Professor George Lakoff, Still Swinging Away

Professor George Lakoff of the famed Cal State Berkley is still out there, still trying to frame the discussion, still trying to be relevant outside of his safe little academic bastion. I've previously posted about this so called esteemed Professor twice. You can read about those missives here, and here.

Professor Lakoff's entire claim to fame is that he had decoded Conservatives, and shows how they frame an argument to suit them. The Progressives and Liberals and Socialists have had less success in framing the argument to suit them. By framing the argument, he means our choice of words, and phrases, to communicate our ideals and principals. You know, those darned things like freedom, independence, individual liberty, and less Government intrusion.

So Professor Lakoff is now trying to emulate Sarah Palin, who of course, caused such a stir with her "Death Panel" characterization of the Obamacare bill.

He wants the Gulf Oil Spill to be known as the Gulf Death Gusher. Now, here is the difference Professor. The Obamacare bill did, and does, have panels that decide what kind of care will be covered, and included. One of those panels functions is to allocate care to those who need it, in other words, when there is more demand, than supply, to ration the care. Those panels will determine who lives, and who dies, by receiving the care they need. So Death Panel was a very accurate, and emotionally effective means of discussing their purpose.

It's interesting isn't it? First, there were hundreds of articles claiming that there were no such thing as Death Panels. Then after the firestorm of outrage of her term Death Panels, there was more consideration. Then there was the admission that such panels would probably be in the future of the Obamacare system, since there is no other way to allocate insufficient supply to greater demand.

So Death Panels are in our future, as Obamacare passed, and there is in reality no way to otherwise allocate finite supply to increasing demand. Sarah Palin was right, and her term was accurate, and in the near future, we'll see the stories start, small at first, of people who were denied medical care and sentenced to death by a panel of Government Officials. You know, stories like those coming from countries and states with similar laws to Obamacare.

So Professor, the question comes up, why hasn't your carefully crafted term of Gulf Death Gusher caught on? It's inaccurate, and it doesn't describe the situation truthfully. Choices of words mean things, granted. However, the truth behind those words matter even more. If the words don't convey truth, then the words are meaningless. Which is why the Liberal attempts to do things like you are trying again to do, always fail.

Pro Choice, why is it that that term only applies to Abortion? Why can't we be pro choice on smoking, cars, food, guns, or anything else that is regulated by the Government? Why can't we eliminate the prohibitions to allowing Insurance Companies to operate across state lines, thus ending the near monopolies that they have in states and regions? Why can't we be pro choice on Insurance?

The great thing about Conservative Truth Professor is this. It is simple, and easily understood by those who hear it explained to them. Classic Truth carries far in our world, and that should be the message of the Conservatives.

Good Luck Professor, now that BP has managed to cap the "Gulf Death Gusher" I'm sure you'll be coming up with another obviously inaccurate term soon. One day, you might get lucky, but I doubt it. However, you might get lucky, and one day be half as relevant to our discussion of issues as Sarah Palin.