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Fuzzy Signalsextracting the signal from the noise |
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Fuzzy Signalsextracting the signal from the noise |
From Oliver Thomson's study of Mein Kampf by Adolf Hitler:
One should avoid abstract ideas and appeal instead to the emotions; one should constantly repeat a few stereotyped phrases, never be objective; in other words only put one side of the argument, criticize the enemy violently and always try to identity one special enemy.
Sound familiar?
I think Carl Rove & cronies have perfected the practice of this classic marketing text, not to mention Orwell's theory of thought control and manipulation of the masses. Their mastery of controlling the debate through controlling the metaphors being used is impressive, and depressingly so. (See New Frames for more on this. ) The Hindus are right: we move more in recursive circles than straight lines.
Stumbling upon some old notes, this was quoted in Robert Mason Lee's "One Hundred Monkeys: The Triumph of Popular Wisdom in Canadian Politics" which was one of the more unusual books I read during my undergraduate work at University of British Columbia. Think of the book as an earlier version of The Wisdom of Crowds, albeit within the Canadian context. The course was cool too; it was a seminar run by Ken Carty on the political party system in Canada -- a potentially dull subject to be sure. Fortuitously, I also met my future employer then, Angus Reid, when he came to talk. I was too precocious by half, I think, which seemed to work.
As an aside, Carty, also an academic advisor of mine, has left UBC on secondment and is now the "Chief Research Officer" for the Citizen Assembly in British Columbia for Electoral Reform. Dubbed as a revolutionary and unique process, because:
Never before in modern history has a democratic government given to unelected, "ordinary" citizens the power to review an important public policy, then seek from all citizens approval of any proposed changes to that policy.
A process to watch as big institutions try to re-legitimize themselves in the eyes of average people. And BC, which has suffered through a decade of decline, certainly needs a reinvigoration like this, if it's successful and perceived as legitimate. Good luck Professor Carty!
This is clearly one of the positive countertrends we're seeing in Canada compared to its southern neighbour. I recall the NPR Fresh Air show where Terri Gross interviewed Vancouver's Major Campbell about the new heroin injection clinic, an experiment that would be inconceivable in the United States.
During a project on the Future of Nuclear Waste, when Stewart Brand was asked what should Canada do in a post 911 world, he said in his typical pithy manner, "Continue being Canada." Meaning, continue going down its own unique path, one consistent with its values and history; don't be afraid to diverge from its neighbours, with its own experiments and solutions. Well put, especially since many Canadians struggle with being different from two directions at once: first, we struggle because we're perceived to lack difference compared to the US; and second because standing out in the crowd is rather un-Canadian, a wee trait we inherited from our British background. But that may be changing with a emerging sense of self confidence I've detected in recent years. As The Economist declared recently, it's cool to be Canadian. Well if they say so....