Juan Cole: The Neoconservative Style & Weblog Awards

[laststeamtrain]

The Neoconservative Style & Weblog Awards

Michael J. Totten has surged way ahead in the voting online for the best Middle East weblog. The way he has done this is very instructive and tells us something about how the Neoconservatives always run rings around the American left and leave them with nothing to do but complain about Neoconservative power...http://www.juancole.com/2009/01/neoconservative-style-weblog-awards.html

[patrice]

1. snip

So that's how you do it. 1) You assassinate the character of your opponent. 2) You make his correct statements into a liability by propagandizing that they are false or unpatriotic. And 3) you mobilize a base of single-issue true believers that you can depend on to dominate the discourse because most people don't care and are not invested.

We have control of 1) and 2), but WHAT do we do about 3)?

[laststeamtrain]

2. Could 3) be 'Peace & Justice' 'true believers'?

Not single issue but a gestalt of a few issues.

You know, the people the mainstream party isn't listening to, the 'left', the 'loonies', the 'fringe'.

I don't know. Just thinkin'.

[patrice]

3. The only existing coalition of Peace & Justice true believers is

United for Peace and Justice, whom I understand is calling supporters to NYC on April 5.

We MUST commit to active coalition building.