Starting today: Anthropology lessons!

MONDAY, JUNE 23, 2014

We invite you to ponder new frameworks: Today, we start a new, award-winning series, “Anthropology lessons.”

In this series of reports, we’ll invite you to ponder a new set of frameworks for understanding the way the American public discourse works. In effect, we’ll be suggesting a new set of “paradigms.”

In truth, we’ll be going over frameworks we’ve recommended in the past. In the process, we’ll suggest you approach the various players in our public discourse as an anthropologist would.

What are the cultural practices of the tribe called the “mainstream press?” Perhaps more importantly at this point, what tribal morés are observed by the groups now emerging on the political “left?”

When you observe the work of these groups, we’ll ask you to consider another possibility. Given their peculiar low functioning, is it possible that these groups are less than fully “human?” Is it possible that basic differences in brain structure account for their odd behaviors? For their surprising reactions to public events?

Whatever you think of Hillary Clinton, her re-emergence has set off a great of wild behavior from the various primitive tribes who create our public discourse. None of their behaviors are new, of course. But these peculiar behaviors never stop being surprising.

What might an anthropologist say about their peculiar conduct? This will be the thrilling perspective coming to you at this site.

We’re starting this week with the screeching—and the unmistakable tool use—set off by Clinton’s reappearance. Next week, we’ll move to other topics.

Please come along for the ride.

Also this, starting tomorrow: Starting tomorrow, we’ll be doing one last set of posts related to our previous series, “Our month of the gaps.”

What do you think makes a good school good? We never quite settled that question.

Tomorrow, what makes a good school good? We’ll start with this comment right here.