Growing up, I encountered many slogans—words or phrases used to express a characteristic position, stand, or a goal to be achieved. For example, consider the following and their meaning:
· Slogan: You either get down or you lay down. Meaning: You either join or you die.
· Slogan: You either condemn it or condone it. Meaning: You either oppose something or support it.
· Slogan: Black don’t crack. Meaning: People of Sub-Saharan African ancestry, who have more melanin than their analogues, display fewer signs of aging than those who aren’t ancestrally tied to the region.
· Slogan: I am woman, hear me roar. Meaning: Women are powerful.
· Slogan: All power to the people. Meaning: A Marxist–Leninist-esque phrase, established by the Black Panther Party, used to promote communist rule.
· Slogan: That which ain’t caught you ain’t passed you. Meaning: Simply because one’s past hasn’t been revealed doesn’t mean that historic matters won’t have an impact at some future point in time.
· Slogan: That’s mighty white of you. Meaning: Actions from people of Caucasian ancestry are morally superior to those who aren’t ancestrally similar.
· Slogan: The revolution won’t be televised. Meaning: The sudden, radical, and complete sociopolitical change of a nation won’t occur through controlled means, such as that which is associated with the Mockingbird media.
The use of slogans such as these is referred to as sloganeering. An attention-grabbing statement designed to persuade or unite people to a particular stance or cause can be an effective medium for change, especially regarding sociopolitical matters.
As an example, after the terror attacks on United States (U.S.) soil that occurred on September 11, 2001 (9/11), President George W. Bush issued a speech in which he stated on September 20, 2001, regarding terrorists responsible for the attacks:
Americans are asking, why do they hate us? They hate what we see right here in this chamber – a democratically elected government. Their leaders are self-appointed. They hate our freedoms – our freedom of religion, our freedom of speech, our freedom to vote and assemble and disagree with each other.
The linguistically-manipulative slogan “They hate our freedoms” was thus used to facilitate an almost two-decade so-called war on terror, even though Congress didn’t officially declare war on the ideological framework presumably responsible for the loathing of U.S. freedoms.
Noteworthy, the term surly means menacing or threatening in appearance. Bush mislead the world into believing that surly statements about U.S. liberties were the cause for another form of Bush sloganeering, to “win the hearts and minds” of people said to have opposed the U.S.
However, supposedly benevolent slogans of this sort paved the way for the virtual abolishment of the Fourth Amendment in the form of the Patriot Act and the establishment of security and intelligence agencies which have repeatedly infringed actual freedoms of U.S. citizens since.
One glaring problem with Bush’s sloganeering is that it was based on outright falsehood. Take for instance a 2002 letter issued by Osama bin Laden—the man largely considered responsible for orchestrating 9/11.
Ostensibly correcting Bush’s inaccuracies, bin Laden stated, “Why are we fighting and opposing you? The answer is very simple: (1) Because you attacked us and continue to attack us.”
Thus, Bush’s nonfactual slogan about hatred of U.S. freedoms was ultimately used to directly target actual U.S. liberties – freedoms which have since never returned and likely never will. Thought-provokingly, to this day there are U.S. adults who have no living memory of 9/11.
These individuals apparently have no idea of what it was like to freely walk a loved one to a departing gate in an airport or take comfort in believing that in order for the government to wiretap a telephone conversation a warrant was required. As such, slogans had an impact.
When contemplating this matter, I could become upset by what I believe about the loss of freedom it took centuries along with blood, sweat, and tears of U.S. citizens to attain. Without a healthy mechanism in place, I could self-disturb to a significant degree in this regard.
Make no mistake about it; I despise the injustice perpetrated by the U.S. government against our citizenry, which was allegedly due to terrorists abroad. How cruel it is to oppress one group of people while unjustifiably blaming another group for the oppression!
To make matters worse, I discovered that the U.S. government was using mass surveillance on citizens when serving in the military in 1999 – two years prior to 9/11. Because he not only continued infringing upon the Fourth Amendment, though effectively terminated this protection, Bush remains the least favorite president of my lifetime.
At this point, one may wonder about why I’m not upset in this regard. The answer is simple. I use Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT) to keep from disturbing myself with beliefs about matters over which I have no control or little influence.
REBT theory uses the ABC model to illustrate how when Activating events (“Actions”) occur and people maintain irrational Beliefs about the events, these unhelpful assumptions – and not the actual occurrences – are what create unpleasant cognitive, emotive, bodily sensation, and behavioral Consequences.
