Category Archives for academics
“Pickle Company to Distraught Mom: Yes, We’ll Change Our Name”
Tweet“Cains Pickles removes a derogatory term from its labels after a mother’s protests,” Andri Antoniades informs us by way of editorializing — that “derogatory” term being “midget”, for those of you who didn’t know that any pickles short of, say, … Continue reading
Homophobolicious! Or, hatred, deliciously prepared, and laid lovingly on a bun
TweetI’ve been warning about this for years: the surrender of meaning to committed and politicized interpretive communities — which can only come about once we as a society have legitimated an incoherent idea about how language functions — will lead … Continue reading
“A conspiracy so immense”: ideological commitment and the timidity of pragmatic politics
Tweet“What will it take for the mainstream media to cover the progressive movement?” Washington Free Beacon: Let’s pretend that in the spring of 2012 Grover Norquist of Americans for Tax Reform, John Engler of the Business Roundtable, Tim Phillips of … Continue reading
The curse of right-wing textualism
TweetRevealed, yet again — and yet again by a “conservative” lawyer. Starting to see a trend? [H]ere’s what we’re talking about. 31 U.S.C. § 5112(k): The Secretary may mint and issue platinum bullion coins and proof platinum coins in accordance … Continue reading
The rape of intent: “Austin Man Hangs Empty Chair From Tree Symbolizing President Obama”
TweetThe proof of your racism is the fact that we see it. You can deny it — as “investigative journalists” we’ll fight for your right to burn a flag or shit on a police car or burn Bushhitler puppetes in … Continue reading
Racism is how you made me feel. At least, for an hour or so. Or until I’m satisfied that you are good and cowed, and maybe embarrassed
TweetComing soon to an area outside a “free-speech zone” near you, official policing of “racism” and intolerance, as determined by…airline officials, speech police, and people who just feel wronged. In the UK, for instance, some things are just not said: … Continue reading
Manufacturing Manufactured Consent
TweetJames Taranto takes up the Juan Williams story and gives it a few shakes: So how is it that Juan Williams got the ax while Nina Totenberg is still a member in good standing of the NPR news staff? “The … Continue reading
Provocateurism, 9
TweetIn an earlier thread — under a post made famous by its violence toward women and its Steve McQueen fantasies — Nishi asks rhetorically, “where are the conservative professors, filmmakers, comics, scientists, actors, artists?” Her point being that a (perceived … Continue reading
Intellectual elitism and the case of the missing author
TweetOver at Edge of the West, where SEK’s critically flawed post on my engagement with Patterico has been subsequently removed, there remains a number of comments that I find troubling for a number of reasons. First, there is an peculiar, … Continue reading
Losing more slowly: an OUTLAW’s lament
TweetAs a follow-up to Dan’s piece on the (ironic, surreal, and — let’s just say it, profoundly Orwellian) shouting down of a “conservative” speaker looking to address the question of hate speech, I’d like to offer a few observations: first, … Continue reading
