The Terror Within: A Look at the Republican Messaging Machine

Most of us have read about political polls and how candidates and parties use the results of to shape messages and vocabulary. You read about how bizarre and loaded they are and you never think for a million years that you'd be able to participate in them. For the longest time I assumed there was some anonymous town in the heart of conservative America where Republican's crafted and honed all their messages. That is until tonight, when I was called by a conservative pollster, trying to hone a partisan message.

The questions I was asked astounded me.

The poll began innocuously enough, "Are you over 18 years old and registered to vote?"

As soon as I answered in the affirmative, I was reminded of Bette Davis' infamous line in All About Eve and we were off and running.

The first dozen questions were variants on terrorist attack scenarios. Things like, "What concerns you most: Dirty bombs, back pack bombs, improvised nuclear devices or nuclear weapons?" or gems like "Knowing the fact that transportable nuclear weapons can have enough destructive force to level Manhattan and killing hundreds of thousands, in whose hands would that frighten you most: A rogue state, terrorist cells, state sponsored terrorists, Al-Qaeda or Osama Bin-Laden?"

It was frightening to deconstruct the messages these questions held. Some politician somewhere, most likely a Republican, hopefully not a presidential candidate (although my gut tells me it was), is using this poll to shape his platform. And they're going to phrase the threat we're going to hear about over and over again on Fox News. The results of polls like these will determine whether or not Osama Bin-Laden will hypothetically be sneaking dirty bombs large enough to level Manhattan into the country or if Iran will be a state-sponsor of terror and probably involved in a plot to destroy us all with nuclear weapons.

Something tells me we'll probably hear it all, but this was only the tip of the iceberg for this poll.

I was asked how strongly I responded to words like oath and commitment and pledge and promise. I was asked which sounded stronger, a "Coalition for the Prevention of Nuclear Proliferation" or the "Campaign for a Nuclear Free World." I was asked, honestly, a string of questions about what "scares me the most."

The show stopper though?

I was asked, and I'm quoting this from my notes, "Which word worst describes how to deal with a nuclear power: talks, negotiations or diplomacy."

My heart sank and I could no longer keep up my un-biased air I had put on to continue with the poll. "Are you serious?"

"Yes," the pollster told me.

"Those are all the best options. Can I say none of the above?"

"Ummm.... No. The only other answer I can input is 'not sure'."

I went with "not sure" even though I was pretty damn sure what my answer would have been, were it an available choice.

This was a thoroughly un-predicted and uninvited insight into the world of politics and, more than a dirty bomb or an IED, this is what scares me. These messages, this fear mongering, scare me much more than any anonymous terrorist threatening to attack inside the United States. Isn't speciously inciting terror in the populace this way every bit as evil as threats the terrorists make? Terrorists don't even have to make threats to the American people anymore; Republican politicians do it for them as a matter of political course.

Those responsible for this poll are already in the United States and their attacking it from within, decaying the fragile, wooden foundation of democracy and sanity as termites would destroy a house. Each fragile piece of wood is hollowed until it's a knotted, gnarled shell of its former self. Unfortunately, the political equivalents of exterminators are strong leaders and, at this point, all we have to fight these politicians with are would-be leaders acting like politicians.

(Bryan Young blogs daily at This Divided State)

Comments

[mkelch]

It is ashame Bryan could not identify the sponsor of the poll or at least the pollster. These people need to be identified and brought into the light. The consequences of the political response to the 9/11 attack have been much more destructive than the 9/11 attack itself. We have manipulated ourselves into a position that will not allow us to effectively defend our people from terrorism until we repair our own political infrastructure.

In a system where lies are accepted as truth and the freedoms we claim to protect no longer exist, who will want to defend what no longer exists?

[mkelch]

It is ashame Bryan could not identify the sponsor of the poll or at least the pollster. These people need to be identified and brought into the light. The consequences of the political response to the 9/11 attack have been much more destructive than the 9/11 attack itself. We have manipulated ourselves into a position that will not allow us to effectively defend our people from terrorism until we repair our own political infrastructure.

