The Ministry of Truth was one of four government bureaucracies that rule fictional Oceania in George Orwell’s classic novel 1984 – the propaganda arm of Ingsoc; its job to twist stated reality to suit the extant needs of the Party.

The full-page political advertisement purchased by CATER in yesterday’s Anaheim Bulletin ad embodies the spirit of the Ministry of Truth, from the “Stop Lying” headline down through the catalog of straw man arguments rolled out by these gadflies:

Ignorance is Strength

Ignorance is Strength

The “Stop Lying” logo is, ironically, more accurately directed at the authors of this ad. Let’s start with the headline:

“The Truth About The Angel Stadium Deal”

The truth is there is no Angel Stadium deal. There is only a non-binding MOU that establishes a framework for the negotiations between the city and the Angels. CATER’s claim that there is an “Angel Stadium Deal” is an untruth.

There follows a misleading list of “Lies” that CATER imputes to those who support a making a deal based on the MOU framework. In reality, it is CATER inventing “lies” no one is telling, and then responding to them with more distortions.

For example, take this straw man:  “The Angels are going to leave Anaheim if a lease isn’t approved immediately.”  The problem with that claim is no one is making it. This is CATER’s way of distorting criticism of how they and Mayor Tait have been attacking the negotiation framework from the get-go. The longer the relentless public browbeating of the Angels continues, combined with dragging out the negotiations, does increase the likelihood that Moreno will take the Angels elsewhere. 

Or how about this one: “Anaheim must pay $150,000,000 to repair Angel Stadium“? Again, CATER attacking an argument that no one is making.  The truth is the city-owned stadium needs at least $150,000,000 in repairs. Does CATER dispute that? The MOU framework is a pathway for generating the revenue for that investment via tapping the economic potential of the stadium district – land that has languished unproductively under the city’s stewardship for many years.  

Here’s another whopper from CATER: LIE: “Giving Arte Moreno everything he’s for and more is the vets Anaheim can do.” That is indeed a lie – but it’s CATER’s lie, a wholly fabricated claim from Cynthia Ward or Jason Young or whichever fabulist concocted it.

One could go on with the rest of this syllabus of misrepresentations, but readers get the point. It’s a sign of the intellectual feebleness of the CATER claque that they have to fabricate the arguments they disagree with, rather than responding to arguments proponents of keeping the Angels in Anaheim are actually making.

Keep in mind that CATER’s self-stated mission is “carrying on propaganda” – just like Orwell’s Ministry of Truth.