Category Archives: emerging memes

Glossary: an anatomy of key memes, phrases, canards, shibboleths and obsessions in the Wall Street Journal and other GOTP language factories, Dec. 29, 2014-Jan 6, 2015

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note: GOTP=Grand Old Tea Party

adherence to the rule of law: like “Constitutional originalism” or “American exceptionalism,” this is a GOTP appeal to so-called natural law.  By definition, any GOTP law or policy is orderly and supportive of “common sense” values, whereas any Dem law or policy is by definition unruly, irrational, and socially destructive. Just another instance of “how the GOTP saved civilization” rhetoric.

balancing : lip-service phrase for seeming to compromise when you actually have no intention. Somehow, the “balance” always seems to tip in favor of the GOTP. For example, fracking proponents argue that they are willing to “balance” (or “take into account”–another weasle phrase) their position against “environmental concerns.” But they always have their finger on the scale: when the “balancing” is done, the fix is in.

first principles: GOTP bedrock: Constitutional originalism (always “strictly adhered to”), limiting the federal government, and protecting individual liberties. Dems, by contrast, don’t have “principles” so much as “dogmas” or “ideologies”. GOTP “first principles” serve “the people,” whereas Dem policies serve “cronies and special interests.”

gridlock is a good thing: only GOTP Congress members–people with government jobs, being paid with taxpayer money–has the audacity to say that Washington gridlock is a good thing because it means no governmental acts are taking place.  Using their usual form of reverse English, where everything means its opposite, their highest principles are thus realized when they get paid for doing nothing.

judicial engagement:  when the GOTP agrees with court decisions; judicial “activism”, on the other hand, is when courts implement Dem laws & policies, or overturn GOTP laws & policies,. (see “adherence to the rule of law,” above)

malign: what libs do when they criticize the police.

market-driven and patient-centered: the paradox at the heart of the GOTP’s Obamacare alternatives. This mythical creature could also be called a griffin, minotaur or dragon: pure fantasy. As if anything that is purely “market driven” can be anything other than that.

mob: any public gathering opposing GOTP policies or positions. Sometimes, in a nifty bit of thinly-veiled racism, it’s called a “lynch-mob mentality”. When Teabaggers gather, it’s simply called a “crowd.”

self-government: since any government is axiomatically nothing but “meddlesome,” it’s useful for the GOTP to enforce this dichomy netween “free people” somehow governing themselves, and “Washington — its officeholders-for-life, its strangling bureaucratic sprawl, its incestuous network of staffers and lobbyists, its naked cronyism, and its invested media.” Apparently, every person is to be a government of one; radical self-reliance without any mitigating mutuality; freedom without responsibility.

the time for debate is over: what either side says when they are losing the argument.

 

Glossary: an anatomy of key memes, phrases, canards, shibboleths and obsessions in the Wall Street Journal and other GOTP language factories, Dec. 15-24, 2014

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note: GOTP stands for Grand Old Tea Party

America hater: Obama, who loves the Cubans, Russians, Iranians, and illegal immigrants too much.

America’s moral standing: something Obama always talks about, but the GOTP actually does something about. This is the gold standard for GOTP criticism of Obama foreign policy because anything short of aggressive, unilateral action “tears down America” and “gives comfort to the bad guys”. Like the gold standard, only the GOTP seems to have the golden tablets on which are inscribed ways to gauge “America’s moral standing”.

anti-fossil fuel masochism: any opposition to fracking, coal production, or the use and consumption  of fossil fuels. Thus being “green” is not only to destroy the economy  but also to destroy oneself. Greenies are pathologically self-loathing.

comrades, cronies and pals: Obama supporters, especially any person or business getting a tax break or benefiting from a change in regulatory policy. The Grand Old Tea Party, of course, has “allies” and “supporters” rather than  comrades, cronies and pals.

demonizing the police: a prophylactic term intended to render the police immune from criticism. In this meme, freedom, as represented by the police, is equated with obeying authority, and order is privileged over justice. This all-purposecharge exemspts police from the social contract and the law.

hyena pack: journalists, progressive activist and trial lawyers (especially those pursuing class-action suits against corporations.

