unFocus

Anderson cooper just gave to to a self contradulating Senator that was talking about all the great things that she and other polititians have been doing. In response Anderson Cooper basically told her to cut the crap, then described how he saw a dead woman’s body is being eaten by rats. Her response was to attempt to address his grevance, then move right on back to her talking points and thanked the president for his response to the emergency - and man did it ring hollow.

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Update: the blog at www.crooksandliars.com is keeping pretty good score of who is saying what. It’s a good one to watch.

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I’m sure that the responsible, reasonable people of the progressive movement, would rather not talk about politics, and media games, and so on during the crisis in New Orleans when there is so much real work to be done on the ground, but the right is hard at work, spinning the reasons for the lack of a response in that city, and writing the rhetoric that will frame this conversation for the next two years. The left, liberals, the progressive movement - whatever we call ourselves at the moment, need to get out in front of this, before it takes hold, and real questions of competence and accountability are quelled, before even being asked.

You can already see their chosen talking points about the crisis in New Orleans and the right’s response all over Fox News and other shock news outlets. First, they already have an enemy to focus attention on - the “looters,” drug addicts and burning helicopters. And as far as they are concerned they are the responsible for the mess in it’s entirety. Next we have the beginnings of the reasoning for why nothing was done sooner - that some laws prevented a quicker response - and have even had the nerve to suggest that everything that could have been done has been done up till now - even while Bush was on vacation for two days after the beginning of all of this.

All the while, they ignore the facts - that the people in charge (save Mayor Ray Nagin, who was out pulling old ladies from their attics) from the governor of LA to the president of the United State, George Bush, chose early on to focus their attention on the “looters,” who at the time were a minor part of the problem. They chose to redirect the public’s police to secure private economic properties from the “looters,” away from their responsibility to help and protect the sick and dying in the streets and in the homes of New Orleans. In the two days that George Bush chose to lounge in his easy chair at his ranch in Texas, and the next three days of committees and press conferences, and the continued lack of activity, the situation deteriorated to point where the violence and desperation are now the biggest threat to the people still trapped inside the city, and the Super Dome.

They are actively setting the stage for another close encounter with accountability. Please do not let them wiggle out of their negligence for the umpteenth time, through the use of information manipulation, and rhetoric.

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It’s coming, so be prepared.

When asked questions about why they chose to make the looting a priority, in the hurricane zone, over providing help for the refugees in the form of food, water, shelter and security, the Bush administration will come up with some Carl Rovian slogan that will explain it all away, and then repeat it 95 times every time they talk to anyone.

Be prepared. Don’t take the bait. When they use these techniques - call them on it. It is perfectly appropriate - and necessary - to point it out when they are deliberately and obviously trying to mislead us with rhetoric and propaganda.

Update: It looks like I had it wrong. They decided to go with the find an enemy and get everyone to focus on them route. That enemy - the “looters.” It was such a priority for them that they decided to take personal away from helping the sick and dying, and had them stop the looting instead. Where do their priorities lie anyway.

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This business of calling every scandal under the sun “something-gate” is a practice that ought to stop. It does nothing to help educate people about the issue, and does much to trivialize whatever issue it is trying to convey.

Watergate was the name of an important part of the case that lead to the resignation of Richard Nixon.

Take “Memogate” - in this case, I think it would be more important to remember the details of what this case is really about, rather than some slogan that refers to another time in history when a president of the US was being impeached for completely unrelated - and I’d say less serious - charges. There is no reason why we shouldn’t expect people to learn and remember the details and importance of “Downing Street Minutes” scandal.

BTW, you can find more information about the Downing Street Minutes scandal here.

Here’s an interesting summary of the original Memogate.

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