Therefore, from a psychological standpoint, people disturb themselves using a Belief-Consequence (B-C) connection. Of course, this isn’t to suggest that in the context of the naturalistic or physical world there is no Action-Consequence (A-C) connection.
If I neglect to refuel my vehicle on a long drive (Action) then a lack of gas will cause my car to stop running (Consequence). Rather than a haphazard slogan which purports that my car hates me for my freedoms, this A-C connection is based on truth and reality. Vehicles require fuel in order to function.
However, when Bush ostensibly decimated the Fourth Amendment (Action) and if I had unproductively Believed, “The U.S. government should uphold the Bill of Rights and the Constitution,” then my unfavorable assumption would’ve resulted in anger (Consequence).
This B-C connection likely wouldn’t have served me well. Keep in mind that even though liberties are codified in the Bill of Rights and the Constitution, it isn’t as though politicians will uphold these freedoms – even if it’s true that there is a legal should obligation present.
Forgive my crude expression. Bush could’ve effectively wiped his ass with the Bill of Rights while trampling the Constitution. Just because he wasn’t supposed to do so doesn’t mean shit, because he effectively did so nevertheless.
Thus, it isn’t an A-C connection which would’ve resulted in my anger, as I acknowledge that a B-C connection would’ve better explained why I would’ve been upset. However, I’m not self-disturbed in this regard.
Noteworthy, sufferance is the absence of objection rather than genuine approval; toleration or patient endurance. This is my objective when practicing REBT in relation to government corruption – to tolerate and accept that over which I have no control or little influence.
Use of the slogan encountered in my youth, “You either condemn it or condone it,” would create a false dichotomy with which I’d form unhelpful beliefs in order to disturb myself. Although it may be unpopular to suggest, I don’t believe people can vote themselves out of oppression.
In actuality, mass surveillance of U.S. citizens that I learned about since President Bill Clinton’s administration has been supported by every president since. And yes, this includes President Donald Trump, for those of you who believe he’s some sort of pious savior of the Republic.
Therefore, I practice sufferance in order to keep from disturbing myself with assumptions which don’t serve my interests and goals. I don’t have to like or love injustice. Rather, I’m merely advocating the placement of my mental, emotional, behavioral, and physical well-being over upsetting beliefs.
The astute reader may argue that I’ve essentially created a false binary herein. Either I support wellness through the practice of sufferance in the face of oppression or I actively oppose oppression while foregoing my well-being. Why can’t I do both?
I’m open to hearing proposals of how one may oppose U.S. government oppression while simultaneously taking a wellness approach to life. Is it impossible to do so? While I suggest that it’s improbable, I wouldn’t go as far as to suggest it’s impossible.
Still, having previously worked for or with the Departments of Defense, State, Energy, and Veterans Affairs, I have a realistic perspective of how the U.S. government actually functions versus an idealistic outlook. Maybe you can change the system, though I surely couldn’t.
Thus, I focus on changing what I can – myself. As such, I dispute irrational beliefs related to demandingness, awfulizing, frustration tolerance, and global evaluation in order to change my thoughts, beliefs, bodily sensations, and behavior.
This is how valid change occurs, similar to the misattributed Mahatma Gandhi slogan, “Be the change you wish to see in the world.” I can change only myself.
Although I may be able to influence others, it requires a considerable amount of effort on my part and willingness on the part of others to accomplish this aim. Therefore, I practice sufferance in the face of surly sloganeering so that I may achieve well-being.
Now, there’s another individual challenging the lead of my least favorite president. President Joe Biden’s administration has been less than desirable, as far as I’m concerned. Up to this point, I’ve been willing to consider his reported diminished faculties and faulty memory as justification for his faux pas.
However, I’m also willing to entertain Bezmenov’s razor in this matter, “Always attribute to malice that which has continued too long to be explained by stupidity.” With one slight modification to “always,” I think the word “often” will suffice in Biden’s case.
Recently, the Biden administration took measures to counter antisemitism. This anti-First Amendment action followed the House of Representatives’ passing of a bipartisan bill (Antisemitism Awareness Act) which addresses antisemitism – a constitutionally-protected form of free expression.
