Lincoln Was Wrong:
You CAN Fool All of the People
All of the Time
(Almost!)
Dear Business Builder,
So last week, I asked you to tell me what you’d like me to write about going forward.
Answer #1 was “How copywriters can find great clients” – and so, because I was up to my eyeballs in deadlines, I asked The Redhead to re-run an article I’d done some time ago laying out how I got my copywriting business started.
Answer #2 seemed to be, “Whatever’s on your mind.” And since I’ve been hip deep in promotions for investment product marketers, what’s on my mind right now is Washington’s lying liars and the lies they tell.
So that’s for today – but as always, I promise there’ll be a marketing lesson to make you a bundle in a moment. My hand to God.
It’s all about whoppers.
Like it or not, America is ruled by not one, but three capitols …
Hollywood: Where most voters get their view of reality … and where the truth never matters. If the facts don’t fit the script, you can make an honest living simply making up your own facts …
Washington D.C.: Where the politicians we elect go to live … and where the truth also never matters. If the facts don’t fit the script, you can make a DIShonest living by making up your own facts …
New York: Wall Street, actually – where our money lives – and where gullible people who believe in the scripts written in Hollywood and Washington go to get skinned alive.
Right now, in this election season, the script being written in Washington has understandably taken the spotlight. And since personal prosperity is Concern #1 amongst the voting classes, the economy is, unsurprisingly, center stage.
And both political parties are writing scripts like there’s no tomorrow – each one pretty much making up its own facts as it goes along.
Meanwhile, the rest of us are busy trying to figure out what’s really happening as if our jobs, our savings, our investments, our retirement – our entire financial lives – depended on it.
Because they do.
Last night, I watched a whole gaggle of famous investment gurus trying to sort it out on TV. Some said our economy is going down the crapper. Others crowed about how doggoned resilient the economy is and swore that it’s going to be all hearts and flowers from here on.
But regardless of which side each analyst took, they all had one thing in common: Every one of them cited numbers to prove their cases.
“There’s no recession until we have six months of negative economic growth. But we haven’t had six months of negative economic growth – so voila, no recession. We’re doing great!”
Or … “Unemployment was 20% during the Great Depression. It’s only 5% today. We’re doing great!”
And … “Inflation hit 12% in 1980. It’s only 4% today. We’re doing great!”
Only one problem: Not a single one of these investment geniuses mentioned the fact that none of those numbers matter. Or that comparing today’s economic growth … or unemployment … or inflation … with how things were twenty, forty or 79 years ago is idiotic.
Because Washington has changed how it measures and reports on these things – in some cases, many times – since then.
Of course, the politicians and bureaucrats who manage our economy say these changes were necessary – that their new methodology is far more accurate than the way they used to measure things.
But some of the older, sadder and wiser among us are somewhat skeptical …
Some of us even wonder if Washington made these changes to hoodwink us: To trick us into believing the economy is healthier than it really is.
And we wonder if they did that to lure us into financial, investment and most importantly, VOTING decisions that are good for them; but maybe NOT so good for us.
The truth shall find you out …
So the other day, I found a website – www.shadowstats.com – that rocked my world.
Turns out, it’s owned by a guy named Walter J. Williams – a veteran economist, consultant to Fortune 500 firms and all-round trouble-maker.
Seems Mr. Williams’ mission in life is to make sure Washington doesn’t get away with any shenanigans – let alone, skullduggery.
To do that, Mr. Williams publishes today’s economic indicators using the same methodology Washington used to use.
I repeat: Mr. Williams makes apples-to-apples economic comparisons possible by measuring the economy the way Washington USED TO.
That way, we can get a clear comparison between how things are now and how they used to be.
Fascinating – right?
Take economic growth, for instance: The red line on this chart shows Washington’s NEW ways of measuring economic growth.
The blue line shows how the economy is fairing when using the metrics Washington USED to swear by.
BOTTOM LINE: Instead of growing by slightly more than 2% per year as Washington now claims, the U.S. economy is actually CONTRACTING by more than 2% per year!
Wait – there’s more: If Washington was measuring economic growth the way it did in 1973, we would now be in YEAR EIGHT of a recession – one of the longest recessions in history!
But thanks to our trusted leaders, we haven’t had a recession – we’ve had what the White House calls “a strong economy.”
Wow. So the change in how the government measures economic growth resulted in a more positive picture. How fortuitous.
So how about unemployment?
Let’s take a look: The red line on this chart shows the unemployment rate as reported using today’s rejiggered numbers.
The blue line shows unemployment based on the measures Washington used before Bill Clinton fiddled with the way joblessness was measured.
RESULT: If government was reporting unemployment now like it did “B.C.” (before Clinton), the official jobless rate would be nearly 13% – nearly TRIPLE the rate Washington’s reporting now!
Hmmm … So once again, the “new and improved” way of measuring a key economic metric resulted in painting a MUCH rosier picture.
Another co-inky-dinky? Well, let’s take a look at inflation – increases in your cost of living; the Consumer Price Index.
The red line on this next chart shows the inflation rate as the government reported it since it began cooking the books after the great inflation shock of the 1980s.
The blue line shows inflation using the same measurements the government used prior to that change.
See what’s happening here? Right now, Washington is telling us that inflation is running around 4% per year.
But using the very same measurements the Bureau of Labor Statistics used before they started cooking the books, the inflation rate is nearly THREE TIMES HIGHER: Nearly 12% per year.
Heck. The last time inflation was this high was in 1980 and Carter was still in the White House!
Now think about this for a moment: How would the political landscape change if, instead of reporting that the economy is growing … instead of reporting that unemployment is a low 5% … instead of reporting that inflation is a relatively tame 4% …
The media was reporting that the U.S. economy has been shrinking since 2002 … that unemployment is nearly 13% and rising … and that your buying power is vanishing at the alarming rate of 12% per year?
That kind of inflation means your dollar buys 50% less … and that the things you buy DOUBLE in price … every five years or so!
The other night, I saw an HBO special with comedian George Carlin. George says that televangelists are the greatest marketers in the world.
I say he’s wrong. I say Washington is.
And what really chaps me is that they get away with it. In fact, they think they’ll always get away with it.
Because we the people – the voters – are just too ignorant … too gullible … too brain-dead to see how they’re stealing our money, destroying our savings, vaporizing our investments and sentencing us to a poverty-stricken retirement and get away with it.
And so far, we seem to be proving them 100% right.
Because despite everything being done to us, millions of Americans still believe that Washington has our best interests at heart. We believe that our presidents, senators and congresspeople – and the candidates who run for these offices – really do want us to be more prosperous.
Even dumber: We believe that there really is a difference between the two parties.
Which is why you see so many ignorant, gullible, brain-dead people mindlessly cheering their chosen candidates – the next crop of politicians preparing to rape us – on the six-o’clock news.
This is what public education gets you. This is what happens when you teach millions of future voters that economics is boring and that history doesn’t matter.
This is what happens when an ignorant electorate cares more about the candidates’ charisma than their character; more about their personalities than their policies and more about getting a free lunch than about securing a prosperous future for our children.
And today’s marketing lesson is …
… something I’m going to let you teach each other on the blog below.
So what did you learn from reading the above?
If you say, “I learned that the government is packed with scum,” you missed the point entirely.
So go back and read the first part of this article again and see if there aren’t some things there you maybe missed the first time around.
Maybe about how to make a dull, boring fact – even economic facts – come alive for your prospects …
Or about how to leverage what your prospect already believes and feels strongly about to create huge readership and to get him on your side …
Or about crafting a compelling intellectual argument using plenty of third-party facts and images …
Or maybe about how identifying and excoriating a mutually despised common enemy creates emotional momentum that’s almost impossible to resist …
Let’s hear what YOU think!
Yours for Bigger Winners, More Often,
Clayton Makepeace
Publisher & Editor
THE TOTAL PACKAGE™
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Comment by Nicholas — April 7, 2008 @ 3:18 pm
Clayton,
All I can really say is amen… to the facts. Hope you have read "The Law" by Frederick Bastiat… I’ve given this out in cases…
I left the 2 party system in 1996 and been helping building the Constitution Party. Come along and you will have an audience as we seem to be kindred spirits.Cordially,Nicholashttp://www.constitutionparty.com "If to please the people, we offer what we ourselves disapprove, how can we afterward defend our work? Let us raise a standard to which the wise and the honest can repair; the event is in the Hands of God! " George Washington
Comment by John Scola — April 7, 2008 @ 3:24 pm
FOR SALE – THE EIFFEL TOWER – $97 (USD)
7,330 Tons of scrap steel must go because the 119 year old structure no longer meets modern building codes.
An unheard of once in a Millennium bargain! The Eiffel Tower can be obtained for literally – a fraction of a penny on the dollar.
You haul.
Cash only please.
