1. “I’m Not George W. Bush.”

In the Wednesday night debate, John McCain said to Barack Obama that he (McCain) was not George W. Bush and if Obama wanted to run against Bush, then Obama should have run in 2004. A good line and well constructed to have impact at the moment.

But since Senator McCain brings it up, let’s look at that assertion more in depth.

From the standpoint of political philosophy, there is precious little difference between John McCain, George W. Bush and the rest of the Republican Party. McCain and Palin may claim to have their own separate policies, but they all emanate from the same Republican playbook. To use a football term, McCain and Palin are running the same plays from a different formation. The analysis I have provided over the last few months based on Republican literature should be sufficient proof.

Now, that’s not something that’s necessarily good or bad. Beauty, as the saying goes, is in the eye of the beholder. If you liked Republican policies based on Republican philosophies, then you should like McCain and Palin. Just don’t try to say they represent something different from George W. Bush. They don’t.

Individually, there are also some strong similarities between George W. Bush and John McCain. Here are a few.

 Both were admitted to a prestigious educational facility based on family legacy.
 Both underachieved at the educational facility and rebelled against authority.
 Both were aviators (as was Donald Rumsfeld) and their management style reflects a looking-down-from-30,000-feet approach.
 Both have significant tempers.

For an even more detailed review of McCain’s life and character, I invite you to read this article about him in Rolling Stone Magazine.

http://www.rollingstone.com/news/coverstory/make_believe_maverick_the_real_john_mccain

And look, you can vote for McCain if you want, regardless of whether he is or is not like Bush. I’m just saying, don’t believe that John McCain is not like George W. Bush. He is.

2. You’re not trying to make me feel guilty, are you?

One of the strongest ways to manipulate people is to make them feel guilty. There are guilt givers and guilt takers in this world. The guilt givers are among the most cunning manipulators you’ll find. They use guilt to have their way. Actually, it’s a form of bullying. Whether you’re a guilt taker is a matter of choice and skill.

If you find someone trying to get you to do something by making you feel guilty, the easiest way to get back at them is to say, “You’re not trying to make me feel guilty, are you?” The other person will quickly say, “Oh, no,” the other person will usually retreat and the conversation will go on. Then they will say something else intended to make you feel guilty. You should say again, “You’re not trying to make me feel guilty, are you?” Sooner or later, the other person will stop trying to make you feel guilty to get their way.

I mention this because this approach is also useful to manipulating political discussions. I had one on my blog last night. I had posted a factual statement about ACORN and its voting registration operations by two of its representatives. You can see the posting and the commentary for yourself. At any rate, I had someone comment, “You seem to be supporting ACORN and it's tactics and methods. Am I reading that correctly?”

Note the inference in the language that I am doing something wrong I should feel guilty about. How dare I support ACORN! (Regardless of whether I am or am not, in truth, supporting ACORN.) The statement is masterful in its own way.

I mention this exchange, (which may continue, although it’s been almost 24 hours) because one of the things I am trying to do is help people learn to have a civil dialogue about political topics.

In this case, I didn’t take my own advice. I used an alternative method called reversing and wrote back, “You seem to be opposing (emphasis added) ACORN and it's tactics and methods. Am I reading that correctly?” 

Watch the blog. We’ll see if the dialogue continues.

3. Dan Hill and Other Events

I was able to have an interview with Dan Hill of Sensory Logic last week. Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to get my notes together to publish it. Keep watching the Blog. I’ll have it out shortly.

If you know anyone who lives near Des Moines, they can see me live at the Main Library at 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday, October 29th to do a presentation on Why Bad Politics Leads to Billion Dollar Bailouts—and What to Do about It.