In a system where lies are accepted as truth and the freedoms we claim to protect no longer exist, who will want to defend what no longer exists?

[nowaterboardUSA]

As most folks know, we are dealing with an administration that in no way or form believes in the courtesy flush!

[TimWhitehill]

Several years ago some of my "conservative" friends signed me up for several right wing groups as a joke. Most of the correspondence has been assigned to my junk email and I have caller id on my phone. But before the 2004 election I got a call from Tom Delay's office which I couldn't pass up and it was one of these push polls. The questions were rigged the same way and I don't remember the details but they asked questions like: At what point should a fetus be considered a living human? Conception, When the egg is fertilized, or when Jerry Farwell says? Then the questions were followed up by a statement bashing liberals, like "And as you know liberals kidnap babies and eat them."
I played along because it was frightening but also entertaining until the caller asked my political views and I said I was a liberal. You could hear the brakes squealing and this guy tripped all over his tongue trying to get off the phone but I enjoyed letting him know what I thought of his "poll."
It's sad to hear that there are liberal groups who would practice the same unethical behavior as it is nothing more than manipulation through fear and lies. I'd like to believe that it really is only a small section of our population that would buy this hook, line, and sinker but I could be naive. I'm amazed to see around me some people who still fully support Bush. However I think Bush and company have done at least one good thing for the American public, they've managed to heavily cripple their own machine. For the last 30 years the right wing has held major sway, so I praying the left wing gets the next 30 and that they don't screw up also. Getting away from polls like this would be a good start.

[realpolitic]

Republicans have to be crafty at crafting their message because their arguments otherwise do not sell on the merits. They must change the name of the inheritance tax to the 'death tax' to obscure the idea that less than 1% of Americans pay this tax. They must cast doubt on global warming and stem cell research, even though more of us live with older, declining parents. If one is concerned about the widening gap in income in society than one is promoting 'class warfare.' Intelligent design was once creationism and will rear its head as something else in the future. Republicans must change the terms of the debate to participate in it.

[magnusreputo]

Webster defines terrorism as "the systematic use of terror especially as a means of coercion". One need not carry out terrorist acts to use terror for political gain. Who are the most active terrorists here?

[TucsonEd]

I don't know.... I feel perfectly safe with my plastic sheeting and duct tape at the ready. NOT TO MENTION the color coded levels of security to warn me when to get them out! After all we haven't had a another attack on American soil since 9/11. Yes sir the Republicans are certainly the party to keep me safe. LOL

[Defyant]

The questions tainted with obvious bias, an honest answer being impossible, a reflection of what is driving the political machine, we have met the enemy, and it is U.S.

[RickO]

You'd have to be a complete idiot to believe that a transportable nuclear device could level Manhattan, unless that device was being transported by an ICBM. Even then, Manhattan is a very big piece of realestate. They want us to think that something in the trunk of a car could do that much damage? Unfortunately, our education system being what it is, enough people actually believe it.

[Tharsis]

I live near DC, and get calls like that all of the time. I always refuse to participate. I see no reason why I should go along with manipulation.

[lthuedk]

Fascists use fear. Thanks for the heads up.

Regards

[getoffmedz]

Dear Mr. Young - the questions posed were simply not logical and violate the Rules of Relevance.

Kind of like the question "Do you still beat your wife?"

Whoever was taking that poll should have been reported to DHS for openly discussing terrorist acts with you.

Hopefully for you, this pollster's discussion was not recorded?

Think about it?

[lurxst]

A nice piece on the realities of terrorist nuclear ambitions and the dreaded mythical "suitcase nuke".

http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200612/langewiesche-nukes

[xenubarb]

Democracy:
Threat or Menace?

[SILVANUS]

Perhaps it was just preparation to 'engineer' ot 'overlook' a stateside scare so Bush&Co can suspend elections, freedoms and declare himself/themsleves King?

I doubt if as many find that far-fetched, now, after all we have suffered to date.

Be conscious. Be very conscious.