Partial truth is secret to successful propaganda

Partial truth is secret to successful propaganda

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TL;DR Summary

  • Testimonial from unknown (or “ordinary”) person in Belgium
  • Half true, half logical fallacy.
  • Works in part, on the basis of “What you see is all there is”.

Belgium really does have “automatic wage indexation” that requires wages to be adjusted to the “retail price index” cost of living calculation. Belgium and Luxembourg are the only countries in Europe that have this policy. Thus, “This is the opposite of America” is true, but it is also true for Europe and most of the world! This claim works on the basis of “What you see is all there is” – the target does not know that few countries have “automatic wage indexation”.

The OECD, the IMF, France and Germany are trying to persuade Belgium to end wage indexation. (http://www.eurofound.europa.eu/observatories/eurwork/articles/working-conditions/time-to-end-automatic-wage-indexation)
“We also have free healthcare and education. Those things are not really free and are paid by our taxes” – which is true.
BELGIUM TAXES
Belgium has the highest taxes on labor of the entire European Union according to the OECD. The chart at the link appears to show national tax rates and excludes local taxes, which in some countries, are 2 to 3 times greater than the national income tax.
BELGIUM IS A TINY COUNTRY
The State of Washington is about 7 times larger in size than the entire country of Belgium. Belgium has a population of 11.2 million, about twice that of the State of Washington. Luxembourg has a land area of less than 1,000 sq miles, or about 33 x 33 miles in size, and a population of about 1/2 million people. Luxembourg is basically a mid-size city in the United States.
Belgium is a tiny country that is best compared to –  Los Angeles (about the same population), and about 3x larger in land mass than Los Angeles County.
The above poster came from Occupy Democrats, one of the documented “fake news” sites that targets those on the left with provocative posters designed for sharing and click through to their ad supported web site.

 

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