Beck, Schultz, Limbaugh and Olbermann. Their Role in Our Plutocracy

Glenn Beck et al are steering the course of American politics, according to their growing number of listeners. I believe this is true. Unfortunately, the listeners aren't aware that they are being handled, manipulated, molded and distracted.

Beck is a tool, created and wielded by the plutocracy, whose job it is to raise the emotional level, and hence reduce the rational thought level, of portions of the population who are enamored with the label of "conservative values".

Limbaugh is another such tool.

There are multiple such tools operating also, whose job it is to do the same thing with portions of the population who are enamored with the label of "liberal values". Ed Shultz and Keith Olbermann fit this description.

The plutocracy has finely honed the methods to oppress a society - or the bulk of a society - with minimal social disruption, because social disruption can grow to the point where the privileges of the plutocracy are threatened.

Their methods are:

1. Keep them well-fed, without regard to the quality of the crap they call food. If this keeps them fat and sick, so much the better.

2. Keep them entertained - lots of bright, pretty colors and loud noise, such as professional sports, cell phones, Flat Screen TVs, iPods®, whizzy cars, computers, etc.

3. Keep them ignorant - don't educate people on how to think, "educate" them with meaningless facts and talking points, stripped of context and content. Train them to regurgitate, rather than reason.

4. Give them a feeling of belonging to a larger purpose. Play up the "Us vs. Them" dichotomy, so that to be a real American, they feel they must join this movement and proselytize from the highest perch.

5. Keep them distracted with trivial nonsense, to draw focus away from the fact that the plutocracy has the general population bent over a barrel, getting porked at both ends by the "liberals" and "conservatives".

To a degree, it is the job of the Becks, Shultzes etc., to fulfill the latter 3 methods. They are good at it - they inject just enough actual fact into their respective gibberish to make the whole package sound reasonable. When a few minutes of real thought and questioning reveals the BS.

Unfortunately, the more people become enamored with these tools of our plutocracy; the more they align themselves with these tools and their "movements", the less likely it is that the people will see them for what they are. And that is just as the plutocracy would have it.

Thoughts?

(Thanks to my husband for his thoughts and input into this post.)

[edit on 21-1-2010 by Benevolent Heretic]

sorry, double post

[edit on 21-1-2010 by zlots331]

[edit on 21-1-2010 by zlots331]

Well said BH. I think you hit the nail on the head with #3. Sadly, I see it much too often here on ATS. Deny ignorance, indeed.

3. Keep them ignorant - don't educate people on how to think, "educate" them with meaningless facts and talking points, stripped of context and content. Train them to regurgitate, rather than reason.

Bravo for nailing many points. But I was impressed with the excellent analogy here:

Keep them distracted with trivial nonsense, to draw focus away from the fact that the plutocracy has the general population bent over a barrel, getting porked at both ends by the "liberals" and "conservatives".

What really drives me up the wall is that people will bend themselves over backwards to identify and conform with these labels. I find it ironic that Politics today integrated and digested willingly in its pseudo bi-polarism. People seem to inherit their political values and not analyze what it is they are endorsing or advertising.

I am not allowed to have orriginal thoughts.

2nd line ... The duel between Limbaugh, Beck et al. and the Magick Muslim is our bread and circuses. Big Brother knows who you are, where you live, how much in debt you are to the Credit Card Cos. a.k.a. The Fed. BB knows your cell number and how many roll over minutes you have left this month, your favorite porn site, who you work for, and how much you "fudged" on your taxes.

BB is Satan's minions at work. What is your salvation status when they "come for you". They can and will part your soul out if they can distract you from the truth long enough. Your soul is immortal. Where are you going to spend eternity? There is only one way to heaven. It is free. I am always amazed at the number of people who refuse to accept the best deal they will ever get. When you start to sizzle remember, eternity is a really long time! The only way out is to accept Jesus as your savior and God ... before you roast and toast.

You are really going to get annoyed with me. Every "morning" in heaven, I'm going to be standing out on the edge sipping my coffee calling down to you ... "how is that hope and change working for you?" Warm enough for you?

Sizzle sizzle, pop pop, splatter sizzle.

Originally posted by Oscitate
I find it ironic that Politics today integrated and digested willingly in its pseudo bi-polarism.

Not only that, they depend on these "tools" and their messages in a way that almost seems "codependent". I mean, without the "liberals" to rail against, Beck followers have no war to fight; no battle to be won; no wrong to right. Beck followers NEED Olbermann and Shultz to set up the fear that drives them in their "purpose". That's codependency.

