• About
  • The Poetry of Protest

Show Me Progress

~ covering government and politics in Missouri – since 2007

Show Me Progress

Tag Archives: fear

The latest news coverage of the “Caravan”

10 Saturday Nov 2018

Posted by Michael Bersin in media criticism, Resist

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

#resist, bullshit, Donald Trump, fear, GOP propaganda, media criticism, racism

After the November 6th election:

Just what we thought.

Old media, trumped once again. You’d think they’d learn at some point.

Be afraid, be very, very afraid

22 Friday May 2015

Posted by Michael Bersin in Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

2016, 4th Congressional District, fear, missouri, social media, Vicky Hartzler

I think we’ve got an idea of Vicky Hartzler’s 2016 congressional reelection campaign strategy – via her campaign Facebook page:

March 15th:

Over the last few weeks I have tried to make you aware of the growing threat that ISIS poses to our nation. Today, I wanted to reach out to you regarding what I believe to be the most vicious part of ISIS and that is how they using children.

A few days ago, ISIS put out a propaganda video of a minor shooting an individual they claimed was an Israeli spy. These children are being brainwashed and young men as little as 13 have been killed fighting for ISIS. One propaganda video had a 7 year old kid holding up a severed head, while another video has a boy who appears to shoot two men in the back of the head….

March 23rd:

Dear Friends:

This week new attacks by ISIS in Tunisia and Yemen showed new capabilities by the terrorist organization to attack on multiple fronts. In Yemen, ISIS took credit for the bombing of 2 mosques in which 143 people were killed and 351 people were wounded. ISIS then put out a statement that pledged this would be the first of many attacks on Yemen. This attack came after 21 people were killed in Tunisia during an attack at a national museum….

March 28th:

Dear Friends:

The sectarian violence that is occurring at the hands of ISIS is creating a humanitarian crisis. Nearly 4 million Syrian refugees are living in Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey and Iraq. While another 6.5 million Syrians have been displaced from their homes. That means nearly half of Syria’s pre-war population has been displaced. I would ask you to consider a contribution to humanitarian groups, such as the Red Cross or Samaritan’s Purse to help in this effort….

April 18th:

Fordham Law School’s Center on National Security has released an interesting study that reviewed court records over the last two years in regards to Americans that have been arrested for aiding ISIS. It seems that these individuals were seeking to build an Islamic State or a Caliphate right here in the US. While this alone is eye opening, don’t forget that National Intelligence Director, James Clapper said last month that over 180 Americans have travelled to Syria to help ISIS….

May 14th:

Friends:

As you are probably well aware FBI Director James Carney came out last week and stated that there are thousands of ISIS followers in the United States. ISIL has also taken claim for the shootings that took place in Texas earlier in the week. What is more concerning is that all of our bases as of Thursday night are at Force Protection Bravo….

May 21st:

Dear Friends,

Despite months of US airstrikes and gains made in northern Iraq, ISIL has captured the city of Ramadi, the capitol of Anbar Province. Ramadi is just 70 miles from Bagdad, putting the terrorist organization in striking distance of the Iraqi Capitol….

If that’s not a drum beat I don’t know what is. That’ll motivate her base if they’re not already hiding under their beds.

60 Plus Association – rightwing campaign mail: fear as a tool, part 2

09 Saturday Oct 2010

Posted by Michael Bersin in Uncategorized

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

2010, 4th Congressional District, 60Plus, fear, front organization, Ike Skelton, missouri, privatization, right wingnuttia, social security

More scare tactic campaign mail from an astroturf right wingnut corporatist organization.

Previously: 60 Plus Association – rightwing campaign mail: fear as a tool

This stuff is slick and expensive:

The address side of the mail piece.

Note the scare tactic “IRS Notice.” And then this:

This IRS Notice is NOT real.

That defeats the whole purpose of the mailing, doesn’t it? If it’s not real than you shouldn’t be afraid of it.

