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Tag Archives: Orwell
A Hot Dog Is a Sandwich
Every semester, staff and instructors at FTCC are allowed to take one class free of charge, and I almost always try to take advantage of that wonderful opportunity. This semester I am taking a class in critical thinking offered by … Continue reading
Posted in critical thinking, education, freedom, language, literature, politics, totalitarianism, word, writing
Tagged definition, language, literature, mot juste, Orwell, politics, word, writing
4 Comments
Everything Not Forbidden Is Compulsory
When I first passed this sign yesterday morning on the way to class, I thought it was an instruction in etiquette: “Don’t sit here because this is a table, and sitting on tables is rude.” Silly me.
Posted in Bill of Rights, books, COVID-19, critical thinking, current events, divisiveness, education, First Amendment, free speech, freedom, history, language, literature, news, novel coronavirus, politics, society, totalitarianism
Tagged books, COVID-19, education, etymology, First Amendment, free speech, history, language, literature, meaning, novel coronavirus, Orwell, politics, social distancing, word, writing
2 Comments
Reconsidering the American Consensus–and Rehabilitating the 1950s
The Mering thesis and the roots of consensus history At the University of Arizona in the mid-1970s, John V. Mering inculcated his disciples with a devotion to the consensus historiography whose bedrock was The American Political Tradition: And the Men Who Made It … Continue reading
Posted in books, critical thinking, current events, education, history, politics
Tagged education, history, identity, mentor, Orwell, politics
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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
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
Bathroom Words
Since March 23, North Carolina has been embroiled in a war of words about the so-called “bathroom bill,” House Bill 2, whose most controversial—and, notably, most innocuous—provision states, “Local boards of education [and public agencies] shall require every multiple occupancy bathroom … Continue reading
Gonnegtions
In the early 1980s, I was watching an episode of Charles Kuralt’s Sunday Morning in which he chronicled the demise of an important family-owned newspaper. I’ll have to call it the Tribune because I have long since forgotten the newspaper and the family and the … Continue reading