Cold War Script

We recently wrote a post that argued that people are often guided by "scripts" when they make choices of how do deal with new situations. That post may be found on this blog. We now want to extend the idea of scripts beyond being a guide for individual action, to the idea that there are "social scripts." We propose that one such script may be called a "cold war script." It is obviously based in the political opposition to the new president and his positive views of Russia and its leader Putin. But the anti-Trump theme is often couched in recollections of the long-standing "Cold War" between the US and the USSR. Remember, the USSR no longer exists, but the "cold war script" goes back to the days following World War II and it is presented as if the US was still engaged in a struggle for the "hearts and minds " of many people around the world. (Aside: do you remember the "hearts and minds" script from the Vietnam era?). Anyway, where does the cold war script come from? Obviously, the media love it, because they have to write stories to fill up their pages every day. And they must glean their tidbits for daily stories from those who are politically connected elected officials and members of various foundations and "think tanks."

In the old days there were "cold warriors" who could always be counted upon to provide the media with tidbits for their daily stories. But today, there are as yet no "new cold warriors," at least any who have been identified as such. Again, in the old days, there were many organizations that enjoyed financial benefits from the "cold war," including defense contractors, universities, and think tanks. But who today benefits from the new cold war script? That is our question, and we leave it for you to consider.