Republican Propaganda
by Benjamin T. Moore, Jr.
REPUBLICAN PROPAGANDA FAIL!
Came across this photograph while visiting one of the “Liberal Forums” I frequent. From time to time, Republicans want to crash the party. We don’t mind them, because their presence suggests two things. The first is, if you’re not attracting Republican “Trolls” you’re not being effective at getting the message out. The second is, every now and again, you get a rational Republican who realizes he’s only being spoon fed one side of the issues and is truly interested in hearing the other side. They usually pose intelligent questions and give intelligent responses. Do we convince or convert all of these people? Of course not. However, they go away with a slightly different perspective and usually have much to think about they had not previously considered.
It was in this vein I came upon this picture with a comment indicating that the picture was from one of Mitt Romney’s Ohio campaign stops. The size of the crowd was used as an indication of how popular Gov. Romney is in Ohio. The poster further went on to say, “don’t tell me *Mr* – not President – Obama is leading in Ohio!” Well, of course it should be obvious, if Mitt Romney got that size of crowd… ANYWHERE it would be all over all the news stations. Fox News would be using it as “B-roll” for almost all of it’s lead-ins. That crowd is larger than the crowd at this years Republican National Convention. However, let us do our due diligence and actually examine this picture.
Upon closer inspection you notice some very unusual – dare I say impossible – things. The first thing you notice are the shadows. On a sunny day there is only one light source. Thus all shadows cast will fall in the same direction depending on the time of day, time of year and position of the Sun. This is governed by well established laws of physics. Anytime you see shadows going in multiple directions, you know immediately there has to be an additional light source. Since we only have one Sun, all shadows MUST fall in the same direction. When examining this photograph, you can count at least four different directions shadows are being cast. We could stop right here because this proves the photograph is a composite of several photographs assembled to create an illusion.
The next thing you notice is the composition of the crowd. Look at the colors in the crowd on the far left of the photograph. they seem natural. As the crowd swells to the right and into the distance, everything becomes purplish and red in hue. Again, this is not natural. Distance or size doesn’t change color. Next, pay attention to the podium or stage. Notice the banners in apparent disarray? Why are they on the back of the podium and not the side facing the crowd? Why are they in disarray? Doesn’t the banner on the far right actually look like an Obama banner? What’s an Obama banner doing at a Romney rally?
Then there is the small “Press Stage” in the immediate foreground. Which way are the people on that stage looking? They’re not looking at the stage. They’re looking almost directly to their right. They’re not looking at the crowd. What are they doing? Bottom line? This is a carefully crafted, composite photograph that some with limited knowledge put together to create a false impression. Actually it makes me smile. When they go to these lengths, you know you’ve got them on the run.