Topics

Kathleen - Change the layout of the city golf course fairways that are in the Santa Clara's path. 

Melodee - Welfare recipients should be drug tested. 

Spencer - The bundled care payment initiative does not work.

Taylor Stout - Be aware of social media risks and recognize the dangers.

Gina - Common Core - 

Trent - Government education in pre-marital counseling.

Dori - The minimum wage should be graduated. 

Amber - Stem cell research should be funded. 

Amanda - Immigration versus integration.

Ray - Seat belt compliance should not be mandated.

Debbie - Invoke executive order for immigration reform.

Sean - Nix the time change.

Quinn - Professional athletes earn every penny.

Meagan - Using beauty supplies increases health risks.

Karen - A viewing is beneficial to the grieving process. 

Matt Mortenson - Gun regulation is unnecessary. 

Doug - Assisted suicide should be an option for the terminally ill. 

John - The administration should be represented at the funeral of an officer.

JoDean - Uniforms are beneficial to student behavior and performance. 

Rachel - Incarceration is not the answer to drug addiction.

Matt Hobson - Increasing domestic supply of oil results in economic benefits. 

Angelee - Technology is inhibiting child development.

Taylor J - We get what the government would have us think. 

Taylor N - StG needs to reform its alcohol laws to improve economic viability. 

Polina - Climate change needs to be substantiated before it’s funded.

Sam - USWNT soccer players needs to be held to the same standard as the NFL.  

Tonight...

...we will be meeting in room 121, the Boeing Auditorium, in the Hazy building for this evening's class and the next two meetings we have for COMM 1270.

There have been a number of questions about formatting case essays and posts on cogent and fallacious reasoning.  I'd prefer block style formatting, which means no indent, left hand justified, 12 point font, with a line space between paragraphs. You can see an example of this on ImNoSaint. 

It's MONDAY!

...and I'm a bit concerned. Almost half the class has yet to be in contact with me about their premises nor have posted anything to this end.

Let me outline what is expected for Tuesday's class:

• You will deliver your first constructive (prima facie) oral argument introducing and substantiating your case to "The House." If you cannot attend class to deliver your opening argument, record your case and upload it to your blog. 
• You will post your prima facie case essay to your blog.
• You will post your first Cogent and Fallacious Reasoning in Mediated Communication assignment to your blog. 

Capisce? I'm here to help.

**UPDATE**

There have been a few queries as to what I may be expecting for your four-minute oral argument. I could put forth all kinds of criteria like a clear, concise, declarative thesis, a statement of supporting reasoning for your thesis, evidence to back up your claims and your grounds, or I could suggest you look at the rubric for the activity.

What I'll do instead is ask you this - When you're getting ready to ask your boss for a raise, what do you do? When you're trying to leverage in negotiating, what do you bring to the table? When you're bargaining on a price, what's your critical process? It's all the same, coming from a position where you must prove your reasoning.

In four minutes.

DON'T PANIC

My favorite line from Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy. 

Many of you are experiencing an issue with your blog. When you click the link on the class page your blog comes up looking like this:

For some reason, blooger.com is adding a line of code in the URL. I've highlighted it in the screenshot above in blue. If you delete just that section of code in the URL, your blog will properly display. I think that when you post to your blog, the URL will default to what its intended address.

ALSO,

Lots of questions on how to write the case versus the case outline. Refer to Chapter 9 for some great direction in how to write your case essay. Remember, the essay contains your entire prima facia case, your line of reasoning and your evidence, where your four-minute speech gives us your opening argument; the gist of your position and the highlights of your evidence. 

Take Note

Such a pleasure to meet with you last night. I'm looking forward to the next three meetings.

I have updated the schedule to better reflect activities due for each week along with an, albeit obscure, outline of the topics we'll be discussing for that meeting along with the designated reading for that week.

I have added the Cogent and Fallacious Reasoning in Mediated Communication assignments to the schedule, your first post being due by next Tuesday, September 30th in addition to your first constructive. See the schedule for subsequent post due dates. 

Questions? Good. You're thinking. You know how to reach me. 

Cogent and Fallacious Reasoning in Mediated Communication - Rubric

Point Value: 50 points each times four post for 200 points. 

Description
Immerse yourself into the mediated fray of information and select four topics that are percolating; issues as of this writing are US involvement with ISIS, spanking children, Utah's Medicaid conundrum with Governor Herbert, and others.

Write and post about specific mediated opinions that deal with your chosen issues, identifying the media outlet, how you heard about that specific opinion, and your analysis of whether the reasoning is cogent or fallacious. In addition, comment on your peers' posts, at least four, to get some discussion going.


Rubric
You have selected a current topic opinion for analysis of its reasoning. The topics are mediated, meaning you've discovered them through different types of media and media channels, the more stratified the better. 5 Points.

You've journaled how you were introduced to the topic, what channel brought the topic to light for you. I t may have been your Facebook feed or a Tweet, perhaps a story on talk radio, or an opinion piece in a newspaper. 10 Points.

You've analyzed the opinion of the topic, identifying whether the reasoning is cogent or fallacious and have described why, in your opinion. 20 Points.

You've commented on your peer's posts - honor system here. (I'll be commenting, too.) 15 Points.

As Promised...

Click the image above for the opening sequence to the series. 

Turn your volume up for full effect.

Yes, this is the site.

Use it, not just as a resource, but also as way to communicate with myself and your peers. Be sure to read all the tabs above to get familiar with the syllabus, the schedule, how to find me, and for some of you, to introduce you to the Bill of Rights.

To use this page as a communication channel I'm asking you to create a blog using blogger.com. I will add to your blog to this page's blogroll. Create your blog by signing in to blogger.com using your Google or Dmail credentials and follow the prompts to set up your page. Please use your name for the name of your blog. Once you have your URL established, please email that to me at comm1270@gmail.com. When I've received your blog URL I'll add it to the class site. Your blog will be a place to post your assignments, your thoughts on issues, and your evidence of both cogent and fallacious reasoning you've identified within mediated communication.

One last thing to prepare for next week - please read The Danger of Critical Thinking, along with Chapters One and Six from the text, Logic & Contemporary Rhetoric.

Why Argumentation and Critical Thinking? Frankly, because the United States is on a course of idiocy due to the mediation of public discourse. Democracy depends on the exchange of smart, vetted, original ideas along with civil discourse that allows all views. It's my opinion that as a nation we've lost touch with this critical ability, on every level, and as a result we are at risk.

I'll be talking much more about that during the taping of TalkingPoint, the pilot episode of which will be produced Wednesday, the 17th at 4:00p in Studio A of the Jennings Building. You are invited to attend the taping and can read more about the show and its intent on TalkingPoint's Facebook page.