Notices by George Lakoff (georgelakoff@sfba.social)

The 'Misunderestimating' Trap:

Many progressives think that people who vote conservative are just stupid, especially those who vote against their economic self-interest.

Some believe that if we tell them the real economic facts, they will change how they vote.

In reality, those who vote conservative have other reasons, and we must understand them.

Conservative populism is cultural — not economic — in nature.

Conservative populists see themselves as oppressed by elitist liberals who look down their noses at them.

They see liberals as trying to impose an immoral "political correctness" on them.

And they are very angry about it.

More at FrameLab:

https://www.theframelab.org/twelve-communication-traps-democrats/

Trolling is a science.

When you respond to trolls, you reward them with clicks and clout.

Better to:

1. Avoid the engagement trap.

2. Frame issues from your own viewpoint.

3. Block!

Why you can’t win debating trolls (w @gilduran):

https://www.theframelab.org/response-in-reward-why-you-cant-win/

Some lessons from the 2024 election:

1. Strict Father morality is growing stronger.

2. Moving to the right failed – again. There is no "center" in American politics.

3. Attacking Trump helps Trump (because it makes him the center of attention).

4. Trump remains a super salesman. Underestimate him at your own risk.

5. People vote their values, not their self-interest.

6. Identity is not political destiny. Republicans are winning votes from women, Latinos and other groups. Democrats need to understand why.

7. Frames trump facts. People are buying into the alternate reality that authoritarian Republicans are creating.

8. Authoritarians are winning the communication war. They are have invested in messaging and media outlets for decades, and they are reaping results.

More at FrameLab:

https://www.theframelab.org/some-lessons-of-the-2024-election/

🇺🇸Unions create freedom.

👷♀️Workers are profit creators.

👵 Pensions are earned.

#LaborDay2024

Trump is a danger to the nation.But he's also a Big Loser.

And that's the one thing this would-be dictator fears the most. Here's why it matters:
https://www.theframelab.org/trump-is-a-loser-heres-why-it-matters/

J.D. Vance is promoting a book that uses GENOCIDAL language to frame Democrats as "unhumans."

In a previous era, this might have ended his political career. But in 2024, such dangerous and weird extremism is trendy in the MAGA GOP. More from
@gilduran https://www.thenerdreich.com/unhumans-jd-vance-and-the-language-of-genocide/

Violent language invites violence.

Such language changes brains and can result in real world consequences.

The power of violent language far exceeds mere words.

And no one has done more to inject violent language into our politics than Donald Trump.

Analysis with @gilduran at the FrameLab Newsletter
https://www.theframelab.org/donald-trump-language-of-violence/

Brain Change is Social Change

Some voters are genuinely confused about their moral identity and have trouble deciding.

Much effort goes into persuading these swing voters to pick a side.

This is what is happening in San Francisco right now, as tech zillionaires with authoritarian politics try to make Democratic voters embrace failed Republican policies as commonsensical.

Read more: 'Moderate': The weasel word masking extreme politics

with @gilduran

Please read and subscribe (it's free!)

https://www.theframelab.org/moderate-weasel-word-masking-authoritarian-politics/

Trump is telling us exactly what he plans to do if he gets another term. He is framing his return to power as an authoritarian effort, and he is overtly using Nazi language and symbolism to drive home the point.

This wasn't a mistake. It isn't a joke. American freedom and democracy are on the line in 2024. The main headline in Trump's ad asks: "What's Next for America?" Trump's answer: authoritarianism and fascism.

More at FrameLab: https://www.theframelab.org/unified-reich-trump-campaign-goes-full-nazi/

2. The Poll Trap📊: Leadership is about leading, not following. Instead of simply echoing polls, Democrats must also guide the polls. Remember: “Republicans don't follow polls, Republicans try to change the polls.”

3. The Laundry List Trap📝:: Voters base their choices on values, connection, authenticity, trust, and identity, not lists of policies.

Policy matters, but it must always be framed in terms of moral values.

4. The Rationalism Trap 🧠: Reason is not conscious, literal, logical, universal, or unemotional.

It’s a big mistake to assume that hard facts alone will persuade voters.

5. The 'No-Framing-Necessary' Trap 🖼️: The notion that "truth doesn't need to be framed" or that "facts speak for themselves" ignores the FACT that people use frames to understand facts.

Truths need appropriate moral framing to be recognized as truths.

12 Traps for Democrats to Avoid🧵

1. The Issue Trap: Don’t get trapped in issue silos. Unite around common values such as Freedom and a government Of, By and For the People.

Full Link at FrameLab: https://www.theframelab.org/p/twelve-communication-traps-democrats

Alexey Navalny was one thing Vladimir Putin can never be: heroic.

Navalny’s murder, carried out by Putin’s agents in an Arctic Circle prison on February 16, is a testament to this fact. The dictator could only beat him by killing him — or so he believed.

Even now, Putin continues to fear his murdered opponent. He refused for weeks to hand Navalny’s body over to his family for burial. The punishment for Navalny’s crime continued even after his death.

Let’s always remember the “crime” for which Navalny gave his life: the act of believing in democracy and freedom. His audacious and insistent hope that Russia could one day be free from the chains of corruption and dictatorship terrified Putin.

The mere act of using his voice to inspire others apparently constituted an existential danger to the dictator. https://www.theframelab.org/p/putin-failed-to-conquer-navalny-or

When you repeat a lie, you spread it.

When you spread a lie, you strengthen it.

When you strengthen a lie, you become an accomplice to it.

In this disinformation age, we must do better.

Avoid falling into simple propaganda traps.

Elon Musk’s purchase of Twitter gives him direct access to tens of millions of brains. He is making a zealous effort to change and control those brains by flooding them with hate and misinformation.https://www.theframelab.org/p/algorithm-warfare-how-elon-musk-uses

Politics is a war to control brains, and framing is the most important weapon of all. https://www.theframelab.org/p/moral-warfare-101-frames-and-your

Why do Republicans fear Taylor Swift?

The simple answer: She is a powerful young woman who challenges the traditional social hierarchy.

More at FrameLab:
https://framelab.substack.com/p/why-taylor-swift-terrifies-republicans

People do not necessarily vote in their self-interest.

They vote their identity.

They vote their values.

They vote for who they identify with.

The Public provides freedom.

Individualism begins after the roads are built, after individualists have had an education, after medical research has cured their diseases.

There is no such thing as a self-made person.

Every business person has used our vast public infrastructure, which the taxpayers paid for, to make their money