inappropriate: in the Peggy Noonan, moral scold, family of rhetorical sneers. An “adult” word, like “honor”, “dignity,” “duty,” etc. Somehow, Dems are always, like children, a little “inappropriate” and untempered in their public utterances. Any direct challenge to received GOTP pieties or shibboleths is automatically “inappropriate”. The idea of what is actually “appropriate” is lodged in the “moral bedrock” (see below) that only the GOTP seems to be born with.

to increase choice and competition:  Hold onto your wallet whenever you hear this ominous incantation. It’s axiomatic that decreased regulation and scrutiny invariably, over time, tend to lead to less choice and competition, but these two words are classic cases of what John Lanchester calls “reversification” of terms–when words become their opposites.

it’s only with hindsight: this is a deflective, prophylactic term, used to shield GOTP from especially effective challenges or criticism: e.g., it’s only “after the fact” or “with hindsight” that waterboarding and other “harsh interrogation policies” might be seen as amounting to torture. Invidious moral distinctions that run counter to GOTP dogma are thus portrayed as impossible to imagine in real time. (see also, “reasonable people can disagree,” below).

let the courts figure it out: another immunizing meme, intended to stifle public debate and free speech. Don’t criticize the legality of police actions because you aren’t “qualified” to speak out on subjects of justice, social equity, and morals or ethics.

moral bedrock: any GOTP ideology. Dem morality rests on the shifting sands of “moral relativism” and permissiveness. Playing this rhetorical card goes toward establishing one’s ethos. It is on this very bedrock that civilization itself rests.

norms of public speech: what deBlasio and Obama violate whenever they speak about race relations in America. This is a rhetorical term of scolding, based on high moral dudgeon that such “bleeding heart” Dems are irresponsible and “inappropriate”. (See above). This charge is typically couched in rhetoric around the notion of “truth,” which itself becomes relative when weighed against “appropriateness”.

political operatives, cowards, and apologists: anyone still supporting Obama. (see also, “comrades, cronies and pals,” above)

the political unrest of the 60s:  pejorative description of The Civil Rights Movement

pro-growth policies: like progress, “growth” is said to only be possible in an environment of such “free market” policies as right-to-work legislation, private school vouchers, and pension and tort reform. In other words, the only way to promote growth is to cripple unions, reduce retirement benefits and make corporations basically immune from litigation, especially class action suits.

reasonable people can disagree; you can disagree with those rules or facts: another prophylactic term, and a false claim to rationality, and a misleading, startegically concessionary term. When the GOTP prefaces their rhetorical attacks on Dems with this phrase, they are really saying that even if the facts work against them, they are morally in the right.

stifling: what government inevitably does to innovation and competition. the “animal spirits” of business yearn to live free and unfettered.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Glossary: an anatomy of key memes, euphemisms, sneers, innuendos, and meta-narratives in the Wall Street Journal and other GOP language factories, Nov 29-Dec. 9, 2014

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(it’s) all about the country: (see “civilization”, below). This meme is trotted out in times of civil unrest or widespread dissent. Too much dissent undermines America, “tears at its very fabric,” etc. These dissenters put America into “retreat” (see below).

America in retreat: the mastermeme characterizing the Obama administration. Barry may have put us into “retreat,” according to this conceit, but we never go into “decline,” thanks to the free market and the forces of “liberty”.

anti-police ideology: any criticism of policing tactics. Such criticism is not fact-based but ideological (see “facts,” below), and is always characterized as “poisonous” or “toxic” to “civilization” (see below).

bureaucratic bloat: all government workers. The best government is the “thinnest” one.

civilization: this c-word gets played whenever there is civil unrest or mass dissent. Those in possession of the “facts” (see below) are the keepers of the flame of civilized behavior; everyone else is a “savage”. Read Huck Finn for the best critique of this position.

conspicuous compassion: all the Dems have to fall back on, instead of standing for the daddy words: truth, duty, honor, justice, security, liberty.

facts: whatever the GrandOldTeaParty says, since they are the “daddy” party. Thus in the cse of the Ferguson grand jury, the only “credible” “facts” or witnesses were those that exonerated Wilson. Dems don’t have “facts” (as in the case of climate change), but only opinions or “lies”. The basic argument underlying this position is that Dems only espouse “values” because they want power, not out of ethical principles. (See “conspicuous compassion,” above).

