bush in 2004.

[ClassWarrior]

19. That's another good meme.

"Bush* is no Reagan."

And you're right - the people inexplicably loved Ronnie. That's why the "exploiting his death" meme will stick. Pass it on. At least now we have the power of the internet to help us get the truth out. Don't give up - fight!!

[calimary]

39. "bush. It's come to THIS."

"bush. Is that the best they can do?"

"bush. That's all they've got, anymore."

"bush. They've come a long way - for nothing."

"bush. All downhill since Reagan."

"bush Two. Sloppy Seconds."

"bush. Enough to make Reagan roll over in his grave." Hey! We CAN say that now!

"Reagan wouldn't have done it that way."

"Reagan wouldn't have let THAT happen."

And remember Ron Junior's great statement: "my father craps bigger than George Bush." That's the best one, I think, although not always easy to say in polite company...

[ClassWarrior]

21. kick

n/t

[Az]

22. It won't work

The neocons and the right currently control the medium. We have nothing in place that can counter their ability to control the flow of ideology. Its going to take a lot of work and coordinated effort to get the left's voice active again. We are mute. If we raise our head up to make a point it will get shot off by a hundred neocons in the media.

If you want to fight then there is a path that must be taken. Simply running off and shouting at the nearest conservative praising Reagan will only get yourself shot down as a loony member of the left. We need to establish a series of bases for the left to push our message into the populace otherwise we will continue to be marginalised by the right until we cease to have any voice at all.

[ClassWarrior]

24. So we as individuals can do nothing, lest we be labeled as loonies, right?

Okay, let's just give up. It's hopeless.

<sarcasm off>

[Az]

25. Nothing?

Hell no. We can do lots. But we have to coordinate our efforts. This is what is killing us. The right has a natural advantage in this area in that its members are mostly drawn from Sheeple. Just because we have a tendency to be as difficult to organise as herding cats doesn't mean we can't do it.

We have to spell out what it is the left stands for. We have to get this clearly before the public. We have to support a managable number of outlets to get this message out there. We have to spread this message far and wide and keep it consistant.

We all have a part to play in this. It has to start somewhere. It can start with you. But it has to be a controlled and thought out effort. Not just running around waving our hands in the air in anger.

[ClassWarrior]

26. Well, what do you think I'm trying to do here?

I'm trying to suggest a coordinated talking point that we all can insert into casual conversation with conservative - or, even better, moderate - associates, with the intent that it will take on a life of its own. I never advocated "running off and shouting at the nearest conservative praising Reagan" or "running around waving our hands in the air in anger." The beauty of this meme is that it shows respect for a much-loved individual and his family at the same time it holds the Republicans accountable for their always-shameful behavior.

Try it - if it doesn't spread over the next week, so what? At least we'll have tried.

[Az]

27. Still not sure it can work

In order for a meme to take hold it must be have a mind receptive to it. The current memeplex dominating the medium is one of the the left is untrustworthy and will pull tricks so it only makes sense for the right to try to keep pace (ie everyone is doing it).

Thus the meme will be blunted and not gain a foot hold unless the person is already open to the notion that Ronnie may not have been all that. A Neocon or conservative will reject the meme outright because it doesn't even come close to the threshhold.

Don't get me wrong. You are thinking in the right way (er left way :) ). But I cannot stress enough that there needs to be a concerted effort to counter the rights voice in the media. Until this happens grassroots type movements will never have a chance. They won't even be able to get beyond a murmur.

[ClassWarrior]

28. How on earth do you get...

..."Ronnie may not have been all that" out of "the Republicans are exploiting his death??" I think this meme plays directly to the scores of people who have a fondness for Reagan. It's classic case of divide and conquer - look how these nasty Republicans are sullying that nice Mr. Reagan's death.

And it's neither "left" nor "right." It is something that would be seen as respectful indignation coming out of anyone's mouth, no matter his or her political stripe.

