On Political Framing: The Washington Elite As People Herders

Framing or the art of manipulating a topic so that it is seen at a different angle (and so will be accepted more widely) is a topic that is of great interest on the Daily Kos.

For some reason, Trent Lott's goat pen qoute from yesterday reminded me of framing. For anyone who hasn't heard it or read it, here it is from McJoan's post:

"If the answer is 'build a fence' I've got two goats on my place in Mississippi. There ain't no fence big enough, high enough, strong enough, that you can keep those goats in that fence.

"Now people are at least as smart as goats. Maybe not as agile. Build a fence. We should have a virtual fence. Now one of the ways I keep those goats in the fence is I electrified them. Once they got popped a couple times they quit trying to jump it."

Any thinking person can see the racism in this, the inhumanity of the Washington Elite at the moment. No, not every politician goes around saying things like this-but Trent Lott is not exactly a black sheep  with Washington Elite.

Yes, Trent Lott is talking about illegal immigrants in that qoute-but I am taking his language literally-I truly believes he feels this way about most people. And no, I am not saying these sort of sentiments are apropriate for any persons-especially when directed at illegal immigrants who are just trying to survive. I'm not convinced being an illegal alien is a lot of fun and they come over to be rebels-in fact it is a last ditch effort to survive. I'd do the same thing if I were in their posisitions.  

But this is how we are viewed-You and I-no matter what our skin color, or our sex, or status or lack there of in society. As goats. GOATS!!!! If you are an active reader, contributor or general sympathizer for this website, you are less than dirt to most of the people who are supposed to represent us. They could give a damn about our general welfare, and even less so about those who are uppity enough to complain online about it.

That is how we are viewed. Animals to be guided through life, for profit, for greed, and maybe in the dark souls of the likes of Trent Lott for kicks. Because they can.  

They do not view themseleves as ordinary-they are special people who are better, smarter, and therefore should lead the rest of us around by the nose. Sure, every once in awhile a person in the masses is plucked to be a useful idiot, but other than that we are just barnyard animals.

We have come full circle in this country-from having individual rights to having individuals rule over us.

Its right in our face now. There is no hiding it. A Virtual  Fence has been built with money. We are inside of it. Maybe its hard to see because we are packed in so tightly, but here we are, in a sheep pen.

So what the hell are we to do about it?

•  Hey, #!

  It was Trent Lott, not Delay.

  Good read, otherwise.

  by Marcus Tullius on Sat Jun 23, 2007 at 12:42:29 AM PDT

  •  thank you!

    they are all the same to me

    i can see Tom DeLay saying something like that

    by Krush on Sat Jun 23, 2007 at 12:54:52 AM PDT

    •  Absolutely.

      Although I imagine him saying something more in keeping with his his bug killing background.

      by Marcus Tullius on Sat Jun 23, 2007 at 12:56:00 AM PDT

    •  he could write it in a book...

      and then deny that it's in there.

      by Trix on Sat Jun 23, 2007 at 12:56:11 AM PDT

      •  for anyone who missed it...

        by Trix on Sat Jun 23, 2007 at 12:57:28 AM PDT

    •  Gotta head to the airport now.

      Good reading ya, as always, #.

      Many blessings.

      by Marcus Tullius on Sat Jun 23, 2007 at 12:58:45 AM PDT

      •  have a safe trip

        by Krush on Sat Jun 23, 2007 at 01:03:13 AM PDT

•  we had our chance to be heard :(

  

  by Trix on Sat Jun 23, 2007 at 12:46:03 AM PDT

  •  best [volunteer-made] campaign poster ever :) n/t

    by Trix on Sat Jun 23, 2007 at 12:47:42 AM PDT

    •  Damn right. n/t

      by Marcus Tullius on Sat Jun 23, 2007 at 12:48:38 AM PDT

      •  one of the best [volunteer-made] videos ever...

        the part with Lamont/Lieberman always makes me sad.

        the part with Harold Ford... not so much.

        by Trix on Sat Jun 23, 2007 at 12:51:13 AM PDT

        •  Lamont was my first political contribution.

          Wish it had turned out differently.

          by Marcus Tullius on Sat Jun 23, 2007 at 12:53:41 AM PDT

•  And I am a goat owner- have about 150 Kikos

  with probably around 3 miles of fence line electrified.

  If a storm knocks a branch off, or one of my Gr.Pyrenees, with double coats of fur, goes under the wire, and shorts out the fence, the whole concept is moot.  

  It would not be difficult to short out any fence, in the middle of nowhere, with a metal pole thrown against it being the easiest.

  by Theghostofkarlafayetucker on Sat Jun 23, 2007 at 12:48:23 AM PDT

•  I went to a "Moo U"

  and 3 out of the 4 places I lived in that town had back doors that were within feet of an electric fence to keep the cattle in, and me out.

  I bumped into those things 3-4 times, at least. It fracking hurts! I guess I'm not as smart as your average goat. Or cow, for that matter.

  That's why I'm here, I gotta keep pushing against those fences.

  by bleeding blue on Sat Jun 23, 2007 at 01:15:48 AM PDT

  •  Animal husbandry lesson of the morning....

    I guess I'm not as smart as your average goat. Or cow, for that matter.

    We've always had cows, and if you look at them close, note the nose is moist, that is how they sense electrified fences, with a sniff or two.

    When repairing mine, more often than not I forget if it is disconnected upline and ZAP.

    But this borderfence idea is ludicrous, I could see the druglords along that area paying a handful of poor guys a few dollars to go out each and every night with fiberglass poles and insulated cutters, to sabotage a mile here and there, roll up the cut wire as bonus money when recycled.

    by Theghostofkarlafayetucker on Sat Jun 23, 2007 at 01:40:23 AM PDT

•  George Will enforces the human sheep principle.

  "DEMOCRACY is rule by persuasion, but the unpersuasive often try to coerce the unpersuaded."
  Chew on that phrase, I did for quite awhile.

  I always thought that democracy is rule of the people by the people, but know I know from G. Will and his puppetmasters that it is actually rule of the elite by persuasion of us sheeple.

  From a ludicrous and irony filled column (written by his latest interns no doubt, as Doonesbury lampooned probably realistically years ago) on 6-21-07. It's at sfgate.com if you want some more tortured logic to torture you.

  by doinaheckuvanutjob on Sat Jun 23, 2007 at 02:55:07 AM PDT

  •  Stalag 17 & Hogan's Heroes defy his logic

    The GREATEST source of optimism is, in a science fiction/apocolyptic future, political assholes are absent, the first casualties of chaos are the "leaders" what got us there.

    If it wasn't for gerrymandering, most of the "seats" would be ejection types.

    by Theghostofkarlafayetucker on Sat Jun 23, 2007 at 03:02:03 AM PDT