Well Done: The Demonization of Political Opponents in the Modern Era

Via comment by anon2 on Time To Part

Small Dead Animals

VERBATIM POST

 Today on Facebook, the day after Barack Obama's stunning re-election, two acquaintances of mine - a 40-something man in Montreal and a 30-something woman in Vancouver - published this graphic:

 

In the latter case the "Doesn't seem like a coincidence..." tagline was added.

Here's the first part of the resulting discussion with the woman in Vancouver:

Me: Just so I understand your implication, if an American believes in fiscal responsibility and thus voted for Mitt Romney, then that makes them in support of slavery? Interested in your thoughts.

Her: It was not just 'fiscal responsibility' that Mitt Romney represents, it is also limits on human rights. Taking away large portions of a woman's ability to make decisions about her own body, LGBT rights, healthcare and education if you come from a less than privileged background, and much more beyond that.
I'm not making a direct comparison between slavery and voting (maybe the original creator of the image was, I don't know) however it does seem that certain values are entrenched.

On Facebook, I deliberately stayed silent about politics throughout the recent American presidential campaign. I felt that expressing my own opinions would accomplish nothing positive and only help to alienate my Left leaning friends & acquaintances, of which I have many.

What would a reasonable, middle-of-the-road person conclude from the comparison of an historical map that showed the "slave states" in America with a 2012 map that showed which states had Republican majorities?

I have MANY American friends who voted for Mitt Romney for one reason & one reason only: Fiscal Responsibility. It saddens me beyond belief that in 2012 the "level" of public discussion has devolved to a point where:

• If you believe that able-bodied individuals should not be entitled to endless money from the government then you "hate the poor"


• If you believe that ever growing annual deficits (now in the trillions) are a destructive thing and completely unsustainable then "you are unprogressive" and "your values are entrenched in the past"


• If you believe that the term "marriage" should remain between a man & a woman, even if you want full benefits for gay couples, then you still "hate gay people"


• If you criticize Barack Obama for ... well, anything ... then "you're a racist"


• If you think there might be something wrong with aborting a perfectly healthy baby in the 2nd or 3rd trimester then "you are interfering with a woman making decisions about her own body" and "are waging a war against women"


• If you are concerned about ever-escalating healthcare costs taking up a larger & larger percentage of the budget then "you don't care about the sick"


• If you believe that public school teachers need to be accountable (ie. can be fired where warranted) then "you hate children"


• If you don't believe in higher & higher taxes "for the rich" (aka "business owners grossing over $250K) then "you are selfish and hate the poor"


• If you don't believe in the government getting involved in more & more private sector industries then "you are unenlightened and don't have a vision for the future"

Let's be clear, not everyone on the Left believes everything in this list but every point is very much part of the mainstream political narrative in America today. Some might suggest that these points represent a "Democrat strawman" I've invented but I believe not for they seem to form the basis of talking points repeated by so many on the Left.

Furthermore, based on the way Stephen Harper is similarly demonized, it's not too different in Canada either. The end result is that no actual problems ever get fixed. After all, how can two sides come to agreement on anything when one side believes themselves to be "enlightened and good" and is convinced the other side is "backwards and evil"?!