Charles — King of the focus groups
The brilliant American pollster Frank Luntz — a regular on the BBC’s Newsnight — last week held a focus group on climate change for the broadcaster.
He assembled an articulate, representative group of British people to discuss the issue. Afterwards he said he’d never led a more passionate group in his career.
The experts cited included, Al Gore, Gordon Brown (Prime Minister), David Cameron (Conservative leader) and Ming Campbell (Liberal leader) among others. Tapes were played of their speeches on environmental issues and the group asked to rate them electronically.
One figure stood out in this exercise. His graph shot up to the top as soon as he began speaking. Comment included, “He speaks from the heart”, “He’s not after our vote”, “He’s been at it for decades”, “He really means what he says”. You get the picture.
Who was this paragon of environmental friendliness?
Charles, Prince of Wales.
There’s life in the old dog yet. It would be foolish to write him off as a popular King some time in the future.
Charles has always been one to push for “green” ways of doing things. He used to be a joke – people used to tease him about talking to his garden plants but well, look at it now – everything he’s been doing for decades is “in” now. He’s been right the whole time. When it comes to the Earth – preserving it – I am right behind him the whole way. Otherwise, meh….
He’s got a lot of potential to get people to listen – he’d be wise to use it to the full potential.
By On the Outside on September 24th, 2007 at 4:07 pm
One of the things I admire about Prince Charles has been his devotion to the ‘green’ way of life. He has actually done some really groundbreaking things. I read once that he is building breeding populations of cattle and other livestock, that are otherwise endangered or about to disappear entirely. One example is a type of goat that was a dietary staple in a rural area of Mississippi, until the breeding population dwindled and it started to disappear. He has these goats on his farm in Britain and he is bringing them back! He does this for many species, from all over the world. I would love to see his farm.
I know it may sound odd to some that he is saving livestock breeds, but with the extinctions going on around the world of every kind of animal, bird, etc., it is nice to see someone doing what they can.
By SadieBoo on September 24th, 2007 at 4:31 pm
John, Frank Luntz is a rightwing hitman whose specialty is selling GOP snake oil. He helped bring to us the ’94 Republican Revolution featuing Newt Gingrich’s “Contract With [ON] America.” A few tidbits from a PBS (Public Broadcasting System) interview of Luntz:
“You believe language can change a paradigm.
I don’t believe it — I know it. I’ve seen it with my own eyes. I have seen how effective language attached to policies that are mainstream and delivered by people who are passionate and effective can change the course of history. I watched in 1994 when the group of Republicans got together and said: “We’re going to do this completely differently than it’s ever been done before. We are going to prove to the American people that we are different.” And so instead of a platform, instead of a policy, instead of a mass of different issues and policies, they came up with a “contract,” because a contract is different. A contract says that it is a legal document. It says that you put your name on it, and it says that there is enforcement if you don’t do it. The word “contract” means something different than “platform.” Every politician and every political party issues a platform, but only these people signed a contract.”
So what will you say at that Monday meeting?
On Monday I will sit down with a Washington representative of Florida Power & Light and I will tell him that what he wants to do, his goal for his company, is the goal of America; that if he uses this language to explain his principles and his policies, not only will the company benefit, but the public will be appreciative of what they’re trying to do. This is a good company, this is a clean company, but it’s got all the baggage of every other electric company, of every other power company. We as Americans assume that big companies are bad, and big power companies are even worse. This language, what we saw tonight, is a demonstration that a single company can differentiate itself, can improve its public image.
LINK
He’s trying to repackage himself. “Forgetaboutit!!!”
By Positive on September 25th, 2007 at 3:35 am
Said it before–Charles is really prescient on the green front. He believed in it long, long before it was fashionable. Perhaps his timing on this issue will coincide with kingship.
By marie on September 25th, 2007 at 4:55 am
I hear what you’re saying, Pos, but it was the audience’s reaction that caught the eye.
Luntz also spotted David Cameron, who was nowhere in the Tory leadership race. The focus group went wild for him and the Tories jumped on the bandwagon and elected him. Amazing piece of theatre, let alone politics.
But there’s no doubt Charles is admired for his long-term environmental work. He’s no Johnny-come-lately like Al Gore.
By John on September 25th, 2007 at 9:15 am
Pos, from a British perspective, there’s nothing wrong with the GOP. It’s Bush that’s the problem. I’ll bet if Ronnie Reagan in his prime was one of the candidates, he’d get in in 2008.
Don’t all shout at once.
By John on September 25th, 2007 at 9:17 am
I can’t quote details but Al Gore has been involved in the environment forever. It’s just that its a sexy topic now and is getting airplay but he was always into green.
By Eliza on September 25th, 2007 at 11:52 am
Oh John, Yikes!!! Flaming liberal Democrat here!! But I so respect you and your opinions.
Now where’s Gigi? I need some tea? Better yet–a drink!!
By Positive on September 25th, 2007 at 12:09 pm
Well, the British Conservatives are led by a liberal democrat, David Cameron, so maybe transatlantic comparisons don’t work.