Comment by wayne johnson — April 7, 2008 @ 3:26 pm
You know my father worked for sun oil co. and related alot of information on oil to me.Did you know that your car would get great gas mpg if they would put more raw gas in the gallon of chemcials that they call gas. you see cars work better with real gas then they due with ===== in there.you see its cheaper to due that then give you the real stuff because you will use moe of that and give them $$$$$$$ and lots of it.The peoplein this country are dumb and that would change just give me my pay check and a beer. who cares about (we need a change) didnt we get a change clinton. 911,war over oil ??they dont know and dont care,73% dont even know were canda is. do i have to say more. worring, vet.
Comment by Bill — April 7, 2008 @ 3:40 pm
Bravo! Do I hear a Ron Paul fan in the making?
Comment by Al — April 7, 2008 @ 3:50 pm
I think the whoppers sum it up.
Hollywood: Even crap sells if it’s made entertaining. The best product or service will sell less if it bores people to learn about it.
Washington D.C. : If you lie, make up facts and practice dishonesty in your marketing, you’ll get found out … unless everyone selling in that market is also lying, making up facts and practicing dishonesty. Then you can get away with anything!
New York: Greed. As long as you appeal to the desire to get more for less, support it by professional script spinners, and make it appear risk free you can sell anything. Especially if you have a Hollywood hit and/or Washington pundits to use for credibility.
All of the above: Whenever you need to prove the truth of your claims, create a measurement model that gives you the proof you need.
Good marketing works … when applied by unethical people, they produce negative value results.
The same marketing tactics applied by ethical people can produce positive value results.
You decide!
Al
Comment by Mark Barron — April 7, 2008 @ 4:15 pm
I think the interesting marketing lesson here is that if you are not interested in the devil of the details, you can be easily swayed by a product that promises what you want in a product, has eye catching packaging, and builds a brand that enforces a message that answers in the consumer’s mind "whats in it for me". The only difference between the government and the once dominate mail order computer business in Round Rock, Texas owned by a guy named Michael is that people voted with their wallets when the product failed to match the marketing, whereas with the government, they already own your wallet.
Mark
Branson’s Radio Station
KBRS.net
Comment by Michael Z. — April 7, 2008 @ 4:38 pm
Clayton,
The sad truth in your post aside, your marketing/copywriting lesson today struck me. Oh so POWERFULLY.
I see today’s lesson like this:
- Find a pressure point of your target market; something that gets them all worked up - could be anger, concern, doubt etc
- Deliver proof that strikes that pressure point - show them that what they’ve been thinking about is true, and that there is a real reason for concern - a reason that gets them more involved in the message…so that they are now connected to the message
- Show them that there is another option, a solution to their problem
- Illustrate both with facts, numbers, and visual proof that the new solution, whatever your promoting, makes sense and is "the truth" …not like the source of their original agitation - so that their minds can’t dispute the power of this new solution.
A powerful post that illustrated exactly what a solid argument is all about - a lesson that taught more than many books available on negotiation and sales. And as always thank you.
Listening and watching closely,
Michael Z.
Comment by John Fish — April 7, 2008 @ 4:58 pm
Clayton -
You are right! You can fool all of the people all of the time (or at least the vast majority thereof). I would like to comment on just two items: First of all the real estate market and credit crisis. There are a lot of people who can justly be called to task for this mess but the people who are pounding the desk the most about it are those who caused it - your friendly "you can have it all folks" in Washington. Do your homework in the Congressional Record and find out the many politicos who wanted - no DEMANDED - that lenders make it possible for anyone to have the American Dream - a home of their own (at any cost - without counting the cost).
The second item has to do with bankers. If you go back to the 60s 70s and 80s, in particular, you can find more books and articles than you would every have time to read about how the banks wanted to take over the mortgage market the securities industry (stocks and bonds) and the real estate industry (the sale of individual homes). Most people could have cared less. Even those who agreed with it got tired or reading about it and had no understanding of what it would mean to them if this actually happened. Well folks it IS happening and anyone who doesn’t understand how truly happy the major banks are about the problems the securities, mortgage and real estate industries are having have no understanding at all about how private business works and what a stranglehold by the banks of these three industries would mean. By the time these matters sort themselves out it may well cost the banks hundreds of billions of dollars but to get a firm grip on the industries involved for the price that they will pay will end up being no less than a fire sale. Kids in a candy store never had it so good!
John Fish
Comment by Fernando — April 7, 2008 @ 5:02 pm
C’mon, Clayton… politicians "twisting the facts" for their own benefit? Noooooooo!!! Gosh, what’s next??
OK, sarcasm over… I agree with you, Clayton, but this won’t be the first, or the last time this will be the case. We all know that truth and reason is always somewhere in between two extremely opposed, self-serving viewpoints.
BTW, I enjoy your posts, always informative and entertaining… thanks!
Comment by John Forde — April 7, 2008 @ 5:10 pm
Amen, Clayton. On both points. First, yes… it’s tough sometimes to take something so abstract as economics and make it real for a reader. But if you can pull it off – and show them how it hits them where they live – the impact can be huge. As you know, in the financial newsletter industry especially, transforming the esoteric into a cluster bomb is something we do all the time. It helps, of course, if you feel pretty passionate about making sure people see what they’re not seeing.And second, absolutely we’ve got to wake up to the ridiculousness of what Washington – and Wall Street – have gotten away with for far, far too long. It’s costing us already, as you point out. But God help us all the day the charade collapses inward. Glad you posted the rant.
Comment by John Gilger — April 7, 2008 @ 5:55 pm
As Mark Twain quipped, "Liars figure and figures lie." Or "There’s lies, damned lies, and statistics."
Fortunately, there are enough economists and other analysts generating reams of numbers supporting nearly every political point of view so that a copywriter with a good researcher (or a copywriter who is a good researcher) can usually find the numbers and graphs needed to persuasively illustrate the argument at hand.
I do like the points you made and I’ve been a fan of Walter Williams for some time.
Thanks for another dose of your experience
Comment by Yvonne — April 7, 2008 @ 5:58 pm
Thank You Clayton!
I can always count on you to report what most alert Americans are thinking. I agree with all of your statements.
My state, Florida, has recently reported unemployment at 18% and I am one of the newly layed-off. (But that only pushed me to order the AWAI copywriting course).
Our founding fathers used both the Roman and Greek governments, as a template for our government. We are facing a similar future (i.e. your comments regarding Hollywood). The partying will continue until the whole joint burns.
Children in our public schools are not taught to think - only to memorize. That is exactly why I home-schooled my three children; (who are now all successful intellegent adults).
This country needs to wake up, before it’s too late.
Comment by Chick Jabre — April 7, 2008 @ 6:41 pm
Good Day Clayton,
This is what I love to read from you. Your rants are both entertaining and informative.
A faithful reader Chick
By the way I did what they told me. I copy the ten best sales letter, each one ten times. I would have done it more but the copy machine ran out of ink.
.
Comment by Sharon B. — April 7, 2008 @ 8:58 pm
Hi Clayton–
The lesson here for me–you’ve taken a complex, sometimes boring (for us numerically challenged folks) subject, made it exciting and transformed it to a level we can all relate to.–What’s more, you’ve even given us the source of your statistics, inspiring others to go check it out for themselves. Bravo!
It also brings to mind the flexibility of numbers and how they can be reworked, if you will, to prove both sides of the same issue. (And don’t worry–I trust yours a lot more than I trust theirs!) Anything can have credibility if the numbers back it up. This is one way so many people, including myself, get fooled into believing things are better than they are.
Fortunately, my own budget advises me to take Washington’s noise with a grain of salt (or a shaker). When it costs me $126 to buy the exact same groceries that used to cost me $74, something is seriously out of whack.
Comment by Andy Bacon — April 7, 2008 @ 9:32 pm
Thank you Clayton,
Your ranting is well needed in this country. The American Dream is dying. We are moving from a country with a strong middle class filled with family wage jobs to a two class society like before the depression. How can the guys who put us into this economic mess be getting bonuses of 100’s of millions? They own the politicians because of our electorial process that is all about spending money.
That’s all the time I have for now because "AMERICAN IDOL" is on and then I have a few more "reality shows" to watch.
Keep up the good work Clayton, you give us hope.
Andy Bacon
Comment by Todd — April 7, 2008 @ 10:42 pm
What does your message tell us this time Clayton?
That we are all fools, almost all the time.
Thanks to great marketers, like The Washington, for example.
Of course, there are millions more marketers from small to big time.
As long as you can create your own facts, backed by seemingly legit figures, your on the way to fooling others convincingly.
There’s not much difference between conjobs and marketing, essentially.
It’s communication that pulls in the dough, if you can communicate flawlessly.
We’re in times of trouble.
We have more people who are in need of hoodwinking the public in order to sustain their livelihoods.
This need is even spread to people in the streets.
So what do we get? A deceitful population? Where everybody knows secretly that the next person is as devious as themselves?
