Critical thinking not practiced

"Last year the Texas G.O.P. explicitly condemned efforts to teach 'critical thinking skills,' because, it said, such efforts “have the purpose of challenging the student’s fixed beliefs and undermining parental authority.”
"The Ignorance Caucus", Paul Krugman, New York Times, 2013-02-11

This sounds like something George Lakoff wrote about in "Whose Freedom? The Battle over America's Most Important Idea".  Lakoff thinks that the battle is between those who have a strict father model and those who have a nurturing parent model.

Fixed beliefs are held by too many wherever they are on the political map, but the Republicans have been ossifying into ever more fixed beliefs for over ten years.  They are even against some things they used to be for because those ideas don't fit the fixed belief structure they now have.

As for fixed beliefs, those who believe critical thinking can be taught, might read the critical thinking article linked above.  One cognitive scientist doesn't believe critical thinking can be taught.

Surprisingly, it was the last great Republican President who said, "As our case is new, so we must think anew."  New thinking does not come from fixed beliefs and parental authority.

Quote of the day: Corporations are governments, not persons

I am slowly working my way through George Lakoff's "Whose Freedom? The Battle over America's Most Important Idea".  He looks at how and why conservatives and progressive frame the issues.  A section that really hit home on the mythical framing of the "free market" was "Corporations are governments, not persons" under the section "The Truths Hidden by the Economic Liberty Myth".

You can find the section here as well as some reviews.

A couple of reads for the Independence Day (Fourth of July)

OK, I know it's a bit late in the day to recommend some reading for the Fourth of July, but any day is really a good day to pass these along.

"Bill of Wrongs: The Executive Branch's Assault on America's Fundamental Rights", Molly Ivins and Lou Dubose, 2007

This is mostly about cases that have been brought to court against the Federal or other governments and generally prevailed in one way or another.  These are all from the George W. Bush Presidency's "War on Terrorism".

The other is "Whose Freedom? The Battle over America's Most Important Idea" by George Lakoff.  I haven't started it yet, but all the hype about our "freedoms" has often struck me as insincere.  There are the definite illegal intrusions by government into the private lives of individuals.  The "freedom" meant in too much of the hype is the freedom for corporations to do what they damn well please without regard to the effects on people.  I shall see over the next week or so.