An open discussion on how to beat the election clock and defeat the Spiral

[mikelewis]

At Half Price Books, I picked up a copy of The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich. I love this book, it's like reading about the devil. I picked it up again because of this election and more importantly, the events that have transpired over the past few years.

The thing that has puzzled me about the election fraud stories is the lack of main-stream media coverage. One would think that stories such as those from Blackboxvoting.org and others would have created a media frenzy the likes of which this country has never before seen. But it has not. In fact, the only coverage seems to try to label those who are searching for answers as "tin-foiled hat" wearing conspiracy theorists. It begs one to consider what the people in Germany must have been saying as Hitler rose to power. I know, for some, equating Bush to Hitler is a vulgar stretch of the imagination. For others, it rolls off the lips as easy as strawberry wine. Regardless, the concern people felt about Hitler's rise to power was as real as many people's concerns about Bush's ascension to power. If this election was rigged and if the other issues that people feel Bush is responsible for are true, then why has there not been more of a public outcry? Despite the lack of media coverage, why aren't people rising up in massive demonstrations to force our government to reveal the truth? Why is there no public outcry for justice in our voting system? Are the people so complacent that they will allow the democratic process to be undercut by fraudulent actions?

The answer to this question is the same as it was 60 years ago. The Spiral of Silence is the name of the phenomenon in which the people of Germany experienced during Hitler's rise to power. The number of people who know that the 2000 election was rigged and the growing revelation that this 2004 election was rigged is settling into the minds of the people and yet, where are the patriots, the protestors, the "voice of one calling in the desert"?

The true enemy of our country is the Spiral of Silence.
http://www.colostate.edu/Depts/Speech/rccs/theory09.htm

In this article, the key concepts of the Spiral of Silence are:

Central Assumptions:

One's perception of the distribution of public opinion influences one's willingness to express opinions.

The spiral of silence demonstrates why people are unwilling to express their opinions (publicly) when they are not believed to be in the majority.

People feel an increasing pressure to conceal their views and opinions when they believe they are in minority.

Individuals perceptions of the opinions of others is a critical factor in determining their willingness to express those opinions.


It is these factors that compel complacency and will allow, if not combated, the perpetuation of this fraudulent regime. But the question is, how do we combat such a powerful natural reaction?

Many believe that the media is the solution to this problem. That by exposing these issues to the major news publications and television shows will cause them to eventually realize that there is a problem and finally report what we have discovered. Unfortunately, this is doomed to failure. The reason is that the media is responsible for perpetuating this Spiral of Silence.

Media's Effect on the Spiral of Silence:
Mass media has a lasting effect on public opinion.
"The theory maintains that mass media work simultaneously with majority public opinion to silence minority beliefs on cultural issues."
--Defining Communication Theories

"Mass media, particularly TV, tells us not only what to think about, but also imposes their reality of what everybody else is---supposedly---thinking about."
--Tim Buell

"I have never found a spiral of silence that goes against the tenor of the media, for the willingness to speak out depends in part upon sensing that there is support and legitimization from the media."
--Noelle-Neumann

"The media provide people with the words and phrases they can use to defend a certain point of view. If people find no current, frequently repeated expressions for their point of view, they lapse into silence; they become effectively mute."
--Noelle-Neumann

It is by their actions and inactions that public perception is molded. Consider the Iraq War. The mantra of W.M.D and 9/11 connections was repeated so many times that some people still believe these issues are still solvent reasons for our participation. Now the current perception is that we are there to spread freedom and democracy to the Middle East. This new mantra has been repeated by such images as the peaceful voting in Afghanistan and the Prime Minister of Iraq, Allawi giving his speech of thanks before our Congress. As noble an enterprise as this is, this is not a valid reason to perpetuate aggression against another state. If this idea had been presented as the central reason we were attacking Iraq, how much public support would they have gleaned?

The same holds true for this election. If the media had came out on election night and proclaimed that there was something amiss, how would that have affected the public opinion in our nation? Would we see people in the streets in demonstrations, as we see in the Ukraine today? The media has made every effort to stifle doubt in this election. They have applied the label of "Conspiracy Theory" to honest questions and have, in fact, waged a disinformation campaign against the American people.

Our constant pleas to the Mainstream media will continue to go unheard unless we do something that will force them to abandon their current campaign. I don't believe that the entire media has been corrupted by the Bush Administration but it is likely that many have been. They have been promised access in exchange for silence in many occasions. Again, the example of Iraq is fitting. The media was allowed to "embed" reporters with our troops. This was never done before. This brought the war right into our living rooms on a scale never dreamt of in the Vietnam War. This also brought enormous ratings and enormous profits. What would they be willing to stifle in exchange for access, ratings and profits?

If we are to be successful in this campaign, we must adopt a new strategy. The Internet is a very powerful tool but it does not have the trust of the people. We must begin to distribute a new form of media. Actually, it's an old form of media. To incite the people to rebel in the Revolutionary War, what did our Founding Fathers turn to in order to educate the people to their point of view? We must once again bring up the Federalist Papers and Common Sense. If you agree that the media is no longer a friend to the American people and this message will not be presented to them, then what other alternative is there. Among us, we have the resources to distribute this information cheaply and efficiently.

To print up flyer, the cost is cheap. Your local copy store can print up flyers for about $0.08 a copy. If you print more, the price will go down. For the paranoid, I suggest paying cash and changing the place you get copies frequently. These flyers can be distributed at malls all over this country. Right now, we are in the holiday shopping season. The malls will be packed with people and the parking lots will be packed with cars. In a few minutes, you could have over a hundred flyers passed out and never even draw attention to yourself. For the bold, go downtown and pass them out on the streets or at churches.

As these flyers begin to circulate, the message that they deliver must be clear and contain a call to action. I am not going to offer an opinion as to what this call should contain as this should be a consensus of the people who write the fliers. If we could get a group of people together on this site to write these papers and allow them to be edited by their peers, I believe that in a few weeks, we could actually begin to start to slow this Spiral of Silence and begin to turn the tide in the other direction. I hope that you can participate in this, whether its delivery or design. If enough of us do this, the word will get out and people will no longer be afraid to discuss this topic. If enough people are talking about this, there will be those that will do something about it. This could spread beyond the control of our government and allow the people to once again have a voice.

I am not a proponent of mob rule. I believe in this Republic and this Constitution and do not want to see these cast aside. This is why I am offering this plan of action as this will restore the voice to the people and put our government on notice. We must no longer tolerate tyranny. Depriving the people their voice is a mechanism of tyranny. I will not suffer this Spiral of Silence, not in this country, not at this time. Please, help.

Sincerely,

Michael Lewis