Don't Think of an Elephant: Know Your Values and Frame the Debate: The Essential Guide for Progressives

Lakoff, a cognitive scientist and linguist at Berkeley, believes he knows why conservatives have been so successful in recent years and how progressives like himself can beat them at their own game. This slim book presents a simple, accessible overview of his theory of ""moral politics"" and a call to action for Democrats mourning November's election results. Lakoff's persuasive argument focuses on two ideas: what he calls ""framing,"" and the opposition of liberals' and conservatives' concepts of the family. Conservatives, he says, have easily framed tax cuts as ""tax relief"" because of widespread, preexisting views of taxes as burdensome, and liberals have had little success conveying the idea that taxes are a social responsibility. In Lakoff's view, conservatives adhere to a ""strict father"" model of family, in contrast to liberals' ""nurturant parent"" view, and he sees this difference as the key to understanding most of the two sides' clashes. His writing is clear and succinct, and he illuminates his theories through easy-to-follow examples from current politics. Although the book has been updated since the election, many of its sections were originally written long beforehand, so some comments are outdated (at one point Lakoff wonders, for example, whether George Bush's support of the gay marriage amendment will help him keep the White House). However, the process of regaining power may be a long one for Democrats, and Lakoff's insights into how to deal with conservatives and appeal to the general public are bound to light a fire under many progressives.