Liberalism is in ascendency in the world due in large part to the huge success it has had fending off criticism by employing the straw man technique.  Any who disagree with the progressive agenda are  accused of being cruel, insensitive, out of touch, racist, or elitist.  Progressives successfully turn policy disagreements into diatribes about how awful their critics are.  And it's working- big time.  Using a straw man refers to the practice of responding to criticism by rewording your opponent's argument into one that has an obvious flaw, and then attacking the flaw and claiming victory. A good example is the reaction to an increasing number of school districts that are offering free breakfasts to students regardless of income.  Some disagree that the expense is warranted.  The straw man technique is to restructure the criticism from whether or not the plan is warranted to the assertion that critics disagree with feeding hungry poor children. ...(Read Full Post)