3 posts tagged “coalition”

In an article about genetics and political preference, this little gem emerged:

Jost's findings, detailed in American Psychologist, suggest that environmental factors, or the types of situations people encounter in their lives, determine approximately half of their political preferences.

For example, when people fear death or terrorism, or are in a state of uncertainty, they tend to become more conservative, he said. A study of World Trade Center survivors after 9/11 reported that 38 percent grew more conservative in the 18 months following the attacks, as compared with only 13 percent who became more liberal.

Approximately half. This could be enough to tip someone who is unsure over the edge and keep them there.

This is why conservative politicians always talk about the danger we are in (and demonize anyone who suggests temperance). It is not a temporary justification for war, it is a psychological attack.

First they scare you, hopefully making you more conservative. Now that you are more conservative, they try to win your trust with the offer of protection. Now you trust them, they scare you again. I don't believe this is a devised system, more likely an evolved strategy, but it is dishonest either way. It also explains why the private media constantly barrage us with fear - it's not just good for ratings, it helps their political allies.

I have previously thought that when you see conservatives repeating the lies politicians tell them (Iraq had WMDs, we are under a real threat from fantaical muslims, if we retreat from Iraq the insurgents will launch a counter-offensive, we cannot allow failed states because they create terrorist safe-havens, etc) that they didn't believe them. I thought that they simply agreed with their leaders about the importance of empire and oil, and also agreed that it was better to lie about good intentions than admit to bad ones. But now I think I was wrong. Maybe most of them actually believe the lies, having been scared into trusting the liars at the top.

In one way it reduces my faith in humanity - if so many people can be so easily manipulated, what sort of hope do we have? But on the other hand, it is somewhat reassuring to think that rank-and-file conservatives are not dishonest, just scared and lied to.

The Coalition is losing because they have no credibilty.

They are presently running a publicly funded ad campaign pushing their changes to Workchoices. What are the results of this?

1. It reminds people of just how much taxpayer money they have spent on advertising.

2. It doesn't even mention Workchoices, suggesting even they know how bad it is.

3. It pushes a new 'fairness test', which has yet to be specified (just like Workchoices in the last election) and makes a mokery of their continual claims that it was already fair.

They are copying Labor. This would not be such a bad thing but they only started a few months ago. The fact that an election is looming and they suddenly care about justice, the environment, worker's benefits, broadband, etc, just doesn't fly.

John Howard disagreed with Rudd's proclaiming that global warming was the greatest moral challenge of our time. He couldn't agree - his record would have made his dishonesty look farcical. But he could have just kept his mouth shut, or even faked a Road To Damascus moment. I honestly think that the moment he claimed it wasn't, he lost the election.

What can they do about it?

There aren't many options. A terrorist attack would probably shore up support. A smear campaign against Tin Tin might do the trick, but personal attacks have so far failed against him and backfired against Gillard. They could suddenly turn republican, but Labour already has stronger republican credentials and this could cause friction within the party.

Perhaps their best hope is to topple Howard and for his replacement to make a policy shift towards the center. Ratifying Kyoto, withdrawing from Iraq, abandoning taxpayer funded advertising, etc, could leave Labour facing a fresh party with fewer weaknesses and a good economic record. However, Howard has developed a very strong personality cult within the party and many Liberal and National M.P.s would rather lose an election than kick him out, leaving his resignation the only possibilty of this happening.

I'm not going to make fun of him for wanting to be an astronaut. Who didn't? (Well, the kids who wanted to be atheletes, and girls, but who of any importance didn't?)

But something very appropriate happened in the rush to shop him as an astronaut:
He got covered with the United States flag!