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In today's Winona Daily News, James Armstrong an
English professor at Winona State does a very good job of describing and putting
a name to what I was trying to explain.
He refers to the rhetorical fallacy of "sweeping
generalizations" in which the examples of incidents used are
often vague and anecdotal.
Scott Lowery notes that "most parents express
confidence in their schools but not in schools in general". I believe that
is a result of most of us as individuals, the media, and
politicians being guilty of rhetorical fallacy and use of
'sweeping generalizations in our communication'. We hear something about a
problem in the "inner city" and immediately all inner city schools are a
problem. We know something about a specific professor or class schedule
and immediately all professors and class schedules are suspect. We don't
take time to investigate, to see what the "rest of the story" is all about
before we start criticizing and passing judgment.
I recall that our senior high catalog had a class
listed that included something related to basket weaving. Immediately the
letters to the editor, calls to the Superintendent office and school board
members demanded to know why we were offering basket weaving at senior
high. Well, of course we weren't offering basket weaving as a course
elective. The folks who named the various offerings for the catalog
tried to make the titles interesting and eye catching to the students and as a
result a class that was in the Art Department and was a legitimate offering was
categorized as just a class in basket weaving. A little investigation by
the persons before they automatically assumed something bad was going on
would have defused quite a media blitz.
Whether it is the schools, the DM&E
railroad situation or even the problems with the County Court House situation,
or whatever is bothering someone. My suggestion, and I try to follow it
myself, is to go to the source, to the open meetings or what ever you need to do
to get the facts first. Don't shoot from the hip.
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