Welcome to the marketing world, where the NO.1 hero is The Washington.
Who’s so mesmerising that it can fool ALL THE PEOPLE ALL THE TIME!
You want to be a marketer? Think like The Washington…
Comment by joseph derer — April 8, 2008 @ 4:29 am
"Right on Clayton… Here’s the real deal.America’s #1 export is WAR since 1913. (read "War Is A Racket" Col.Smidley D Bulter USMC Ret.)Since the illegal creation of the Federal Reserve (it ain’t Federal and there ain’t no reserves) the American people have been nothing less than surf’s.Our currency which used to be "as good as gold" has been on a path of destruction ever since.It has been planned that way. Next time you talk to your banker - ask him what *Fractional Reserve Banking* is…1000 to 1 odds says he has no idea. (i dare you to ask him)Ask him who owns the Federal Reserve or when was the last time it was audited.When was the last time Fort Knox was "audited"… 1953 - does anyone really believe there is any gold there?Without the Federal Reserve there would have been no WW1 or WW2… no Korean War - no Vietnam.There would be no Communist Russia and no Red China all these regimes were financed by Western bankers and their London pals.Because the Feral Reserve can create money out of thin air… it can finance any War.With the help of the likes of JPMorgan and friends - they can finance all sides.Yes America has been dumbed down read the book - ‘Intentionally Dumbing Down of America’ and drugged out.The vaccines that are injectedinto your children are full of poison - after they are poisoned… Big Pharmaceuticals’ keep them on life support.(vaclib.org / tetrahedon.org) Would you be surprised to know that 57% of MD’s DO NOT vaccinate their children? Why is that - do they know something you don’t…Sheeple are for shearing. There is no difference between the Demo-rats and the Republic-rats - they are just two different wings of the same bird of prey.Most sheeple have not figured that out yet.How many times have your heard the sheeple say "I voted for the lesser of two evil’s"… well stupid-aren’t you still voting for EVIL?… duhaaaThink it was Goreing who worked for Hitler that said if you tell a lie often enough - the sheeple will believe it.Most folks ‘farm their thinking Out’… HollyWeird is more than happy to do that for Corporate America . "I saw it on the Discovery channel" it must be true!…How many people know that there was no "Tonkin Gulf" incident… it was all a lie. In Vietnam there was no "Victory Strategy" it was always about making money - had nothing to do with spreading democracy - who the hell wants a Democracy… look it up - America is a Constitutional Republic.(Vietnam is smaller than the state of Mississippi 8.4 million Americans served there 58,680 died there 3100 + unaccounted MIA’s not to mention 250,000 + who committed suicide after they got home - and we lost) Watch the 10,000 day war.Lets face it.. 30 some % of Americans can’t read… thanks to the NEA… they are just doing what they are told.They teach by ‘consensus’ thank you Columbine , home of out-based education.What is money? A store of wealth.Gold has been money for 5000 years. Golds function hasn’t changed . What you buy it with is worth less, a lot less.Your wealth and your childrens wealth is being systematical stolen right in front of your eyes.If you and i did what the Feral Reserve does… it is called counterfeiting… what happens to counterfeiters?… They hate competition.May i digress for a moment… there is a neat book that has been out for a short time - for those that like to read. Jack cashill’s "Ron Browns Body" if you are a Clinton fan you probably won’t want to read it. How ever if you love this country as i do… it’s a good read. And if you happen to run into Jack - tell him I’ve got a great web site to use for sales of his book: http://www.RonBrownsBody.com meet you on the train of thought.I guess the marketing lesson here is that this government with the help of Hollywood can create what ever reality they want - they have the tools, they have some of the best copy writers on the planet working for them… heck if you can’t beat’em , join’em… just kidding. If some of the current and brightest young copy writers wanted to counter this treason - in - high - places …i say god bless them and step up to the plate.Some are aware of what the "End Game" is (watch the movie) Can you say North American Union?…It ain’t over yet but i here the fat lady warming-up. Just say no - vote all the incumbents out of office. That would really slow them down. When Ron Paul ducked the 9/11 issue i think he lost a lot of credability.Could he be another Ross Perot? I dunno.Check out a couple of great books: Creature From Jekkell Island this is something every high school kid should have to read. "None Dare Call It Treason" is an excellant book you just might get fighting mad.And then there is "Shadows Of Power" by Perloff… Check out Alex Jones and Jeff Rense. And while your at it , google Chemtrails and Weather Modification - do you want to know what is being dumped on you and your family?… Do you really care?… I do. josephderer@gmail.com
Comment by Brent Godin — April 8, 2008 @ 5:33 am
We’re all drugged and we’re all distracted. We can’t face the real facts. Our economy is sinking. People are working harder than ever. We’re all fools bailing out the waters from a sinking ship, while the powercrats are purposefully making the holes larger. We by the majority are becoming a nation of human ostriches.
Time to wake up. Plug the holes. Throw out the powercrats. Forget Obama and Hillary. Think of Clayton, where’s the guy’s political rant headed for?
Comment by Bill Boardman — April 8, 2008 @ 9:32 am
Hey, Clayton…. I’d say the real marketing message is…keep writing emotional appeals. As your post proves, any liars hiding behind figures will eventually be exposed. That is, anyone who believes inflation is only 4% in this country is trapped in their head, responding to a mind message that they want to believe and not paying attention to how this economic climate feels. The head messengers will eventually fail…and the heart messengers triumph.
Keep up the good work….
Regards,
Bill
Comment by Francois — April 8, 2008 @ 10:22 am
Wow, I see a hornet’s nest being stirred. All emotions fired up, everyone taking and writing and speculating about politics, economy and conspriracy theories.
We are marketers people, copywriters, business men and women. The one thing that Jay Abrahams does well is to take some lessons learned in one area and apply it to another area. This discussion here is no political discusion, but a marketing discussion. Learn the lessons and be better copywriters.
See what Washington’s copywriters (we call them public relations officers in South Africa where I’m from) does right and learn from them. Discover where they leave the ethical track and avoid that path.
You and I wants to be great at our game. The best method to accieve is is to learn from experience; your own and other’s. When you do something right, do it again and again. When you make a mistake, learn the lesson and get a better sollution. Do the same with other’s experiences. Copy the stuff that works and seek an alternative to the mistakes. That is essencially how we should treat Washington, Robert Mugabe (Zimbabwe) and Jacob Zuma (South Africa).
So if you want to be a successful politician, become a outstanding copywriter and learn the game of politics.
But if you want to be a copywriter, learn the game of copywriting and use the lessons from other walks of life, including politics, sports, religion etc.
Francois
Comment by Carolyn Permentier — April 8, 2008 @ 11:39 am
Oh my … where to start?
Thank you, Clayton, for opening such a huge door!
I think most of us, as marketers and/or copywriters, have experienced the unsavory ability to overlook what we really feel or believe about our clients’ products, services or business tactics.
It’s actually something I struggle with everyday.
The people, at large, really are like bleating sheep – otherwise, what Washington, religion and other charletons get away with would not be happening.
Ya know, the same mind-set that allows Washington to run rough-shod over its minions is the same phenomenon that allowed the Jewish Holocaust to go on far, far too long.
And that is this: It just defies any semblence of decency that most common folks operate from.
In the case of the Holocaust, even though we knew/heard, it was TOO much to take in. Too much atrocity makes good folk go numb.
Therefore, even despite repeated information to the contrary, most people, most of the time, just choose to think that Big Brother really cares about them and has their best interests at heart.
B.S., though, and more B.S.!!
The 16th post by Joseph Derer … Wow! Yes, yes, yes.
But, even for those of us who know, understand the ‘end game,’ what can we do about it? What CAN we do?
Clayton, my friend, you’ve opened up a dire subject that, for me, so far transcends anything about copywriting or marketing.
I doubt that the poor writers really understand who’s pulling the strings. It’s a world stage where decisions are made, as Joseph pointed out, and has little to do with we, the endentured servants.
The wheels of this enormous system has only to keep the bleating sheep in line long enough, tricking us into thinking the two-party system has a tinker’s damn to do with democracy …
Again, as Joseph said, America is NOT a democracy, but a Constitutional Republic.
Yet, we’re supposed to buy the propaganda that the U.S. is spreading democracy to the poor Iraqi people as the reason for invading Iraq … that is after the WMD excuse didn’t pan out … Paleze!
As Joseph says, "America’s #1 export is War."
There’s always been the elite, ruling class and the slaves who they, ostensibly, govern and care for. But, it’s never been true and more than likely, without an enormous revolution, never will be!
Yet, the PR machine continues to strip its gears, churning out more and more pablum for the masses.
Just as Carl Marx said that religion is the opiate for the masses, so we may also say the same for governments.
Baaa, baaa, the bleating sheep fall one by one for the lies and deceit of their religous and political leaders … to our inevitable slaughter.