pitchfork justice: populism. When Dems demonstrate, it’s likened to a mobocracy, an irrational avenging army of self-righteous hypocrites; when the GOTP takes to the streets, it’s called “grassroots democracy”. Any current on-campus demonstration for the prosecution of rape charges is currently being tarred as “pitchfork justice”.

rampaging mobs (aka, “savages”): any protestors “playing the race card”. Typically portrayed as “other”: druggies, welfare freeloaders, barbarians, etc.

robust competition: only possible after massive tax cuts and the essential suspension of all regulation of business and finance.

superior attitude: what Dems are accused of practicing whenever they defend a moral position or attack any GOTP position. A version of being “uppity”.

taxes: always a “burden” or “barrier”; a force of “harm” or “damage”.

victimology: said to be at the heart of Dem ideology: the phony, false compassion for those suffering from racism, sexism, inequality, etc. To the Dems, “victims” are the real “heroes”.

Glossary: an anatomy of key memes, euphemisms, sneers, innuendos, and meta-narratives in the Wall Street Journal and other GOP language factories, Nov 9-15, 2014

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bribe: any form of government subsidy or tax break. (That is, except for tax breaks or subsidies for the job creators).

the business community: in the Grand Old Tea Party’s Manichean anti-Obama morality play, business is the enemy.

cronyism in America: as defined by the Koch Brothers’ Freedom Partners, every government regulation, subsidy, bailout, loan, corporate tax break, tariff, and occupational licensing “scheme”.

envirogelicals: According to Erick Erickson, “The environmentalists who have replaced worship of Christ with worship of Christ’s creation. They are a large part of the donor base of the Democratic Party.”

the governing trap: what the Grand old Tea Party most wants to avoid between now and the 2016 elections: actually passing bills that have real consequences. Their challenge is to make it appear that Obama is the obstructionist, not them.

(Washington’s) liberal class: the sneering Grand Old Tea Party rhetorical hijacking of what used to be called populism. Part of the GOTP’s new fake populism, which claims they are actually on the side of women, minorities and free speech, and opposed to big business. Always remember that every message from Frank Luntz, Karl Rove, and the Koch Brothers is the exact opposite of what it says it is.

mau-mauing: a verb the Grand Old Tea Party has resuscitated from a 1970 Tom Wolfe book, referring to harassing “activist” trying to take over government.

Obamaism: a fatal brew of liberal compassion (aka, pathetic naivete), self-preening, and arrogrance.

picking winners and losers: the fake argument that the free market takes care of itself, and makes for a level playing field. (I guess we’re not supposed to notice that the GOP/Tea Party supports all tax breaks and loopholes for corporate America).

the politics of envy: any mention on income inequality, social justice, or tax increases for the wealthy. Reverse Robinhoodism.

public sector jobs: jobs for the  low-skilled losers in the global economy. Curiously, the Grand Old Tea Party just spend billions of dollars trying to get these jobs at the local, state and national levels.

rational means and ends: what the Grand Old Tea Party (in its self-elected and self-regarding role as the Daddy party) decides will be the outcome of so-called voter preferences (affordable health care, minimum wage hikes, open Internet, etc.). The so-called voter preferences are thus just naive delusions and sentiments, that melt away when confronted by “reality”.

rents: any form of government regulation; what the fixers, lobbyists and activists use to control government and strangle competition. Thus the Wall Street Journal defines liberalism as a “self interested machine of influence peddling and rent extraction”. Note that reducing any form of tax or regulation to a “rent” renders any governmentality as a mere financial transaction, devoid of any more or public serve values or ideals.

Rube Goldberg scheme: any complex regulatory policy, such as federal fuel economy standards. Really, any policy the GOTP/Tea disdains.

visionless apparatchiks: any government regulators.

