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Category Archives: politics
Let Me Count the Ways
I am not certain I ever heard the name Harvey Weinstein before October 5, when The New York Times published its initial exposé of sexual-misconduct allegations and hush-money payoffs. Nor have I followed the increasing media firestorm with any interest though the … Continue reading
Posted in language, movies, politics, sexuality
Tagged definition, First Amendment, Harvey Weinstein, language, meaning, media, Orwell, politics, rape, semantics, sexual violence, word
4 Comments
Charlottesville, Boston, Berkeley and the Desecration of the First Amendment
August 19, 2017 Speaking my mind today may be impolitic. However, because what I fear most is the silence following the premature death of the First Amendment, speak I must. I am reminded of Paul’s recital of his unblemished pedigree: … Continue reading
Posted in critical thinking, language, politics
Tagged definition, discrimination, First Amendment, free speech, history, language, politics, word
5 Comments
Erasing History: The 2017 Version
“In February 1948, the Communist leader Klement Gottwald stepped out on to the balcony of a Baroque palace in Prague to harangue hundreds of thousands of citizens massed in Old Town Square. That was the great turning point in the … Continue reading
Posted in education, history, language, literature, politics
Tagged Communism, education, First Amendment, history, identity, Kundera, Liu Xiaobo, Orwell, politics, truth
2 Comments
Choices, Choices: The Quandaries and the Quagmire of Identity Politics
My 56-mile commute to and from work has spawned the bad habit of scrolling through my emails at stoplights. A few days ago, I made a mental note to return to an article whose provocative title I noted only briefly; it … Continue reading
Biology, Destiny, and the Politics of Dys-
I am aware that when Freud pronounced his now-vilified dictum of biological determinism, “anatomy is destiny,” he was referring specifically to sexuality, which is not my subject here–at least not my only subject. However, because I like to be well … Continue reading
Posted in language, politics, sexuality
Tagged definition, disability, discrimination, identity, issue, language, meaning, politics, race, sex
2 Comments
E Plebnista: A Sardonic Meditation on American Greatness
Twenty long days have passed since I last put thoughts to words and words to (virtual) paper. I have not written about the gleeful euphoria with which I anticipated the election of 2016, the exquisite pain with which I learned of … Continue reading
Where There’s Smoke
At the beginning of this month, I received an email from one of my online students. She told me that she was confused about an assignment and needed some help. “I can go to the learning lab,” she continued, “but the … Continue reading
Math Anxiety
One morning during my twelve years in blue-light purgatory, I was sitting over coffee with my co-worker Dolores and Steve, her district manager in the ladies’ apparel department. I can scarcely imagine how the topic of higher mathematics arose in … Continue reading
Codifying Honor
I first saw the topic discussed on Facebook by the gay son of a dear Mormon friend. It then flooded the mainstream press, including ABC, CNN, Time, and the New York Times. I am referring to the noisy and–to me, at least–disturbing public controversy about the honor … Continue reading
The Issue Issue
I can’t pinpoint when issue reared its euphemistic head and took the place of problem or difficulty in the general parlance, but the usage is now of epidemic proportion. The media are replete with sidebars about anger issues and relationship issues and weight issues. Students’ excuses for late homework … Continue reading