But the next time, I fear the slaughter will be so devastating as to destroy much more than just the sheep. Other advanced civilizations have fallen, maybe even more advanced than ours, and power and greed have the very real opportunity to do it again.
Will it be the year 2012, as many predict, that’ll be it for life on our planet for a few more million years? We’re but a speck, really.
Just as Carl Marx said of religion … it’s the opiate of the masses … I fear that while the masses are embroiled with their stupid, hair-splitting differences on each "God says" book, they are also lulled into a false belief of the two-party system being a good thing, along with all the other insane notions of a benevolent government.
They/we want so badly to believe that our very own elected officials, sworn to uphold our interests and to take care of us are, in fact, the biggest deceivers of all.
I call it the "Holocaust Syndrome." Just as the rest of the world could not believe the horrendous atrocities were actually taking place in Nazi Germany – we, the bleating sheep, headed for slaughter, can’t let in what must surely be the end game.
America is no longer a sovereign nation. We’re being sold out or at least assimilated for money, power, greed. It has nothing to do with the endentured servants … you and me.
Find a writer/marketer who can get that across to the masses, appealing to emotion, logic or just good ole common sense … and you will have found the next hero/heroine.
But, even knowing the truth … how can we use it to set us free?
Your fella sojourner,
Carolyn
http://blog.kickasscopywriter.com
Comment by Larry Mekus — April 8, 2008 @ 12:40 pm
OUTSTANDING!! Here I thought you were just ranting and raving, but that was an outstanding bit of copywriting all along. Without even realizing it, you got me all fired up and involved in reading. In fact - if you would have had a product to sell at the end of that perfect copy, I would have been ready to buy on the spot. Yes - I read your copy each day, and I am totally impressed. All that I want to be one day is another Clayton Makepeace. Or I will even settle for something smaller….. to be just half as good as you are.
Comment by Clayton Makepeace — April 8, 2008 @ 12:58 pm
Wow! Some hornet’s nest!
So many great thoughts, so little time.
Michael Z and Francois: Congrats – you get an A PLUS. You nailed it. This post isn’t about politics or economics. It’s about how to turn even a dull, boring subject into something that engages people where they live … triggers strong resident emotions … causes them to bond with you … and then moves them to action.
(John Forde: I’d give you an A plus, too, but that would be presumptuous of me. As one of the finest financial copywriters working today, you could teach this class as readily as I.)
My favorite post above is Chick Jabre’s: "By the way, I did what they told me. I copied the ten best sales letters, each one ten times. I would have done it more but the copy machine ran out of ink."
Hilarious!
Sharon B: That’s just what The Redhead said when I showed her the inflation chart above. She just shrugged. "I don’t need a chart to tell me Washington lies about inflation. All I need is a quick trip to the grocery store or gas station!"
Todd: Something you said struck me – hard. "You want to be a marketer? Think like Washington."
Oh, please – GOD! – do NOT do that!
If any of us did the things Washington does, we’d be promptly picked up and packed off to prison. Justifiably so!
See, when federal, state and local politicians demand that you fork over more than half of what you earn each year – and threaten you with prison if you don’t pay up – it’s called "Progressive Revenue Enhancement."
But if you tried something like that – say, on a local store owner, for instance – the government would call you an "extortionist" … just before it locked you up and threw away the key.
When Fed chief Bernanke prints a trillion phoney paper dollars to bail out irresponsible bankers (thereby gutting the buying power of the few dollars it didn’t confiscate from you), that’s called "Monetary Policy."
If you so much as photocopy a lousy twenty, it’s called "counterfeiting" and ATF will have you in jail so fast, it’ll make your head spin.
When Barrack, Hillary or John lie their pattooties off to sell the public on voting for them, it’s called "campaigning."
If you so much as accidentally and unintenionally "mislead" prospects with your sales copy, the Federal Trade Commission will make sure you spend the next ten to twenty cozying up to Bubba in a six-by-nine prison cell.
So if you truly want to become a great marketer – and especially if you value your freedom – Rule #1 is "DO NOT think like Washington." Instead, think like an advocate – a champion – for your prospects and customers.
Resolve never to promote a product you wouldn’t want your sainted grandmother to buy. And never create a promotion that would mislead her or insult her intelligence.
The fact is, you’re better than them. All of us are.
We create wealth. They destroy it. We help our clients and their customers enjoy greater freedom by creating wealth or by saving them time or effort. They destroy choice and freedom at every turn.
We MUST tell the truth. They are incapable of it.
They are simply the parasites we must endure in return for living what is still, by all accounts, a pretty darned good life.
Bottom line? The glass is more than half full. So long as you have your health, a servicable brain, an independent spirit – and the courage to reach for the stars even when all around you are settling for mediocrity – the sky is the limit for you.
You can live rich and free even in a world where wealth and liberty are becoming the rarest of commodities.
Cheers, y’all!
– Clayton
Comment by Brent Godin — April 8, 2008 @ 2:48 pm
That’s exactly what the good people are doing, Clayton. Working hard, championing the customers and prospects, staying wisely within the good laws. Creating wealth scrupulously. While unbeknownst to them or despite knowing it, we continue let the greedycrats get away with their surreptitious machinations to undermine the nation’s financial integrity. We pooh-pooh them as parasites and that’s it?
So we the wealth creators are actually the ones bailing out the nation, keeping it afloat. The best of us are able to enjoy a great yacht-living lifestyle, whereas the vast majority of lesser greats are threading waters by the side, enjoying a vicarious view. We may say we’re the sheeples, but we ARE Washington’s market. And if we always consent to every idiotic policy they throw at us, what does that say to Washington’s "customer service department"? Like they’re doing a great job? We’d never hesitate to sue another fellow citizen for professional negligence, libel, or misconduct. But not a finger can be raised to the government for their wrongdoings? No wonder the gnashing of teeth is unleased among sheeples themselves. The people in power know the ship is sinking, and they want all the human cargo to down together with them. And the sheeples go on singing their merry ways… They cannot shake out the illusion. Hey, the sheeples are the business people. All of us. We are the truthful, the real workers. THEY are the deceivers, the real underminers. And if we keep letting them get away with it, what says that about us? Ostrich head? Come on, wake up! Where’s Jose Phderer?
Comment by Wes Hopper — April 8, 2008 @ 2:55 pm
Great discussion and the comments certainly covered the spectrum!
I read recently that 58% of American adults have not read a single book all the way through since high school (if then.) Several friends and I have speculated on the decline in critical thinking skills in this country, which is supported by a reading of most "letters to the editor" columns and on-line blogs and forums. (Not this one, of course) It seems that the ability to analyze an idea, and the background knowledge to do it accurately, are missing in action.
This is good news for copywriters, even ethical ones, because our copy is more easily accepted. For the unethical, including politicians, it’s heaven on earth. In the long run, I weep for my grandchildren and the mess they will have to live with.
History will show that the first 10 years of the 21st century marked the end of America’s world leadership and the beginning of a serious decline in our standard of living. Of course, we the people elected this gang of losers, so as Walt Kelly wrote in Pogo, "we have met the enemy and he is us."
Is there a way that the copywriting community can come together and sell liberty, responsibility and living in peace? If we can sell anything, and we can, why not that?
Wes
Comment by Tommy — April 8, 2008 @ 3:16 pm
Sneaky one, Clayton. I think it is all about capitalising on the self validation on the part of the public.
They put the politicians there, and now will stand by their decision and believe what the politicians say and support what they do, even if it was wrong.
Cialdini?? Plenty of his principals here. Is he some sort of closet politician?
Gustave le Bon wrote " The Crowd". Good read and true insight for what subversive tactics are used by politicians and how crowd (voters, public, anyone that can be grouped) mentality works.“What luck for the rulers that men do not think." –Adolph Hitler
Think how well this lot will do writing copy for something honest like business for a change.
Beat the control everytime they will.
Great one as usual!!
Francois, true, same good read as your book.
Tommy
Comment by joseph derer — April 8, 2008 @ 3:27 pm
"What happens to ‘cock-a-roaches’ when you shine the light on them… That’s exactly what those who are aware must do. And yes Clayton the glass is half full.The Powers That Be - hate this thing called the inter-net. It scares the heck out of them.The best revenge is to live well. Thanks Clayton for this opportunity to get some things off my cheast - think i’ll go out and sell something. JoeP.S. back the truck up on silver… it’s still a screamin buy.Gold should be 1650 plus sometime in 2011.Silver just as in the past will blow the doors off gold.
Comment by David Grebow — April 8, 2008 @ 5:32 pm
Clayton,
You truly are a GREAT writer. Even when your not selling anything you sell the ideas about which you write. I have an entire collection of stuff you wrote I put in a 3-ring binder labeled "CLAYTON". One of my goals (on which I check progress every day after writing my Gratitudes) is to be one of your Copywriter Cubs, and then join the pantheon with you and the Rest of the Best.