The “B” side is just as pathetic:

The back side of the mail piece.

Ah, it’s directed at Representative Ike Skelton (D).

…Social Security….will be bankrupt…

Wrong. They have that much contempt for people in Missouri’s 4th Congressional District – they think voters are stoopid.

Here’s the rich part – this astroturf group isn’t concerned about preserving Social Security. In fact, they have been advocates for privatization.

And as for their scare tactics about Social Security, here are the facts:

Social Security Sense and Nonsense

…Social Security is a well-run, fiscally responsible program.  People earn retirement, survivors, and disability benefits by making payroll tax contributions during their working years…

….Every year since 1984, Social Security has collected more in payroll taxes and other income than it pays in benefits and other expenses.  (The authors of the 1983 Social Security reform law did this on purpose in order to help pre-fund some of the costs of the baby boomers’ retirement.)  These surpluses are invested in U.S. Treasury securities that are every bit as sound as the U.S. government securities held by investors around the globe; investors regard these securities as among the world’s very safest investments.

Investing the trust funds in Treasury securities is perfectly appropriate.  The federal government borrows funds from Social Security to help finance its ongoing operations in the same way that consumers and businesses borrow money deposited in a bank to finance their spending.  In neither case does this represent a “raid” on the funds.  The bank depositor will get his or her money back when needed, and so will the Social Security trust funds.

As far back as 1938, independent advisors to Social Security firmly endorsed the investment of Social Security surpluses in Treasury securities, saying that it does “not involve any misuse of these moneys or endanger the safety of these funds….”

This is the consequence of Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission (No. 08-205) – astroturf right wingnut corporatist organizations can spend unlimited amounts of money to pervert our elections, and because obstructionists in the republican minority carry water for them, these organizations don’t have to divulge who is bankrolling them.

60 Plus Association – rightwing campaign mail: fear as a tool

25 Saturday Sep 2010

Posted by Michael Bersin in Uncategorized

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

2010, 4th Congressional District, 60Plus, fear, Ike Skelton, missouri

A piece of campaign mail, directed at older voters in the 4th Congressional District, was sent by the 60 Plus Association:

The 60 Plus Association: A Corporate Assault in “Good-for-Seniors” Clothing

The 60 Plus Association, a pharmaceutical industry front group, claims it is a “nonpartisan senior advocacy group,” but it really operates counter to elderly citizens’ best interests. 60 Plus advocates positions on issues that benefit big corporations but that stand to harm seniors….

A Scary Primer on the 60-Plus Association

The “60-Plus Association” was AstroTurf before AstroTurf was cool. These kinds of right wing phony groups are a dime a dozen now. 60-Plus is a DC outfit mostly made up of longtime Republican operatives that pretend to be concerned about senior issues. In reality they appear to exist for little more than to help Republicans win elections and to scare the elderly….

….The 60-Plus Association fancies itself as a right-wing version of the AARP but its IRS filings show that it derives zero dollars from actual membership dues, even though it lists over $1.8 million in revenues. So if they are not getting their money from their nonexistent “membership” then how are they paying to scare… seniors? [60-Plus Association 2008 IRS Form 990]

Some of that question was answered when AARP hired an independent investigator to thoroughly research the phony group and they found that the pharmaceutical industry is actually paying a lot of the bills. The report revealed that in 2001 alone, 60-Plus got hundreds of thousands of dollars from some of the following: the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA); drug companies like Merck, Pfizer and Wyeth-Ayerst, and even from Hanwha International Corp.; which is the U.S. subsidiary of a Korean conglomerate with chemical and pharmaceutical interests. For this reason a Public Citizen report described 60-Plus as being part of “PhRMA’s Stealth PACS” [pdf]. [AARP Bulletin Today, “Pulling Strings from Afar”, 2003]….

The mailing text (on the “B side”):

The irresponsible bureaucrats and politicians in Washington are bankrupting our Social Security, our Medicare, and our nation at a record speed.

