Campaign Strategy: Inciting Hate

If you have any doubt about what the attacks are about or how frequently they are being repeated, watch this video produced by Brave New Films. If you have colleagues and friends who dismiss or fail to take seriously the nature of the fear appeal, forward them the video link, so they can be motivated and prepared to add their calming, reassuring voices to the national dialogue whenever they hear the doubt from friends family, colleagues etc.

The theme is the fear of terrorism: On the campaign trail, Sarah Palin repeatedly uses "domestic terrorism" to describe Obama's association with former '60s radical Bill Ayers and makes the ludicrous statement that Obama's campaign was hatched in Bill Ayers living room. McCain plays with the crowd's fears by asking the open-ended question, "Who is the real Obama?" -- encouraging the audience to project their worst fears onto Obama, the candidate.

For a meaty description of the hate on the campaign trail, read about Palin "unhinged" in Florida last week: "This is not a man who sees America the way you and I see America," she told the Clearwater crowd. "I'm afraid this is someone who sees America as imperfect enough to work with a former domestic terrorist who had targeted his own country.

Things have gotten so out of hand that a number of Republicans are denouncing the McCain campaign strategy. Here is the transcript of Amy Goodman interviewing Lifelong Republican Frank Schaeffer who says McCain is "deliberately feeding the most unhinged elements of our society the red meat of hate."

People can go here and sign a letter to help fight the hate campaign