Now, where’s that
teavat of Long Island Ice Tea?By John on September 25th, 2007 at 12:16 pm
In the context of US politics only I am a liberal Democrat. Our federal fovernment does have a role in the market to protect the public against market manipulation and unfettered corporate greed. It also has a responsibility to provide safety net to the poor and the working poor. So Reagan and his trickle down policies were not, in the words of Gigi, my cup of tea. But sadly, this idiot who is currently in the White House makes Ronald Reagan look like Thomas freaking Jefferson, and made the antics of Richard Nixon and his thugs look like the Girl Scouts.
By Positive on September 25th, 2007 at 1:19 pm
Yes the whole “what is liberal” and “what is conservative” debate in the UK has really become tangled!
By marie on September 25th, 2007 at 1:20 pm
I would suppose, but a few choice questions about ideology should clear it up.
John, say what you will about Al Gore, but he had been a respected U.S. Senator from a southern state (Tennessee, not exactly a hotbead of progressive politics) before his association with Bill Clinton. And I give him credit for being extremely smart, well-prepared, and learned, as a US president should be. Oh wait…Gore WAS elected president in 2000. My bad.
By Positive on September 25th, 2007 at 1:44 pm
Positive, Al Gore claimed he invented the internet. That is hardly the behavior of “extremely smart, well-prepared and learned” person. Marie, I agree with you about the tangled concepts of liberal and conservative. One of the biggest mistakes in politics is to put people in little boxes with labels on them. Political theory is far too complex and multi-faceted, and political thinking encompasses a wide variety of data and analysis. Labels are a waste of time.
By Gigi on September 25th, 2007 at 2:37 pm
Positive, Al Gore claimed he invented the internet.
Actually, there’s an interesting article in the current Vanity Fair, saying that Gore did NOT claim to have invented the Internet. This canard and several others spread through sloppy reporting and Republican spin.
By Aunt Pierre on September 25th, 2007 at 2:53 pm
The internet was invented by the U.S. Military, working with the universities. It was a strictly academic sharing mechanism in the beginning. Then an Englishman, Tim Berners-Lee invented the markup language of what he called the World Wide Web : HTML. That was when the popular internet began with email and websites.
What Gore claimed to have “invented” was what he called the Information Superhighway, which became defined under his Vice Presidency, and he certainly had something to do with it.
But “invent the internet”? No.
By John on September 25th, 2007 at 3:01 pm
Hey, if you want to talk about “antics” and “thugs,” don’t leave out the Clintons! What a couple – lying, cheating and a body count, too!
By SadieBoo on September 25th, 2007 at 3:26 pm
Positive, if Al Gore was such a respected U.S. Senator, why did his own state of Tennessee vote against him in the 2000 election? I’ll tell you why. Gore’s own constituents recognized that he’s a big phoney. Gore continues to take private jets and drive around in gas guzzling SUV’s, yet, he thinks that because he is wealthy and can afford to buy “offsets” he’s protecting the environment. What a load of rubbish!
Prince Charles is an environmentalist in his heart. He began with his organic gardening at Highgrove, in the eraly 1980′s, and he continued his efforts at being “green” over the next two decades. John is absolutely correct when he says Gore is a “Johnny-come-lately. Al Gore became a friend to the environment just to win an Oscar!
By Arthur on September 25th, 2007 at 3:35 pm
True, Arthur. Prince Charles began talking about environmental issues back in the 1970s when it really was a nerdy thing to do. He was part of the Doomwatch brigade which grew out of the famous Blueprint by Friends of the Earth.
By John on September 25th, 2007 at 3:41 pm
Gore did, indeed, claim that he invented the internet, and I heard him myself with my own ears, which work very well. I also read the Vanity Fair article, and they can try to rewrite history all they want but it happened and I heard it. So did many others. Arthur, I agree with you about Al Gore. Al Gore is the spoiled son of a wealthy and extremely accomplished man whose expectations of his son were apparently too high. Al Gore has an absurd sense of entitlement and does not practice what he preaches on any level. Tennessee knows what and who he is and they demonstrated that at the ballot box. For Tennessee to willfully pass up a chance to have a native son in the White House as president spoke volumes of how poorly he is viewed there, deservedly.
As for Charles, his environmental credentials are as authentic as can be, given that he is a very wealthy man, living lavishly and extravagantly in palaces with servants and flying all over the world, indulging his every whim.
By Gigi on September 25th, 2007 at 4:00 pm
Gigi, we’d better not give you the Royal Anecdotes bullwhip or you’ll flay the lot of them.
By John on September 25th, 2007 at 4:06 pm
I read once, a long time ago, that Prince Harry inherited his father’s love of gardening and horticulture. This was back when he was in his early teens. The article also said, way back then, that he might forgo a university education and go the military route, and then maybe he would go into organic farming or something similar.
Right now, the thought of him and Chelsy on a farm brings to mind “Green Acres”!!!
But maybe when they are older he will rediscover this love, if it ever was one, and it sounds like Charles can help him get a good start with it.
By SadieBoo on September 25th, 2007 at 4:28 pm
LOL Well, John, after all, one does not reach 60 years of age without forming some opinions.
