Why are we being held hostage to overheated political rhetoric?... President Obama, Harry Reid and other top Democrats and their spokespeople in the past few days have referred to Tea Party Republicans as extremists, terrorists, arsonists, blackmailers and anarchists, who want to hold America hostage and have a bomb strapped to their chest to blow up the government. That’s not only ridiculous, it’s counterproductive. If you want to solve a problem, you don’t publicly call your opponent repulsive names. Eons ago, when I was in college and studying rhetorical theory, I learned that when people lack a substantive argument, they build up a straw man, and then tear him down. That can sound kinda convincing, if your audience isn’t paying attention. But most Americans have been paying attention, and they don’t like name-calling and gridlock. Polls show that while Americans don’t like Obamacare, they don’t want government shut down, either. I bet what they want most is leaders who act like grown-ups instead of toddlers having a tantrum.
Posted on: Wed, 02 Oct 2013 19:53:34 +0000
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