# The Great Propaganda War: Hijacking the word Freedom **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [January 5, 2005, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-propaganda-war-hijacking-the-word-freedom/283201 "2005-01-05T15:12:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Jake\_the\_Plumber](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@Jake\_the\_Plumber](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jake_the_Plumber)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2005, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-propaganda-war-hijacking-the-word-freedom/283201/1 "2005-01-05T15:12:39Z")
Since 9/11, the patriotism bandwagon has been overflowing with flowery words and promises. One of the more interesting post-9/11 changes is the use of the word Freedom (capital F). Freedom is declared as our purpose (and our lunch). Whenever there’s a gaping hole in the dam of neoconservative thought and/or action, it gets plugged full of Freedom. Freedom for Iraq, Freedom for Afghanistan, but more importantly, Freedom for Americans. Freedom Freedom Freedom. It is a perfect catch phrase for the Bush Administration, and they have done a marvelous job of trademarking the term, while at the same time restricting or even stomping on the civil rights of citizens in the US and abroad. But it is all justified by Freedom. In order to be Free, you must accept a few minor injustices and maybe lose a little bit of freedom (small f). That’s some catch, that catch-22. Michael Moore! The great opponent of Freedom. While Moore and his techniques may be highly suspect, his message is fairly clear. His semi-truths mirror the Bush Administration’s semi-truths. The question is, which are more damaging? How dare he speak ill about the Bush family! They are our great leaders to Freedom from Terrorism (capital T). What gives Americans the right to Freedom, but also the right to deny Freedom to others? What does neo-con Freedom actually mean? Safety? Security? Stability? More control against subversive elements, especially those overseas, who aren’t covered by our generous but troublesome Constitution? So, Freedom comes from Safety. Security. We can only be Free if the Bush Administration protects us from the evil Terrorists (capital T). But Lo! We are now in the year 2005. Most of us have adjusted to having Freedom slapped in front of everything from oily potato strips to proposed laws. Freedom has been enforced by introducing anarchy to two countries, though there were pretty explosions that looked pretty cool on CNN. Having now achieved such a height of Freedom that we have alienated our long-standing allies and sunk to the level of our long-contested foes (invading other countries and taking political prisoners with no trial or evidence would have been something we would have said the Soviet Union or China was doing a mere 15 years ago… now it is something that has become a cornerstone of American policy). Even at home, we are asked to protect Freedom by a constitutional ammendment to limit marriage to the good ol’ Christian standard. It sounds to me like Freedom has been stolen. Freedom now means a life of short-sighted international and domestic policy that fits the neo-conservative Christian way of thinking. Foreign policy is whittled down to, “our way, or we bomb you and overthrow your administration.” That is the Freedom that is being protected. The freedom (small f) of everyone else does not matter - only Freedom for good, upstanding, morally straight Americans. Freedom has been hijacked by Terrorists, and they sit in the highest seats of power. Never before has it been more true that one American life is worth a few thousand foreign lives. To our Administration, foreigners don’t have rights. They are killable, arrestable, detainable, torturable, and lord knows what else -able to protect Freedom. This is the rhetoric we expect from regimes like Stalin, yet the public sits idly by waving little American flags and slapping “Support our troops” magnets on cars. Most don’t give a second thought to what those troops are doing - or why. ---
**Author:** ![rfgdxm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c0e974/32.png) [@rfgdxm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rfgdxm)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2005, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-propaganda-war-hijacking-the-word-freedom/283201/2 "2005-01-05T15:19:48Z")
“Freedom is slavery” -George Orwell, “1984” ---
