Reply #76: I don’t know what your next book to read is

[Larry Ogg]

So I’ll give another plug for http://www.electricpolitics.com/media/docs/authoritarians.pdf ">” The Authoritarians”

As per your comment. “One wonders what they think when a Republican is indicted or convicted of a crime (Mark Foley, Ted Stevens), and FOX labels them (literally) a Democrat.”

Bob Altemeyer makes it perfectly clear as he presents years of research on how the right wingers minds work and who they are, and why they go out of their way and are so willing to kill and pull the wool over their own eyes as well as every one else’s, it's for their in-groups ideologies and leaders whose acts or words are never to be questioned, the Authoritarian followers are literally the perfect sucker for psychopaths to build their base from, and they buy and defend every lie and act hook line and sinker. So it’s easy to understand when one of their leaders are caught red handed, the damage control is to blame someone else, or the other party. It’s not so much a stretch for these followers to believe that these criminals were implants from the other party.

Just think about what Hitler said, “What luck for rulers that men do not think.”

Altemeyer discuses in great detail facts, premise and conclusions:

For instance, before you come to a conclusion, you will look at many objective facts and form a premise which is the foundation for your conclusion. But Right Wing Authoritarians (RWA) on the other hand, don’t need those pesky little facts to form a conclusion. What they do, is form a conclusion or have one handed to them, and then they look for a premise that fits the conclusion. Altemeyer sais they, “Build a house and then look for a foundation to put it on. You will remember the following stories well.

Sodom Husain is making weapons of mass destruction because he has aluminum tubes. It’s true, aluminum tubes are used to enrich uranium, but if your benevolent leader fails to mention, and the media goes along and covers up the fact that aluminum tubes are also used for many other things, the conclusion is an easy sell to your RWA followers, and rest assured what the RWA leader says will not be questioned by the RWA follower.

And its true, trucks can be used to make mobile chemical weapon labs, and Sodom Husain had trucks, and when Colin Powel showed to the world those drawings as to what these mobile chemical labs look like, the conclusion was proof positive and enough for the non-critical thinking mind of the RWA follower who will never question the RWA leaders drawings.

Another thing Altemeyer sais is typical of the RWA mind think, it is how they defend their conclusions with their profound world view,
“I know I am right because those who agree with me say I am.”

Anyhow it’s a great five stare book, extremely important, easy and fun to read and understand, and I know you will thoroughly enjoy it…
Larry