The consequences of this reckless and uncontrolled spending spree are clear: An economy handcuffed by uncertainty, millions of lost jobs, ruined pensions, unaffordable and rationed health care, thousands of failed businesses, a worthless dollar, and a future America without liberty and prosperity….

….call your United States Representative, Ike Skelton, right now….and demand he vote to repeal “ObamaCare”, to ban eramarks, bailouts, and “stimulus” boondoggles….

…It’s Our Country, Our Health Care and Our Prosperity….

Really, they claim to be defenders of Social Security?

The 60 Plus Association, Proud Supporters of Social Security Privatization

David Weigel 11/12/09 5:28 PM

One important fact about the 60 Plus Association’s move into the health care debate is that from 1995 through really the end of the Bush administration, its big cause was support for Social Security privatization. It did a lot of blocking and tackling when President Bush pushed for privatization in 2005, and it kept on message long after he dropped the campaign…

How’s that privatization thing working out for you? You know, investing it in the stock market so people running high risk schemes can bankrupt you.

And, as if dubya’s administration didn’t exist from 2001 to 2009? Let’s see the TARP bailout occurred under which president? Uh, dubya.

Nope, it’s the corporations’ country, it’s the insurance companies’ health care, and it’s the top one percent’s prosperity. The rest of us only get to live here.

Subscribe

  • Entries (RSS)
  • Comments (RSS)

Archives

  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • December 2016
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • June 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • February 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • November 2015
  • October 2015
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • October 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • July 2014
  • June 2014
  • May 2014
  • April 2014
  • March 2014
  • February 2014
  • January 2014
  • December 2013
  • November 2013
  • October 2013
  • September 2013
  • August 2013
  • July 2013
  • June 2013
  • May 2013
  • April 2013
  • March 2013
  • February 2013
  • January 2013
  • December 2012
  • November 2012
  • October 2012
  • September 2012
  • August 2012
  • July 2012
  • June 2012
  • May 2012
  • April 2012
  • March 2012
  • February 2012
  • January 2012
  • December 2011
  • November 2011
  • October 2011
  • September 2011
  • August 2011
  • July 2011
  • June 2011
  • May 2011
  • April 2011
  • March 2011
  • February 2011
  • January 2011
  • December 2010
  • November 2010
  • October 2010
  • September 2010
  • August 2010
  • July 2010
  • June 2010
  • May 2010
  • April 2010
  • March 2010
  • February 2010
  • January 2010
  • December 2009
  • November 2009
  • October 2009
  • September 2009
  • August 2009
  • July 2009
  • June 2009
  • May 2009
  • April 2009
  • March 2009
  • February 2009
  • January 2009
  • December 2008
  • November 2008
  • October 2008
  • September 2008
  • August 2008
  • July 2008
  • June 2008
  • May 2008
  • April 2008
  • March 2008
  • February 2008
  • January 2008
  • December 2007
  • November 2007
  • October 2007
  • September 2007
  • August 2007

Categories

  • campaign finance
  • Claire McCaskill
  • Democratic Party News
  • Healthcare
  • Hillary Clinton
  • Interview
  • Josh Hawley
  • media criticism
  • meta
  • Missouri General Assembly
  • Missouri Governor
  • Missouri House
  • Missouri Senate
  • Resist
  • Roy Blunt
  • social media
  • Standing Rock
  • Town Hall
  • Uncategorized
  • US Senate

Meta

  • Register
  • Log in

Blogroll

  • Balloon Juice
  • Crooks and Liars
  • Digby
  • I Spy With My Little Eye
  • Lawyers, Guns, and Money
  • No More Mister Nice Blog
  • The Great Orange Satan
  • Washington Monthly
  • Yael Abouhalkah

Donate to Show Me Progress via PayPal

Your modest support helps keep the lights on. Click on the button:

Blog Stats

  • 245,438 hits

Blog at WordPress.com.

Cancel