Larry D. Lauer

When Putin attacked Ukraine, media revolutions were already changing the world.

Most everyone knew this but Putin.

He was wrong about Ukraine’s determination, the Wagner group leader’s loyalty, Europe’s and NATO’s response, and possibly even his support among his generals, oligarchs, and even citizens.

The Wagner’s leader was probably setting-up a coup d’état when he began marching to Moscow.

And what was Belarus’s role in all of this?

The current chaos is causing Putin to look out of control.

Membership in NATO is expanding… and Ukraine is waiting in the wings.

One thing is certain: The world is a completely different place from when Putin thought Ukraine would be a push-over.

It seems obvious to me that reproductive rights are far too personal to be the business of politicians.

It also seems clear to me that you can believe in “right-to-life” and still accept that there are some very serious medical and psychological reasons why some pregnancies’ should be terminated.

Ask most any medical doctor who treats women.

Politicians certainly don’t have the knowledge necessary to legislate these decisions. And it’s also not their business to pass laws related to any other private and very personal situations.

I have therefore come to believe that it’s possible to believe life is sacred… and still know there are some very legitimate medical and psychological exceptions to terminate a pregnancy. Truthfully, too much of our medical system has already been needlessly paralyzed.

I dedicate this post to my friend, who was one of the most prominent and ethical OBGYNs in the city… and to thank him for teaching me about all this.

I came to Texas in 1966 to teach about media at TCU. No one I met at the time asked me about my politics. I mostly found independent-thinking people who did not want any government to mess with their personal freedom. They believed in self-reliance, and their own ability to take care of themselves and their families. Some were important oil people, others were professors. All cherished their personal freedom. No one ever criticized how I understood and taught my subject-matter. Academic freedom was alive and well.

When I first represented TCU in Austin, the legislature was made up of both liberal and conservative Democrats. Gradually conservatives became Republicans… and eventually the most extreme of them went about gerrymandering voting districts in order to remain in power.

Over the years, conservative politicians eventually took control of social issues: these include women’s reproductive rights, using tax-supported vouchers to support private schools, taking away control of important city issues, using tax breaks to recruit businesses into the state, using reduced property taxes to divert attention away from other issues, making private owners responsible for flaws in the electric grid, taking decision-making away from librarians, stating what subjects should and should not be taught in schools and colleges, and setting what gender policies are appropriate for every family, and much more.

Where are the “real Texans” I found in 1966?

Gerrymandered districts allow small groups of extreme-thinking politicians to limit voting.

Limiting voting times and locations is happening in many state legislatures.

Literally everyone suffers, but most especially those citizens not currently in government.

In “God Save Texas,” Pulitzer Prize winning writer Lawrence Wright, says real Texans have always rebelled against all governments.

So what are independent-thinking Texans waiting for? .

To preserve independent-thinking everywhere, voting must be made easy and accessible for everyone.

In the 1990s, the US Congress banned AR-15’s.

But politics changed.

The Second Amendment and the “right to bear arms” became a rallying-cry of extreme politicians.

The NRA and Gun manufacturers quickly supported these politicians.

However, the Second Amendment was written with Revolutionary War militias in mind.

Ordinary citizens were required to furnish their own awkward, hard-to-load, guns and ammunition… with some restrictions.

Banning AR-15s is a common-sense restriction… and would not conflict with the Second Amendment.

CNN gave editorial control to Trump during its recent townhall.

Today, strong journalism requires never doing that with anyone on any program format.

Rather, journalists must seek only the truth and report it even if it requires courage to do so.

Seek only facts and then focus on reporting all of them.

Journalists and anchors… must give up becoming stars themselves.

Today’s serious journalists must always take the time to report the context of important stories.

If they promote anything… they should promote easy voting, democracy, and truth.

Polls indicate that the majority of Americans, including gun owners and many NRA members, support background screenings, red flag laws, and a ban on weapons of war.

The “right to bear arms” is in the Constitution. The revolutionary war was in the minds of the drafters, and nowhere in the Constitution does it say that registration, training in gun use, bans on specific weapons, or restrictions on people with established mental problems, cannot be added when later times require them. Guns today have become much more sophisticated.

Americans are shooting Americans almost everyday. These times clearly call for organizing gun ownership in a way that still provides for “the right to bear arms.”

In the final analysis, polling research clearly shows that gun owners understand that even with restrictions, their rights to defend themselves and their families will be preserved.

Here’s what media revolutions teach about securing a two-party system:

1. A moral compass required for running for office.
2. Paying attention to research on what the public thinks about basic issues.
3. Realizing that “the right to bear arms” was based on a specific historical period, and today should include licensing.
4. Accept that the right to life should include medically supervised abortion exceptions.
5. Easy access for all voters.
6. Constitution and democracy-affirming candidates.
7. Outright rejection of autocracies and dictatorships.
8. Immigration planning appropriate for a nation of immigrants.
9. Rejection of white supremacy.
10. Support for public education.

As described in the previous post (Lesson 643) the Texas Democratic Party should form an integrated marketing and communication (IMC) task force. It should recruit the most experienced and educated members possible. Their tasks should include:

1. Strategic planning, communication, media relations, and advertising content.
2. They should select an overall theme, sub-themes (top issues), and build an action plan.
3. They should recruit the best possible candidates, and then help them find resources… people and money.

An overall theme might be something like: “Real Texas Values”

Sub-themes or priority issues could include:…

1. “Voting rights…” easy access for all voters.

2. “Right to life…” should include life-saving and reasonable abortion exceptions. Possibly even funding for childcare.

3. “Gun safety” Polls clearly show that most Americans (even gun owners) think the right to bear arms should include gun registration (maybe even licensing) and a ban on military-style weapons.

Surpluses in Texas can easily fund these activities… without affecting proposed property tax reductions.

We must simply return to freedom-affirming genuine Texas values.

Before I retired I taught media at TCU and eventually became its communication officer. The university world had become extremely competitive, and I saw a way to “market it” by developing a brand identity that was truly authentic.

I believed that every institution was founded because of an unmet need in the community, and that focus groups could be used to identify those original needs. Upon this foundation the group could now build an authentic, completely unique brand.

The components of that brand might include physical location, curricular features, subject-matter strengths, even architecture style and colors.

An opinion leader marketing taskforce would now be formed to develop a marketing plan… which would include administrators, faculty, students, local journalists, alumni, and trustees.

This same process can be adapted to market political candidates, nonprofits, governments, and most any other kind of organization.