Sorry to hit a cynical note this morning, but I received an email announcing the Democratic Party’s winner for their bumper sticker slogan competition. First of all, I don’t understand the appeal of pumper stickers, which to me are not meant to change people’s minds, but to inform the world of the driver’s politics or subcultural affiliations. There are only two that have made my day: “Visualize Whirled Peas” and “Visualize Turn Signal Use.” Oh yeah, this one too: “Duality Sucks.” This campaign by the Democrats is phony grassroots participation, and it’s just lip service to the bandwagon of user generated media. If they were serious about representing their voters, why don’t they stop the war? Instead they give Bush, arguably the weakest President in the history or the United States, everything he wants. The Democrats seem to believe if they change the toothpaste slogan, we’ll believe there’s better toothpaste. I hope that is not the case. Though I think Lakoff’s ideas about framing are brilliant and a necessary aspect of understanding political language and public relations, changing the wording of slogans does not change the intention of the party. This we know from the manner in which the Republicans have used Orwellian language to promote their nefarious policies. Promoting a slogan that is attached to the number one cause for why we are in Iraq, the oil guzzling automobile, shows that once again the Democrats have no real vision. Too bad. They really could do something good for once, but I suspect they will continue to haggle over the management strategy of the Empire rather than dismantle the war machine.
Tags: Politics, Propaganda