Glossary: an anatomy of key memes, euphemisms, sneers, innuendos, and meta-narratives in the Wall Street Journal and other GOP language factories, Oct 29-Nov 7, 2014

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arcane reporting rules: almost any language attached to regulatory oversight, especially in the much-despised compliance guidelines of Dodd-Frank or any challenge to what Paul KrUgman calls “the sacred pursuit of profit”.

the Democratic base: NARAL, ACORN and the media.

the deserving party.  Believing themselves to be harder working and more virtuous than Dems (especially minorities), the GOP feels that it deserves to rule.

fiscal responsibility: in Tea Party/GOP scripting, this always means tax and spending cuts. By this logic, the main responsibility of government is NOT to spend–a curious paradox. An alternative view would be that government’s fiscal responsibility is to stimulate the economy and make sure there is full employment and massive investments in the future (i.e., education & infrastructure). As in most of these rhetorical impasses, it comes down to rights vs. duties: is government defined by freedom from spending or the freedom to spend?

getting things done in the Senate: blocking Obama (see “poisoning the well,” below)

inescapable conclusions: the culmination of a whole chain of tortured GOP reasoning. So, it’s inescapable that Obama’s is a “failed Presidency” because of low poll numbers, driven by a “feckless” foreign policy, a listless economy, a “hated” health care program, an animus against business and finance, a foolish obsession with mythical “global warming,” and “racial divisiveness”. If any of these cartoonish oversimplifications were evn half true, then there might be grounds for debate, but, collectively, their logic hardly seems “inescapable” or even coherent.

a law of necessity: something considered so obvious and inevitable that it is taken for granted: that unregulated markets do best; that only low taxes spur growth; Manifest Destiny”; the City on a Hill”; rugged individualism. If you are a true believer in the necessity of your cause, then it’s your duty to push that cause whatever the method. The ends justify the memes. Thus the ardor of orthodoxy.

moral posturing: having a moral position inimical to Tea Party orthodoxy; any hint of idealism or principle in Democrats, always suspected to be “political correctness,”–self-advancement  posing as moral rectitude.

outdated Democratic policies: minimum wage, equal pay for women, anti-discrimination laws, access to contraceptives.

poisoning the well: in post-midterms rhetoric, to the Tea Party/GOP this means any Obama executive action, even if lawful. They might just impeach him for being President.

political mistake: in Tea Party sarcasm mode, making a profit is seen as the most politically incorrect thing of all. Part of Obama’s “war on business,”–you know, the Kenyan socialist’s secret agenda as proven by record high corpoRate profits and stock valuations.

social engineering shakedowns: any government regulation. The midterm tsunami has trumpeted the doom of redistributionism, Big Government, social engineering–all the sneers that the GOP/Tea Party has used to characterize Democratic politics & policy.

unproductive: pretty much any regulation the Republicans don’t like.

unseemly: any Dem attack on Tea Party positions or principles, or, more broadly, any Dem show of “partisanship,” itself a devil word in this context. For instance, it’s unseemly for President Obama to bring “partisan” perspectives to racial issues such as Ferguson or Trayvon Martin. Synonyms include “ungracious” and “grubby”. This family of “scold” words is Peggy Noonan’s habitual arsenal when she’s excoriating Obama.

Glossary: an anatomy of key memes, euphemisms, sneers, innuendos, and meta-narratives in the Wall Street Journal and other GOP language factories, October 22-28, 2014Tea Party

Glossary: an anatomy of key memes, euphemisms, sneers, innuendos, and meta-narratives in the Wall Street Journal and other GOP language factories, October 22-28, 2014

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banker-bashing: regulating the banks. Usually the nefarious work of the “Sandinista wing” of the Democratic Party (see below), especially Elizabeth Warren.

black-on-black crime: the real reason for the high incarceration rates of black males in the US. Even though it is a Non sequitur, this card is always played to re-direct any charges of white police brutality, “driving while black,” etc.

broken culture: another of the “real reasons” for the high incarceration rates of black males in the US. Just as the housing crisis was supposedly caused by scheming, lying  minorities cadging bad loans, any economic, political or social inequality in the US is blamed on Black Folks’ general lack of culture, shame or gumption. Just as with the meme of “black-on-black crime,” this serves as a Non sequitur designed to re-direct the conversation and blame the victims.

criminalize: regulate. See “banker-bashing,” above.

electoral integrity: voter suppression.

handover: under Obama, the allegedly vast wealth transfer from the middle class to the poor.

looting: suing BP. Another form of “banker-bashing” or “criminalizing” (see above).

moral compass: an inherently Republican character trait, usually entirely lacking in Democrats (who will say or do anything to get elected), especially Afro-American Democrats (who have a “broken culture”–see above).