**Author:** ![Lissa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lissa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissa)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2005, 6:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-propaganda-war-hijacking-the-word-freedom/283201/3 "2005-01-06T06:00:25Z")
I am consistantly amazed that _anyone_ could possibly think that the war in Iraq had anything to do with freedom. It’s actually come to the point where I have to leave the room when people start talking about the war because else I’ll find myself going off on a tirade. (I actually surprise myself with how vehement I get.) Tonight, on CBS Evening news, a woman was talking about how her son died in Iraq, fighting for our Freedom. “If he hadn’t gone over there,” she said tearfully, “I’d be wearing a burkah right now.” Blame this woman and people like her. They have no clue what this war is about. They have no idea what it means to be American. Unless its a sentiment they can express with a bumper-sticker, it’s too complex for them, and thus, suspect. It’s not only the word “freedom” they have butchered, but also the word “terrorist,” which now includes just about anyone who behaves in a criminal fashion, or who speaks against the war, or who fights the troops who invaded their country. They have also kidnapped and raped the phrase “moral values,” which henceforth can only be used as an ironic term. Wasn’t it Plato who said that a country gets the government it deserves? On my knees I beg for God to have mercy on us . . . we may deserve it, Lord, but please spare us the consequences of our ignorance and evil. ---
**Author:** ![rjung](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/45deac/32.png) [@rjung](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rjung)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2005, 6:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-propaganda-war-hijacking-the-word-freedom/283201/4 "2005-01-06T06:21:39Z")
> [@Jake the Plumber](#): > > What does neo-con Freedom actually mean? “Do what we say and nobody gets hurt.” ---
**Author:** ![rfgdxm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c0e974/32.png) [@rfgdxm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rfgdxm)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2005, 6:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-propaganda-war-hijacking-the-word-freedom/283201/5 "2005-01-06T06:32:46Z")
> [@Lissa](#): > > Wasn’t it Plato who said that a country gets the government it deserves? On my knees I beg for God to have mercy on us . . . we may deserve it, Lord, but please spare us the consequences of our ignorance and evil. “Every nation has the government it deserves.” -Joseph de Maistre [http://www.ag.wastholm.net/aphorism/EUF0W5-6TX](http://www.ag.wastholm.net/aphorism/EUF0W5-6TX) ---
**Author:** ![Zoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/a4c791/32.png) [@Zoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zoe)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2005, 6:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-propaganda-war-hijacking-the-word-freedom/283201/6 "2005-01-06T06:50:11Z")
The [Institute for Propaganda Analysis](http://www.propagandacritic.com/articles/ct.wg.gg.html) had this to say: > [@](#): > > We believe in, fight for, live by virtue words about which we have deep-set ideas. Such words include civilization, Christianity, good, proper, right, democracy, patriotism, motherhood, fatherhood, science, medicine, health, and love. > > For our purposes in propaganda analysis, we call these virtue words “Glittering Generalities” in order to focus attention upon this dangerous characteristic that they have: They mean different things to different people; they can be used in different ways. They give an example of the use of the word _democracy_. In the paragraph below from their website, I’ve substituted the word _freedom_ to show how it can be used to lure us into accepting the governments actions. > [@](#): > > When someone talks to us about [freedom], we immediately think of our own definite ideas about [freedom], the ideas we learned at home, at school, and in church. Our first and natural reaction is to assume that the speaker is using the word in our sense, that he believes as we do on this important subject. This lowers our ‘sales resistance’ and makes us far less suspicious than we ought to be when the speaker begins telling us the things 'the United States must do to preserve [freedom]. This propaganda technique is nothing new. This and other techniques were described in 1938. I learned about them in civics class in 1957. I wonder if this critical thinking skill is still being taught. From what I have seen and heard on the news, most Iraqis seem to want freedom from U.S. occupation. (They are not free to choose that option, however.) ---
**Author:** ![Hail\_Ants](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/dc4da7/32.png) [@Hail\_Ants](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hail_Ants)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2005, 8:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-propaganda-war-hijacking-the-word-freedom/283201/7 "2005-01-06T08:59:31Z")
Yawn… :rolleyes: Rather than go thru the OP point by point I’ll just sum up by saying: [ul][li]You’re exagarating every idea[/li][li]Everything you list could have been said in the 40s during WWII[/li][li]Even though its easy to dismiss as being cornball, the fact is freedom sometimes does require killing (& dying) for it[/li][/ul] > [@](#): > > From what I have seen and heard on the news, most Iraqis seem to want freedom from U.S. occupation. (They are not free to choose that option, however.) Gee, I wonder why the news is reporting bad things… Lesson for the world, you want to make things better? Don’t start by sucker punching a super power… ---
