Super Rich vs. 99%: Class war will explode

[marmar]

By Paul B. Farrell, MarketWatch


SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. (MarketWatch) — Forget politics. The 99%, the Occupy Wall Street movement, is not about politics. But politicians don’t get it yet. The Dems sure don’t. And while Bill O’Reilly says the movement is already dead, insider Frank Luntz thinks OWS is not only very alive, but getting dangerously bigger. In fact, he’s very “scared” for his clients.

Warning: Will somebody please tell Luntz Occupy Wall Street is not about politics? This is class warfare, a revolution about economic inequality, not about political parties, political policies and political solutions … and it’s not going away any time soon.

Luntz is a conservative pollster so he’s making it all about politics. But he’s missing the point, and misleading his clients. Luntz is author of some great books like “Words That Matter” and “What Americans Really Want…Really.” And in my opinion, he’s one of the America’s best behavioral economists.

But his pitch at last week’s Republican Governors Association meeting in Florida suggests he not only doesn’t understand the 99%, he’s misleading 29 state governors with Words That Will Backfire when the occupiers in the encampments see through Luntz’s attempted manipulations. ..............(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.marketwatch.com/story/super-rich-vs-99-class-war-will-explode-2011-12-06?link=home_carousel

[Vanje]

1. Wish I could Rec this dozens of times. nt

[tosh]

12. Me too so I'll kick it again & again.

[Magoo48]

2. Our movement is now growing in directions unimagined just two months ago.

[Laelth]

3. Interesting. k&r n/t

-Laelth

[xchrom]

4. recommend

[rfranklin]

5. But it is about politics...

Why do people vote against their interests time after time? Because politicians have convinced them that it is the blacks, latinos, liberals, Jews (insert whatever scapegoats are convenient) that are causing all their problems and if they just vote for Reagan, Bush, Gingrinch (insert latest flavor) it will be "morning in America" once again. And it will happen again in this election cycle.

[MedicalAdmin]

6. I agree. I predict a clean sweep for the other party.

The evil is about to become real. I predict that Chomsky was right.

[groovedaddy]

9. But politics and economics have no connection, right? ;-) n/t

[defendandprotect]

19. Issues aren't "politics" .... "Politics is the shadow cast over government by corporations" ---

or you could say wealthy --

Granted, Frank Luntz is paid by the wealthy/corporations to form the propaganda which

serves to create an emotional reaction rather than true thought on issues --

And, though this RW proapganda has been going on for decades now it is only recently

that we began to pay any attention to it --

Rarely mentioend by liberals or in any non-fiction until probably ten years or so ago?


And, you can bet on it that RW proapganda works!!



When you see someone or a class of people being degraded or demonized, remember that's

the first step in denying their humanity and making their vulnerable to further attacks

on them -- intolerance and violence.


No matter which issue we look at -- from Native American, Women, Jews, Homosexuals,

Africans enslaved here -- it's the same story.

[Pachamama]

7. Luntz is a Putz.....he was the kid in class everyone hated....

How do I know? Because I had the horrible misfortune of having to take a few classes in College and sit near the piece of crap!! He thought he knew it all, loved interrupting the Professor and class instruction and everybody hated him.....

Years later when I saw him on TV as he made his career as the Repuke pollster who twists words into mind-fucks, I screamed when I realized he was the annoying Jackass that tormented us in those classes. We all knew he would go on to do great harm......:puke:

[defendandprotect]

20. Luntz makes a living by exploiting nature, humanity and any issue he can get his tongue to -- for $$

[tcaudilllg]

8. O'Reilly's only function is to corral the killers.

[The Wizard]

10. Frank Luntz is an idiot

whose greatest strength is exploiting dimwits with language. He should have taken the eyes out of that thing he has on his head.

[SnakeEyes]

11. I like that its framed super rich instead of 1%

1% includes those making $250K combined a year. To many that's not super rich. Harder to get people on board for redistribution. Economic justice is achievable but we need to focus on the super rich. We can get the masses to support forcing the super rich to give up more of their money for the good of society.

[tosh]

13. K&R. A must-read.

[SkyDaddy7]

14. Make NO MISTAKE Frank Luntz is a very...

dangerous man! He may be all the things he is being called but he has played a MAJOR ROLE in why this country is the way it is! Him & Newt both are people we need to blow off. IMHO.

[Eric Galaxy]

15. Once people believe the movement is about politics,

it means the movement is also led by politicians. Once the movement is led by politicians, they will be back in comfortable control.

[pnwmom]

25. No, it is about politics at the grassroots level.

That is very different from a movement led by politicians.

[Eric Galaxy]

31. I thought it was about changing our society for the better,

not about changing politics. Guess I could be wrong though.