(of) negligible economic impact: the Obama stimulus package, the largest in US history. Can also be used to refer to any disparate economic impacts that arise from price-gouging, monopoly pricing, restraint of trade, etc.

political speech: money talks.

sabotaging our borders: the secret Obama master plan to let in terrorists, Ebola, and undocumented aliens.

Sandinista wing of Democratic Party: Elizabeth Warren, Barney Frank, Chuck Schumer, Bernie Saunders.

Glossary: an anatomy of key memes, euphemisms, sneers, innuendos, and meta-narratives in the Wall Street Journal and other GOP language factories, October 3-12, 2014

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burdensome licensing regimes: basically, ANY licensing body. It’s always a good touch to call a government office a “regime”.

capital unlocking: the projected fruits of the repeal of Dodd-Frank and the general loosening of financial market regulation.

common sense “free market” regulation: minimalism; see above, “capital unlocking”. “common sense” is always a rhetorical master trope (with Tom Paine turning over in his grave all the while). The “common” sense referred to is that of your average Goldman Sachs executive.

concrete moral action: something Obama is accused of forever lacking–all he gives us, according to this meme, is airy-fairy, idealized morality that is not pertinent to life on earth.

controlling the emotional narrative: what Dems are said to be “especially good” at because it implies a superficial ability to spin the facts into a wholly fictional narrative–i.e., “the war on women,” “global warming,” etc.

distributed public responsibilities: newspeak for ending almost all federal oversight, policy and administrative law. This “distribution” amounts to each state becoming a sovereign entity with its own laws and regulations.

gracious: whenever Obama criticizes Bush or any GOPers, who is accused (especially by Peggy Noonan) of lacking grace–being in fact “unseemly” (see below)

grit: another missing part of Obama; the meme is that he has “no stomach for a fight” and is inconsistent and flaccid when responding to foreign threats. This particular lack of character is also attributed to the “takers”–anyone getting any form of aid (except Medicare) is said to lack the true grit to get and keep a job or raise a family on their own.

incremental immigration reforms: none that anyone would ever notice

infantilization of women: any of the new “yes means yes” laws–more broadly, and government attempt to protect women from sexual assault, verbal or physical by keeping them “sheltered from reality”.

judicial activism: any legal decision opposed by the Tea Party. In the legal context, “activism” is pernicious, whereas it is highly encouraged in the public arena.

moral posturing: any moral position taken by a Democrat or liberal. They are never sincere (except when being “idealistic), but always have an ulterior motive. Thus they are said to be “posturing”–pretending to be something they aren’t.

tinpot dictator: an epithet revived every generation. Currently refers to Obama and his alleged takeover of the federal government. Infers that he’s a cheap alloy who cannot withstand any heat.

unseemly: another Peggy Noonan “mom” word. Peggy is always “disappointed” in poor, uncouth Barack.

Glossary: an anatomy of key memes, euphemisms, sneers, innuendos, and metanarratives in the Wall Street Journal and other GOP language factories, Aug 29-September 9, 2014

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character: The major personal trait that the “takers” lack. This is a master trope in GOP rhetoric, linked to dignity, “personal responsibility” and “integrity”.  “Cynical” Dems, who take the politically expedient side of every opportunity, are especially deficient charcter-wise.

critical variables: any available extenuating circumstances that Republicans can come up to argue their case. Also, excuses they make for such failed policies and theories as “trickle down,” “regulatory strangulation” and the “invisible hand” of the “free” market.

cynical: any politically-expedient act of policy of Obama or the Dems. By the magical inversion of rhetoric, any statement of idealism or hope becomes a “cynical ploy”.

defeatism: any critique of American military action.

natural rights liberty: the God-given right to carry a semi-automatic weapon, shoot anyone suspicious, stifle free speech, refuse to pay taxes, etc. The ideological bedrock of libertarianism.

personal responsibility: what the “takers” are critically lacking. No one receiving any government aid in any form whatsoever is said to lack this quality, which is semantically linked to dignity, honor

reckless: any Dem claim of facts, outcomes, accomplishments, etc.

social capital: what people lacking “personal responsibility” lack and can’t even conceive of.

sycophant: any Obama supporter.

tawdry: any Obama rationale, behavior, or explanation. Everything he does is “tawdry” because he lacks “character” and won’t take “personal responsibility” for anything.

