Announcements
A couple of quick announcements: First, you can read an interview with yours truly here. Second, an additional lesson plan and check-for-understanding quiz was just added to the Critical Voter...
View ArticleArguing with Bernie
I suspect that even those who are not Bernie boosters were less than satisfied with my recent analysis which used Aristotle’s Square of Opposition to argue against a Sanders campaign operative’s...
View ArticleCritical Voter – Free This Week
From today until Friday, the Kindle version of Critical Voter is available for free at Amazon. So download it, read it, enjoy it and – if you can – please reach out to anyone you think might be...
View ArticleLogos
Over the next three weeks, I’d like to take a look at a concept that can be found in nearly every chapter of Critical Voter, Aristotle’s three Modes of Persuasion, which include: Logos – An appeal to...
View ArticleAmazon vs. Everyone
Since this weekly series focuses on both the spirit and business of self-publishing, I’d like to look at decisions self-publishers will have to make via the numbers. For starters, e-book sales make up...
View ArticleOut of Control
My little campaign to make critical thinking education a component of this year’s election conversation might seem quixotic, if not completely unnecessary. After all, why study argumentation and...
View ArticlePathos
A quick “Thank You” to everyone who downloaded an e-copy of Critical Voter during last week’s Amazon promotion. Also, an additional set of lessons was just posted on the Curriculum part of this site....
View ArticleManaging Expectations
One of the most important rhetorical strategies for controlling debate is to set expectations, for yourself an others, in a way that maximizes your chances of success and – if appropriate – maximizes...
View ArticleEthos
Continuing on with our discussion of Aristotle’s three Modes of Persuasion: while most people can spot when a speaker is delivering a logical (logos-based) or emotional (pathos-based) argument, ethos...
View ArticleKDP Select or Not?
In the last entry to this series, I spelled out the distribution options for someone self-publishing an e-book. Just to sum up, while those looking for online global distribution of print books really...
View ArticleEngaging Your Opponent
When it comes to debates, voters across the political spectrum are generally united in their disapproval of what goes on when candidates gather together in front of a live audience and TV cameras to...
View ArticleDecision Time
OK – Time to sum up the decisions you need to make with regard to your self-publishing effort. Before doing any of this, remember the fundamental question you should have answered long ago, namely:...
View ArticleHypothesis Testing
Most of us probably expected an election similar to ones we’ve experienced in the past: a rowdy primary that finally settles down to each party picking a Senator or Governor (maybe a Congressman) whom...
View ArticleAge of Anxiety
Last time, we began to focus our critical-thinking facilities on the election itself to try to answer the question of why this year’s vote is turning out so different than what anyone expected. The...
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Self-Publishing Infographic
Still getting my head around the whole “free book” concept, but hope to have something valuable to say about it by next week. Until then, here’s a swell infographic I stumbled on published by the...
View ArticleWhat’s Eating Us?
In trying to explain the contemporary state of American politics, one characterized by a revolt of the voters against the established political parties, we’ve tested a couple of hypotheses and found...
View ArticleBackground Knowledge
Before leaving the topic of why this year’s election seems so peculiar vs. elections past, I’d like to pull in a concept so important to clear thought that my Sifu Kevin deLaplante has made it one of...
View ArticleAssociation Fallacy
Of all the fallacies described in Critical Voter, I suspect the one we’ll be seeing the most of this election season is the already all-too-common Association Fallacy. For those of you interested in...
View ArticleFree Books
The zero cost of production an ebook makes giving online books away vs. selling them a reasonable economic option, so long as you’re willing to “eat” costs related to bringing the book into existence...
View ArticleArgumentation from Outrage
While I had anticipated that this year’s election would be divisive and ugly, I still assumed that the rhetoric in which a heated campaign would take place would fall into conventional categories...
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