This piece and all the great comments reminded me of an old adage:
When it happens to your neighbor, you call it a "Recession". When it happens to you, it’s a "Depression".
I must say that Robert Redford - not "A" list Hollywood (or as my Irish friend says "Follywood" - did get a film out called Lions for Lambs that tries its best to address some of the issues about which you write.
And I am suggesting that we - the copywriting community - support something I saw In the Valley of Elha. What I suggest is that on June 14th - Flag Day - we - and people everywhere - fly the flag upside down to tell one another and the world America is in trouble and needs help. A distress signal that says everything you wrote about - and so much more - is broken and failing and in need of help. It’s not the "Copy that Saved America" but it’s saying something important with our actions rather than words.
It’s a small thing, then again, so was standing up against a war in Viet Nam, or sitting down together with our fellow Black Americans in a segregated diner. And so on …
… and enough small things do equal one Big Thing.
Sincerely,
David Grebow (fellow Redhead btw)
http://thefourthwave.typepad.com/knowledgestar/
Comment by Clayton Makepeace — April 8, 2008 @ 5:33 pm
OK … so you want to talk politics? I’m game …
Is the pen really mightier than the sword?
If so, there’s more might on this board than in the halls of Congress.
What would you propose we do to make a difference this election year?
Comment by Larry Foster — April 9, 2008 @ 8:51 am
The marketing lessons are great. As always.
But to go back to the political realm for a bit, check out David M Walker, the former Controller of the US.
The facts he presents will scare the s**t out of you.
Clayton, you asked what we should do this year.
The deck is stacked pretty heavily against 3rd parties but I bet the Whigs thought they were solid,too.
But, this may be the year I go 3rd party.
What has been successful recently has been the defeat of the ridiculous "immigration reform" plans. One group that has helped is a website called NumbersUSA.
I’m only using this as an example and not to get in a fight about securing the borders.
They apply a lot of pressure on Congress through fax, email and telephone and make it easy to make one’s voice heard on this issue.
Off the cuff, here’s what I think.
1. One person can’t be heard. Our "leaders" are cowards and will bow to enough pressure. Tell enough people and make it easy to for them to let our leaders know what we think. Like NumbersUSA.
2. As writers and marketers, we have the ability to "get the word out". Blogs, Youtube videos, emails to your friends list in your email client. Our copy is the information. Letters to the editor.
3. Research the information and publish it. Try to create a viral campaign.
Anyone else have ideas?
Larry Foster
Some examples
Comment by Jerry Watson — April 9, 2008 @ 10:08 am
Yeah, pray.
Comment by Gregory Barros — April 9, 2008 @ 11:26 am
The day doesn’t pass that fails to cast light on yet another example of egregious government chicanery, duplicity, ineptitude, malfeasance, mendacity, mismanagement. Such revelation is no longer remarkable. Nor is our response which remains quite predictable: Sufficiently animated by the sheer brazenness and depravity of the misconduct; we, the cognoscenti in high dudgeon, wax eloquently and righteously indignant. Outraged, we catalog the affronts and transgressions of our equivocating politicians, their toadying acolytes among the public bureaucratic classes and the predatory special interests that buy and sell our government daily. Yet that which we, putatively sovereign individuals, lament so vigorously in our steadily declining, increasingly severely circumscribed individual sovereignty and advancing servility to incompetent, mendacious government, persists. It will persist and its advance will continue to accelerate as long as we limit our response to the burgeoning polemical exercises circulating among our community. If this is as much static as the government will face, the government will have no incentive to straighten up and fly right, encumbered by nothing more than than the truth.
It’s time we marketers, we salespeople understook the enterprise of marketing and selling the principles of freedom and liberty, the fundamental concepts of our republic.
Our rulers among the political classes and the nattering lumpen commentariat that aid and abet them have too long neglected and too frequently disparaged and dismissed these principles as quaint and out-moded.
It’s time we caused them to revisit their thinking in this regard.
Gregory Barros
Comment by Dr.Gwen A. Roberts-Foote — April 9, 2008 @ 4:14 pm
Clayton, I read with excitement and mixed emotions as I devour all of your articles and comments. I agree with most of your visionary prophesies. I don’t always agree with the comments posted by other readers, and isn’t that what America is all about ?
I make no claims to be an economist , a credentialed copywriter, a wise maven, a crystal-ball gazer, nor one having exclusive rights to the wisdom of trusting God.
My claims to "fame" if such a thing exists, is that in the
face of the early deaths of my parents, one sibling, my first husband, the plundering of monetary and emotional "vaults", the abandonment by both children, I can still stand with a modicum of poise and claim the right to be a "free-thinker" at the age reached as a senior citizen.
America once valued the "exception to the rule" of creativity among us…not now; people are urged to conform to the "average"; Schools are not the culprit…the lawmakers are; people who ride on the edge of conformity are viewed as eccentric or odd;being a team player is prized over being true to one’s calling; those of us who have planned for "retirement" see the rapidly erroding of assets as the cost of goods and services quickly outpace the investment income.
Perhaps none of this is relevant, but I needed to go on a rant. Even though my formal education is very good, it did not prepare me for the jungle on the internet where more liars exist than I knew possible. I have always enjoyed helping people improve themselves in every way possible, and I have achieved a small measure of success in shaping lifestyles, wealth objectives, and improved wellness. Earning the trust of strangers is no small task, but it can be done. Building good relationships can also be done, in spite of all the hype-filled messages.
Thank you, Clayton, for allowing me to "vent". Best regards, always,
Gwen
Comment by Maxx Van Helsing — April 9, 2008 @ 4:30 pm
Great ideas Larry Foster, such as, using an approach similar to NumbersUSA to deliver the much needed educational drives, and pressure tactics.
As for the topics, here are a few important preliminaries:
- elimination of budget deficit on all 4 years of presidency, any candidate whose prime campaign directive and subsequent promised accountability during office is focused on this wins my 1st and 2nd Term votes
- no more printing of fiat money
- exposing the Federal Reserve for what it really is, THE CULPRIT Inflation Machine That Is Never Publicly Sensationalized
Maxx
Comment by Norm Ford — April 9, 2008 @ 8:56 pm
I’m an Aussie looking in & I’m amazed by your democratic system/process.
How can a person be elected to be the President of a country by only having 22% of the vote (that did vote) and then he had to go to court to win? Beyond my comprehension. Until you guys have compulsory voting you will get what you deserve. But unfortunately your system impacts on people outside of your country.
Question how much do you spend on your war machine? If that amount of money was re-directed to help the world’s poor, wouldn’t the world be a better place? Maybe, the need for wars could be eliminated. How does a government sanction what your CIA does throughout the world?
There’s Sir Richard Brampton on Australian TV last night disclosed that one of his planes was all set to fly into Iraq and take Saddam (volunterilly) to Libya the night you guys started bombing Iraq! What’s wrong with your government? Why do you let them do what they do?
Another point……
Your minimum wage is an insult to a person’s integrity. How can you expect someone to live at that level and be law abiding? In Australia its close to about $14/hour.
And keeping in a negative vain…..
How can Gregory Barros call himself a salesman as he’s forgotten the one of the golden rules of salesmanship (I forget who wrote it - one of the old vanguards), deliver/practice your sales pitch to a 12 year old to see if he can understand it - if not, rewrite it untill such time as he does. (or words to that effect). I’m sorry Gregory you lost me in the second line, as I don’t have a Webster beside me.
But I love what you think Clayton & how you stitch it all together. I wonder how many re-writes you take to make it work. I can really understand your greatness & successes.
Keep it up and make us all stretch.
Norm
Comment by Maxx Van Helsing — April 9, 2008 @ 10:40 pm
""Question how much do you spend on your war machine? If that amount of money was re-directed to help the world’s poor, wouldn’t the world be a better place?""
The Question has to be: Does our government care for OUR OWN poor in the first place? And look again at the minimum wage dog crumbs that are doled out contemptously. Norm, thanks for opening our eyes as to the massive private assault on our nation’s personal integrity, leading to corruption and civil implosion in places least financially supported, making them progressively unlivable. Yeah, how much does our government care, right! And all the while the fatcats and powercrats bulge on from the waistline.
How the Aussies factor out the minimum wage at $14 is a case deserving indepth study. The USA operates NOT from such a welfare premise, for it thinks that this will seriously curb private sector profit incentive, and will drain its capital reserves.
Is this wage minimum justifiable, without jeopardizing business viability, and without turning the US into a welfare state? Can a "welfare state" sustain itself over the long haul, and live to see great business accomplishments and great capital accumulations at the same time?
There’s a strong deepseated fear of turning this country into a Socialist state where private enterprises are controlled by Big Brother. A mandatory setting of such a high minimum wage across the board would be one example of such control. And businesses will balk at the increase in this expense, recession or no recession, unless there’s a justifiable increase in productivity (- which you Aussies probably know more than us…)
This also explains why there’s no compulsory voting, or compulsory anything. In the name of freedom.
