Why does the right wing keep using the phrase "common sense"?

[Initech]

I see this everywhere, every story. They say "oh yeah it's just common sense! America first!". Literally nothing they have done in the last 8 years has been common sense. It has literally been the opposite of common sense. And it's not America First, this is putting America dead last.

Having a screaming toddler as a dictator and his bloodthirsty, psychotic cult of personality in charge is not common sense, in any way shape or form.

[Lovie777]

1. Because they have none.....

[lastlib]

10. Actually, they do---and that's the problem.

They never go DEEPER into issues, they just look at the lowest *common* denominator. And they stop there.

Being who I am, I think of it in chess terms. An ordinary player may look at a position on a chesboard, and think a certain move is good. But a grandmaster will look at the same position, and see that it's terrible, and something else works vastly better. Which player is right? In 99.9999% percent of cases, it'll be the master. MAGAts are the "ordinary" players, just going on "common sense," and the progressives are the better players, with experience, intellect, skills, and knowledge to guide them toward a better solution.

[kerry-is-my-prez]

16. It's their #1 phrase in their propaganda agenda.

The following is taken from Language: A Key Mechanism of Control, a pamphlet which was sent to Republican candidates running in the 1990 elections. The pamphlet was developed by Gopac, a conservative group headed by the then House Republican Whip Newt Gingrich. This excerpt appeared in the November 1990 issue of Harpers Magazine. From the rhetorical analyst's position it constitutes a pile of examples of loaded diction (see RT&C). You might want to have some fun with this by thinking about wether there would be differences between this 90 and a possible 96 list. Consider, in this regard what the implications are for the "absoluteness" of the terms "negative" and "positive."

As you know, one of the key points in the Gopac [instructional tapes] is that "language matters." As we mail tapes to candidates, and use them in training sessions across the country, we hear a plaintive plea: "I wish I could speak like Newt." That takes years of practice. But we believe that you can have a significant impact on your campaign if we help a little. That is why we have created this list of words and phrases. This list is prepared so that you might have a directory of words to use in writing literature and letters, in preparing speeches, and in producing material for the electronic media. The words and phrases are powerful. Read them. Memorize as many as possible. And remember that, like any tool, these words will not help if they are not used.
Optimistic Positive Governing Words

Use the list below to help define your campaign and your vision of public service. These words can help give extra power to your message.

common sense freedom peace reform
courage hard work pioneer rights
crusade help precious strength
dream liberty pride truth
duty light principle(d) vision
empower(ment) moral pristine workfare
fair movement pro-environment
family passionate prosperity

Contrasting Words

Often we search hard for words to define our opponents. Sometimes we are hesitant to use contrast. These are powerful words that can create a clear and easily understood contrast. Apply these to the opponent, his record, proposals and party.

anti-child deeper liberal shallow
anti-flag disgrace lie shame
betray devour machine sick
bizarre destroy obsolete status quo
cheat excuses pathetic steal
collapse failure radical taxes
corruption greed red tape they/them
crisis hypocrisy self-serving traitors
decay incompetent sensationalists welfare

[BOSSHOG]

2. It's just common sense to destroy freedom and democracy

It’s what the people want.

[GreenWave]

3. Maybe they mean common cents which is all we have after the plutocrats feast.

[Baron2024]

4. Fascist Mottos

It is just a fascist motto. Jingoistic propaganda language.

[Happy Hoosier]

5. It appeals to dumbasses who want to think they're smart.

This country has always had a strong streak of anti-intellectualism. A phrase like "common sense" is a way for the uneducated and ill-informed that they have some kind of intuitive leg up on those fancy-pants educated people with their snooty book-learnin'.

I get this from my sister all the time. I love her, but she's a dumb-ass. She always "joking" about how I am "so educated" but thatI have "no common sense." She is never able to identify what indicates my lack of "common sense." I think it's when I call out her casual racism, or some other stupid thing.

Anyway... I guess I am sick of the stupid people winning.

[Voltaire2]

6. Because they have well funded think tanks that use tested advertising methodologies

to manipulate people. These organizations develop 'advertising campaigns' and then those campaigns are packaged into easy to use talking points, slogans, templates etc. that are then distributed nationwide to local groups that implement them as instructed. Concurrently social media and legacy media are bombarded with matching propaganda.

It is very effective.

For this particular campaign, it was and is intended to neutralize the obvious fact that the fascists fucks are doing and proposing nothing that is 'common sense' and are instead doing and proposing weird awful fucked up fascist shit.

We have nothing at all like this going on.

