How Republican mind control works: the 3rd Party Principle

[DrBB]

I've posted on this before, but it's useful information and it came up again today in context of a recent poll.

The 3rd Party Principle:
To control political outcomes, I don't try to influence what YOU think. Rather, I influence what you think everyone ELSE thinks.

This is an established principle in PR and social measurement. The classic example: Asked whether there is too much sex or too much violence on TV, a majority said "too much violence." Asked how they thought everyone ELSE would respond to the question, they said "too much sex." So sex (though obviously this is changing now) tended to be more heavily censored than violence.

Another textbook example is right before us today. Consider this headline:

52 Percent of Voters Don't Want to See Bush Re-Elected (44% Do), 37 Percent Strongly Want to See Him Re-Elected, 47 Percent Strongly Do Not

But a Large Majority (78%) Says That it is Very Likely (40%) or Somewhat Likely (38%) That he Will Get a Second Term

Most people don't want Bush to be re-*elected. But most people think he will be anyway--i.e., they think everyone ELSE thinks he should be.

The game on the other side is all about reinforcing and solidifying this impression. They don't care what you think; they care what you think everyone ELSE thinks.

We have to do whatever we can to attack that impression. Even the stupid, meaningless internet polls we see are not meaningless in this unscientific, PR sense. Go ahead and vote in 'em and tell your friends to vote in 'em too.

This is also a reason why the usual internecine sniping at our "opponent" candidates during the primaries is so damning to our ultimate goal of ousting the corrupt corporatist Chimp. Creates the impression of a party that can't beat the unified, lockstep GOP. We must be seen to be--as well as be--a highly motivated and determined party dedicated to winning. So when someone attacks a Dem candidate, DEFEND that candidate, even if he's not your particular choice.

Letters to the editor, speaking out wherever you can, these things all become crucial from the p.o.v. of simply making it clear to others that NOT "everyone" believes the Chimp is our inevitable fate.