[pnwmom]

32. We have to change politics -- which is our way of working together for change --

in order to change society for the better.

If we were a country with one religion, working together through that structure could be an option. But, fortunately, we're not.

[Eric Galaxy]

42. Agreed, politics is part of any society.

Though from what I see, I wouldn't call political change the focus of the Occupy movement. I would call societal change the focus, and political change a result.

[tavalon]

16. I'm sorry that I have only one rec to give this

It is so true. None of them get it and they are scared. Dazed and confused, in fact.

[midnight]

17. K&R

[MrMickeysMom]

18. Luntz follows the great tradition of the know nothing party...

It's all about a big "use versus them" football game, and the only thing in his arsenal is fear and loathing...

It's too late ... All too soon this class warfare will enter into a whole new experience for the know-nothings...

[AntiFascist]

21. I don't like the warfare paradigm, and that scares me...

The wealthy 1% are simply addicted to greed. Continually satisfying that greed is like being addicted to the most powerful drug you can imagine. What the 1% fear is simply the thought of having to go into withdrawal. They can't even stand the thought of having their taxes raised! I believe that this is really a mental health issue, and the greediest among the 1% desperately need help, not just for their sakes but for those millions if not billions among the 99% who are suffering due to their excesses.

[tomp]

27. it may be a personality disorder....

....antisocial PD for instance. Very hard to cure.

[AntiFascist]

35. Yes! and anti-social in the strict criminal sense as well n/t

[txlibdem]

37. They shush any talk of class warfare because *they* have been waging it against us for 70 years now

Slowly, insidiously, step by step, planning every move and 3 more counter moves... just as a serial killer would when planning his next murder, just as a psychopath would when planning his next atrocity.

The rich are all, IMO, psychopaths. We should stop worshiping them and begin institutionalizing them so they can get the medication and counseling they truly need.

[classysassy]

45. Mental not physical warfare

" We will not take up arms against a sea of troubles",we will arm ourselves with facts and use those weapons to defeat the 1% of greedy evil men and women.We should be void of malice but we should always be on guard so it can never happen again.

[ErikJ]

22. top 1% future

<>

[me b zola]

23. K&R

[pnwmom]

24. If OWS doesn't turn into a political movement, it won't accomplish

all that it could and should accomplish.

Martin Luther King didn't accomplish what he did by ignoring politics.

[Tunkamerica]

26. I could be wrong, because there are so many posters on DU,

but haven't you been anti-OWS?

[pnwmom]

33. I have been an active donor to Seattle OWS,

if not a participant, so no, I haven't been anti-OWS.

It is possible for supporters of OWS to disagree on tactics and strategy, isn't it?

[Tunkamerica]

34. sorry, my memory is pretty bad. i must be conflating two different threads

[Enthusiast]

28. Kicked and recommended!

[Paka]

29. They really don't understand it.

I grew up in what would be considered the "privileged class" but thank god I do get it. And it isn't really about the money, but what you do with it that counts. Buying a democracy is not on the list of acceptable activities. :hippie:

[DeeDeeNY]

30. Luntz manipulates through words

Quick picturesque phrases for people with small attention spans. This is what he does, and this is what works with the Republican faithful.

[shanti]

36. k&r for the TRUTH!

n/t

[Fantastic Anarchist]

38. It should be a social and economic revolution ...

Not a political one.

[Fantastic Anarchist]

39. Why does he keep referring to Luntz as a great behavioral economist?

There's a name for people like Luntz. "Liars" and/or "swindlers" are much better fits.

[classysassy]

40. Justice in America is a bad joke.

Until we replace the crooks in congress,the governors mansions and the county officials that accept bribes we will continue to be ruled by the wealthy criminals that are ruining our country.Those bums distract our attention by labeling their rival criminals as unworthy of ruling,both criminal parties,the dems and the rethugs are making a fortune off the backs of the ill informed poor.Retire all of the crooked congressmen and women and replace with with citizens that are looking out for the poor citizens as the current crooks look out for the rich crooks.

[Tsiyu]

41. K&R

:kick:

[classysassy]

43. Letting two shills for the wealthy

define a movement opposed to their clients position is a joke.

[paulk]

44. there is an ocean of discontent out there

and our political class doesn't get it.

I'm hearing it from both liberal and conservative acquaintances...

the only thing that's stopping it from exploding is that people feel helpless, that they can't affect change

we'll see, come the spring, what comes of all this.

I think that soon we will all be living in "interesting times"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/May_you_live_in_interesting_times

[KoKo]

46. Yep...we who have lived on planet for awhile..know this is coming. K&R!