For context, there have been nationwide protests at colleges and universities in regard to Israel’s response to the terror attack on its soil on October 7, 2023 (Oct 7th). Just as I have unanswered questions about 9/11, I have questions about Oct 7th.
Assuming arguendo, I’ll assume the presented facts regarding Oct 7th which declare that Hamas conducted an unprovoked attack on Israel. To date, one source reports that Israel’s response has resulted in “34,735 deaths - of which there were more than 9,500 women and more than 14,500 children.”
Under the Antisemitism Awareness Act, reversing the normalization of antisemitism and countering antisemitic discrimination may equate to mere mention of the rising death toll in Gaza, as demonstrated herein. However, I’ve not expressed antisemitic views in this post.
Remarkably, the American Civil Liberties Union – an organization with which I once held membership though which has since behaved in a manner I suspect is antithetical to true advocacy for First Amendment protections – responded to the Act thusly:
The American Civil Liberties Union sent a letter urging Congress to oppose H.R. 6090, the Anti-Semitism Awareness Act. As the letter notes, federal law already prohibits antisemitic discrimination and harassment by federally funded entities. H.R. 6090 is therefore not needed to protect against antisemitic discrimination; instead, it would likely chill free speech of students on college campuses by incorrectly equating criticism of the Israeli government with antisemitism.
Government suppression of free speech – no matter how abysmal one considers what’s being said – goes against the Bill of Rights and the Constitution in much the same way as the Bush administration trampled freedoms of U.S. citizens. Doing so arguably violates one’s governmental oath of office.
Consider the controversial slogan, “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.” One may perceive it as a surly slogan. However, is one’s subjective perception cause enough to trample the ability of others to freely utter syllables used to construct the phrase?
Noteworthy, many Jewish people denounce the quashing of free speech. According to one source, “A group of nearly 700 Jewish college faculty signed a letter to President Biden on Wednesday encouraging him not to back the controversial Antisemitism Awareness Act.”
Calls for safetyism may help people feel better about not encountering speech with which they disagree. However, disputation of irrational beliefs about such speech and the practice of unconditional acceptance may help people get better through promotion of resilience.
Not only did I experience sloganeering in my youth, I’ve heard a number of slogans in adulthood with which I disagree. For example, consider the following and their meaning:
· Slogan: Pigs in a blanket, fry ‘em like bacon. Meaning: Kill police.
· Slogan: The future is female. Meaning: Girls and women are superior to boys and men, and the push of feminism aims to establish a female-centric future of superiority.
· Slogan: Black power. Meaning: Superiority of people from Sub-Saharan African descent.
· Slogan: Eat the rich. Meaning: A Rousseau-esque anti-free market or capitalist declaration.
· Slogan: Build back better. Meaning: Doublespeak from the Biden campaign which fooled many into voting for a man who reportedly took office with 1.4% inflation though whose actions led to 9% inflation, thus not building our nation back to better than it was before he became president.
Despite considering these to be surly slogans, I practice sufferance nonetheless. And while I understand that an astute reader may claim that a “from the river to the sea” slogan is suggestive of death to a particular group of people, even this form of speech is permitted by the First Amendment.
Ultimately, sufferance in the face of surly sloganeering preserves constitutionally-protected freedom while pursuit of interests which erode the Constitution may result in the unintended consequence regarding loss of freedom. Although you may be okay with this outcome, others aren’t.
Therefore, I promote the use of REBT rather than reactionary whining to a government that has proven itself incapable of restraint from oppressing its citizens. If you’d like to know more about how to increase your level of resilience, I’m here to help – because our nation depends on it.
If you’re looking for a provider who works to help you understand how thinking impacts physical, mental, emotional, and behavioral elements of your life—helping you to sharpen your critical thinking skills, I invite you to reach out today by using the contact widget on my website.
As a psychotherapist, I’m pleased to help people with an assortment of issues ranging from anger (hostility, rage, and aggression) to relational issues, adjustment matters, trauma experience, justice involvement, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, anxiety and depression, and other mood or personality-related matters.
At Hollings Therapy, LLC, serving all of Texas, I aim to treat clients with dignity and respect while offering a multi-lensed approach to the practice of psychotherapy and life coaching. My mission includes: Prioritizing the cognitive and emotive needs of clients, an overall reduction in client suffering, and supporting sustainable growth for the clients I serve. Rather than simply helping you to feel better, I want to help you get better!
Deric Hollings, LPC, LCSW
References:
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