Sponsors

Tactic: Describe your Opponent with 'Words of Weakness' Email Print

Today, SusanG urged us to fight back against the Republican strategy of framing Democrats as 'Pandering' to the 'Anti-War' crowd, noting that it was "Just the 'unpatriotic, cowardly' smear we've all come to know and love."

She was referring to Republicans' release of a Web video "showing a white flag of surrender waving over Democrats like Howard Dean and Sen. John Kerry to highlight their negative comments about US soldiers in Iraq this week,." According to the New York Post, the video is intended "to use the Democrats' own words to press the idea that they favor a 'retreat and defeat strategy.'"

In doing so, Susan hit upon a much larger tactical maneuver that Republicans have implemented religiously over the years. It's one that applies universally and effectively to all situations.

Fortunately, it also applies to Republicans - particularly those who follow the 'Strict Father' model of Morality.

So here's what we should do...

Use words that exude WEAKNESS to describe the opponent (regardless of their true behavior).

Do not use words that could be construed in the 'Strict Father' model of morality as strong. This refers specifically to many of the words that progressives use liberally in describing the opposition: Mean, heartless, insensitive, dictatorial, hateful, angry, evil, stubborn, harsh, etc.

Unfortunately, although the 'Nurturant Parent' perceives these words as describing a wholly unworthy person, those with the strict father morality activated perceive that same person described by those same words as tough, driven, no-nonsense, in control, and decisive -- in essence, a strict father. In such a case, the strict father's faults are overlooked in favor of his desirable strict father characteristics. Thus, we must instead use words that are degrading in the strict father model. Specifically, we must use words to describe them as weak, confused, and lacking control.

In both the progressive and conservative world views, weakness has no value. And, while progressives are tolerant of weakness -- striving even to help those who are most vulnerable, conservatives are unforgivably intolerant of weakness -- finding it immoral... even evil.

Therefore, if you truly wish to attack conservatives at their deepest level of meaning, then forget the sissy taunts of, "Oh, you're so mean," or "...so stubborn," or "...so evil!" Instead, label them WEAK and do it in a myriad ways. If a conservative person, or policy, or institution, etc. is effectively framed in this way, he/she/it will instantly lose credibility in conservative circles. It will essentially destroy the person's or thing's standing in the strict father model.

To the strict father, weakness is immoral -- something to abhor and punish. To be labeled as such is the ultimate insult to a conservative and one of the few things that really hits home.

So, when describing Bush, the GOP, and their policies, drop the adjectives you're most likely using now: mean-spirited, disingenuous, liars, evil, blah, blah, blah -- and step up to the truly effective descriptors -- the ones that rip into the heart of the strict father's core -- those that portray them as weak and lacking control.

Of course, I couldn't just leave you with a couple of suggestions, so here's a sampling of...oh, 175 or  so useful words:

Coward, immoral, wishy-washy, whiny, sniveling, milquetoast, confused, valueless, unprincipled, obtuse, little, self-righteous, doormat, oversensitive, failure, weak, baby, fragile, gutless, spineless, craven, pusillanimous, faint-hearted, lilly-livered, nervous, timid, spiritless, sad, boneheaded, weak-willed, pathetic, feeble, frail, puny, scrawny, timorous, fearful, defenseless, weak-kneed, helpless, dependent, vulnerable, powerless, boneless, invertebrate, dismal, hopeless, wretched, sorry, meager, inadequate, small, paltry, insignificant, miserable, crying, tiny, petite, minor, negligible, inconsequential, trivial, unimportant, trifling, petty, juvenile, minute, wee, scared, frightened, shy, afraid, apprehensive, nervous-nelly, worried, edgy, panicky, paranoid, delicate, sickly, flimsy, slight, dull, cheerless, distressed, uncontrolled, bitter, depressing, gloomy, hysterical, delusional, impaired, oppressed, repressed, browbeaten, downtrodden, subordinated, broken, battered, injured, demoralized, exploited, conquered, loser, dominated, broken down, wreck, disappointment, overpowered, overwhelmed, trounced, dispirited, pessimistic, deflated, dejected, downcast, depraved, destitute, hapless, degenerate, indecisive, boring, namby-pamby, waffling, annoying, bawling, weeping, sobbing, dopey, baffled, bewildered, befuddled, dishonorable, shameful, disgraceful, sleazy, questionable, wimp, easily upset, thin-skinned, hypersensitive, disappointment, frustrated, castrated, cry-baby, mumbling, twit, worthless, ineffective, poor, laughable, ridiculous, absurd, mediocre, embarrassment, unimpressive, incompetent, incapable, defective, deficient, lacking, impoverished, wanting, undisciplined, unfortunate, awkward, tongue-tied, babbling, inept, clumsy, speechless, flailing, humiliated, disgraced, debased

They're weak. WEAK!