**Author:** ![Arwin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/51bf81/32.png) [@Arwin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arwin)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2005, 11:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-propaganda-war-hijacking-the-word-freedom/283201/8 "2005-01-06T11:44:50Z")
> [@Hail Ants](#): > > Lesson for the world, you want to make things better? Don’t start by sucker punching a super power… And Iraq did that when again? Btw, your other comments apply equally to abortion … Do you have any real counterarguments? You could have said, perhaps, that the U.S. is fighting to be free of fear. Whether this campaign is the most suitable way of doing it, the most moral way to do it, and whether that was the intention of the current administration, that’s the major sale pitch right there. ---
**Author:** ![Rashak\_Mani](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ea666f/32.png) [@Rashak\_Mani](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rashak_Mani)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2005, 12:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-propaganda-war-hijacking-the-word-freedom/283201/9 "2005-01-06T12:22:42Z")
You forgot to mention that you have the freedom to bicker and bitch about the administration. Without Bush you wouldn’t have that “freedom”… so you’re being ungratefull for using that Freedom of speech “against” your country… bla bla bla… I think the Democrats will have to hijack some other word in order to get back in power. Any suggestions ? Maybe Honesty is still left ? ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2005, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-propaganda-war-hijacking-the-word-freedom/283201/10 "2005-01-06T12:59:35Z")
The only thing I have to add to this OP is an expression of appreciation for the bravery and original thought expressed therein. It’s brave to stand up on a messageboard, where almost everyone here will disag… oh, wait. That’s not this board. On this board, the majority of readers are nodding their heads in agreement with each and every syllable of the OP. And the original thought… a GD thread expressing discontent with the Bush administration’s foreign and domestic policy? Whowoulda thunk it? Turning down the sarcasm meter for just a moment, my short and sincere reply is that many people share the OP’s opinion; many more - a majority, in fact, of the voters - do not. While I agree that this doesn’t make him WRONG, it doesn’t make him right either – and it DOES make his ideas unlikely to gain implementation for the next four years. Which is good with me. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2005, 1:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-propaganda-war-hijacking-the-word-freedom/283201/11 "2005-01-06T13:04:44Z")
> [@Lissa](#): > > Tonight, on CBS Evening news, a woman was talking about how her son died in Iraq, fighting for our Freedom. “If he hadn’t gone over there,” she said tearfully, “I’d be wearing a burkah right now.” If I had a brick I’d have to buy a new TV. She justified that war by saying “We were attacked.” Yes, but not by the people that killed your son! Not by the people we invaded! That burkah comment sent my blood pressure up fifty points. Yes lady, I’m sorry you lost your son and I’m sure this was very hard for you. But your son’s death wasn’t in a war that was against those responsible for 9/11 \*. And you were never in danger of wearing a burkah. - 9/11 is a registered trademark of George W. Bush ---
**Author:** ![C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_K_Dexter_Haven)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2005, 1:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-propaganda-war-hijacking-the-word-freedom/283201/12 "2005-01-06T13:08:39Z")
Well, I think Americans are being offered Freedom from Anti-Bush Thoughts. ---
**Author:** ![kanicbird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/5f8ce5/32.png) [@kanicbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kanicbird)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2005, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-propaganda-war-hijacking-the-word-freedom/283201/13 "2005-01-06T13:23:56Z")
Actually I think we are going away from freedom in favor of security, which IM(and Ben Franklin’s) HO will get us in the end neither. Thought I do think this was is necessary, and should have been done a long time ago. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2005, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-propaganda-war-hijacking-the-word-freedom/283201/14 "2005-01-06T13:33:45Z")