We are sheeples who can graze the land as much as we like. For this privilege we will ultimately willingly submit to being led to the slaughterhouse. For that’s where we’re headed, with not an iota of raised concern. How ironic for the beneficiaries of freedom, the business class. Sheeples we’ve become, right.
BUT Nobody would blame you for accusing the USA government for not wanting what is best for the world. Only what’s best for itself, correction, only what’s best for its ruling class. The rest of the world be damn, and can go to hell, slaving for eternity, it could care less.
We need a new reality. Where the rich can go on being rich, but does not get richer at the expense of causing stagnant income growths to the middle class, the non-owner class. When Does Getting Richer-Than-Rich Become A Necessity? Who else is exerting the disciplined energies in supporting them to reach the dizzying heights of relentless riches? Does the workingstiff support class deserve a cut of the wealth that goes to the rich owners? At which point does the middle class’ demand for greater income not become a threat to the profit incentive for the investors? Will these considerations usher in a dogmatic beginnings of uncapitalistic "socialism"?
How can workers become so integrated to the profit machinery of each company that they cannot be easily severed without affecting its profitability? In other words, their jobs cannot be easily outsourced to other countries. Yet the company stays as competitive and productive as ever. Do the Aussies already have such an advantage?
Maxx
Comment by Clayton Makepeace — April 10, 2008 @ 5:03 am
Help the poor? Hey – I’ve got an idea: What if we made it MORE miserable to be poor and more rewarding to be productive?
What if we stopped trying to eliminate the consequences that result from squandering your education, getting knocked up in middle school, scrambling your brain on drugs, and laying around all day eating bon-bons and watching Oprah?
What if we made stupidity a crime punishable by poverty and being a beggar – a parasite on society – shameful again?
What if we made those who seek charity seek it hat in hand – and importune their own families and churches instead of the rest of us through government programs that raise our taxes and destroy the value of our money?
Wouldn’t that be likely to produce a more productive society? Wouldn’t it at least be worth a try?
Oh – and here’s an idea: What if we stopped punishing people who work hard and live prudently by forcing them to bail out those who don’t?
Does anybody here really believe it makes sense to reward kids for bad behavior and spank them when they do well?
Isn’t that what our societies do when we try to eliminate the consequences of negative behavior and punish productive people with confiscatory taxes?
Isn’t that what we tried in the 1960s with our $2 trillion war on poverty – and didn’t poverty win that war?
Wouldn’t doing the same thing now be like "doing the same thing the same way and expecting different results?" Wouldn’t that be insane?
Just thinking here …
Comment by Clayton Makepeace — April 10, 2008 @ 5:16 am
Oh – and compulsary voting? Wouldn’t that just force more ignorant people – folks who don’t know anything about history, economics and politics – to burden the rest of us with their uninformed views?
Wouldn’t that be likely to cause power-hungry politicians to pander to the lowest common denominator even more than they do now? And wouldn’t that incentivize politicians to bankrupt us even faster by promising even larger give-away programs?
Wouldn’t it be smarter to actually discourage voting among people who don’t know or care how the world works?
Or maybe even restrict the voting privilege to those who actually contribute to the government … who pay taxes?
Doesn’t the sad state of our nation now seem to prove that too many stupid, self-seeking people are voting already?
Hmmmm …
Comment by Clayton Makepeace — April 10, 2008 @ 5:32 am
Oh … and a higher minimum wage? Why stop at $14 an hour? Why don’t we just raise the minimum wage to $100,000 a year?
That way every teenager could have his own ‘Vette!
Then again – how many of those minimum wage jobs could employers offer? Wouldn’t a higher minimum wage actually increase teenage unemployment?
Doesn’t Massachusettes have both the highest minimum wage and also the highest teen unemployment rate in the country?
And what about that idea that poverty creates crime? Howcum the national crime rate plunged during The Great Depression when just about everyobdy was suddenly poor?
Howcum so many poorer countries have MUCH lower crime rates than we do here in the States?
Is it possible that the government creates more crime than poverty ever could – by passing laws restricting what we do with our own bodies? After all – aren’t nearly half of all prison inmates incarcerated right now behind bars on drug charges?
And what if irresponsible parents also create crime by failing to instill good values into their kids and by failing to discipline them?
Hmmm … and hmmm again …
Comment by Patrick — April 10, 2008 @ 8:44 am
Amen to that, Clayton!
I wish Washington would buck up and institute term limits. Like two terms, maximum. And the could NOT be consecutive. That way we could actually judge the effects of their "work" and make a more informed opinion on their electability.
As long as we have pols seeking lifetime employment in the halls of Congress - our leaders will repeat the mistakes you so elloquently pointed out.
Comment by Rhonda — April 10, 2008 @ 8:51 am
Seeing posts like this makes me very angry. Calling the unmotivated person a parasite on society? There are MILLIONS of people who suffer from serious depression or other mental illnesses that they can’t afford to seek help for. My own mother was one of those people. She suffered with mental illness for years until she was finally prescribed a medicine that worked for her. For 20 years she was one of those "parasites" you speak of. Now she is a hard-working, tax-paying citizen.
But she was lucky. Lucky that she was diagnosed. Lucky that she finally found help. Most people aren’t so fortunate, so they wallow in misery, wondering why they just can’t be motivated to do anything or be anything. Society calls them bums, losers, parasites…
People like you have NO clue. Seriously. Get over yourself and realize that not everyone is "smart" enough, "motivated" enough, or "mentally able" to be anything more than a minimum wage earner or a "parasite".
WAKE UP!
The world is full of people who have no motivation, and for a great many of them, IT’S NOT THEIR FAULT!
Comment by Len — April 10, 2008 @ 9:08 am
Unless I misread his post, Clayton didn’t call the unmotivated person a "parasite on society" – he reserved that title for beggars.
Comment by Diogenes — April 10, 2008 @ 9:22 am
Okay…Okay
Let’s stop pandering and stirring the pot.
Clayton’s got the right ideas when he talks about improving their productivity and ability to make good life decisions.
The problem is with the suggested methods, which will serve only to accerlerate our current trend toward a vanishing middle class.
The single best method for achieving the goals Clayton identifies is……
…..
wait for it….
…
EDUCATION.
So let me re-pose Van Helsing’s original question like this:
"If the amount of money spent on the Iraq invasion was redirected to education, wouldn’t the world be a better place?"
Of course, the answer is yes.
If we spent the hundreds-of-Billions-of-dollars on our education systems instead of an ill-informed, misguided invasion of some idiot dictator, America would become the educational, financial and intellectual powerhouse in the world.
Education is the key, not more prisons and police.
Of course, well-educated people can be much more difficult to sell to, unless you are well-educated yourself.
Comment by John Scola — April 10, 2008 @ 9:30 am
We Are Not A Democracy!
I somehow think most people don’t realize this but United States is NOT a democracy!
It is a Republic…
You see, our forefathers feared rule by the mob and rightly so! A few years after the U.S. Constitution was written, the French Revolution started…
And boy!
Everyone was voting everyone to be executed by the guillotine.
It was nuts – and this is the power of catering to the lowest common denominator.
Incidentally, there is NOTHING in the U.S. Constitution that gives people the power to vote for the President…
I think originally, the President was elected by the U.S. Senate… Perhaps someone can correct me on this?
My name is John Scola and I approve of this rant by Clayton…
Comment by Bob Heiney — April 10, 2008 @ 9:33 am
Clayton is right and Lincoln was wrong. But we’ll continue to have a worsening situation in the US until enough voters emerge with a Founding Fathers vision for the future. These voters won’t come out of the government indoctrination centers a/k/a as the ‘public school system’. Alternative schools will drive change - if they can get past the public school unions.