KEYWORDS: ,

Sign up for a Complimentary Member Account... Join the community! It's fast. And it'll allow you to take advantage of all this site's great features!

< Pandering, Yes, and Proud of It! | 'Tis the Season (for Tax Gifts) >
 Display:
Is it a breach of etiquette if I repeat the comment I posted elsewhere (with elaboration)?  My apologies if it is.  Anyway:

I think "victims" is a good word to use.  It reeks of "weak," and "strict father" types think victims "had it coming" because they screwed up somehow, because they're somehow inferior.  In the strict-father world, "victims" are people to be looked down upon.

Just an idea.

And another reason I like what you wrote -- it brought me to this site.  I'll be bookmarking it.

by kcc on 12/09/2005 02:56:52 PM EST

Just connotes whininess and childishness and ineffectiveness. And they sure do use it a lot, any time any objection is made to their behavior, so use of it consistently would be easy to do.

The War on Christmas? There they go, being whiny victims again. Keeping prayer out of schools? Right, the poor "victims" of the dominant religion in this country. They're whining about Democrats wanting investigations? Just another sign of playing the victim. Etc.

Glad you came over to the site. Click around. There are a lot of terrific writers here and some really insightful commenters. Join the fun!

by SusanG on 12/09/2005 03:11:41 PM EST

[ Parent ]
because whining is something that is universally annoying -- just like the Repuglinuts :O

Political Cortex -- Brain Food for the Body Politic

by Tom Ball on 12/09/2005 04:45:47 PM EST

[ Parent ]
Heh!

Political Cortex -- Brain Food for the Body Politic

by Tom Ball on 12/09/2005 05:11:26 PM EST

[ Parent ]
and in response to your question, "Is it a breach of etiquette if I repeat the comment I posted elsewhere (with elaboration)?" I will say without elaboration:

"Arguably among the grandaddy of weakness words. Can't believe I didn't have that in the list (sound of hand slapping head)" :-)

Political Cortex -- Brain Food for the Body Politic

by Tom Ball on 12/09/2005 03:22:45 PM EST

[ Parent ]
...it's okay for me to say again that I'm going to throw on my "Monty Python and the Holy Grail" DVD.  :-)  

And SusanG, thanks for the welcome.  I'll start reading the rest of the site later, after I come back from the mall -- they put Christmas trees up, so of course I have to help my fellow secular liberals take them down.  (Hey, it's a war, ya know?).  ;-)

by kcc on 12/09/2005 03:31:54 PM EST

[ Parent ]
you're gonna like it here!

Nice snark, above.

Taxes shall be levied according to ability to pay. That is the only American principle. FDR

by btyarbro on 12/09/2005 03:42:34 PM EST

[ Parent ]
...ineffective, uneffective, feeble, nerveless ....
plus, it goes to the heart of the whole strict strong father issue

by dansk47 on 12/09/2005 04:31:19 PM EST

Worthless
Weasel
Wart
Wiff
Wanting
Wilting

and

Weally, Weally Wotton

Political Cortex -- Brain Food for the Body Politic

by Tom Ball on 12/09/2005 05:09:55 PM EST

[ Parent ]
Let's see if I can make this work.

The administration's spineless caving in to the demands of the pharmaceutical companies means that our senior citizens got a weak prescription plan.

The Bush administration's visionless energy policy means that when the rest of the world is driving hybrids we'll still be trying to figure out how to build a hydrogen based engine.

Bush and his cronies waffled around on the reasons for the Iraq War, and did it for so long that we're either going to be the Toy Soldiers for the Shiites or the Targets for the Sunnis.

Bush and his rich friends are hypersensitive to the needs of their yacht club friends.  If they weren't so weak they'd show up at a bowling alley and find out what real people are worried about.

Bush is too timid to give a real speech anywhere but on a military base where he can order people around.

The Republicans are too dependent to propose legislation that's good for the American people; they have to be paid to vote by their dishonorable K street lobbyists.

