Occupy Thanksgiving: How to Talk a Little Turkey with Your Relatives

November 22, 2011 at 12:10 pm

A great post by spocko over at FDL got me thinking about Thanksgiving … … and the inevitable comments from my conservative Uncle. What’s he going to bring up this year? I’ll lay odds that somewhere between the turkey and dressing and the pumpkin pie my Uncle is going to […]

A Better Way to Frame “Maximalist”

July 1, 2011 at 11:58 am

In the recent debate over increasing the debt ceiling, the White House has coined a new term to describe the GOP’s position: maximalist. What the White House means is that the GOP wants 100% of what they want and doesn’t want to give anything in return. For example, the GOP […]

Class Warfare Indeed

February 19, 2011 at 3:16 pm

Today, I’d like to re-post some pieces from a wonderful article written by Chris Weigant. NOTE: The following is excerpted from “Friday Talking Points [155] — Class Warfare Indeed” by Chris Weigant. Intro Before I even begin here, I’d like to address what my critics will respond with, when they […]

Why Everyone Should Want a Public Health Care Option

June 19, 2009 at 6:20 pm

I heard a very interesting discussion of our health care system this evening on NPR. On the show, health care reform was framed like so: the government plays either the role of financier or the role of insurer. In the role of financier, the government helps subsidize health care in […]

When ‘Letting the Market Work’ Doesn’t Work

September 27, 2008 at 10:31 am

In the midst of what has been called the “worst economic crisis in our nation since the Great Depression,” it’s time to take a deep breath and step back from all the party blame. Both sides are so busy blaming the other that the real underlying cause is being ignored. […]

Auditioning for CEO of America

April 10, 2008 at 5:20 pm

Whichever Democrat wins the nomination should make a pitch to become America’s next CEO. A CEO that is: A leader Fiscally responsible Capable of working with the best and brightest Willing to push for major change The CEO positioning is currently up for grabs because Republicans seem to have abandoned […]

MOTWA: How Obama Can Accomplish Real Change

February 23, 2008 at 6:20 pm

As John McCain picks up the “lack of experience” story to attack Barack Obama, I thought I’d revisit this topic, revisit the argument, and think about ways to re-frame this issue. When Hillary Clinton says that she has more experience, she typically is not just referring to her experience in […]

What makes a working economy?

January 21, 2008 at 9:25 pm

The “free market” is one of the most powerful frames conservatives use to advance their agenda. How many times have you heard the phrase “leave it to the market” or “let the market do its work”? This argument has been applied to everything from the breakup of AT&T to social security to just about every argument conservatives have about fighting “big government”.

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The reason this argument is so effective is that most people can clearly see how the “free market” has brought many good things into their lives. The idea of a “win, win” situation is understood from daily transactions. When markets function properly, people often benefit.

The issue is that certain conditions are necessary to maintain this functioning “free market”. The Rockridge Institute has one of the best summations I’ve seen of the underlying assumptions of a “free market”.

Acting Like a Teenager With a New Credit Card

November 16, 2007 at 3:01 am

While it’s heartening to see that someone is listening out there, it’s a little disheartening to see that it’s President Bush’s speech writers. This past week Bush made a speech in which he accused Congress of “acting like a teenager with a new credit card.” Does anyone else see any […]

A Smarter War

October 13, 2007 at 5:55 pm

I heard an account executive once use the phrase “Don’t fight the alligator in the water” to describe how he would change a sales conversation with customers to play to his strengths. The idea is to get the alligator out of the water and onto your turf where you at least stand a fighting chance. This is a very simple concept yet very difficult to execute because the temptation is to want to fight anywhere, to want to argue head to head.