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I loved Dylan Ratigan since his November 08 post election interview with Austan Goolsbee (Obama economic adviser), who he excoriated and educated about this corporate/financial Empire that is raping US (both U.S. and us).
I strongly lobbied NBC (and others) for Dylan to be a star on MSNBC (instead of buried on their sister economic 'happy talk' CNBC):
["For my money, Dylan was too good for CNBC --- he was a star, and a star for the people and democratization of our economy.
Dylan's interview of (tutorial to) Austan Goolsbee on MSNBC shortly after Obama's election (11/24) is a classic of progressive, hard-hitting TV that ranks with Edward R. Morrow taking on Joe McCarthy in my humble opinion:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/27888374#27888374
I firmly believe that Dylan's pressure for the American people and against this looting Empire had direct influence on the new Obama administration to make some hard decisions about 'doing the right thing' in confronting this arrogant Empire, including the actions to 'claw back' ill-gotten loot being expropriated on UBS's 'Wealth Extraction Express', as well as stiffening their spine on essential regulations to protect our American 'commonwealth' and working class families."] (to MSNBC 03/09)
Now Dylan is exceeding my hopes (while Obama has turned out to be a useless, gutless 'empty-suit' who won't even whisper the word Empire --- and has done squat about Empire in domestic or foreign war policies)
[Admission: I voted for Nader again, after talking with him in PortlandMaine, and worked for him as the only candidate who committed to confronting EMPIRE]
Dylan now deserves credit for having the guts and brains to promulgate and repeat on national TV the dead-on-target phrase "Corporate Communism"!!!
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/31510813/
(Dylan uses the key phrase, "Corporate Communism" in several of these video clips from his show, eg. Clip on Health Care, Afghanistan, etc. -- watch and cheer)
I prefer 'ruling-elite corporate/financial EMPIRE' because this two-party, 'Vichy' facade of democracy IS an Empire --- but then, Dylan, so was the Soviet Empire (although it was certainly not Trotskyite social revolution of the working-class --- Support for social revolution in the advanced capitalist countries through working class mass action)
Anyway, Dylan is the 'cats' on TV, being the only guy (like the fictional Howard Beale in "Network" shouting for real 'change' and 'hope' ---- as opposed to Obama's BS --- against this ruling-elite corporate.financial EMPIRE, which has conned and paid-off most media stooges to keep propagandizing Americans about this two-party 'Vichy' facade of democracy.
The most important for we progressives to heavily repeat Dylan's wedge phrase, "Corporate Communism" is that it will work in turning the tables of "contested concepts" in cognative linguistics against the hard-right corporatist Empire:
The more we keep using his term "Corporate
Communism" the more difficult it is for the Empire to keep people in the
dark.
As Berkeley's cognitive linguist
and principled left progressive George Lakoff notes in "The Political
Mind" framing analogy thinking involves controlling 'contested concepts'
and the word 'democracy' is a term that the Empire must control to control our country
and people.
If average people realize that this is not a democracy but an Empire (like the
Soviet Empire) but with 'Corporate Communism' then they have can have the
emotional and conceptual freedom to turn away from this 'Vichy' facade of
democracy and revolt against the real (but currently hidden) Empire.
Broad and popular use of Dylan's term "Corporate
Communism" will drive this hidden corporatist Empire crazy.
They can't defense against this catchy phrase, and the more they attack it the
more leverage, credibility, and 'top of mind space' it gains.
World leading cognitive linguist and principled progressive, George Lakoff
proves this in his "Don't Think of an Elephant" since after hearing
this phrase you can't not think of and envision an elephant --- try this if you
don't believe it.
Alan MacDonald
Sanford, Maine
