The Big Lie:
McCain and Palin tear page out of Hitler’s Notebook
I had an upsetting conversation with a friend yesterday-- a person I like and respect who “voted for Al Gore”. She plans to vote for McCain/Palin this time.
“Why” I asked.
“Because Obama is going to raise our taxes.”
“That’s not true. Most of us will get a tax cut.”
“Not if I make more than $200,000.”
“Do you make more than $200,000?”
“No”
“Then you will get a tax cut.”
“No. He’s going to raise taxes before he lowers them.”
“Now that’s just false.”
“His only experience in government is community service”
“That’s what he did right out of college. He’s been a state and U.S. Senator and is a professor of Constitu…”
Someone a few feet away said “That boy called our Governor a pig.”
My skin prickling I said “No, what he said was…”
But it was too late. My friend and the new entrant were comparing notes noisily.
I looked up at Fox News on the TV monitor and shuddered. We will get what we collectively deserve, I suppose.
For the record:
1. The tax “increases” McCain often references are of course a more complex deal than they let on. Of course they are, just look at your own taxes. It is fair to say, though that they mostly refer to closing tax loopholes used by companies like Exxon to avoid being taxed on real profits, and simply not continuing the Bushcuts-- tax breaks for our most wealthy citizens.
2. If you only watch Fox, or only listen to NPR, or only do as your Minister wills, don’t vote. This election requires us to crosscheck the facts and know your own mind.
As for McCain/Palin: This from the redoubtable Wiki:
The Big Lie
Used in Hitler's psychological profile
The phrase was used in a report prepared during the war by the United States Office of Strategic Services in describing Hitler's psychological profile:[3]
His primary rules were: never allow the public to cool off; never admit a fault or wrong; never concede that there may be some good in your enemy; never leave room for alternatives; never accept blame; concentrate on one enemy at a time and blame him for everything that goes wrong; people will believe a big lie sooner than a little one; and if you repeat it frequently enough people will sooner or later believe it.[4]
The Big Lie in popular culture
George Orwell's novel 1984 refers to the Big Lie theory on several occasions. For example:
“The key-word here is blackwhite. Like so many Newspeak words, this word has two mutually contradictory meanings. Applied to an opponent, it means the habit of impudently claiming that black is white, in contradiction of the plain facts.” [5]
“To tell deliberate lies while genuinely believing in them, to forget any fact that has become inconvenient, and then when it becomes necessary again, to draw it back from oblivion for just so long as it is needed...” [6]
Used in Hitler's psychological profile
The phrase was used in a report prepared during the war by the United States Office of Strategic Services in describing Hitler's psychological profile:[3]
His primary rules were: never allow the public to cool off; never admit a fault or wrong; never concede that there may be some good in your enemy; never leave room for alternatives; never accept blame; concentrate on one enemy at a time and blame him for everything that goes wrong; people will believe a big lie sooner than a little one; and if you repeat it frequently enough people will sooner or later believe it.[4]
The Big Lie in popular culture
George Orwell's novel 1984 refers to the Big Lie theory on several occasions. For example:
“The key-word here is blackwhite. Like so many Newspeak words, this word has two mutually contradictory meanings. Applied to an opponent, it means the habit of impudently claiming that black is white, in contradiction of the plain facts.” [5]
“To tell deliberate lies while genuinely believing in them, to forget any fact that has become inconvenient, and then when it becomes necessary again, to draw it back from oblivion for just so long as it is needed...” [6]
4 comments:
Hello Terry,
I have no idea where you get your facts, but while you're at it explaining to us how this new healthcare systems wiil be paid for?
cacrab
actually, thats fairly easy.
do you remember bush's medicare mess? meh- in short, nat/state health used to be able to "buy in bulk", kinda like getting the 100 roll TP pack at costgo instead of the 12 pack at walmart. they would "buy" but not take delivery of meds in bulk low prices. then the drs would write RXs, the insurance would cover them, and when the "bulk" ran out, medicare would purchase more.
bush killed that.
same with med supplies. same with several other long winded examples that ill go into if you want details. (or you can google "bush, medical, travesty" and see what comes up.)
anyways....B.O. could easily pay for half of the projected cost of his health plan simply by re-doing, over-turning, and streamlinging the bush mess (not to mention a few clinton messes, bush 1 mess, etc)
there's a LOT of room for redo there, my friend.
and thats half.
the other half?
meh....im betting it can be found. take a few of those 1000 heated toilet seats away from the pentagon.
here...heres a link:
http://64.233.169.104/search?q=cache:DhTjEIiWq70J:www.missouriprovote.org/Docs/MedicardPartDexcessCostforMO.pdf+%22bush,+prescription+2003+%22&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=3&gl=us&client=firefox-a
and thats just one state.
As costs to the public, seniors and the disabled skyrocket, so do industry profits. A recent Senate report
found that Medicare revenues of HMOs and PPOs will increase from $37 billion in 2003 to $226 billion in
2010 under the new law (up 510%).
5
Because the federal government is paying prices set by the drug
companies – rather than negotiating lower prices as does the Veterans Administration and most other
countries – fully 61% of the estimated $228 billion federal Medicare expenditures will remain with drug
makers as added profits, according to Professors Alan Sager and Deborah Socolar of Boston University.
6
Not only drug companies are profiting from the bill, more than 13 Administration and Congressional
officials in key positions during the writing and passage of this bill now work for the pharmaceutical
industry. Chief among them is former Congressman Billy Tauzin, who chaired the House Energy and
Commerce Committee that has jurisdiction over Medicare and is credited with guiding the law’s passage.
Tauzin now works for the drug industry's PAC, the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of
America (PhRMA). His pay is reported to be at least $2 million a year, making him one of the highest-paid
lobbyists in Washington. Bush’s Medicare Chief from 2001-2003, Tom Scully, is now the top healthcare
lobbyist for Alston & Bird with clients such as Abbott Laboratories and Caremark. Scully and Tauzin
Seems like 2009 is the time to buy drug company stocks, eh?
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