And once again, considering it requires minimal expenditure of effort, what can it hurt to try??

Agreed, we need a stronger voice in the media, but I can do little about that - I certainly don't have the capital to finance an AAR. What I can do is engage in word-of-mouth - which is equally important. We need to use every opportunity we have, large and small.

[Az]

29. Here is what happens

You use the "the Republicans are exploiting his death" meme. The question that then enters their mind is if the individual "exploiting" his memory is in line with his memory. If they see them as continuing his charge then they will see the comment as meaningless harping on the part of the left.

In the same way we saw the right as being idiots for bashing the Wellstone comments they will see us as idiots for bashing Reagan's tailcoat riders.

The problem here is that it is hoped that someone will champion the ideas of a fallen leader. People want someone to pick up the mantle. The King is Dead! Long live the King!

To this end the real lever to put a meme to work on is whether the person claiming to follow in Ronnie's footsteps really is a true champion of his or merely an opportunist. This meme is far more insidious and potentially effective.

[ClassWarrior]

30. Anyone who sees us as idiots...

...for bashing Reagan's tailcoat riders is a hopeless case anyway. What I'm talking about here is convincing those who don't pay as much attention as we do. Some would call them "the sheeple," but I hate that condescending term.

Therefore, what I'm suggesting is exactly what you just posted - paint Ronnie's self-appointed heirs as the disgusting opportunists they are.

And that's what I like about it - it has the potential to be extremely insidious and effective.

[calimary]

41. OR, it helps to SEPARATE the concept of Reagan from the concept

of bush. Reagan represents the high point, the glory days of the republi-CONS and the right, in general. bush can't hold a candle to Reagan. This should, indeed, be attempted, because we HAVE TO encourage a divorce between the two concepts, NOT a marriage. That's what seems to be in the wind among the republi-CONS. They want to position bush as the rightful heir of Reagan, and thus the rightful claimant to the White House "throne." We must get in the way. All we have to do is respectfully point out that this weasel in there now is NO son of Reagan, and in fact couldn't even touch the hem of his garment.

"bush. The Right. Gone Wrong."

"bush. Not fit to touch the hem of Reagan's garment."

"bush. Reagan's SHAME-sake."

"bush. He CAN'T measure up."

[Snellius]

23. They shamefully exploited him in life.

Why not in death?

[ClassWarrior]

31. WE know that... THEY know that...

We've gotta make sure the Reagan-adoring American public knows that...

[Snellius]

32. I wonder if much of this public really buys this eulogy.

The cable news Russerts and Tweeties are certainly in the full throngs of some religious ecstasy. But I didn't see a lot of laurels laid at the Great Conservative Messiah's memorial site there in Santa Monica.

[ClassWarrior]

33. I saw NO flags at half-mast yesterday as I drove around.

n/t

[mopaul]

34. kick

[ClassWarrior]

35. kick for the lunch crowd

n/t

[ClassWarrior]

36. Still kicking...

n/t

[ClassWarrior]

37. Like Pele...

n/t

[ClassWarrior]

38. Night kick...

n/t

[Kazak]

40. "Win one for the Gipper."

I've heard that phrase trotted out more than once already. :puke:

[calimary]

42. How 'bout - "he's a TRIPPER, not the Gipper."

Or maybe "a FLIPPER, not the Gipper." As in - flip-flops.

"A FIBBER, not a Gipper."

[Kazak]

44. "Flipper"

I like it! Turn it back on them...heck yeah.

[Hailtothechimp]

43. The Republican circle jerk is in full effect.

Let's just ride it out for awhile, like until the 9/11 report comes out or the Plame outing heats up again, or all of the Enron tapes are released, or more Abu Gharib pictures are released or someone stumbles upon bu$h's cocaine bust or Fahrenheit 9/11 comes out.....you get the idea. This isn't over by a long shot.

[ClassWarrior]

45. Ride it out, sure...

...but let's get some mileage out of the ride as well.