A few weeks ago Canadian Shona Holmes appeared in a US an anti-health care reform ad for a group called Patients United which is a branch of Americans United for Prosperity.
They are one of the groups behind the recent bad behavior at health care town hall meetings in the US. Frank Shaeffer used to work with Dick Armey In a rant against ‘an army of thugs’ he has some instructions from a leaked memo:
- Artificially Inflate Your Numbers: “Spread out in the hall and try to be in the front half. The objective is to put the Rep on the defensive with your questions and follow-up. The Rep should be made to feel that a majority, and if not, a significant portion of at least the audience, opposes the socialist agenda of Washington.”
- Be Disruptive Early And Often: “You need to rock-the-boat early in the Rep’s presentation, Watch for an opportunity to yell out and challenge the Rep’s statements early.”
- Try To “Rattle Him,” Not Have An Intelligent Debate: “The goal is to rattle him, get him off his prepared script and agenda. If he says something outrageous, stand up and shout out and sit right back down. Look for these opportunities before he even takes questions.”
The next tactic is lie.
I don’t think many of the people attending these meetings are smart enough to lie, they parrot what they are told. Frank Schaeffer doesn’t have much use for the pr firms and lobbists driving on the far right foot soldiers.
Lies, Intimidation and the Insurance Industry  Frank Schaeffer Religious Dispatches
“The next tactic”?
The windmill that Shona Holmes tilted against didn’t even remotely resemble Canadian healthcare.
They’ve been lying about Canadian healthcare for quite some time, and our PM seems to be unable or unwilling to address or correct the misconceptions and flagrant misrepresentations that useful idiots like Holmes disseminate.
“And I live in a van down by the river!” (Matt Foley, motivational speaker [Chris Farley-Saturday Night Live])
Now I know why the opponent of Obama’s health care reforms seem to be yelling at toiwn hall meetings. They learned motivational speaking from Matt Foley.
That should be “opponents.”
They’re trying to manipulate people’s emotions , and discredit opponents of their point of view at any cost – a giant step backwards for western civilization it seems to me. What’s next, lynch mobs? I vote for intelligent, ‘disinterested’ debate the old fashioned way, where people might have a chance to learn from each other, especially with such a complicated issue – two heads are better than one. But then I know I’m only dreaming…
Personally, I think the answer to the health care question must lie somewhere in the middle, because there is no question in my mind that government run health care leads to inefficiency, waste, mediocrity and inflated costs. But to let the private sector run hog wild with it in their greedy quest for the almighty buck, leads to people dying, going bankrupt and I can’t accept that either. I think the wisdom of Solomon is needed for this one…
Canada is a convenient scapegoat because few US citizens know anything about us.
This is quite funny.
http://tinyurl.com/nkjtp9