Fear

I heard an advertisement for KSL Radio the other day. They played several short clips from the recent terror plot stories in London, followed by a clip about West Nile Virus, concluding with something to the effect of "in the midst of troubled times, turn the the radio station you can trust."

In other words, "Be scared enough to listen to us!"

We see the same tactic everywhere, from CNN to Orrin Hatch's "Democrats = Terrorists."

What's the difference between these comments and me threatening to shoot every person with red hair if more people don't read my blog?

Nothing, really.

And this tactic gets played other places as well. Shaun has a post about a discussion with his roommate (would that be "the other guy who lives in my basement?") about which is better to use a credit or debit card, and it comes down to which you'd rather have stolen.

Because I have my credit and debit cards stolen all the time.

-Bob