I'll admit to being guilty myself of knee jerk reactions to buzzwords and pivot phrases but my jaded mind has learned to keep my antennae up at all times. And learned the hard way.
When reading any type of news story I'm always on the lookout for the "why". Journalism 101 teaches students to always offer up the Who, What, Where, When, and Why. But I've noticed the "Why" part of the equation is in very short supply these days. And it has been since the Clinton administration.
A Man Bites Dog story in today's newspapers will typically detail all the little facts, but never quite seems to get around to the key fact which the entire story hinges upon - the why. The why part of the equation is either glossed over or omitted completely. It's a troubling trend.
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For example let's break down the headline of this post: Organizing For Action - Training An Army Of Obama Supporters
I can't tell you what most people gather at first glance, but I see "Organizing Army". Both are buzzwords, or trigger words as they like to say today, that grab my attention. Should I choose to read beyond the headline I'll scan the text to discover whether or not the article tells us why an army is being organized. I assume it will not.
And here's the kicker. Knowing the article is from NBC News I'm going in with the assumption it will be full of half-truths at best. Yet I still may be willing to wade through the fog on the off chance a nugget of information is hiding in there somewhere. And sometimes there is.
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Now back to Dr. Pavlov. What words ring my bell and cause me to salivate?
Organize
Investment
Agitate
Legacy
Alinsky
These are just a few examples that all happen to relate to the original post. When I see these words in an article Dr. Pavlov's bell goes off in my head because I am preconditioned to be on the lookout for them. Right, wrong, or indifferent these all are definitely trigger words for me. They may not be for others, everyone is different. But they are trigger words for me.
And because I know these are trigger words for me I have to constantly be on the lookout. Don't get too excited, take a chill pill, everything in moderation, trust but verify, etc. In essence, apply the self governor that keeps thing from being too hot or too cold. And for me the best method of applying that self governor is to keep asking why. If you ask why often enough and long enough you might just stumble across the truth.
Why did the man bite the dog? Why is Obama organizing an army? Does the whole world seem to be on fire - or it is just me?