Codependency or Codependence is a tendency to behave in ways that negatively impact one's relationships and quality of life. This behavior may be characterized by denial, low self-esteem, compliance, and/or control patterns

Glenn Beck would be nothing without the left. Or should I say that he'd still be the progressive that he once was, supporting national health care and government bailouts... And Olbermann wouln't even have special comments without "the right" to rail against, much less be able to deliver them with such outrage and emotion.

digitus impudicus did you mean to post in the religion forum? Or were you illustrating an example of how, just as Beck et al proselytize their message, religion is another (older) method of keeping the people oppressed? If so, good job! Point well made.

Religion also (from my first post)

3. Keeps them ignorant.

4. Gives them a feeling of belonging to a larger purpose.

5. Keeps them distracted

Bravo for connecting those dots.

[edit on 21-1-2010 by Benevolent Heretic]

disagree with the thread starter.

Beck is popular because he does things like read through the constitution on his show, line by line, for 25 minutes. Posts the declaration of independence on his website. Most americans don't get that in High School anymore. That is hardly keeping people uneducated.

GB connects the dots on various leftwing groups. One of the purposes of a free press was to do such things. If the leftnetworks don't perform the same service regarding rightwing groups, that's their own fault, not the right's.

GB did a show on the illuminati. Whether or not you believe in them, that's fairly unusual for free TV. Don't look for that on NBC, with the Paecock Angel / Lord Tawuse image as their logo.

He is as opinionated and partisan as hell. Our Princeps-Patrii in the Whitehouse attacked Beck, until he realized he was raising GB's public recognition levels.

Limbaugh is more old school, sort of the Jay Leno or right secular politics (Rush is against the religious wing of the Republican party, but doesn't say so out of a sense of self-preservation. Since his value system is different from most of his listeners, he has always gone light on the information content.)

But all this is the function of a free press. Yes, they have to sell beer and breakfast cereal to pay for the airtime to let their Olberbmann's and Becks put on a dog and pony show. But that's capitalism for ya.

Maybe the real problem is not that they educate people.

Maybe their real problem is that you dont agree with them.

reply to post by Benevolent Heretic


Everything you say can be stipulated as true, for the sake of argument...but even so I don't think it follows that (liberal values) and (conservative values) are necessarily equally true, or equally stupid, or equally maladaptive for individual and/or group survival...in fact, even though both points of view as conventionally presented are insufficient to overthrow the plutocracy you mention, I do think that some worthwhile intellectual mopping-up can be done, distinguishing between the two approved schools...or, to rephrase, if there is any most-best overarching truth to be found, it should become ultimately obvious to a sincere student, no matter what his starting point, if he pays attention...(which I realize is hard to experimentally demonstrate, I should label it as more like one of my postulates/premises/biases...but I do think so, yup-yup)

Plus, there seems little excitement in deploring or being surprised by the fact that other persons are hung up on points that seem intellectually uninteresting to you...everybody gets to pick their own emphases, yes?, and maybe these dupes you and your friends abominate will end up with a more adaptable and accurate/predictive worldview than you in the long run...which is what makes betting on horse races, as the old folks used to say...instead of thinking other people are dupes, I try to figure out what the compelling hook is that makes the dumb stuff seem important to them...i.e. if I don't get it at all, I must be altogether mistaken about some relevant point, my theories must fail in that area...

...but all this is obvious...

Originally posted by nine-eyed-eel
I don't think it follows that (liberal values) and (conservative values) are necessarily equally true, or equally stupid, or equally maladaptive for individual and/or group survival..

My point is not that they are equally "bad" or equally "good" or any of that other stuff you said. My point is that their goal, whether right or left, is to work people into a frenzy of hatred and distrust of "the other side", regurgitating their team's mottos and cheers.

I, myself, lean more to the left (although I have political positions all across the spectrum), so it's easier for me to watch Olbermann (though I prefer Maddow) than it is for me to watch Beck. I still make sure to stay aware of the mind-control game in which I'm participating.

everybody gets to pick their own emphases, yes?, and maybe these dupes you and your friends abominate will end up with a more adaptable and accurate/predictive worldview than you in the long run..

Anything is possible. And Beck may very well end up with a more accurate world view than I. My point is that he IS a tool, willingly being used to turn people against one another. I'm not claiming that he even believes what he rails on about everyday. I actually doubt it. I see him, leaving the set after recording the show, saying, "That ought to hold those idiots for another day..."