Defending the Ground of the Cap and Gown

politics, rhetoric, teaching, work 2018.04.09 Sean Shannon Leave a comment

Professors Are Targets In Online Culture Wars; Some Fight Back (wlrn.org) [This blog includes discussion of bullying and a suicide attempt.] Of all my interactions with the worst bully I ever had to deal with in my younger days — and believe me, I had to deal with a lot of bullies back then — two stick out the most. The first was an act of public embarrassment so mortifying that it led me to attempt suicide, right there on campus, after I was finally able to…

Whiskey Tango Facebook

freespeech, internet, politics, work, writing 2018.04.02 Sean Shannon Leave a comment

Apple CEO Tim Cook on Facebook data leak: Regulation is necessary (Yahoo! Finance) Part of the preparatory work I do as a teacher of college-level English is to make myself aware of the technological and pop culture elements of society that my students are likely to be aware of and use in their everyday lives. This process is known as gaining “cultural literacy,” and although it’s ultimately not as important in my preparation as knowledge of the intricacies of the English language, I’d argue that…

America: Death Before Discomfort

internet, politics, rhetoric, sex 2018.03.26 Sean Shannon Leave a comment

Craigslist ditches personals ads following passage of sex-trafficking law (Miami Herald) Female homicide rate dropped after Craigslist launched its erotic services platform (thinkprogress.org) In 2011, when the nation was transfixed by the “Craigslist murders” in Ohio, I had a unique vantage point to what was going on. Not only was I living in Ohio, but I was going through a period of very low employment; I had some freelance writing work to help me pay my bills, but I wasn’t teaching, and I really needed…

I’ll Always Be a Toys “R” Us Kid

politics, shopping, toledo, videogames 2018.03.19 Sean Shannon Leave a comment

As Toys ‘R’ Us Closes Up Shop, Small Business Are Left to Fend for Themselves (inc.com) How vulture capitalists ate Toys ‘R’ Us (theweek.com) I was part of the generation that was the prime target of one of the first regulation repeals of the Reagan Administration. For a long time, the FCC had a policy stating that cartoons couldn’t serve to just advertise toys, and although many skirmishes had been fought between the FCC and corporate America over this policy — most notably with ABC’s Hot…

I Know Censorship When I See It

freespeech, politics, rhetoric 2018.03.12 Sean Shannon 1 Comment

Proposed R.I. bill would charge $20 to view pornography online (mynbc5.com) Washington state passes net neutrality law as states push back against the FCC (NBCNews.com) Among the many problems with Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart’s infamous “definition” of obscenity — you know, “I know it when I see it” and all that — is that it’s lazy. Defining words and terms is a very difficult process, especially when languages have to keep evolving so they can provide the tools we need to explain new developments…