Category Archives: Civic Rhetoric
Think of the Children, Avoid the Issue
People who run afoul of the Constitution’s Establishment Clause say the strangest things in defense of their violations. Instead of admitting their error, they try to rationalize it, often painting defenders of the Constitution as the real wrongdoers. I know … Continue reading
The Courage of Pseudonymous Conviction
Anonymous speech poses a challenge to defining responsible civic discourse. The New Rhetoric provides one model of responsibility in noting that “since rhetorical proof is never a completely necessary proof, … thinking [people] who give [their] adherence to the conclusions … Continue reading
Begging Off The Question By Changing It
It seems at times that people will do anything they can to avoid engaging in an extended back-and-forth conversation. Obviously we all would like to frame our positions in the most favorable light, but when we go beyond framing to … Continue reading
The Uses and Abuses of Dyslogistic Phrasing
Laura Sneddon at comicbookGRRRL offers a moving condemnation of DC Comics’ decision to hire Orson Scott Card to write a Superman story. I couldn’t agree more with her conclusion: When the greatest hero of all is written by someone like … Continue reading
Lighting A Lamp And Cursing The Darkness
Religion Professor Stephen Prothero’s essay on the place of religion in politics exemplifies the muddled terminology that often accompanies state-church separation discussions that I consider in my research. Prothero’s argument also interests me for another reason. In advocating for the … Continue reading
Terrorism is in the Eye of the Property Holder
Some members of the Texas legislature object to a curriculum program asks students to think about the Boston Tea Party as a terrorist act. According to an article in the Austin American-Statesman by Ben Kamisar, “The lesson asked the teacher … Continue reading
Stasis in the State of the State
Texas Governor Perry gave his State of the State address yesterday. Our local NPR affiliate KUT included a couple quotes in its report that caught my attention, highlighting the difficulty people have converging on the same question in political rhetoric. … Continue reading
School Choice & the Irresponsibility of Choiceless Rhetoric
“Since rhetorical proof is never a completely necessary proof, the thinking man who gives his adherence to the conclusions of an argumentation does so by an act that commits him and for which he is responsible.” The New Rhetoric, 62 … Continue reading
Inclusion and Exclusion in State-Church Separation
Bradlee Dean’s guest prayer (video here) before the Minnesota House of Representatives on 20 May has caused something of a stir—both for the prayer’s content and Dean’s homophobic ethos. In his prayer, made at the behest of House Speaker Kurt Zellers … Continue reading
The proliferation of stases and the loss of complexity
The outcry over the Cordoba House project is an appalling example of the depths to which US public deliberations can sink, yet it is hardly surprising given the history of US public debate. As with all public policy issues discussed on this … Continue reading
From the Rostra 