has anyone noticed that the RW is using Left Wing organizational tactics to make their case

[cap]

Protests, "under cover investigative journalism...

Your enemy is Hitler... It looks like they just did cut and paste on our tactics and applied them in an underhanded way.

[MisterP]

1. they also pretend they're whistleblowers like Silkwood or something, with their hidden-camera work

at ACORN or Planned Parenthood
it helps "moderates" decry those tactics, since they're "equally" usable by left and right
thing is, the left uses them correctly, and for correct issues, and from correct premises, while the conservatives haven't been correct since their coalescence in the 1760s

[bananas]

2. It's strange to see, isn't it?

[aikoaiko]

3. This has been happening since the late 1980s.

But you're right to point out new examples of it.

[Bluerthanblue]

4. "imitation is the sincerest form of flattery"...

I said that to my son the other day when we passed a Corvette with a sticker saying "01/21/12 end of an error" on it.

:shrug:

[Hannah Bell]

5. uh-huh. jujitsu.

[grok]

6. there is a HUGE difference...

Alinsky's and similar left tactics were actually designed for poor people to make a difference even with meager resources.

the Reich wing media machine is massive in scope, money and power.

It's a huge monster that is now awake.

[YOY]

7. You see...they got nothing. Nothing but hate and jingoism.

None-the-less, they are the party that runs on jingoism and hate.

[JDPriestly]

8. Actually, sooner or later, some of these people who are new to "activism"

will start thinking and asking questions. It is inevitable. And when they do, many of them will rethink the stances they are taking. It will take years, but it will happen. Think about how ordinary Americans changed their views on Iraq. Changing attitudes is possible.

The Tea-Baggers came to the street through the internet. That is a good sign. The internet has broken the national silence. It has given the people who passively consumed TV for so long the chance to talk back -- in writing.

And that is why we will see change. The process of writing your thoughts, regardless of the misspelled words, the grammatical errors, the ignorance, demands at least an imitation of coherent thought. It puts your critical brain into gear.

It may take years, and some of these newbies to the streets may never get there, but just by writing crude words on a sign, they are starting to use a part of their brains that they haven't exercised much since they quit school (if then).

This is actually our opportunity -- to engage people one on one in conversation and thought. Respect, quiet talk, listening, is the best approach. Counter-demonstrations have their place, but one on one conversations are much more effective.

If you go to an event, wait quietly on the fringes. As the march breaks up, approach a participant and ask the person about his or her ideas. Be prepared to listen to a lot of nonsense. Don't become impatient or angry. This is not a contest that you win or lose. This is a conversation.

Let the person you are talking to finish saying everything they have to say. Don't interrupt. Once they have really vented all their pent-up frustration and anger, quietly ask them to elaborate and explain where they got their facts. Don't directly contradict them. Don't offer your facts until you know where they got theirs. Find common ground.

For example, if they are upset about illegals, ask them what they know about illegals. Pick up on their points. Ask them why, in their opinion, the illegals come in, how they get in and who pays them once they get here.

If you listen carefully, you will learn that the right-wingers on many issues are really mad about the same things we are mad about. We are angry because of the corporate greed and dominance over our lives. That is really what they are mad about. They just use different language when they talk about it. They talk about high taxes, TARP, illegal immigration and the budget deficit. We talk about corporate privilege and dominance of the media, the extreme differences between incomes of rich and poor, about out-sourcing and low wages. Neither we nor they are on the up-side of any of the corporate bonanza. That is why I say that our anger really unites us.

Don't get into a personal argument or a fight with a Tea-Bagger. Listen to the person, establish a human relationship. Swallow your pride and leave on good terms -- always. You are talking to a real human being carrying a sign, not a sign carrying a person. That person is not just some image you see on TV.

Don't expect to persuade or convert anyone in one conversation. Just show respect. Smile and admit that you don't understand their view, that you understand their anger, but have a different analysis, different facts. Agree to disagree. Plant idea seeds and questions in the mind of the other person and allow that person to plant idea seeds in your own mind. That is how good ideas and non-violent communication grow.

The first idea we need to grow is that the national conversation can be civil -- that we will listen and want them to also listen to us.

We have so much in common with the Tea-Baggers. They are our families, our fathers and mothers and brothers and sisters. They are fellow human beings. Many of them are just starting to think. Help them learn. Don't ridicule them. Don't alienate them. Engage them in civility and non-violence.

When you talk to people, be prepared. Read books. Start with Naomi Klein and Thom Hartmann. Educate yourself before you start trying to educate your friends and family.

Sorry, this is long, but I think I am saying something worthwhile.