Posted on 09/03/2012 6:57:44 PM PDT by morethanright
By Mr. Curmudgeon:
National Empty Chair Day (formally Labor Day), was quite a success judging by the lack of mainstream media coverage. I bet the nation's amber waves of grain were obscured by millions of empty chairs stretching from sea to shining sea.
A hint to the new holiday's success was the Clint Eastwood marathon on American Movie Classics that same day. "Clint Eastwood resonates with voters outside the snotty, derisive NY-DC-Hollywood axis," conservative columnist Michelle Malkin told Politico, "He braved derision and ridicule for standing on the [Republican] convention stage."
Make no mistake, the left's mockery of Eastwood's empty chair stunt was intended to blunt its brilliant effect. You see, Eastwood used community organizer Saul Alinsky's Rule 13: "Pick the target, freeze it, personalize it, and polarize it."
Obama is using Rule 13 to marginalize opponent Mitt Romney, attacking him for being too rich and too cancer-causing.
However, we should remember that Alinsky's Rule 13, which was used to marginalize Gov. Sarah Palin when she ran as the GOP's vice presidential candidate in 2008, was in turn used by Palin to marginalize Obama Democrats, establishment Republicans and to successfully advance Tea Party candidates in the midterm elections of 2010.
Eastwood's novel twist to Alinsky's ploy tied his "target" to an empty chair as a symbol of every empty-headed, left-wing Obama initiative - from failed stimulus to a failed green energy policy and a "cost-saving" healthcare entitlement that is driving up medical costs.
It is a hallmark of the political left to make extraordinary claims: They can end poverty; they can end war and make our enemies love us by bowing to them; economies and successful businesses are built exclusively by government; or, as Obama claimed in 2008, that government in the right hands has the power to slow the "rise of the oceans" and literally "heal" the third planet from the sun.
The left insist these beliefs are a sign of high intelligence and sophistication. In reality they are the infantile and irrational ravings of lunatics aimed at incurable rubes ... those persons whose homes are littered with cheap infomercial products that fail to live up to their slick advertising hype.
An empty chair is the perfect metaphor to polarize the focus of left-wing insanity. Its four thin legs are more than capable of supporting the light-weight Progressive absurdity now seated upon it in the person of Barack Hussein Obama.
Article shared using the Free Republish tool on Tea Party Tribune.
I still say he should have used an empty suit.
But....but.....I DID buy the "Hercules Hooks" and they are awesome. Work better than advertised. So there.
Alinsky... you magnificent bastard, I read your book!
One weakness with Alinsky, it’s dicey to ridicule above your station. Or as they say: if you go after the king, you better get him. Eastwood is an icon’s icon, and the libs didn’t bring the equipment to scale the mountain.
Alinsky had a good understanding of human political behavior, it’s our own fault that only the other side has been smart enought to use his methods...until now.
The libs (including Alinsky) thought only they were smart enough to put Alinsky into practice and don’t know how to counter.
There are two kinds of people my friend.
Those who get things done.
And those who blame their failures on other people.
I reckon so.
They got The Eiger Sanction...
Check this out. The pure Michigan ad is an empty chair.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=buhr3npNlxU&feature=player_embedded
LOL Good catch, CC. No way do I want “him” vacationing here.
I’m not convinced Eastwood’s performance was based on Alinsky.
For one thing, Alinsky didn’t invent ridicule or or caricature.
In fact, I doubt anything in Alinsky’s writings is ultimately his own idea.
And back to the idea of ridicule—only truthful ridicule has the potential to be good. The strength of Eastwood’s speech is is not in the way it might seem to resemble Alinsky tactics. It’s in the way it contrasts Alinsky tactics—Eastwood communicated the truth.
To summarize, Alinsky is ultimately weak both intellectually and morally. In the end, ridicule based on lies will fail.
I do not think so. It is easy to use Alinsky methods if your side owns the media. "Progressives" own the MSM.
We are now able to use Alinsky because of the new media.
Somebody should print out a copy of that picture and hang a “National Empty Chair Day” poster on the chair .. I think Michigan would get the hint!!
Sure would be funny.
It is Alinsky on its head.
And there is Fritz Perls:
The empty chair technique
Empty-chair technique or chairwork is typically used in Gestalt therapy to explore patients’ relationships with themselves or other people in their lives. The technique involves the client addressing the empty chair as if another person was in it.[21] They may also move between chairs and act out two or more sides of a discussion, typically involving the patient and persons significant to them. A form of role-playing, the technique focuses on exploration of self and is utilized by therapists to help patients self-adjust.(Wikipedia)
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.