Georgia Blogger to Challenge McKinney

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Wednesday April 05, 2006 · 6:36 AM PDT

2006/04/05 · 06:36

Well, this was a very interesting day to say the least. Little did I know when I wrote this post last night that I would end up getting over 12,000 visitors to the blog today and have my inbox filled with email about the post.

I'm sure that many people felt that I wasn't serious about challenging Cynthia McKinney. But I am completely serious about this. Bloggers are often criticized for being willing to pour forth their opinions on any number of subject. Opinions are a dime a dozen. But I am willing to act. Read More

George Lakoff Frames Progressive Morality: Part III

Dignan

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Wednesday January 11, 2006 · 12:16 PM PST

2006/01/11 · 12:16

In the first part of this series I introduced the Progressive's problem with discussing morality in public. In the second part, I took a brief look at the way George Lakoff is attempting to address this problem. In this installment, I will take a closer look at the cognitive models Lakoff gives for progressive (liberal) and conservative morality.

According to Lakoff, liberal political morality is based on the conceptual model of a Nurturant Parent and conservative morality on the Strict Father model. Note that the descriptor for the liberal model is gender-neutral in contrast to the conservative's Strict Father, which is identified through the male parent. Even here we see the intrusion of political tropes in an allegedly neutral analysis of moral concepts. This is a thinly disguised ideological valuation that is already exalting egalitarianism over a male-dominated patriarchy. Even this step in Lakoff's analysis seems informed by his political ideology and not the allegedly neutral methods of his discipline. Read More

George Lakoff Frames Progressive Morality: Part II

Dignan

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Tuesday January 10, 2006 · 7:00 AM PST

2006/01/10 · 07:00

In Part 1 of this series, I briefly rehearsed the problem George Lakoff is addressing in his book, Moral Politics : How Liberals and Conservatives Think. In this installment I want to take a quick look at the methodology behind his applications. I will attempt to provide a fair description of cognitive linguistics, but in the nature of the case, it will be difficult for me to keep my biases out of even a brief overview. Cognitive linguistics essentially denies the reality presupposed by traditional logic by reducing "mind" to body. This stirs up a very old debate, but to my way of thinking it leads inexorably to total absurdity. So, in order to formulate a coherent description of this discipline I have to suppress my immediate intuitions about some of its main features. Reading over what I have written, I'm not sure I have done this with complete success. I highly recommend reading through some of the links provided here. Read More

George Lakoff Frames Progressive Morality: Part I

Dignan

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Sunday January 08, 2006 · 9:34 PM PST

2006/01/08 · 21:34

Cross-posted from Dignan's 75 Year Plan

This is the first of a series on George Lakoff's book Moral Politics : How Liberals and Conservatives Think. George Lakoff, a professor of linguistics at UC Berkeley and Democratic party strategist, is a leader in the relatively new discipline of cognitive linguistics, which combines the study of language usage and the mental processes involved in concept formation. Lakoff also wrote last year's New York Time's best seller, Don't Think of an Elephant: Know Your Values and Frame the Debate--The Essential Guide for Progressives. Over the next week or two, I will take a look at the problem he is trying to solve for Progressives, the methodology he uses, the application he has made to moral discourse, and finally I will offer a critique of his project as it relates to the traditional issues of morality and ethics. Read More

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