[lbo-talk] Ideology

Tayssir John Gabbour tayssir.john at googlemail.com
Tue Dec 5 19:01:24 PST 2006


On 12/6/06, Carrol Cox <cbcox at ilstu.edu> wrote:
> But the first breakthrough is _always_ in practice. You can often
> counter propaganda with Chomskyan clear statement or at least with a
> clear enough leaflet or stumpspeech or lunchhour chat, but not unless
> practice ahs begun to weaken the ideology which gives resonance to the
> propaganda.

I also think the inventors of ideology do most of the hard work of "ideology critique" for us. They actually write papers and books on the subject, have every incentive to succeed, and they're kind enough not to toss around H-bombs like "hermeneutics" and "Hegel".

So, Bernays analyzed propaganda's limits:

"It is understood that the methods of propaganda can be effective only with the voter who makes up his own mind on the basis of his group prejudices and desires. Where specific allegiances and loyalties exist, as in the case of boss leadership, these loyalties will operate to nullify the free will of the voter. In this close relation between the boss and his constituents lies, of course, the strength of his position in politics." http://www.pentaside.org/article/propaganda-bernays-1928.html

And they do it at every level of detail, like the whitepaper on turning children into handpuppets with advertising, straining child/parent relationships in a certain way to trigger some percent more purchases. http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0FVE/is_9_4/ai_54631243/print

I doubt they research the social costs of their psychopathic actions, like this child abuse they engage in, but I'm not sure it's necessary...

Tayssir



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