Don’t let anyone do your thinking for you by attaching a scary label to an idea before you’ve examined it.

That’s become one of the oldest tricks in politics.

Instead of debating the merits of an idea, we slap a label on it and hope the label does all the work.

Once the word lands, the conversation often ends before it begins.

The problem is that most Americans couldn’t accurately define half of those terms if their life depended on it. Yet we’re expected to fear them instinctively.

Fear has always been politics’ cheapest currency. It’s far easier to convince voters to fear an idea than to understand it. 

A 30-second commercial can make a word sound terrifying. 

It takes a curious citizen to ask, “Wait a minute… what does that actually mean?” 

Democracies don’t survive because everyone agrees. They survive because enough people are willing to think before they panic.

A free society deserves better than that.

Political labels have their place. They describe philosophies, movements and historical ideas. But labels should begin our thinking, not replace it.

Let’s start with something simple.

America’s political........

© Santa Clarita Valley Signal