Choiceless in America http://www.noone08.com
Comment by Larry Owen — April 10, 2008 @ 9:36 am
Before we all give ourselves wedgies over politics, the economy, the rich, the poor, climate change, and mental illness – step back a moment and contemplate our evolution. Relax! We forget that this young country, America, will not remain a super power in the world for much longer – after the brief lifetimes of this blog’s participants are expended, the world will go on and change without us. And our egos, greed and lying will get us what we deserve. As a copywriting lesson, the following has a poetic rhythm some will admire, especially when read by Charlton Heston, as the prolog to Spielberg’s Jurassic Park: "You think man can destroy the planet? What intoxicating vanity. Let me tell you about our planet. Earth is four-and-a-half-billion-years-old. There’s been life on it for nearly that long, 3.8 billion years. Bacteria first; later the first multicellular life, then the first complex creatures in the sea, on the land. Then finally the great sweeping ages of animals, the amphibians, the dinosaurs, at last the mammals, each one enduring millions on millions of years, great dynasties of creatures rising, flourishing, dying away – all this against a background of continuous and violent upheaval. Mountain ranges thrust up, eroded away, cometary impacts, volcano eruptions, oceans rising and falling, whole continents moving, an endless, constant, violent change, colliding, buckling to make mountains over millions of years. Earth has survived everything in its time. It will certainly survive us. If all the nuclear weapons in the world went off at once and all the plants, all the animals died and the earth was sizzling hot for a hundred thousand years, life would survive, somewhere: under the soil, frozen in arctic ice. Sooner or later, when the planet was no longer inhospitable, life would spread again. The evolutionary process would begin again. Might take a few billion years for life to regain its present variety. Of course, it would be very different from what it is now, but the earth would survive our folly, only we would not. If the ozone layer gets thinner, ultraviolet radiation sears earth, so what? Ultraviolet radiation is good for life. It’s powerful energy. It promotes mutation, change. Many forms of life will thrive with more UV radiation. Many others will die out. You think this is the first time that’s happened? Think about oxygen. Necessary for life now, but oxygen is actually a metabolic poison, a corrosive glass, like fluorine. When oxygen was first produced as a waste product by certain plant cells some three billion years ago, it created a crisis for all other life on earth. Those plants were polluting the environment, exhaling a lethal gas. Earth eventually had an atmosphere incompatible with life. Nevertheless, life on earth took care of itself. In the thinking of the human being a hundred years is a long time. Hundred years ago we didn’t have cars, airplanes, computers or vaccines. It was a whole different world, but to the earth, a hundred years is nothing. A million years is nothing. This planet lives and breathes on a much vaster scale. We can’t imagine its slow and powerful rhythms, and we haven’t got the humility to try. We’ve been residents here for the blink of an eye. If we’re gone tomorrow, the earth will not miss us."
Comment by Len Bailey — April 10, 2008 @ 9:38 am
Amen, John!
It always amazes me how many people don’t realize America is a republic. Then again, it all comes back to education…
Len
Comment by Clayton Makepeace — April 10, 2008 @ 9:43 am
Side note: Larry Owen (post #44) – one of my best buds – formerly of McAnn-Erickson is responsible for many of the most famous TV spots you can recite by heart for Coke, Dr. Pepper, Mr. Pibb, Church’s Chicken and others.
We first met in a raunchy biker bar in 1995, have endured countless biker parties together and thousands of miles on the road and we’re still the best of friends.
Thanks for weighing in, Larry!
Comment by Rob — April 10, 2008 @ 10:20 am
It amazes me how very few of the people that commented actually got the point of the message.
The point of the message wasn’t to steer you to his point of view about the economy or about politicians. The ones that responded with dribble about their own political leanings simply didn’t get the point of Clayton’s post.
The point of his post was to show you how to write emotional, compelling, and highly-readable sales copy. One of the main tactics he was showing, was how to use current media babble about whatever (in this case the economy) to help get the prospect’s attention and have them reading. Then, mid-way through you start talking about the product which you will connect to the story.
This tactic is commonly used for investment newsletters and the like.
Comment by Bill — April 10, 2008 @ 10:31 am
Let’s bring copywriting and politics back together for a moment:
The great adman Joe Sugarman wrote in his "Advertising Secrets of the Written Word" that no one buys a prevention–everyone buys a cure. It’s human nature.
So that’s why no great changes will take place in American politics until there is a crisis of epic proportions. The masses don’t want to buy prevention in the form of hard work, saving, and being personally responsible. That’s just inconvenient.
Those qualities are characteristics of rich people who earned it the hard way–and not from Mommy and Daddy’s estate.
The true rich toiled…sacrificed….clawed…..scraped….and fought their way to the top. I don’t know Clayton personally or his upbringing, but I suspect this is how he came into his own. And its admirable–the way America was always supposed to be (and still can be).
The problem with the American people is that we’ve become another corrupt empire like those you learn about in textbooks (or don’t learn about if you went to public school). We "trust" our government to "fix" problems that they can’t or won’t–or shouldn’t–fix.
We bomb countries first and ask questions later–in the name of "fighting terrorism," or "Iraqi Freedom" or some other thinly veiled power play while we ignore a guy crossing the border from Mexico who might have a suitcase nuke with him.
We bail out investment banks that should pay the price of bankruptcy resulting in their own bad judgement and greed.
We socialize the bad decisions (mortgage debt) of millions of our citizens–making the smart ones pay the price for the stupidity of the masses.
We tax the hell out of the smartest, most productive members of our society to give to those who want $14/hr to sit at a desk and fall asleep.
We want "free healthcare," "free education," and "freedom from poverty" while ignoring the fact that NOTHING in life is free. And compulsory voting? Thank God we don’t have it. We’d have even more morons casting an ignorant vote for whoever promises the most from someone else’s wallet.
We, as a society, are not in good shape. The very moral fiber that made us great is deteriorating rapidly. And the sad part is we won’t do anything about it until we have real crisis–and buy into a solution.
But here’s the rub: that’s how our once-great rupublic was born. The problems became so great that men of courage and conviction set out to create a free country where an individual had a right to pursue wealth if that was the desire (and keep it without confiscatory taxes).
So how does this all relate again to copywriting? Human nature doesn’t change. Throughout human history, we repeat the same acts over an over again like robots. We are predictable creatures. So pay attention to the "big picture" ideas of why people buy and sell, sell, sell. The methods change, but the principles always stay the same.
Comment by Chris — April 10, 2008 @ 10:31 am
Clayton,
Dadgum! You sound pretty conservative there buddy, almost like a…
a…capitalist!
You’re 100% right on.
Comment by Mike — April 10, 2008 @ 10:47 am
Interesting debate and rants…. I think I’ll add mine.
Our current president lies to the general public why we need to go to war and gets re-elected for a 2nd term. His predecessor lies about cheating on his wife and gets impeached. Yeah, that makes sense – NOT!
The US is in a war that is costing reportedly $50 Billion Per Month and is 100% financed by other foreign countries. So our country piles up even more debt which makes the U.S. dollar worth less worldwide.
So how does the geniuses in Washington deal with the weakening dollar? They print more of them and keep spending money like a drunken sailor on shore leave!
More money in circulation plus weakening dollar plus debt load piling higher by the minute equals inflation growing by leaps and bounds.
But Washington tells us that we shouldn’t worry about inflation. After all, it’s "just" 4%.
Inflation at 4%… that’s an outright lie. If it were true, then something you bought last year for $1.00, would cost $1.04 today. Not accurate by a long shot for any product or service.
I won’t even get started on the policies and laws passed during the Bush adminstration. Most of them are a joke. Ask any teacher who is serious about their job and wanting their students to succeed what they think of "No Child Left Behind." They’ll probably use language that would make the devil blush.
I could rant for probably an hour but I’ll save something for other people. <smile>
My 3 cents,
Mike
P.S. For the readers of this blog who want to get a real understanding of how economics and the U.S. economy works… and get it without any political spin or bias, I recommend a book that was recommended me a few years ago. Pick up a copy of Naked Economics: Undressing the Dismal Science by Charles Wheelan. It’ll cost you about $11 through Amazon and you’ll learn things that will help you make a fortune.
Comment by Jade Sullivan — April 10, 2008 @ 10:53 am
Grow up!
It makes me sick to my stomach hearing the bill clinton/jimmy carter worshipers make excuses for ALL OF THE LAZY and UNMOTIVATED people.
If you make it more miserable to be poor, then the truly needy will come out and you can help them… but stop sending people a check, just for being people!!!!
If you lump the minute and minuscule sliver of society that is truly deranged and mentally ill people in with the fat, lazy and indigent, you trivialize and dilute their real need for help.
Once you make these people work and get insurance and live a productive life, you will then free up the time for TRUE pro-bono work from philanthropic doctors and nurses and charities that care about these people (the ones you love that actually need assistance) and really help them.
Don’t confuse guilt with compassion.
Comment by Allen — April 10, 2008 @ 11:20 am
"Because we the people – the voters – are just too ignorant … too gullible … too brain-dead to see how they’re stealing our money, destroying our savings, vaporizing our investments and sentencing us to a poverty-stricken retirement and get away with it."
Blame the schools.
"You will obey and not question because I am the authority. Bow down to me you uneducated nothing… And if you do dare to question me, I’ll call you disruptive and drug you into submission!"
"We believe that there really is a difference between the two parties."
Actually there is a difference.
The Demo-rats want to bleed you of everything immediately.
The Republi-cants want to slow bleed you like Dracula did to his victims who sustained his life. Remember the ones strapped down and bled… fed on in the movies?
The USA has gone from the greatness it was and the greatness of what it could be to something going round and round in the toilet after it is flushed.
There is one thing and one thing only the USA is still the greatest country in. And that’s our military. We are the best ass kickers in the world.
It’s like Rome before it’s collapse. It’s like China before the Boxer rebellion. Except our drug here is not opium, it’s laziness and expecting others to pay our way, and we should have Zero Responsibility for our actions and choices. It’s always someone else’s fault. The politicians will tell us so.