Glossary: an anatomy of key memes, euphemisms, sneers, innuendos, and metanarratives in the Wall Street Journal and other GOP language factories, Aug 19-28, 2014

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boundless opportunities: the infinite promise of America, which minorities (“takers”) fail to realize because their culture of dependency is “transmitted” (see below) like a virus.

earned success: the Protestant Ethic is alive and well. Worldly success must be “deserved” and “earned”, not bestowed by charity or statist governments.

fanning the flames: what anyone does who still talks about race (see “real racists,” and “insulting whites,” below).

higher education accountability: how quickly and thoroughly a college major “pays for itself.”  If anthropology can’t be shown to have any “cash value,” then who needs it? 

insulting whites:   what anyone does who still talks about race (see “real racists,” below).

making race irrelevant: theoretically the outcome of the free market, in which all boats rise on a surging tide. Actually, what the GOP devoutly wishes for, thus avoiding having to pretend to care about minorities.

mindless martinets: aka, “radical utopian statists”.

nihilism:  the underlying basis and ultimate outcome of Obamaian “idealism”, which is  really a form of totalitarianism.

nobility: a master-trope of right-wing rhetoric, summarizing everything Obama is said to be lacking: dignity, courage, honesty, steadfastness, patriotism.

opportunist: anyone who still talks about race or accepts any government “handout”.

race-traitors: any white people defending Michael Brown or criticizing the Ferguson police.

real racist: anyone who still talks about race.

shakedown: any fine on big banks, real estate mortgagers or brokerages.

transmitted: how the “culture of dependency” spreads. Equates social assistance and safety net  programs with a disease.

voter turnout: a Democratic “trick” or “stunt”.

worship of creation: what the “secular leftist” climate change believers do instead of praying to “the God of creation”.  The last refuge of atheistic, heathen haters of the free market.

Glossary: an anatomy of key memes, euphemisms, sneers, innuendos, and metanarratives in the Wall Street Journal and other GOP language factories, Aug 8- 18, 2014

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bulwark against evil:  Captain America, aka, “the lead actor on the world stage”. In a Manichean universe, there are no shades of gray, and “the axis of evil” is ever-present and ubiquitous.

calculating Clinton: when Hillary does or says anything, she is characterized as a calculating, power-hungry Machiavellian who will stop at nothing to attain absolute power and reign over Hillaryland. When GOP candidates speak, on the other hand,  they aren’t called “calculating”, but, rather, “thoughtful” (especially Paul Ryan) or “courageous” (especially Ted Cruz and Rand Paul).

the climate line: some concocted scare story made up by a cabal of left-wing scientists. Just plain malarkey.

dead-end bottom feeders: the Ferguson protestors;and now they have the temerity to want to register to vote!

getting ahead: the ultimate goal of human life, defined by struggle and striving. The Horatio Alger myth is alive and well, even if it means a Darwinian struggle for mastery and inevitable inequality, the antithesis of capitalism. Funny how the “goals” to be reached are all defined by the GOP: wealth, privilege, rugged individualism and an almost total absence of government regulation.

injecting race into the conversation: registering black voters.

the lead actor on the world stage: a rhetorical cousin of “American exceptionalism“.

the poor’s overseers: according to GOP rhetoric, the Dems are the ones who have been creating poverty and holding the poor back from “getting ahead”. In this rhetorical never-never land, satisfying the poor’s “needs” (heat, shelter, food, health care, education) is a a fool’s errand until and unless the poor get some ambition to “get ahead,” so the Republicans can finally help them “reach their goals”.

a true market: one that transparently runs on pure information and rational choices. In other words, a fairy tale. We won’t have true markets in the US until the kenyan socialist leaves office.

unimpeded evil: what  the world would be subject to without America, the only “bulwark against evil”.

the wealth effect: the magical thinking that spawned the “trickle down theory”: that all boats rise on a rising tide. Despite no lasting signs that this magical “effect” ever took hold or lasted for most Americans in any Republican administration, the myth persists. This persistence can perhaps be attributed to how well it has worked for the rich and privileged.