[usonian]

7. Common Sense Is Nothing More Than a Deposit of Prejudices Laid Down in the Mind Before Age Eighteen

Correctly paraphrased from Albert Einstein.

Many other sayings are not.


Reference: https://quoteinvestigator.com/2014/04/29/common-sense/

[drray23]

8. Its a way for the uneducated or uninformed

To justify why their opinion is more valuable than that of experts. Never mind actual facts , their prejudices are driving what they call common sense.

[Aristus]

9. "Common sense" is what stupid people have been proclaiming they have

since time immemorial. They blither it most often when they are justly accused of being stupid.

Of course, they very rarely even have common sense, because common sense is composed of native intelligence, discernment, high emotional intelligence, and an ability to make good decisions.

Let the fuckwits have their delusions. If they want to believe they have common sense when they’re emptying their pockets for the guy who is scamming them, fine.

Okay, Cletus, Mervis, Buford, and Bubba; you win. You have “common sense”.

[Irish_Dem]

11. Because all their decisions are the opposite of common sense.

[surrealAmerican]

12. Because it can't be measured.

You don't have to back it up with statistics.

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

13. Because it's their fallback when they're too dumb to say anything else

[vanlassie]

20. DingDingDing!

[Think. Again.]

14. Fixed it for ya...

"Why does the right nazi wing keep using the phrase "common sense"?"

[kerry-is-my-prez]

15. It's a propaganda phrase that Republicans have been instructed to use.

The number one item in the list:

https://uh.edu/~englin/rephandout.html

The following is taken from Language: A Key Mechanism of Control, a pamphlet which was sent to Republican candidates running in the 1990 elections. The pamphlet was developed by Gopac, a conservative group headed by the then House Republican Whip Newt Gingrich. This excerpt appeared in the November 1990 issue of Harpers Magazine. From the rhetorical analyst's position it constitutes a pile of examples of loaded diction (see RT&C). You might want to have some fun with this by thinking about wether there would be differences between this 90 and a possible 96 list. Consider, in this regard what the implications are for the "absoluteness" of the terms "negative" and "positive."

As you know, one of the key points in the Gopac [instructional tapes] is that "language matters." As we mail tapes to candidates, and use them in training sessions across the country, we hear a plaintive plea: "I wish I could speak like Newt." That takes years of practice. But we believe that you can have a significant impact on your campaign if we help a little. That is why we have created this list of words and phrases. This list is prepared so that you might have a directory of words to use in writing literature and letters, in preparing speeches, and in producing material for the electronic media. The words and phrases are powerful. Read them. Memorize as many as possible. And remember that, like any tool, these words will not help if they are not used.
Optimistic Positive Governing Words

Use the list below to help define your campaign and your vision of public service. These words can help give extra power to your message.

common sense freedom peace reform
courage hard work pioneer rights
crusade help precious strength
dream liberty pride truth
duty light principle(d) vision
empower(ment) moral pristine workfare
fair movement pro-environment
family passionate prosperity

Contrasting Words

Often we search hard for words to define our opponents. Sometimes we are hesitant to use contrast. These are powerful words that can create a clear and easily understood contrast. Apply these to the opponent, his record, proposals and party.

anti-child deeper liberal shallow
anti-flag disgrace lie shame
betray devour machine sick
bizarre destroy obsolete status quo
cheat excuses pathetic steal
collapse failure radical taxes
corruption greed red tape they/them
crisis hypocrisy self-serving traitors
decay incompetent sensationalists welfare

[Ping Tung]

17. If they had any common sense they'd try getting an education instead of relying on slogans and idiots.

[no_hypocrisy]

18. Because it's much better than intelligence, reason, and logic.

Plus, THEIR "common sense" is better than OUR "common sense.

[Fla_Democrat]

19. Oh, like "common sense gun control"?

[maxsolomon]

21. It shuts down debate.

Common Sense can't be questioned, it doesn't have to be explained or justified. Objections are summarily dismissed.

[canetoad]

22. In truth

Common sense is not very common. Another old saying.

[Xolodno]

23. One dimensional thinking.

For example, throwing more drug addicts into prisons will dissuade them from using drugs....and that's as far as their thinking goes. They don't consider:

1. More prisons cost more tax payer money and it means less for them.
2. Addicts can't get off the drugs.
3. If they are classified as a felony, it makes it harder for them to get a job....and go back to selling and using drugs.
4. Prison guards, vendors, etc. often smuggle the drugs in for them (repeat offenders offers job security).

And plenty of other problems. They can't think themselves out of a wet paper bag. But to them, it's "common sense".