The Dems are losing the propoganda war, not through lack of a message, but through sheer ineptitude. I think one of the major reasons Kerry “lost” (the news of massive electoral fraud in Ohio is starting to get seriously thought-provoking) was that he tried to deliver a nuanced, thorough, well thought out message to the American public on TV and radio. This is NOT what works on TV and radio, no matter what the message. The people who get their news primarily, and even more so, entirely, from TV and radio, don’t have the attention span to listen to nuanced, thoughtful messages, or the critical thinking skills to decipher them. The Pubbies understand this, that’s why their messages for broadcast media are very simple and repeated endlessly. The Dems need to adopt this same technique for broadcast media. (Stuff in print media can be as detailed and nuanced as they like, and can indeed contradict what’s in the broadcast media – the broadcast-only gucks will never read it, and they won’t understand it if they do.) Sadly, it has come to this. The good news is that the Dems can get their share of the guck vote. Political debate for these folks doesn’t resemble debate as we know it online – it is more like teaching a parrot to speak. The gucks will learn any message placed before them, if it’s simple enough and repeated enough, and is crafted to appeal to their very simple sensibilities: “Dems for Freedom!” “Dems will kick ass in Iraq!” “Dems will make the economy strong!” That’s all it would take. That and VERY careful scrutiny of the voting process. ---
**Author:** ![sinical\_brit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/48db29/32.png) [@sinical\_brit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sinical_brit)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2005, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-propaganda-war-hijacking-the-word-freedom/283201/15 "2005-01-06T15:28:55Z")
Hail Ants: “Lesson for the world, you want to make things better? Don’t start by sucker punching a super power…” Is that a threat in GD? And shouldnt that be “supper power” ? Sin ---
**Author:** ![rjung](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/45deac/32.png) [@rjung](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rjung)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2005, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-propaganda-war-hijacking-the-word-freedom/283201/16 "2005-01-06T20:49:56Z")
> [@Evil Captor](#): > > The Dems are losing the propoganda war, not through lack of a message, but through sheer ineptitude. Gee, and here I thought they’d be masters of the game, what with them controlling the media and all. \ ---
**Author:** ![Lissa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lissa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissa)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2005, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-propaganda-war-hijacking-the-word-freedom/283201/17 "2005-01-06T21:05:18Z")
> [@Rashak Mani](#): > > You forgot to mention that you have the freedom to bicker and bitch about the administration. Without Bush you wouldn’t have that “freedom”… Huh? Perhaps this was sarcasm which completely went over my head, but the last time I checked, Bush was not a First Amendment Warrior, fighting for our rights. > [@](#): > > so you’re being ungratefull for using that Freedom of speech “against” your country… bla bla bla… Again . . . huh? > [@](#): > > I think the Democrats will have to hijack some other word in order to get back in power. Any suggestions ? Maybe Honesty is still left ? Actually, I don’t think the Dems have to do anything at all. Like all corrupt regimes, this one will eventually collapse. Americans will get bored with this wave of neo-conservatism, like all fads. The pendulum will swing back. The only thing giving me hope is the knowledge that the harder the inhalation, the harder the exhalation will be. The backlash will be huge. I can’t wait. ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2005, 4:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-propaganda-war-hijacking-the-word-freedom/283201/18 "2005-01-07T04:43:01Z")
> [@Arwin](#): > > And Iraq did that when again?. No, no, Arwin. There is the US and there is the world. That’s it. No fine distinctions here, please, we’ll confuse the 'Pubbies core constituency. ---
**Author:** ![Smartass](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4491bb/32.png) [@Smartass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smartass)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2005, 5:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-propaganda-war-hijacking-the-word-freedom/283201/19 "2005-01-07T05:04:51Z")
What I want to know is who is looking out for the children? -VM