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Kana -> RE: Santorum lies again (2/26/2012 9:07:42 AM)
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OMG-a politician lied. What is the world coming too?
Funny thing-it ain't a left thing, it ain't a right thing, it's not a commie thing, it's not a fascist thing, it's not even a totalitarian dictator thing (Who you would figure would be beyond such things cuz why dissemble to a owned populace?), all politicians lie.
Yet despite this, all sides pretend to be shocked and sling mud along party lines. They lied. We don't
So weak.
There's a concept in poly-sci called The Other.
Basically, it is a societal construct used by a people/government to paint a projected, real or created enemy out of another group/people/political party etc...
It involves essentially depicting them in the worst possible light, taking whatever steps required to show them as amoral, "the enemy is seen as less than human. He’s faceless. He’s an animal."
This enables the viewer to claim the high moral ground, dehumanizes the opposition, makes one party "good" and "right" and the Other "evil" and "wrong." Best of all, because the one side is anointed in light and The Other is Satan's favorite minions (Or at least hat's what identity politics claims), the opposition can be treated as horrifically as possible and the "righteous" party need feel no guilt or remorse.
http://johnemackinstitute.org/1988/08/the-enemy-system-short-version/
"In the contemporary, everyday language of scholars, journalists, and politicians
it is conventional to speak of enemy images. The concept comes from psychologi-
cal and social-psychological studies where they are defined, by and large, as the
commonly held, stereotyped, dehumanized images of the out-group ( Zur 1991:
350).
As to the Other, the easiest way to define it is to say that the Other is fundamen-
tally different from "us." For Aristotle the excluded Other is an alien who was
unable to use and understand the common (Greek) language; consequently, the
"Barbarian" became an object of hunting, that is, the slave. Modern scholars like
Michel Foucault ( 1972, 1980; cf. Dalby 1988: 416-17) show that the Other is
perceived as an abnormal, mad, and delinquent person."
Now look at how the parties talk about each other...and more importantly, how the party adherents perceive their opposites
Wanna know more-look at a great starter book called The Enemy with a 1000 Faces. Then look into identity politics constructs, especially the creation of The Other
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