Transcript of Jon Lovett’s Commencement Address at Pitzer College

Jon Lovett, a speechwriter for President Obama, addressed the graduates of Pitzer College on “fighting the culture of bullshit.” What follows is a brief selection from a fuller partial transcript of his commencement address provided through The Atlantic: http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2013/05/life-lessons-in-fightingthe-culture-of-bullshit/276030/. ************************* One of the greatest threats we face is, simply put, bullshit. We are drowning it.…

A Rhetoric of Demonization and Exclusion, Addendum

In an earlier post, “A Rhetoric of Demonization and Exclusion”  [https://academeblog.org/2013/05/23/a-rhetoric-of-demonization-and-exclusion/], I discussed the lunatic-fringe rhetoric of the GOP nominee for Lieutenant Governor of Virginia, Bishop D.W. Jackson. That post included a re-post of a post to Right-Wing Watch, which drew on public pronouncements by Jackson that have been reported in the print media or…

Perhaps Some Good News for Anthony Weiner

Anthony Weiner, the former New York congressman whose unfortunate last name made his digital sharing of suggestive photos of himself seem at least as ridiculous as it was tawdry, has entered the Democratic primary to be elected mayor of New York. Immediately, he has moved into second place in the polls, though with just fifteen…

A Rhetoric of Demonization and Exclusion

In this very polarized political environment, it is perhaps not surprising that much of the political rhetoric has crossed the line that distinguishes partisanship and prejudice, discourse and dogma, persuasive argument and demagoguery. It is also not all that surprising that much of the most superheated rhetoric is coming from the Far Right. Politics and…

It Doesn’t Matter Whether It’s Actually Illegal. In Fact, It’s Actually Worse Because It’s Probably Legal.

A Senate investigation has revealed that between 2009 and 2012, Apple avoided paying taxes on $44 billion in profits that it earned offshore. Where the corporation did pay taxes on its offshore earnings, it paid at a much reduced rate. Taking advantage of low corporate tax rates in Ireland, it made that country the base–at…