Critical Thinking Skills: The Spin Dr. Will See You Now. | iCapitalMarketing.com

Critical Thinking Skills: The Spin Dr. Will See You Now.

Spin (to rotate, to twist). How good are you at spotting spin? Do not feel bad if you are not too good yet. You are dealing with highly trained professionals. They have to be experts, because they are trying to sell something that you do not really need, want, or that is good for you. People in the spin profession have spin meetings. It comprises the majority of their discussions. Coming up with an item to spin is easy. It is the spin, or packaging of the item, that requires all of the work. On top of the list these days for must know critical thinking skills is the ability to recognize spin. You are in the midst of what may very well be the greatest use of spin in the history of America. If you do not detect it and fight it, it will cost you. Let's test your gullibility.

Spin is usually just a couple of words or a short sentence. It is kept simple because the people using it to manipulate a situation are trying to employ millions of salespeople to spread the word. You cannot make the spin too difficult to understand or repeat, so it must be short and to the point. Have you noticed lately that you can rarely have an intelligent conversation with anyone these days on a particular topic because all you can get out of them, and the extent of their knowledge, is a regurgitated sound bite they heard from a spin producer, such as a politician or a media person?

Sadly, spin works for a variety of reasons, mainly because most people deep down are honest people and we would like to believe others are honest too. The purveyors of spin feed off of this inherit honesty and the intense gullibility and naivety many people have. We would like to believe that what someone tells us is the truth or actual fact. Why do you think people continually get taken to the cleaners by dishonest people? It happens every hour of every day. I am sure after the event people look back and say, I guess I should have seen that coming. Think about this. Why have we had too ridiculously easy to spot bubbles in the real estate and .com markets in less than 10 years that people, and supposedly smart people, have bought into?

Spin is everywhere. It is a daily occurrence. When you become aware of spin, you can spot it a mile away. You then get to laugh silently at the spin users. Now more than ever you have to be an aware, knowledgeable, and discerning spin connoisseur. Basically, you always need to be employing your B.S. detector, otherwise, you are going to end up with something that you didn't want or need. What happens mostly is that people get caught off guard. You are going about your business and then, wham, it hits and you don't react like you should. You really have to be on-guard at all times.

One easy way to alert your spin detector of danger is to look at the source of who is telling you something. Is it a politician? A spokesperson? Is it a news program? Is it a political blog? Are you in a used car lot? Any of these situations will be ripe with spinsters. Because spin is the art of using a description or saying that indicates something is what it isn't, you need to pay very close attention in order to recognize it. These spin doctors, as they are often referred to are experts, as least they think they are.

We are talking spin, because if you learn it, understand it, and use it for honest reasons, such as helping to sell yourself, it can be a good thing. The difference between your use of spin and others is honesty. You wouldn't say you are no longer employed at XYZ because they went out of business, if they didn't. Even though you were fired, you may say that they were going in a different direction and you wanted to look for a new opportunity more closely aligned with your long-term goals. Spin can turn a potentially negative situation with a potential employer or hiring manager into a positive.

So what is the most widely spun topic de jour? You guessed it, healthcare reform, or should we more honestly say, government healthcare takeover? Healthcare "reform" is truly one of the most easy spins to spot. We are not going to rehash the debate, but if you did not know, there is no reform. Reform is reform, it is not a massive government implemented program to buy people something they should be buying on their own, so maybe they will vote for you. So there you go, spin number one. Healthcare reform. Remember, words are the spin. The keyword here is reform. Calling something what it is not is spin. Let's look at some more, and do some more investigating if you doubt any of these.

It will not raise taxes: Here is a little secret worth repeating regarding spin. They will tell you anything to get what they want, and they will NOT be concerned with what happens later. This program will be massive and you will pay. The government has never ran a single government program efficiently and successfully. They will tell you they have (spin), but they have not. Do your own research. With this program, you will pay and future generations will as well. You have to be horribly naive to believe otherwise. You need to look no further than bankrupt Medicare. Who is paying for this massive government failure? Everyone, it comes right out of your paycheck, every week. This was also sold as a self-sustaining program many years ago. It is a bankrupt. By the way, continuing to tack something on to a pile of debt is bankruptcy.

It will compete with private insurers: What? The government competes with no one. They are the only true monopoly. Does Medicare compete? No. Does the post office compete? No. What do you get? How about a recent 2.4 billon dollar quarterly loss for the good old post office. How about a bankrupt Medicare program getting more sick every day. The post office, while failing miserably, is constantly raising their prices. How many competing businesses raise prices when they are failing?

It will actually reduce the national deficit: Come on, they don't really say this. They do. I heard it on commercials while trying to pleasantly watch a football game. This may be the granddaddy Rose Bowl of all spins. A government health plan will lead to cost savings and a reduced deficit. If you in any way believe this to be possible, I am sorry to say, but you have issues.

It is not socialized medicine: It is the textbook definition of socialized medicine. You know, that system that has failed every time it has been implemented. Government control and distribution of your resources is socialism. This healthcare "reform" could be a subset under the dictionary definition of socialism. If you were not aware, socialism is an economic system that has not worked every time and in every country that has implemented it. There is not one example of it working successfully. It leads to no incentive, high unemployment, low standards of living, and overall misery for the people in such a system. The examples around the world are literally endless. Last time I checked, life isn't about subsisting. It is about living it to its fullest, but it's not going to be handed to you.

Care will not be rationed: Good one. Have you spoken to anyone from Canada? As I know firsthand from relatives in Ontario, Canada, care will be rationed based on what the government thinks is good for you. Long lines for treatments, cancer treatment appointments months out, fewer tests, are all standard. You better hope you never get sick in socialized medicine system.

By the way, what about the doctors? You know, those people who keep you alive. They are often the brightest people we have and they have endured years of schooling and amassed tens, even hundreds of thousands of dollars of debt. Who is ever going to go into that profession working on a government fixed income (just like Denmark's doctors) or fixed payment system. That is where it is headed if you do not stop it.

It just keeps going... It will help small businesses, it will lead to more jobs, it will save you money, it will give you more choice, blah blah blah. Welcome to the world of spin. Sorry it has to be like this.

Spin, is some people's entire world, especially in politics and the media. People will do and say anything to get what they want now, without any concern for tomorrow. Please, just think twice before you keep inviting the government into your life. Be better than that and know that the government does not solve problems. Their degree of involvement into any business or industry correlates with the degree of its ultimate failure. This is not government bashing. I am pro-government, for its intended purpose, like protecting its citizens. Everything else, I will take care of on my own.

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