Beyond Feelings - Vincent Ruggiero [55]
I never vote in national elections. I figure that my vote will be canceled by someone else's. Besides, all politicians are going to rob the public so it doesn't matter who gets elected.
Dog fighting is a sport in which two specially trained dogs (often, but not always, pitbull terriers) do combat until one is killed or badly maimed. It is illegal in most states. But should it be? I say no. if I own a dog, it's my property and I should be able to do whatever I wish with it.
Affirmative action originated as a system to overcome the effects of years of prejudice against minorities. But it has created discrimination against the majority. I favor eliminating affirmative action requirements and returning to the old system. For all its imperfections, it's far better than what we have now.
Whenever Americans buy automobiles, clothing, and electronic equipment from other countries, they undermine American business and hurt American workers. Patriotism demands that we refrain from buying from foreign competitors even when their prices are lower and their quality is higher.
It's absurd to believe in life after death because no one has ever returned form the grave.
Women in the military should be required to undergo the same physical training men do. They should also not be exempted from frontline duty.
In 1982, New York State Social Services officials directed local adoption agencies not to reject applicants solely because they are homosexual or have a history of alcoholism or drug abuse, a criminal record, a dependency on welfare, or a severe emotional or physical handicap.1
Every knowledgeable person agrees that the nation's court system is seriously bogged down with cases and that something must be done to alleviate that condition. The best way to do so, I am convinced, is to dispense with the outdated concept of "innocent until proven guilty" and make all those charged with a crime prove their innocence.
It's ironic that during the very time when Pete Rose was being castigated for his alleged gambling on sports events (late spring, 1989), newspapers were filled with stories about Illinois and Pennsylvania lotteries and their respective $62.5 and $115 million jackpots. Millions of people were placing bets on those lotteries, and dozens of other state lotteries, and that was regarded as perfectly legitimate. And yet a great baseball star was being threatened with disgrace and expulsion from the game he loved. The whole fiasco can be explained only in terms of monumental ignorance or hypocrisy.
For the last few decades most Americans have swallowed the liberal line that everyone deserves a college education. As a result, college courses have been watered down and the college degree has been rendered meaningless. It's high time we adopt a more realistic view. College should be reserved for those who have not only taken a demanding high school program, but have excelled in it.
Group discussion exercise: Select one of the cases you analyzed in application 1 and discuss it with two or three of your classmates. Try to reach a consensus, but be careful to avoid committing logical fallacies. Be prepared to present your idea(s) to the class.
1 "State Rules Let Gays and Crooks Adopt Children," Binghamton Press, August 8, 1982, p.1A.
P2-C14-4
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
THE PROBLEMS IN COMBINATION
We have seen how each of the problems discussed in Chapters 6 through 14 occurs in isolation. Although it is common to find them that way, it is at least as common to find them occurring in various combinations. For example, "mine is better" thinking may lead us to resist new ideas that challenge our cherished beliefs. Similarly, the urge to conform may lead us to accept stereotyped images of people and institutions, and these in turn may lead us to make unwarranted