Beware the coming propaganda juggernaut (Joe Conason in Salon.com)

[Penndems]

The public's money is already being spent to sell privatization -- one P.R. firm is being paid $1.8 million by the Social Security Administration.

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By Joe Conason

Feb. 25, 2005 | The dimensions of the conservative campaign to destroy Social Security -- and dismantle the New Deal -- are now heaving into view. Determined to achieve the victory that has eluded them for more than 70 years, George W. Bush's aides and allies are building a very big, very ugly propaganda juggernaut.

In strategy and tactics, this massive new creation already reflects designs traditionally employed by the Republicans under Karl Rove, whether they are promoting a war, electing a president or merely seeking to pass (or defeat) a piece of legislation.

What remains uncertain, for the moment, is the extent to which the White House will deploy government-sponsored propaganda to win this struggle. Will it misuse public money -- including, ironically, the proceeds of Social Security taxes -- for its partisan deconstruction project? And while ostensibly "independent" groups boast that they will spend tens of millions on the privatization crusade, that may not be enough to overcome growing popular resistance to Bush's effort.

The president himself has been campaigning vigorously for his "plan," as have his surrogates. But we now know that the Bush administration regularly employs less transparent and more deceptive techniques to manipulate opinion. In pursuit of the president's political goals, federal agencies have hired pundits with public funds -- creating bogus news stories that appear on television -- and the administration has permitted at least one fake news organization to infiltrate the White House press corps.

Link (May require watching a brief commercial for access):
http://www.salon.com/opinion/conason/2005/02/25/propaganda/index.html
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More taxpayer-funded propaganda, this time courtesy of the Social Security Administration for the -- get this -- DESTRUCTION of the Social Security System.

My God, this is the most despicable, dishonorable bunch I've seen in action since the Nixon Administration. Hopefully, they'll meet a similar downfall.

[still_one]

1. The problem is that some of the democrats are just as despicable

[Paul Dlugokencky]

4. Name names

Who?

[still_one]

6. joe liberman for one

[ixion]

7. Zell Miller, Dick Gephardt, Joe Lieberman...

and anyone else who has supported the most dangerously corrupt administration in US History.

[still_one]

8. dianne feinstein

and joe biden for talking tough, but voting wrong

[izzie]

2. I have already read on Free Rep/ that old age homes etc were fine

I am sure the 51% that love Bush will let it go in unless they start thinking. I would not count on that.

[Racenut20]

3. I expect to see banners and bumper stickers that say

BRING BACK HOOVER !!!!!!!

[rodeodance]

5. most people will see it as 'news'

[DELUSIONAL]

9. Ah the good old days of Hoover

sort of like the good old days of Saddam.

And if bush keeps dogmatically going in this direction it may well be that times were better under the inept Hoover than under the dumb ass bushie.

[bpilgrim]

10. Hey-Hey, HoHo, Social Security has got to GO! -------------------> MP3

http://news.globalfreepress.com/mp3/aar/mr/hhhh-ss-long.mp3

psst... pass the word ;->

peace