LAKOFF: In Politics, Progressives Need to Frame Their Values

[yurbud]

Lakoff sums up the problem with large corporations in a way that is hard to imagine the corporate owned wing of the Democratic Party ever doing (or Republicans even contemplating).

If a politician tries to serve both corporate and financial interests and regular people, the money interests will eventually make sure the politician has no other gods before them.

What are some frames to counter "government by corporation"?

Again, it is a matter of naming a single truth: Corporations govern your life in many, many ways for their benefit, not yours. Name what people already experience and resent for good reason. How do corporations govern your life for their benefit, not yours?

Start with your health insurance company and your internet and cell phone providers. Continue with all the times you call for customer service, get a robot voice, have to press a bunch of buttons, and then wait on the phone for half and hour to an hour - or be directed to a website, where you have to spend lots of your time. You are working for the corporation - when you spend your time, the company saves money on hiring human beings and makes more profit. You are contributing to their profit with your time, which is part of your life, and hardly a pleasant part.

Oil companies - our wealthiest corporations - are destroying the planet for their short-term profit. Corporations govern your life by putting hidden carcinogens and other poisons in your food, cosmetics, furniture, etc. for their profit, not your health. For details, go to ewg.org. These are facts. In isolation, one-by-one, they are just a laundry list. Isolated facts don’t help. Together they tell a truth: Corporations govern your life for their profit not yours, in all those ways. Name it. Repeat it. We need reform at the deepest level.

http://www.truth-out.org/progressivepicks/item/27576-george-lakoff-progressives-cannot-succeed-without-expressing-respect-values

[jillan]

1. WTH the DNC and other Dem groups haven't hired him is beyond me!

He is the Frank Luntz of educated people.

[CTyankee]

2. Lakoff is very good but his messages don't get out where they should.

It's depressing. We have Krugman, too, who has a hugely influential perch at the NYT but he hasn't broken through. We have a stubborn media stuck in its belief that "balanced" means giving lunatics a forum as if they represent anyone but other lunatics. I am hoping for this to change but I see them crowding out the more rational voices and I wonder if it will ever happen.

[yurbud]

3. the difficulty is too many Democratic politicians do not share our progressive values

even if they know use Lakoff's methods would work, they don't want to say anything that would alienate a potential Wall Street donor.

[CTyankee]

4. And why is it that they don't know that our progressive values are not heard from our views from our

purported leaders?

[yurbud]

5. which they?

[Odin2005]

6. But that would piss the corporate donors, George!

[yurbud]

7. yep. Better to stick to bland platitudes that are like a judge trying to come up with a ruling

that will offend neither a rapist nor his victim.