As is the case with political propaganda the idea is not to address issues directly but rather to manufacture an illusion to attack the candidate rather than their political platform. Tania Chozet, a close political ally of Veronica Escobar, submitted the following letter to the local daily. Of course the local daily, complicit in the attempt to manufacture an illusion didn’t bother to challenge the “facts” of Chozet’s points and just published the letter.
Chozet wrote on November 20, 2013;
Holguin: Do something substantive for valley
As he recently introduced a City Council item to allocate $25,000 for a Christmas lights display at Shawver Park, city Rep. Eddie Holguin said ‘Not everything has to be Downtown.’
As a proud resident of the Lower Valley and someone who jogs at Shawver Park several times a week, I agree.
I know this fatigued park could benefit from city money: The park floods after it rains, and the water remains for weeks, obstructing about 25 percent of the jogging path — which is cracked and dangerously uneven — and adjacent roads.
In the summer, dozens of soccer teams that use this park weekly leave hundreds of water bottles strewn on the ground, despite signs prohibiting littering.
Across the street from the park, the walls are graffiti-riddled, and the adjacent canal is debris-laden. These areas are ripe for landscaping and beautification and ready for permanent reasons to take pride in the neighborhood.
Rep. Holguin, give us a lasting reason to have pride in our neighborhood and dispel the notion that this is lip service to buttress your recently announced run for county judge.
Instead of spending good taxpayer money on something temporary for your seasonal commute enjoyment, give us, the local residents, something permanent to be proud of.
Tania Chozet, Lower Valley
In response, Eddie Holguin wrote in the online comments section the following:
Thank you, Ms. Chozet, for your comments. I agree that Shawver Park has been severely neglected for many years. Unfortunately, Shawver Park is not in my district, but rather in District #7, which was formerly represented by your friend Steve Ortega. As a recent candidate for that seat, I am surprised that you would not have realized that. Thankfully, however, Rep. Lily Limon has now focused her attention on that park, and it is currently being renovated, including adding two new soccer fields and a drainage pond. Your jogging experience should thus be more enjoyable in just a couple of months. In the meantime, I hope you enjoy the holiday lights.
Holguin clearly points out the falsehoods in Chozet’s missive and I can’t add any more to his excellent response.
However, it is important to note that Tania Chozet’s letter was just a component of the mobilization of the useful idiots in support of the Veronica Escobar reelection campaign. As useful idiots their task is not to argue public policy with facts or express alternative solutions to community issues, rather their job is to manufacture propaganda in support of those they serve.
Useful idiots wouldn’t exist if it weren’t for one simple fact; a complicit news media that either allows itself to be used as a platform for propaganda or actively participates in it. This is just one small volley in the political battle for control of the public policy agenda that the upcoming election will determine.
As you wade through the political rhetoric look to see who must rely on lies to prop up their candidacy and who uses facts to keep the electorate informed. That should clearly indicate to you whose campaign is desperately trying to stay relevant this election season.