"Personal Accounts" vs "Mandatory Gambling" = "Privatization"

[scottxyz]

Great article from Matthew Yglesias via Digbysblog.blogspot.com - on how to get the media to go back to using the word "Privatization":

http://digbysblog.blogspot.com/2005_01_23_digbysblog_archive.html#110676873762151539

Come up with a serviceable term that 'focus-groups' even worse than private accounts.... You send around a memo getting all Democrats to start calling them "X accounts" while the White House calls them "personal accounts." Then "private accounts" will look like a decent compromise and it may well get back in the stories.

= = =

Once again, the Republicans left us a very useful blueprint for how to derail a major initiative like this. The Clinton Health Care Plan. Their frame was "government run health care", "they want to choose your doctor" "they'll make going to the doctor like going to the DMV or the post office." The took their favorite boogeyman and used it to completely distort the plan in a simple, creepy way.

Is there any reason that we shouldn't use similar scare tactics about taking your guaranteed retirement money and letting Wall Street to play with it? Nope. And once we do that, the press will be obliged by its he said/she said "objectivity" to not only choose the term "private accounts" to split the difference between what the two parties want, they will also be obliged to report our demagoguery along side Bush's demagoguery. Let the best scare tactic win.

= = =

Sorry it had to get this nasty. But the Republicans started it.

[illflem]

1. Excellent plan!

[DireStrike]

2. Good idea, it's not mandatory though... is it?