Follow-Up: "Lies, Lies, Lies" and "Donald Trump Scares The Sheep"

Scare The Sheep 
And They Will Applaud Military-Industrial Profiteering

http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2015/12/scare-sheep-and-they-will-cheer.html

Dear F and Jimbo,

In addition to this particular episode being an especially good one, do keep an eye on "OTM," one of the most insightful mass media programs. 

"Lies, Lies, Lies" - "On The Media" Explores Donald Trump's Appeal And His Historical Background

http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2015/12/lies-lies-lies-on-media-explores-donald.html

When meta-level analysis is well done -- as it is on OTM -- it's of tremendous value.

Anyone can mistake the trees for the forest.

But when the forest comes into view -- which is to say -- when the context becomes visible, all the chattering foreground "texts" are stabilized by the depth and dimensionality of the background.

Any text without a context is a pretext.

Which is how "fundamentalists" -- religious and political -- prevail.

Pick a tree - any tree - and fob it off as the forest.

The GOP: Governing By Anecdote

http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2013/11/the-gop-and-obamacare-governing-by.html

Princeton Researches Conclude That U.S. Is No Longer A Democracy

http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2014/04/princeton-concludes-what-kind-of.html

Compendium Of Best Pax Posts: Plutocracy, Economic Inequality & Collapse Of Conservatism

http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2015/03/compendium-of-best-pax-posts-on.html

"Plutocracy Triumphant"

Cartoon Compendium

http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2014/05/plutocracy-triumphant.html

"Why of course the people don't want war... Why would some poor slob on a farm want to risk his life in a war when the best he can get out of it is to come back to his farm in one piece? Naturally the common people don't want war; neither in Russia, nor in England, nor in America, nor for that matter in Germany. That is understood. But after all it is the leaders of the country who determine the policy, and it is always a simple matter to drag the people along, whether it is a democracy or a fascist dictatorship, or a parliament, or a communist dictatorship.... Voice or no voice, the people can always be brought along to do the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is to tell them they are being attacked, and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger. It works the same in any country." Hermann Goering, Adolf Hitler's Deputy Chief and Luftwaffe Commander, at the Nuremberg trials, 1946.

"Do War's Really Defend America's Freedom?"

(Homage To Marine Commandant, Major General Smedley Butler

The Most Decorated Marine Of His Time)

http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2014/11/do-wars-really-defend-americas-freedom.html

I wish Mencken's rhetorical flourish had not gotten the better of him.

The sentence above would be accurately modified to conclude with the phrase "almost all of them imaginary."

Of course, if you leave wiggle room, everyone will wiggle.

At the end of another long day, The Donald removes his make-up.

Are Corporate Leaders Egotistical Psychopaths?

http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2015/11/are-corporate-leaders-egotistical.html

Love

A