Nietzsche – On Truth and Baseball

Nietzsche’s article, On Truth and Lies in a Nonmoral Sense, discusses truth and makes one question the whole concept of truth. After reading this article, I thought about baseball and what steroids have done to the sport. In 1998, for instance, both Mark McGuire and Sammy Sosa broke Roger Maris’s single-season homerun record. Barry Bonds then passed McGuire in 2001. I remember both these record-breaking seasons, especially the year McGuire and Bonds were competing to break the record. I loved following these guys and was always checking the news to see if one of them had hit a homerun. But then the steroid era exploded, and everyone—including me—began to question the integrity of the records that were broken. Did breaking the record mean as much if the player took performance-enhancing drugs? And as more names became linked to steroids in the recent years, I began to question the integrity of the sport altogether. Essentially, I did the same thing as Nietzsche (though Nietzsche would probably question the word steroids in general).

Can you think of any other examples of when you may have questioned something you once believed to be true?

Malcolm X – Free… or not?

I find Malcolm X’s story fascinating. My current project at work is with the Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services (DPSCS), so I work with users who deal directly with inmates. One of my users shared some stories with me about some of the inmates who have stood out to her. I bet Malcolm X would have stood out to her if she had encountered an inmate like him. The following passages from Malcolm X’s Learning to Read stood out to me:

“Between Mr. Muhammad’s teachings, my correspondence, my visitors—usually Ella and Reginald—and my readings of books, months passed without my even thinking about being imprisoned. In fact, up to then, I never had been so truly free in my life.” 

“Where else but in prison could I have attacked my ignorance by being able to study intensely sometimes as much as fifteen hours a day?”

I just find it so fascinating that Malcolm X could feel so free even though he was in prison. And I can’t imagine reading 15 hours a day. Interestingly these passages made me think of Facebook.  People spend hours on Facebook, and some people are very free about what they post. What do you think it means to be free? Do you think Facebook allows people to feel free? Or do you think it just gives people the sensation that they are free? Can you think of other ways social media makes people feel?

Frederick Douglass – Speaking out in Baltimore (or let’s pretend…)

The brief introduction to Frederick Douglass’s speech, A Plea for Free Speech in Boston, discusses how Douglass appeals to his audience by emphasizing the city pride: “Notice how he appeals to his audience’s local pride by reminding them of Boston’s traditional respect for individual freedom”.

Since our class contains a bunch of writers, some of you may find it fun to rewrite this essay from a Baltimore perspective in response to legalizing gay marriage. What are some ways that the speaker could appeal to an audience in Baltimore, Annapolis, or any other place in Maryland (perhaps your hometown if you grew up in Maryland)? Is there anything in particular that Maryland is known for? What landmarks or items would you emphasize?

Carl R. Rogers – Having Faith in the Social Sciences

According to Carl R. Rogers, “Our civilization does not yet have enough faith in social sciences to utilize their findings. The opposite is true of the physical sciences”.

Rogers wrote Communication: It’s Blocking and Its Facilitation in 1951. Do you think his statement still holds true today? If not, how has it changed and where do you see it changing going forward? Furthermore, do you think the social sciences will ever be as accountable as the physical sciences?

**Additional Question: Considering Rogers was one of the first authors we read this semester, you may have changed your mind about the answer to the question above after reading Lehrer’s article, The Truth Wears Off. Did Lehrer's article change your mind about how you may have originally answered this question?