Category: Uncategorized

  • Deliberative Democratic Theory and Debate

    What gives? I am reading Deliberative Democratic Theory for the first time – never really been much of one to have faith in democracy other than a rhetorical commonplace that really comes in handy – perhaps more than any other commonplace out there, even family (Sorry Vin Diesel). But this is some good stuff. It’s…

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  • Backfiring Facts

    There’s a new format of student excuse that I’m getting these days that relies on credibility but really doesn’t do a great job of audience adaptation. It’s worth talking about because I have been seeing it so often and it is an outcome of a facts-only reasoning epistemology, where the only reasons one can give…

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  • Talking about Rhetoric on a Podcast

    Thanks to Ian for a great time on his podcast. It makes me want to fire up In the Bin again, but what doesn’t? The only thing about In the Bin is that I no longer have regular updates or contact with the tournament-debating world. Although this is overwhelmingly a good thing – nearly all…

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  • Evaluating Biden’s Farewell Speech

    I thought I’d do a play by play of Biden’s farewell speech. I didn’t think it was great, but the devil is in the details. See what you think of it after watching my commentary.

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  • How Do Students Evaluate Class Activities?

    I got a new GoPro so what better way to break it in than to walk and talk through something on my mind about teaching. I think what explains the lack of student motivation best is that they have only one measure to evaluate things in this world: entertainment. Is it entertaining? If not, they…

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  • Free to Teach

    Is asking someone to consider the broader impact of supporting a policy out of place? Disrespectful? Is it hostile? Is it inconsiderate? The Governor of Louisiana thinks so. An LSU Law professor asked students that if they felt comfortable voting for Donald Trump because of his policy agenda, they should consider how that makes people…

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  • Practice

    I must remind myself that education and learning is practicing something. We don’t have the convenient reminders like doctors and dentists do, that they work in or at a practice; that they own a “medical practice” and “practice medicine.” I think we “practice education” but we don’t have the reminder all the time that we…

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  • What Else would the ICC be for?

    The ICC indictment against Netanyahu is getting a lot of attention in the media as being out of line. U.S. Senator Lindsay Graham has said that if an ally arrests him, the United States will tank their economy. Joe Biden has said the charge is “outrageous.” But what other method or manner should be used…

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  • Archiving and Backup

    Finding some pretty striking and pretty sad draft posts in my Google Drive, which honestly I haven’t looked at in many years. I started using OneDrive and Word exclusively a while ago and cleaned out my Google Drive to save money. I put everything on my NAS and deleted it from Drive except for the…

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  • Opportune Weekend

    Been pretty down and out about teaching, my work, my job, etc. But this week things look to turn around. I have two pretty good opportunities that are coming together this week so I just have to figure out what I’d like to be doin. As a friend said, it’s time to take a look…

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