In answer to your question…
"What would you propose we do to make a difference this election year?"
1. Vote against anyone who is not fiscally conservative.
2. Vote for Wayne Root Libertarian party for President
What we should also do is to teach everyone about the Constitution of the United States… what it says… not what the politicians want you to believe it says… and even more more important one other document…
The Declaration of Independence
"When in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.
…
That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security."
3. Push as hard as possible to bring the USA back from the Socialist workers paradise we are today (though we still say we are Capitalist), and bring us back to true Capitalism.
John Smith style. "You want to eat? Work. You don’t want to eat? Don’t work.
Comment by paul — April 10, 2008 @ 11:22 am
I’m not sure everyone has to be a productive member of society.
The only real options are to do something about it or leave.
The more I travel outside the US, the more I see other countries that don’t value our maximum production ideals. Are they not as happy as they could be if they were all optimally productive?
Part of the right to do what you want, become as succesful as you want (most millionaires are first generation, that is virtually unheard of in other countries), is the right to be a lazy bum, skate by wade by the side.
I think you have to see both sides of the equation, you can’t have all non-productive , but you can’t have all productive either. There is an acceptable amount of give on either side, based on what we do or don’t do about it.
Who’s to say someone is happier and has a better life the more productive they are? Studies have shown that being poor basically sucks, but after you are out of poverty, further increases in wealth have a marinal effect on happiness.
Last thought: I’m happy their are lazy bums out there. People that work hard, or as hard as I push them for $14 and hour and never once think, "geeez I’m doing all the work and someone else is making most of the money." Maybe I could do what he does???
Lastly, I know this is being poured over by copywriters so as a disclaimer please excuse the poor grammar and misspellings. My choice to be slightly lazy, which I’m allowed to!! Maybe I would be happier if I hit spell check and was highly efficient, but I doubt it!
Comment by Allen — April 10, 2008 @ 11:57 am
Joseph (post #16)
"Without the Federal Reserve there would have been no WW1 or WW2…"
Hitler and his Socialist party would be ruling the world right now without WWII.
WWII was NOT due to the Fed. (thought the Fed is a corrupt and IMHO illegal entity). And remember, the Japanese attacked us… ever hear of Pearl Harbor. The Germans, Italians (under Mussolini ,) and Germans were allies. And the Germans and Communist Russians had an understanding.
Once we declared war on Japan, Germany declared war on us.
Before Hitler, Germany was starting to get stronger… in spite of the treaty of Versailles. What really caused Hitler’s rise to power? He had an innate understanding of the power of Propaganda, and was the best expert on it’s use in the world. Better than Bernays (in the USA).
The French sent people to Bavaria to try and get them (the Bavarians) to split off from Germany, and the German government was too weak to try and stop it. The French also marched troops in to an area of Germany claiming it as French because they held it under Napoleon. There were USA bankers, and industrialists who were sending money to Germany starting factories and improving the lot of the people’s lives there. But with the central government in Germany NOT doing it’s job, it opened the way for Hitler. And he promised (behind the scenes) the military even though his rhetoric was harsh, he really would not change things. He lied.
Regarding Communist Russia. There was a revolt against the Czars. It was NOT the Communists. It was the Whites. They were starting to implement Capitalism. Then the Communists started a second revolt, I believe it was only about NINE MONTHS after the Czars were overthrown. The Communists seized power. The Fed was not involved in any of those.
Rhonda (post 39)
"The world is full of people who have no motivation, and for a great many of them, IT’S NOT THEIR FAULT!"
Well, it’s not my fault either. So why should you hire some thug at gunpoint to steal my money and give it to your mother. What kind of relative does not accept responsibility of caring for their parent and tries to push it off to have someone else pay for it????
Not a personal attack, just a question so I can understand your logic of wanting to forcibly require me to pay for your mother’s care, when I don’t even know you or her. How is that fair?
"People like you have NO clue. Seriously. Get over yourself and realize that not everyone is "smart" enough, "motivated" enough, or "mentally able" to be anything more than a minimum wage earner or a "parasite"."
A minimum wage earner is NOT a parasite. A Parasite is one who wants to get something for nothing at another’s expense.
Mike (Post #50)
"Our current president lies to the general public why we need to go to war and gets re-elected for a 2nd term."
He didn’t lie.
"His predecessor lies about cheating on his wife and gets impeached."
If you recall with clear thought, Clinton signed into law a law about sexual harrassment. He was personally being sued, and LIED UNDER OATH… Not to protect the USA… He did it to protect himself… personally.
He deserved to be impeached for that.
And if the congress of the USA had any sense of morality, they would have run him and his wife out of town. But they have no balls… congress that is.
"I won’t even get started on the policies and laws passed during the Bush administration. "
Ummm… the laws are passed by congress… and signed into law by the president… not the other way around.
So blame congress… demo-rats and republi-cants.
"Ask any teacher who is serious about their job and wanting their students to succeed what they think of ‘No Child Left Behind.’"
Wasn’t this a Teddy Kennedy program? And didn’t he push it really hard to get it passed by congress?
Hint… the answer is YES!
Paul (# 53)
"I’m not sure everyone has to be a productive member of society.
…
Part of the right to do what you want, become as succesful as you want (most millionaires are first generation, that is virtually unheard of in other countries), is the right to be a lazy bum, skate by wade by the side."
Very true… BUT, they do not have a right to steal or have thugs steal money and property from those that are productive and give it to them.
Why support a leech?
Comment by Nick — April 10, 2008 @ 12:46 pm
Makepeace o8!
Comment by Michael — April 10, 2008 @ 12:52 pm
I enjoyed this web log. The point was ingenius…identifying a common enemy. Very effective way to write copy.
You’re awesome, Clayton! You’re like the Ann Coulter of the direct marketing set! Keep it up!
Comment by Tommy — April 10, 2008 @ 2:38 pm
OOOHHH BOY!! You dunnit this time, Clayton. You have really p****d come people off this time! Well done. I love it.
By the way, what is this about? Copy or crimin, oops, politicians?
Ride ‘em cowboy!
From Clayton:
"What if we stopped trying to eliminate the consequences that result from squandering your education, getting knocked up in middle school, scrambling your brain on drugs, and laying around all day eating bon-bons and watching Oprah?"
This all roots in upbringing. Parents will not take an active responsibility in the upbringing of their children. The parents come home at night and rant about low wages, badass bosses, stupid politicians etc., and plunk their butts down to watch some ridicilous tv show. What a great example.
Parents do not take an active role in the kid’s lives. The big babysitter, TV, is used from small and the kids get a totally twisted view of life.
How many have gotten life skills as well as business/work
training from the "Screwings and the doing of the Ewings"
I forget aparent may not discipline a child physically anymore. Shame. My parents beat the crap out of me and I have made it on my own all my life. No charity thank you.
"What if we made stupidity a crime punishable by poverty and being a beggar – a parasite on society – shameful again?"
What the hell would you do with all the politicians lying around the street, hitting you up for charity?
Seriously, look at the laws: death penalty off the table in most countries. Just a life of leisure in jail. Bubba, maybe, but no personal responsibility or accountability. Could it be that the politicians are related to criminals or that they are scared of ending up on death row, so they took the death sentence away?
I could carry on forever.
Clayton for Prez!!!
Tommy
Comment by Captain Paraghraph — April 10, 2008 @ 3:45 pm
Hmmm….looks like I have some work to do here. Unfortunately, I’m not at all motivated. Where do I get me some of those get up and go pills mentioned previously? Thanx in advance.
"And remember boys and girls", Captain Paragraph murmurs as he lethargically strains to lift his head from the couch, his mouth mostly muffled by his pillow from which hangs a thick viscous drool noodle which serves as an unshakable tether to his terminal moribundity. He deliberately and slowly mouths some carefully chosen words - "write in Ron Paul for Save our Country!"
Snoooooore…….memememememe
Comment by Geoff — April 10, 2008 @ 6:43 pm
I have always been impressed by this analysis, written 28 years ago by John Pugsley in The Alpha Strategy:
J. Pugsley, The Alpha Strategy at 225-27 (Costa Mesa: Common Sense Press 1980). This seems to me to be the root of the problem.
Comment by Sem — April 10, 2008 @ 8:27 pm
A little note to all who think the United States IS a Republic:
It WAS a Republic. Now it’s not. In a republic all are sovereign, totally responsible for their own lives. What happened was there were too many who took no responsibility for their lives and went crying to the gov. to do something.
Have you ever seen Holy Man? There was this James Brown doll that cried out, "Help me, help me, Good God!" over and over. It’s near the beginning. I wrote the studio to ask what they wanted for that doll because I wanted to buy it. Those words from the doll utterly sum up why the united states is now United States, why 28 USC 3002 definition 15 (definition for United States according to the United States Code)
(15)