In Class Notes October 16,2008

Ideology: Sets of beliefs, values, ideas that shape how someone views the world
ex-feminism, conservatism, humanism, communism, capitalism, and enviormentalism

Common Topic: specific procedure/set of questions for generating arguments (heuristics)

Common Place: unstated ideas, statements that help to shape an ideology
- unstated premises that help to construct an ideology

*Common Places are frequently resorted to popular rhetoric
*They provide the terms within which American discourse works

Ideologic: Arguments that are made by stringing together common places

"Keep Austin Weird"
1) An "ideal" city is a "weird" city
2) A weird city has lots of different people, different shops , different ideas, different cultures
3) Austin is a werid city
4) Homogeneity is not weird
5) Npx stpres corp. promote homogenerity
6) Gov't should promote what is unique in a city rather than what is "the same"
7) Austin policy should keep local stores here rather than inviting in corp.

"Guns don't kill people; people kill people"
Government should create legislation that targets criminals alone not the tools they use to commit crime
Guns don't do anything on their own
People are inherently good or bad
Good people will follow laws. Bad people will ignore laws
Responsible people should be given rights; unresponsible people forfeit their rights
Government should protect community