Bill -
Your thoughtful and articulate response to Achim's inquiry deserves praise.
Thanks,
Paul
Paul Conway
Professor of Political Science
SUNY College at Oneonta
Oneonta, NY, 13820 - USA
Office phone: 607-436-3923
________________________________
From: Teaching Breakfast List on behalf of William Proulx
Sent: Thu 4/30/2009 11:35 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Taylor Piece in NYT
Hi Achim,
We have often found ourselves on the opposite side of discussions and issues. However, I can't recall a single time when the discourse hasn't been civil. As you once commented, " it takes place without the presence of poison." Hence, I have always walked away having equal to greater respect for you as a colleague. I wish others could enter discussion with the same poison-less passion.
In my opinion, the medium is not the cause. Rather, it only provides the opportunity for the boorish to manifest their true characters. A truly civil individual will be consistently civil regardless of the time, place, or situation. On the other hand, a boor will cloak their lack of civility to one degree or another but eventually their churlish inclinations will come to light. Fortunately, civil discourse is a learned skill and behavior. As teachers and citizens we must teach and model that it is possible to be frank without being loutish and to disagree, even strongly, with civility.
We should help our students and others understand that the goal of any civil discourse is for both sides to offer their opinions with honesty and frankness and listen intently to what the other side has to say, and when the conversation is done, despite passionate disagreement, we have a better relationship for having done so.
Respectfully,
Bill
William R. Proulx, Ph.D., R.D.
Associate Professor of Nutrition and Dietetics
Department of Human Ecology
205D Human Ecology Building
SUNY College at Oneonta
Oneonta, New York 13820
607-436-2147
From: Teaching Breakfast List [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Achim Koeddermann
Sent: Thursday, April 30, 2009 10:46 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Taylor Piece in NYT
Dear Collegues,
lately, I tried to move, as chair, some of the dept. discussions to the internet.
My experience was bad, to say the least.
Two fractions oppose each other re. email discussions: the one which likes the "fankness" or the all but civil discourse, and the other that feels so offended by it that to mend fences becomes almost impossible.
Problem: do you archieve the (flaming) exchanges? Especially junior faculty feel vulnerable in this, and it is not truly a free exchange. We also have a generation gap: how to include the non-media literate oldtimers?
Now, in my SUNY Senate expereince, none of this became an issue: the listserves have been very sucessful.
My STUDENTS seem to navigate this medium (not facebook) much more cautiously.
In my view, for the colleagues, the electronic medium is causing a decline in civil discourse.
What is your expereince?
Achim
"Thoughts without content are empty, intuitions without concepts are blind."
Immanuel Kant, Critique of Pure Reason, "Transcendental Logic," Introduction, # 1
Dr. Achim D. Koeddermann, Chair, Philosophy Dept.
SUNY-Oneonta, NY 13820
"Gedanken ohne Inhalt sind leer, Anschauungen ohne Begriffe sind blind"
________________________________
From: Teaching Breakfast List on behalf of Jim Greenberg
Sent: Thu 4/30/2009 9:46 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Taylor Piece in NYT
Some (many) or even all of you may have read the Taylor piece in the NYT on the end of the university. The link to it is:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/27/opinion/27taylor.html
The piece itself has generated a lot of discussion, but this email is on a different issue. While reading the comments on this piece, I noticed there are many hostile remarks back and forth and wonder about "the decline of civil discourse." What has been your experience with students involved with electronic discourse in your courses? What about outside courses? What has been your personal experience? Is the electronic medium causing a decline in civil discourse?
Thanks.
Mr. James B. Greenberg
Director Teaching, Learning and Technology Center
Milne Library
SUNY College at Oneonta
Oneonta, New York 13820
blog: The 32nd Square at http://32ndsquare.blogspot.com <http://32ndsquare.blogspot.com/>
wiki: The 32nd Square at http://32ndsquare.wikidot.com <http://32ndsquare.wikidot.com/>
email: [log in to unmask]
phone: 607-436-2701
fax: 607-436-3081
IM: oneontatltc
Twitter: greenbjb
"Ignorance is curable, stupidity lasts forever"
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