keller@uicsl.UUCP (03/10/84)
#N:uicsl:16300055:000:3379 uicsl!keller Mar 9 16:18:00 1984 Greetings: This morning, on the CBS Morning News, a new Democratic Party advertisement was shown. It was a simple short ad. showing a woman speaking to the camera and essentially saying: "Do you think that the government only serves the interests of the rich? We think that it should serve those who need help. The Democratic Party." I find this advertisement disgusting. It presumes such base emotional reactions, a complete lack of reasoned response, that it qualifies as revolutionary propaganda. By creating an enemy, the "rich," and claiming that government can be a mother to us all, it seeks to split the population into two groups: the oppressed and the exploiters, with Big Brother government coming to stomp on the exploiters and distribute the spoils to the needy thereby eliminating all of life's unpleasantness. The Democrats have had control of the government for a large part of the past 30 years and are responsible for making the government what it is today. If it is a government of inequity, then it is their fault. This advertisement is in the same style as Mondale's campaign rhetoric. If the Democratic establishment can't recognize the difference between claptrap and the more reasoned (although, I think, flawed) message that Gary Hart is offering, then they are destined to lose. Don't presume that I am an unquestioning Republican. My beliefs run closer to Libertarian, and I hope that they are more the result of a commitment to rational inquiry than arbitrarily placed faith. I would love to see a political process built on the goal of creating a society with as few constraints as possible yet enabling the basic associations and communication needed for leisure, education, and business. I don't think that a civilization can be built on the single goal of redistributing wealth to the needy. I don't believe that any party is going to create a Utopia, or even a workers' paradise. And I don't believe that a central government can create or implement a BIG PLAN to direct all the facets of society in concert together. The fact is nobody in government acts like they believe in such a plan. They follow the winds that blow the hardest or the quickest route to crude power. Yet, when campaign time comes so does the simplistic philosophy. No one of us is an economist, philosopher, sociologist, political scientist, and physical scientist, but there are discoverys, studys, and conclusions in each of these fields that can bring us a better life. By better life I mean one where we can use our creativity and labor to provide ourselves and others with knowledge, services, and products that enrich our existence. I submit that without some change toward a political system that is a clear extension of our ever increasing knowledge about ourselves we will be fated to the same shaky prosperity that we now enjoy. Hart seems to think that government should have powerful control over all areas. The evidence is that central planning is ineffective and dangerous. I direct you to Milton and Rose Friedman's book "Free to Choose" for a detailed argument of this position. So the next time you hear an inane political advertisement or speech ask yourself if they are trying to reach you, and make some effort to change things if they aren't. Maybe what you need to do is change political parties--perhaps to a third party. -Shaun
jj@rabbit.UUCP (03/12/84)
I don't see any difference between the Democratic Party advertisment that you are complaining about and any other Deomcratic Party advertisment. Nearly all of them play on emotions and use deliberately divisive and misleading statements because the Democratic Party is aware that such statements will win more votes than making a reasoned argument. One of my prime objections to the way the Democratic Party operates is the way that they cater to rage, divisiveness, and emotional issues without ever offering solutions. I can't say I'm much for the Republicans, either, but at least they keep the Democrats somewhat honest, and they keep the fool Liberatarian Party (which has nothing to do with Liberatarian principles, as far as I've noticed) out of the road. -- TEDDY BEARS ARE NICER THAN PEOPLE-- HUG YOUR OWN TODAY ! (allegra,harpo,ulysses)!rabbit!jj
rob@ctvax.UUCP (03/14/84)
#R:uicsl:16300055:ctvax:40500002:000:612
ctvax!rob Mar 12 10:58:00 1984
Problem:
Write the copy for a commercial for the Democratic Party.
Your audience is an electorate that three and a half years ago
gave Ronald Reagan a "mandate".
You have thirty seconds.
What can you expect but something short and catchy such as the implication
that Ronald's the president of the rich?
This, I think, is going to be Gary Hart's problem. To explain his new
ideas in short slogans that people can remember.
He can't say "Read my book". What percentage of Americans read ONE
non-fiction book per year?
Rob Spray
uucp: ... {decvax!cornell!|ucbvax!nbires!|allegra!parsec!}ctvax!robneal@denelcor.UUCP (Neal Weidenhofer) (03/23/84)
************************************************************************** > I find this advertisement disgusting. It presumes such base >emotional reactions, a complete lack of reasoned response, that it >qualifies as revolutionary propaganda. By creating an enemy, the "rich," >and claiming that government can be a mother to us all, it seeks to >split the population into two groups: the oppressed and the exploiters, >with Big Brother government coming to stomp on the exploiters and >distribute the spoils to the needy thereby eliminating all of life's >unpleasantness. So what else is new? How do you think they gained control of the congress for the last several decades? Regards, Neal Weidenhofer Denelcor, Inc. <hao|csu-cs|brl-bmd>!denelcor!neal