Catastrophe in the Gulf

All that can be gleaned from all the media accounts of the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is that that the situation is nearly hopeless and there are not enough assets, options, brains available to solve the problem.
Everyone is finger pointing, with Obama on one end and BP and contractors on the other, with a peanut gallery composed of local politicians joining in pointing in every direction.  The Republicans are equating the oil spill with huricane Katrina in order to embarrass the Administration as much as possible.
What would have been the optimal answer to this catastrophe?  With no plan by the government or BP in place, with no assets placed near by for such an emergency, not much of anything could have been done is the answer.  Without a plan established before hand time would be needed to establish what was happening down below in order to come up with a course of action  and gather the necessary assets.  With a nightmare composed of billowing oil, twisted pipe, and structural steel littering the accident scene in an extremely hostile environment no one in their sound mind would tread hastily. 

Sarah Palin: Propagandist

One of the main reasons for Sarah Palin's popularity is her use of propaganda ploys.  Through them she gives off a "folksy" demeanor (wink, wink), which goes over well with a crowd already primed  and selected to like and accept her and whatever message she is presenting at the time.

I've already covered in earlier blogs the basic ploys used in propaganda but will cover them again to make it easier for the reader to follow. 

First of all propaganda is artifice designed to benefit the propagandist, not the listener or reader.  A propagandist is like the proverbial "Snake Oil Salesman" hawking something in a bottle.  In Sarah Palin's case, it is Sarah Palin primarily and a political movement secondarily.  Selling her book and speaking for money is her reward and goal. Now to the ploys as outlined in materials by The Institute for Propaganda Analysis, a Think Tank established in the 1930's to thwart propagandists of the time.

Name Calling.  Giving an idea a bad label.  Used to make us reject and condemn an idea without examining the evidence.  The word "Liberal" is used by Conservatives as a "bad" word for example.  Noted in the critique by the symbol (n).

Glittering Generality.  Associating something with a "virtue word".  Is used to make us accept and approve a thing without examining the evidence.  "Freedom'' is a "good" word.  A Glittering Generality is Name Calling in reverse.  Noted  by the symbol (g).

Transfer.  Carries the authority, sanction, and prestige of something respected and revered over to something else in order to make the latter acceptable; or it carries authority, sanction, and disapproval to cause us reject or disapprove something the propagandist would have us reject or disapprove. God and the cross are often used as Transer symbols.  Noted by the symbol (tr).

Testimonial.  Consists of having some respected or hated person say that a given idea or program or product or person is good or bad.  As noted by the symbol (ts).

Plain Folks.  The ploy by which the speaker or writer attempts to convince his/her audience that he or his ideas are good because they are "of the people", the plain folks.  You betcha, wink wink are Plain Folks ploys.  Noted by the symbol (p).

Card Stacking.  The selective use of facts or falsehoods in order to give the best or worst possible case for an idea, program, person, or product.  Noted by the symbol (c).

Band Wagon.  Everybody and everyone that counts is doing it, and so should you.  The propagandist would have you believe that the group you all belong to accept his program and that we must therefore follow our crowd and "jump on the bandwagon".  Noted by the symbol (b).

What follows is a portion of Sarah Palin's keynote speech given to the National Tea Bag Convention.  After each propaganda ploy I will use the symbol for it as noted above.

Palin:  I'm so proud to be an American.(p)   Thank you so much for being here tonight.
 Do you love your freedom?(g)  If you love your freedom, (g) thank the vets.(tr)  Any of you here serving in uniform, past or present, raise your hand?(b)  We're going to thank you for our freedom(g).  God bless you(tr) guys(p)!  We salute you!(tr)  We honor you!(b)  Thank you(tr)!  I am so proud to be American(p)  Thank you!
Happy Birthday, Ronald Reagan(tr).
Well, a special hello to the C-Span viewers.(tr)  You may not be welcome in those health care negotiations(n), but you have an invitation to the Tea Party(g).
Very good to be here in Tennessee(tr), the Volunteer State(g).  Its home of good country music and good(g) southern barbecue(tr), and....Great to be at the Tea Party Convention(tr).  I guess down here, that's some southern sweet tea(g).  And you know up in Alaska(p) we have a smaller version of Tea Party(g) up there and we call it ice tea(g).  And I am a big supporter of this movement(p).  I believe in this movement(p)(tr).  Got lots of friends and family(b) in the lower forty-eight who attend these events(b), and across this country, just knowing that this is the movement(b) and that America is ready for another revolution(g), and you are a part of this.(b)
I look forward to attending more Tea Party events in the near future(tr).  It is just so inspiring(g) to see real(g) people(p).  Not politicos(n).  Not inside-the-beltway professionals(n).  Come out and stand up and speak out(b) for common sense conservative principles(g). 
And today, I want to start off with a special shout(g) out to America's newest Senator(tr).  Thanks to you, Scott Brown.(tr)
Now in many ways, Scott Brown represents what this beautiful movement(g) is all about.  You know(b), he was just a guy with a truck(p) and a passion to serve our country(g)  He looked around, and he saw that things weren't quite right(n) in Washington.  So he stood up(c), and he decided that he was going to do his part(g) to put our government back on the side of the people(b).  And it took guts(g).  And it took a lot of hard work(g).  But with grass roots support(g), Scott Brown carried the day(g). 
And so it goes on and on filled with such propaganda ploys.  She fills here speeches with such ploys and meaningless verbiage,  ingratiating herself with the crowd by artifice and flattery.  Its basic propaganda but effective.  Like most such propaganda spiels, when you take away the virtue words, there is very little in the way of a message.