George Lakoff, "The Progressive Morality"
Strong article from Lakoff here. Check out some of the conservative arguments in favor of the strict-father/Bush model:
- We need a strong president who knows right from wrong to defend the nation.
- Social programs are immoral because they give people things they haven't earned and so make them undisciplined – both dependent and less able to function morally.
- The prosperous people are the good people. Those who are not prosperous deserve their poverty. Taxes take away the rightful rewards of the prosperous.
- Wrongdoers should be punished severely.
- Government should get out of the way of disciplined (hence good) people seeking their self-interest.
- The president is to be obeyed; since he knows right from wrong, his authority is legitimate and not to be questioned. In foreign policy, he is also the absolute moral authority and so needs no advice from lesser countries.
- Strict-father marriage cannot be gay; it must be between a man and a woman.
- For a wife to seek an abortion on her own or a daughter to need one is an affront to strict-father control over the behavior of the women in his family.
So, how do we reframe each of these to point out the wisdom of the progressive ideal?
- We need a strong president who knows right from wrong to defend the nation.
- Social programs are immoral because they give people things they haven't earned and so make them undisciplined – both dependent and less able to function morally.
- The prosperous people are the good people. Those who are not prosperous deserve their poverty. Taxes take away the rightful rewards of the prosperous.
- Wrongdoers should be punished severely.
- Government should get out of the way of disciplined (hence good) people seeking their self-interest.
- The president is to be obeyed; since he knows right from wrong, his authority is legitimate and not to be questioned. In foreign policy, he is also the absolute moral authority and so needs no advice from lesser countries.
- Strict-father marriage cannot be gay; it must be between a man and a woman.
- For a wife to seek an abortion on her own or a daughter to need one is an affront to strict-father control over the behavior of the women in his family.
So, how do we reframe each of these to point out the wisdom of the progressive ideal?
posted by Pete at 11:06 AM
1 Comments:
The key quote:
"By talking to their base, they are activating their base model in swing voters. When liberals move to the right, they are shooting themselves in both feet: They alienate their base and they activate the other side's models in the swing voters, thus helping the other side."
Maybe the next time you see a pundit talking about how dumb a Republican is for "consolidating his base" you can see past the foolishness of the pundit.
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