RAIL

What is RAIL?

RAIL is a blog for scholars engaged in the study of reasoning, argumentation theory, informal logic, rhetoric, and critical thinking.  All perspectives on argumentation theory are welcome, including but by no means limited to those based in Toulmin’s theory, philosophical informal logic, pragma-dialectics, epistemic theory, fallacy-studies, computation, those based in various orientations in the study of rhetoric, or brilliant new ways of looking at orientation that no one has ever heard of before.  All disciplines that study argumentation are welcome too: philosophers, logicians, rhetoricians, communication scholars, computer scientists, psychologists, legal theorists, interdisciplinary scholars, and anyone else in any other discipline who might be working on a project in argumentation theory.  RAIL is intended to be as inclusive and interdisciplinary as is the field of argumentation theory itself. You can follow RAIL on Twitter: @RAILBlog.

About Yours Truly

I am Steven Patterson. I teach informal logic, moral, and political philosophy at Marygrove College in Detroit, Michigan, here in the States. I got my Ph.D. in philosophy from Wayne State University (also in Detroit) in 2003. I did my dissertation on human rights there.  I’m currently working on projects dealing with the normativity of argumentation, the relationship between argument and judgment, and the question of how best to argue productively across deep differences in political contexts. This year I once again have the good fortune to be a Visiting Research Fellow with CRRAR at the University of Windsor. I am also a member of AILACT.  You can find me on Twitter: @seventanterpost.

My perspective in argumentation theory falls pretty much within informal logic as done in philosophy, but RAIL is borne of my interest in and genuine enjoyment of argumentation theory in all its diversity.  As of right now, and near as I can tell, RAIL is in a very small club of blogs that are not attached to any institution or academic department, nor are dedicated to any particular subset of issues or to a theoretical orientation in argumentation theory.  This reflects the enjoyment I get from crossing those kinds of lines, and my conviction, which I believe I share with a great many others in this field, that we can all derive some benefit by doing so.

Posting on RAIL

As the point of the blog is to serve the argumentation community, your submissions, contributions, and announcements are welcome. If you have something you’d like to see posted on the blog, or if you’d like to write for RAIL, send me an e-mail containing all the pertinent information and I’ll take it from there.

Editorial Policies:

(Last update: 4 March 2012)

• Right now the language of RAIL is English because, despite some reading ability in a few other languages, I don’t consider myself competent enough in any of them to proofread in them at a professional level. I may recruit readers for other languages in the future if it becomes necessary, but so far, English seems to be working just fine.
• RAIL is a scholarly blog, not a political blog. (Yes, there is a difference. If you don’t believe me hop on over to firedoglake or National Review Online. Compare and contrast.) That said writers here do have their political opinions and sometimes those opinions will come out in what they write. It is the official policy of RAIL to be open to political positions from across the political spectrum. If you don’t see your view represented, don’t get mad. Write something and send it in! Just remember that the primary purpose of this blog is discussion of argumentation and critical thinking. Staying on that map is key.
• If your post is clearly related to argumentation theory, informal logic or critical thinking, isn’t gratuitously or personally offensive (near as I can tell, anyway), and is at least decently written, it’s going up.  The point of RAIL is to have a place online for argumentation scholars from across disciplines and theoretical orientations to converse about all things argumentation theory.  I think of it like the electronic version of the kind of conversation one might have between sessions at a major conference.

Comments:

• Stay on topic
  • Remember that this is a blog about argumentation and critical thinking.
• Be coherent
• Keep it civil  (Yes, I know that norms of civility are controversial. Yes, it’s my policy anyway.)
• Real names are nice (because it’s a little weird to have a serious conversation with someone called, e.g. CrayzeeKillerKantian99) but they are not required.

That’s about it.

If you have any questions about anything on this page, please use the comment function and I’ll answer them as best I can.

The header image, in case you are interested is “Det Indre af Kjøbenhavns Hovedbanegaard taget i Brug den 14. Oktober 1864″ by Theodor Siersted.

This page has the following sub pages.

• Posting on RAIL