Hey! This is kind of FUN!

by greatbasin2 on 12/09/2005 05:52:49 PM EST

You must be a natural!

Political Cortex -- Brain Food for the Body Politic

by Tom Ball on 12/10/2005 08:30:09 PM EST

[ Parent ]
Where'd you rip that list off from? I assume you didn't sit and think it all up.

Trust me, I will have no problem using "dopey." That's the first one that comes to mind.

by SusanG on 12/09/2005 02:02:49 PM EST

Right off the top of my head!

What do you suggest for some more?

Looking for some clever metaphors if anyone is up for it;)

Political Cortex -- Brain Food for the Body Politic

by Tom Ball on 12/09/2005 02:08:04 PM EST

[ Parent ]

The Albany Project. The best damned blog about New York State politics.

by NYBri on 12/09/2005 02:30:24 PM EST

[ Parent ]
That's means putting like ... more than one word together with another word, right? That's a task, my friend. That's hard work.

Actually, I'm beginning to have a metaphor come to mind for this whole process, sparked by some of the discussion that's been going on. I must mull it over and once I have it nailed down, not blow it in a comment but save it for a full-blown mighty post.

Hey! I just thought of a metaphor! Titanic. Iraq is the glacier. And since this stupid administration has dismantled this country's safety net by blowing all our tax money on furnishings in first class, there aren't enough life boats now.

by SusanG on 12/09/2005 02:39:39 PM EST

[ Parent ]
And, just like the Bushies and other whiny rich kids who think they are entitled to rule the world when they can't even control their own greed, a character in the movie, namely the rich boy Rose was "supposed" to marry, when told that there were only enough lifeboats to save half of the passengers, said that at least the "better" half would be saved.

It was a humorous thought until the Katrina disaster made so literally prophetic.

Violence is the last resort of the incompetent. -- Mayor Salvor Hardin, in "Foundation" by Isaac Asimov

by DaneelO on 12/11/2005 11:31:35 AM EST

[ Parent ]
of flaccid and limp, when I think of some representatives of this crowd.

Many others, of course, are merely pale, while most are anemic or milky.  

All, however, pale in comparison to progressives.

:}

Taxes shall be levied according to ability to pay. That is the only American principle. FDR

by btyarbro on 12/09/2005 03:56:40 PM EST

their dependence on viagra also has metaphorical potential.

Taxes shall be levied according to ability to pay. That is the only American principle. FDR

by btyarbro on 12/09/2005 04:00:50 PM EST

[ Parent ]
Are those REALLY the things you think of;)

Political Cortex -- Brain Food for the Body Politic

by Tom Ball on 12/09/2005 04:13:11 PM EST

[ Parent ]
it's the Gannon effect. n/t
 

Taxes shall be levied according to ability to pay. That is the only American principle. FDR

by btyarbro on 12/09/2005 06:40:27 PM EST

[ Parent ]
I knew my presence polluted this blog.

by SusanG on 12/09/2005 09:44:33 PM EST

[ Parent ]
Volunteering to be the scapegoat.

I'll remember that;)

Political Cortex -- Brain Food for the Body Politic

by Tom Ball on 12/12/2005 09:38:30 AM EST

[ Parent ]
I apologize if this was on your list, I didn't see it, but my eyes are not what they used to be.

by dansk47 on 12/09/2005 04:32:37 PM EST

"Nerveless" is indeed a newbie and your participation is always welcome -- (psssst -- regardless of whether or not they were on the list;)

Political Cortex -- Brain Food for the Body Politic

by Tom Ball on 12/09/2005 04:39:41 PM EST

[ Parent ]
while that isn't a weak sounding adjective, it is to me an accurate portayal of their whiny, lame-ass proposed policies.  i think i've heard the term 'reactionaries' used as well, but that conjures up an image of 'cause & effect' to me, which is nowhere near as negative as it needs to be.  anyway, please continue with the weakness framing.

Energize America: Demand Energy Security by 2020!

by Doolittle Sothere on 12/11/2005 08:37:35 AM EST

but one could expose a fundamental flaw at the heart of the Bush regime's methodology, (especially as regards their catastrophic performance vis a vis Iraq), by using a quote from Albert Einstein.

"We can't solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them."

by sbj on 12/11/2005 11:57:36 AM EST

 Display: