NYT on Bush campaign's chief tactic: "direct plays to fear and anxiety"

[Bush_Eats_Beef]

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/10/17/politics/campaign/17ads.html?ex=1255665600&en=f2c61302dd65c603&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt

SANTA FE, N.M., Oct. 16 - In one of President Bush's latest advertisements, a clock ticks menacingly as a young mother pulls a quart of milk out of a refrigerator in slow motion, a young father loads toddlers into a minivan and an announcer intones ominously, "Weakness invites those who would do us harm."

At work, they say, are direct appeals to fear, with Mr. Bush's campaign and supportive groups making the case that a vote for Mr. Kerry is a vote for insecurity at home, and liberal groups and Mr. Kerry using commercials to make the case that Mr. Bush's Iraq policy has caused needless deaths that will continue if he stays in office.

"I'm not sure we've really seen a campaign with so many explicit plays to emotion," said Darrell M. West, a professor of political science at Brown University. "What we're seeing this year are direct plays to fear and anxiety."

A recent commercial from the voter fund of a new Republican group, Progress for America, showed pictures of Osama bin Laden and a phalanx of masked terrorists as an announcer says, "These people want to kill us," and asks, "Would you trust Kerry against these fanatic killers?"

[BootinUp]

1. We can't lose y'all. Its a moral imperative. -eom

[Eurobabe]

2. watch frontline choice 2004, its in ch.5

how bush operatives use this tactic EVERY campaign they've ever run.
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/choice2004/view/

[Sparkly]

3. This INFURIATES me!!!

9/11 happened on BUSHCO's watch, because they were looking for "ICBMs from rogue nations," misappropriating defense funding toward recycled Star Wars ideas, and ignoring every ounce of intel on terrorism!!!

BUSHCO weakened our military with an unnecessary war in Iraq!

BUSHCO weakened our position in the world by ostracizing our allies!

BUSHCO weakened our economy with old failed policies, and they've failed to fund local first responders, security for our ports, security for our chem/nuke facilities, healthcare supplies, etc...!!!

It's BUSHCO that = Weakness!!

WHY don't people see that? It's unbelievable! How could they possibly have done any WORSE these past four years?! And people still want to vote for them? I'll never understand it. Not as long as I live.

[acmavm]

4. The thing we have to fear most is another bush* adminstration. Now

that scares the hell out of me.

[HysteryDiagnosis]

5. "Weakness invites those who would do us harm."<< out of the mouth of a

dumbass.

We have bombed and bombed and bombed every friggin square mile of this friggin world. What the hell kind of weakness does that show??? What kind of weakness do our trident subs show.. our navy, our air force, our troops in a bazillion countries, needed or not, our atomic bombs, our hydrogen bombs, our nerve gas, our missile defense, our laser weapons, our tanks, our humvees, our bradleys, geezus somebody give this bonehead a friggin clue.

Oh that's right... that creates hatred for the people dropping the bombs... it engenders terrorism and gives us an excuse to invade oil rich nations.... oh I see, that is Georgies calling... to create more terrorism in the world... well he has accomplished his goal.

www.veteransforcommonsense.org

If gw wanted to really invade a country that has supported terrorism in the past he can start with Saudi Arabia, move to Pakistan, and then finish up right here in the U.S. Hypocrites all.

www.soaw.org

[SammyWinstonJack]

6. Just exactly who are the "fanatic killers" we're talking about here?

"Masked terrorist". Let's pull off those masks and see whose really underneath them. And where is Osama? Oh yeah, bush* doesn't spend much time thinking about him.