Social and Political Commentary
Some Problems with Complaisance.
If something doesn’t bother me, e.g. the F-word, why should I be bothered that it bothers you? Let’s start with friendship. As Aristotle notes, “[Friends are] those with whom we are on such terms that, while we respect their opinions,… Read More ›
About Pam-mentations. Updated.
Welcome to Pam-mentations. Here you’ll find social & political commentary, philosophy, and satirical cartoons aka Saturday Morning Pam-toons. Each of these are designated an individual category, but all are subsumed under a broader interest of mine, political rhetoric. Why political… Read More ›
Bread and Circuses
(Oct. 24, 2020) Somewhere around the second century CE, the Roman satirist Juvenal coined the phrase ‘bread and circuses’ which has come to mean placating one’s populace with cheap bribes to distract them from their political grievances. Here’s the logic…. Read More ›
A meditation on the character of a political speaker and, by extension, a voter (Oct. 31/20 with Nov. 15/20 addendum)
Loosely put, rhetoric is the art of persuasion. More specifically, on Aristotle’s definition, rhetoric is “the faculty of observing in any given case the available means of persuasion.” We all use rhetoric to convince others of some thing or other,… Read More ›
Understanding Political Rhetoric and How It Works With Our Mental states to Persuade or Disuade
Rhetoric is, broadly put, the art of persuasion. Whether we’re aware of it or not, we’re all persuaded by rhetorical tactics and use them ourselves to persuade others. Some people find this notion unconscionable, as if there is some cognitive… Read More ›
