Scary Daddy, Aware That We are Slightly Less Terrified, Sets About Correcting That Little Problem

| by eRobin | 9:02 PM |

I'm often unwilling to chime in on something that everyone in blogtopia (hail skippy) will be writing about but I couldn't resist listing the examples of negative framing that Dear Leader used today in his appearance as Angry Daddy today in the East Wing. Negative framing is meant to terrify us to the point that we acknowledge that only Daddy can keep us safe from the dangers that surround us and that only he can see. The only way to combat this technique is to shine some light on it.

I can't figure out how to use extended entry, where I wanted to put the whole post so here are some of the greatest hits:

• After September the 11th, one question my administration had to answer was, using the authorities I have, how do we effectively detect enemies hiding in our midst and prevent them from striking us again?

We know that a two-minute phone conversation between somebody linked to Al Qaida here and an operative overseas could lead directly to the loss of thousands of lives. To save American lives, we must be able to act fast and to detect these conversations so we can prevent new attacks.

• I've reauthorized this program more than 30 times since September the 11th attacks, and I intend to do so for so long as the nation faces the continuing threat of an enemy that wants to kill our American citizens.

• The terrorists want to strike America again. And they hope to inflict even greater damage than they did on September the 11th.

• In the war on terror, we cannot afford to be without this law for a single moment.

• The fact that we're discussing this program is helping the enemy.

You've got to understand, and I hope the American people understand, there is still an enemy that would like to strike the United States of America, and they're very dangerous.

• This is an enemy which is quick and it's lethal. And sometimes we have to move very, very quickly. But if there is a need based upon evidence, we will take that evidence to a court in order to be able to monitor calls within the United States.

And that's really only the tip of the scary iceberg. (OHMYGOD! ICEBERGS?!) The rest is at my place.