My Answer to the "Gish Gallop"--Mockery

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Sunday October 07, 2012 · 7:58 AM PDT

2012/10/07 · 07:58

Apologies if this diary has already been done--surely with this intelligent community it has already been said or thought many times--but as a general "lurker" I just wanted to throw an idea out there for public consumption that I will bet you my bottom dollar Obama already knows--the key to defeating the "Gish Gallop" is not primarily through rebuttals per se but through mockery.

Omegaisnotjustanumber

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Sunday August 22, 2010 · 12:02 AM PDT

2010/08/22 · 00:02

It’s Saturday night and I’m a little buzzed so let’s just get a little buzzfire going.

I happen to really like the WNBA (women’s pro basketball). I’ve been watching since the 1996-97 inception of the league. I like the way the women play. The team play. Fundamentals.

But I’m afraid I’m a male basketball fan in a minority on this. The WNBA is losing hundreds of thousands of dollars a year and will probably fold soon (unless continuously propped up by the NBA).

For every basketball-loving male like me who will watch them, there are probably 10 more men who will not. Why? I think I know the reason why, even if the WNBA does not.

Omegaisnotjustanumber

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Sunday September 20, 2009 · 7:06 AM PDT

2009/09/20 · 07:06

(Warning—this contains numerous horse-racing terminology and silly metaphors. Continue at your own risk)

I have been on record at this site (and others) saying that the public option is all but dead. That has been my stance for several weeks, particularly after reading in detail at Firedoglake that the president made some really shady backroom deals with the healthcare industry early-on. However, as this thing plays out, I find myself being forced to 2nd-guess that assertion.

I now have a severe case of cognitive dissonance.

If you want to know what this has to do with picking horses, please follow along...

Omegaisnotjustanumber

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Thursday September 10, 2009 · 11:27 AM PDT

2009/09/10 · 11:27

Great speech last night. It was a stirring defense of pragmatic liberalism. The man sure knows how to move me.

But as I sat on my couch fighting goosebumps and tears, I remembered this:

Omegaisnotjustanumber

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Friday August 28, 2009 · 8:42 PM PDT

2009/08/28 · 20:42

There is almost nothing a true liberal values more than empirical evidence. It soothes the cerebral maelstrom, lends calmness to uncertainty, provides stability in the face of cognitive dissonance. It is a sizeable rock in a moat of lasting ambiguity. It is a mooring from which a solid sense-of-self based on humanism and science can take root with pride and thrive in a sea of faith-based ignorance. It is truly life sustaining, for me especially, because I have never been blessed with faith. I am among the 1 in 4 (so some studies indicate) not so fortunate to have such a sanctuary in which to mentally retreat when uncomfortable truths may confront me.

Recent studies have shown that there actually may be a dominant gene in the human species—a "God Gene"—which explains the prevalence of faith. And it is a time like this that I curse my recessive faith gene and particularly miss having what so many others have.

Omegaisnotjustanumber

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Monday August 24, 2009 · 12:10 PM PDT

2009/08/24 · 12:10

Okay, I don’t want to bore people to tears. But tax policy is, after all, germane to almost everything we want to get done as progressives. And I think that what is obvious to almost everyone is that movement conservatives have been able to use the Overton Window to successfully turn the once-mainstream idea of progressive taxation--or, really, the idea of raising taxes for any reason, ever--as something unthinkable. Well, if they can do that, why can’t we use the Overton Window to change it back? If you’re interested, please follow along...

Omegaisnotjustanumber

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Sunday August 23, 2009 · 6:51 AM PDT

2009/08/23 · 06:51

Yesterday I entered my 1st diary, "The 100 Year Propaganda War." In it, I described a long-term strategy that describes one example of effective framing that democrats could use against the republican slime machine for the next century.

Today, I’d like to give another example of framing to use against republicans that I feel is particularly devastating. If you’re interested, follow me below the fold.

Omegaisnotjustanumber

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Saturday August 22, 2009 · 6:59 AM PDT

2009/08/22 · 06:59

A brief caveat...this diary is my 1st and was written over a week ago. I held it back because of the subscription rules at Kos necessitating a 1 week delay for new subscribers. And wouldn’t you know it, in that time George Lakoff and many others--including even Bill Maher last night--have already beaten me to the punch on many of the points I wanted to make. Kudos to them and many of you—I’m piggybacking on the shoulders of giants. However, because my piece is less tactical and more strategic I think I still have something interesting to add-- so I’ve decided to go to go ahead and post it.

This diary is obscenely long and really is not for the faint of heart. If you didn’t make it thru Professor Lakoff’s recent epic 24-point piece I recommend you turn back now. But if you are truly a minutia geek and fancy yourself a budding democratic strategist like I do, follow me below the fold...

RSS

My Answer to the "Gish Gallop"--Mockery

Archie Bunker (me) says-- hike the shorts and save the WNBA!

On betting the horses and the public option

Great Speech. Now what is he going to DO?

On Obama, faith, and the loss of the public option

Using the Overton Window to Reset Tax Policy

It’s Time to Kick some Lizard Ass—a 2nd Example on Framing Our Way to Victory

The 100 Year Propaganda War