Jets 3rd round pick is up for deportation

[Fingon]

And I suppose it's the kid's fault if they're (a) actually not there or (b) there, but "not there" due to any number of factors like addiction or working two or three jobs to make end's meet? Or if they themselves don't know any better about life, school and the opportunities available for their kids because they never had such opportunities themselves? As someone who grew up a blue collar kid in a blue collar town myself, I've seen plenty of all of the above in my time.

 

I had an econ professor at Columbia (Sunil Gulati, who's now head of US Soccer--a great teacher and a great guy) who said at the end of a year long course that featured many spirited debates between students from the right and the left, "You know, I hear everything you're all saying, but I've yet to find an economic justification for why the homeless woman on 110th Street's kids are out there in the cold begging with her every night just to survive. How does that makes sense, what purpose does it serve and how is that fair to them?" We all knew the woman he was talking about and we all saw her kids there with her every day. Walk a mile or two in those kids' shoes and tell me how easy it is to go from nothing to something in this country before spouting off with glib Rush Limbaugh-approved answers, most likely from the safety of a middle class upbringing and home....

This, gentlemen, is how you perfectly execute the straw man argument. Do you see where he cleverly takes my response and adds things that I never said, nor implied, and knocks them down with an appeal to emotion? Flawless.

[MattM]

This, gentlemen, is how you perfectly execute the straw man argument. Do you see where he cleverly takes my response and adds things that I never said, nor implied, and knocks them down with an appeal to emotion? Flawless.

 

Don't be so hard on yourself, Mr. Straw Man, I'm sure there's some substance there in you somewhere (although we didn't see it in any coherent response to the points either I or Van City made). Van City wrote a response that echoed my sentiment on not being so quick to judge others because there's no simple answer to the educational system and problems different people in different parts of society have with it and you responded that "yes there is, it's called parents" or something to that effect. I then pointed out that while ideal, that doesn't always work in reality for a number of reasons and that if it doesn't is that really the child's fault? You came back with nothin' of substance, as far as I can tell, other than accusing me of putting words in your mouth. The words you wrote and that I responded to were your own, no more, no less. Anyone reading this thread can see them (unless, of course, you want to go back and do some editing).

 

Thanks for trying, come again....