Furthermore, Charles and Al Gore are my age and my generation, so I have been observing them for most of my life. I admit that I have very little tolerance for people my age who have been given everything the world has to offer and submit a base return. Al Gore and Charles are two of a number of persons in my generation who have squandered their legacy in calculated self-indulgence and I would derive great satisfaction from shaking them until their teeth fall out!
By Gigi on September 25th, 2007 at 4:33 pm
I meant to delete that word “done” but somehow forgot. Another typo!
By Gigi on September 25th, 2007 at 4:35 pm
SadieBoo, I’ve just laughed so hard, I split my side! And I have the perfect person for Arnold, the pig. None other than CPB.
By Arthur on September 25th, 2007 at 4:37 pm
Sadie, I know William loves farming, like his Dad. I’ve not heard of Harry’s interest though.
When William leaves the Army, he will become the Ranger of Windsor Great Park and the farms there, taking over from Prince Philip.
By John on September 25th, 2007 at 4:47 pm
For those who haven’t read the Vanity Fair piece, here’s what it says about Gore and the Internet:
The Love Story distortion set the stage for the “I Invented the Internet” distortion, a devastating piece of propaganda that damaged Gore at the starting gate of his run. On March 9, 1999, CNN’s Wolf Blitzer conducted an interview with Gore shortly before he officially announced his candidacy. In answer to a question about why Democrats should support him, Gore spoke about his record. “During my service in the United States Congress, I took the initiative”—politico-speak for leadership—”in creating the Internet,” he said, before going on to describe other accomplishments. It was true. In the 1970s, the Internet was a limited tool used by the Pentagon and universities for research. As a senator in the 80s, Gore sponsored two bills that turned this government program into an “information superhighway,” a term Gore popularized, and made it accessible to all. Vinton Cerf, often called the father of the Internet, has claimed that the Internet would not be where it was without Gore’s leadership on the issue. Even former Republican House speaker Newt Gingrich has said that “Gore is the person who, in the Congress, most systematically worked to make sure that we got to an Internet.”
The press didn’t object to Gore’s statement until Texas Republican congressman Dick Armey led the charge, saying, “If the vice president created the Internet, then I created the interstate highway system.” Republican congressman James Sensenbrenner released a statement with the headline, delusions of grandeur: vice president gore takes credit for creating the internet. CNN’s Lou Dobbs was soon calling Gore’s remark “a case study … in delusions of grandeur.” A few days later the word “invented” entered the narrative. On March 15, a USA Today headline about Gore read, inventing the internet; March 16 on Hardball, Chris Matthews derided Gore for his claim that he “invented the Internet.” Soon the distorted assertion was in the pages of the Los Angeles Times and The Boston Globe, and on the A.P. wire service. By early June, the word “invented” was actually being put in quotation marks, as though that were Gore’s word of choice. Here’s how Mimi Hall put it in USA Today: “A couple of Gore gaffes, including his assertion that he ‘invented’ the Internet, didn’t help.” And Newsday’s Elaine Povich ridiculed “Gore’s widely mocked assertion that he ‘invented’ the Internet.” (Thanks to the Web site the Daily Howler, the creation of Bob Somerby, a college roommate of Gore’s, we have a chronicle of how the Internet story spiraled out of control.)
Belatedly attempting to defuse the situation, Gore joked about it on Imus in the Morning, saying that he “was up late the night before … inventing the camcorder.” But it was too late—the damage had been done.
By Aunt Pierre on September 25th, 2007 at 8:05 pm
Aunt Pierre, thank you very much. As usual the words of a decent man have been twisted. Damge done. Game, set match.
Regrettably, I have offended some of my RA fellow posters, many of whom I respect very much, who view favorably George W. Bush and his administration. I vehemently oppose him, his policies, his war, and his party. And I could not let the word “brilliant” to define “Frank Luntz” stand. I have read that someone has described Luntz’ career rather profanely as having made a nice living out of spraying perfume on turd blossoms (or something to that effect). I agree.
Sometimes it’s better to refrain from discussing politics, which I shall really attempt to refrain from doing here from now on.
By Positive on September 26th, 2007 at 1:11 am
Positive – it is SO HARD to keep my mouth shut when politics come up on this forum. I like the fact that we have so many different views here – and all you have to do is read the other article comment sections to see how much we all agree on!
I can’t speak for anyone else, but I didn’t take offense at anything you said.
By SadieBoo on September 26th, 2007 at 2:02 am
In the end it usually comes down to semantics. As I said before, there’s no doubt Gore put a lot of political muscle behind the internet in its early stages, but he didn’t “invent” the internet, either its concept or its technology. To have used the word at all was a bit of campaign-speak that went a little too far.
Now, enough of politics, back to Royal anecdotes,
By John on September 26th, 2007 at 8:32 am
But John, the Vanity Fair article above clearly says that he did not use the word “invent.” Gore was very effectively “Swiftboated.” These people play for keeps. Very sorry to be a jerk, but this is a very sore spot with me.
By Positive on September 26th, 2007 at 11:19 am