September 10, 2009

Obama’s Attack on Civil Debate: A Quick List of Obama’s Blatant Insults from Last Night’s Speech

Here's a quick list of Obama's insults of those who disagree with him, from last night's healthcare speech.

Obama called opponents 'cynical, irresponsible liars':

"Instead of honest debate, we have seen scare tactics."

"Some of people’s concerns have grown out of bogus claims spread by those whose only agenda is to kill reform at any cost. The best example is the claim, made not just by radio and cable talk show hosts, but prominent politicians, that we plan to set up panels of bureaucrats with the power to kill off senior citizens. Such a charge would be laughable if it weren’t so cynical and irresponsible. It is a lie, plain and simple."

"In fact, I want to speak directly to America’s seniors for a moment, because Medicare is another issue that’s been subjected to demagoguery and distortion during the course of this debate."

Obama called opponents 'bickering game-players who make wild claims':

"Well the time for bickering is over. The time for games has passed."

"And to my Republican friends, I say that rather than making wild claims about a government takeover of health care, we should work together to address any legitimate concerns you may have. But know this: I will not waste time with those who have made the calculation that it’s better politics to kill this plan than improve it. I will not stand by while the special interests use the same old tactics to keep things exactly the way they are. If you misrepresent what’s in the plan, we will call you out. And I will not accept the status quo as a solution. Not this time. Not now. "

Obama is following Saul Alinsky's Rules for Radicals. Alinsky's Rule #12:

RULE 12: Pick the target, freeze it, personalize it, and polarize it." Cut off the support network and isolate the target from sympathy. Go after people and not institutions; people hurt faster than institutions. (This is cruel, but very effective. Direct, personalized criticism and ridicule works.)

Obama is insulting those who disagree with him, and insults are by definition, the opposite of civil debate. He is doing this to attack civil debate because civil debate leads to people discovering the truth - the truth which will set you free - the truth which, if widely recognized, spells an end to his efforts to turn America into a totalitarian state.

Under Obama, the Democrats are the party that attacks civil debate.

This leaves a massive opportunity for the Republicans to accurately brand themselves as the party that welcomes civil debate, that loves civil debate, that invites civil debate from all sides, all parties, all races, creeds, and colors, because it leads to the truth, and brings us together, after the motto of the U.S. - "E Pluribus Unum": "Out of Many, One."