"These are the things that are in the DNA of an awful lot of Americans."
Absolutely. We have been drowned in anti-communist propaganda for a long time. Consider the many Hollywood dramatic and documentary films of the late 1940s and '50s which brought a rabid anti-communist message to Americans. (Sen. Joe McCarthy really capitalized on th…
"These are the things that are in the DNA of an awful lot of Americans."
Absolutely. We have been drowned in anti-communist propaganda for a long time. Consider the many Hollywood dramatic and documentary films of the late 1940s and '50s which brought a rabid anti-communist message to Americans. (Sen. Joe McCarthy really capitalized on this.) We were bathed and fed with endless propaganda, and that message has further been instilled in subsequent generations. Even the word "socialism" can trigger fear and anger in so many millions of Americans today.
Of course not. But Socialism seems to be the 'fear' most referred to here in the U.S. People can't even imagine Communism here, so it doesn't get an audience. But Socialism is the most often bug-a-boo used to frighten the masses.
The question is: how do you define propaganda? Seems to me that propaganda can have a kernel of truth or a lot of truth or absolutely no truth. It’s a matter of a person or organization or government who is trying to get another person or group to believe what the propagandist tells them to believe. It’s not a give-and-take discussion in pursuit of truth. In comparison, I think propaganda is to truth as indoctrination is to teaching. It all depends on the material and the approach.
In the 1950s U.S., I was a child and early adolescent. There was a plethora of anti-communist films, TV programs, and news accounts to accompany the Red scare going on in government and industry. People became afraid to question things for fear of being branded a communist or communist sympathizer. To be branded such meant you could lose your job and home, friends, and on. (I imagine the same process happened in Russia regarding capitalism and capitalists.) It was a bit of ongoing hysteria. We began to hear the term “communist propaganda” a lot. For many Americans, that was a redundant term; that is, communist = propaganda. Further, that Americans didn’t create propaganda because we spoke truth, and we trusted our government. The term was so often driven into the public consciousness that it became a deep part of our psyche, and so lingers to some degree to this day. It was almost epigenetic. Might as well have been since it has passed from one generation to another.
It's a fascinating topic and can be discussed on and on. Overall, I believe the pursuit of truth is the worthiest goal, and I believe that’s what we try to do here as we share information, experiences, and opinions.
And we also have related spinoffs as you'll see by reviewing many of Heather's past columns. This is especially true of the long threads. I believe most subscribers just pass by the comments they don't consider pertinent, just as I do. Again, it's related to what you consider pertinent and interesting. I've never seen a codebook on this nor have I seen anyone even mention it. I have seen some comments deleted, and I always assume that's due to language used or some hateful exhibition.
"These are the things that are in the DNA of an awful lot of Americans."
Absolutely. We have been drowned in anti-communist propaganda for a long time. Consider the many Hollywood dramatic and documentary films of the late 1940s and '50s which brought a rabid anti-communist message to Americans. (Sen. Joe McCarthy really capitalized on this.) We were bathed and fed with endless propaganda, and that message has further been instilled in subsequent generations. Even the word "socialism" can trigger fear and anger in so many millions of Americans today.
Socialism and Communism are not the same thing.
Of course not. But Socialism seems to be the 'fear' most referred to here in the U.S. People can't even imagine Communism here, so it doesn't get an audience. But Socialism is the most often bug-a-boo used to frighten the masses.
Anti-communist propaganda? You sure all of it was propaganda? Or was it a rational fear based upon Russia's actions following World War II?
The question is: how do you define propaganda? Seems to me that propaganda can have a kernel of truth or a lot of truth or absolutely no truth. It’s a matter of a person or organization or government who is trying to get another person or group to believe what the propagandist tells them to believe. It’s not a give-and-take discussion in pursuit of truth. In comparison, I think propaganda is to truth as indoctrination is to teaching. It all depends on the material and the approach.
In the 1950s U.S., I was a child and early adolescent. There was a plethora of anti-communist films, TV programs, and news accounts to accompany the Red scare going on in government and industry. People became afraid to question things for fear of being branded a communist or communist sympathizer. To be branded such meant you could lose your job and home, friends, and on. (I imagine the same process happened in Russia regarding capitalism and capitalists.) It was a bit of ongoing hysteria. We began to hear the term “communist propaganda” a lot. For many Americans, that was a redundant term; that is, communist = propaganda. Further, that Americans didn’t create propaganda because we spoke truth, and we trusted our government. The term was so often driven into the public consciousness that it became a deep part of our psyche, and so lingers to some degree to this day. It was almost epigenetic. Might as well have been since it has passed from one generation to another.
It's a fascinating topic and can be discussed on and on. Overall, I believe the pursuit of truth is the worthiest goal, and I believe that’s what we try to do here as we share information, experiences, and opinions.
We comment pertinent to the writings of Dr. Richardson mostly.
And we also have related spinoffs as you'll see by reviewing many of Heather's past columns. This is especially true of the long threads. I believe most subscribers just pass by the comments they don't consider pertinent, just as I do. Again, it's related to what you consider pertinent and interesting. I've never seen a codebook on this nor have I seen anyone even mention it. I have seen some comments deleted, and I always assume that's due to language used or some hateful exhibition.
Even the countries that were subjected to soviet rule are anti-communist. They lived it, unwillingly.