Cockroaches and Fraud

Public Domain photo by Shari Weinsheimer

Seeking another source for definitions for my collection development class, beyond my textbook, I stumbled upon the definition of cockroaches in the Online Dictionary for Library and Information Science by Joan M. Reitz and had a giggle.

Reitz defines the pests as:

A very common nocturnal beetle-like insect of the genus Blatta, dark brown in color and of comparatively large size, known for its voraciousness and affinity for human habitations. It prefers kitchens where it multiplies rapidly if sufficient food is available. Cockroaches also feed on paste and glue and will chew through the binding of a book to get to it. They also excrete a dark-staining liquid that can be difficult to remove. The best way to prevent infestation is to prohibit food and drink near library collections. According to Jane Greenfield (The Care of Fine Books, Nick Lyons Books, 1988), boric acid powder sprinkled lightly on the shelves around books also discourages cockroaches. Click here to learn more about cockroaches and how to control them, courtesy of the University of Rhode Island.

For this week's discussion questions, I found an interesting article on library fraud relevant to collection development: $500K library fraud nets jail.

Ready Reference: Vigilante

According to Merriam-Webster, the word vigilante can be defined as:
"a member of a volunteer committee organized to suppress and punish crime summarily (as when the processes of law are viewed as inadequate); broadly : a self-appointed doer of justice."

Etymology:
Spanish, watchman, guard, from vigilante vigilant, from Latin vigilant-, vigilans

First Known Use: 1856

Wikipedia gives a brief history:
"Several groups and individuals have been labeled as vigilantes by historians and media. Vigilantes have been central to several creative fictional works and in some cases have been depicted as heroes and retaliatory forces against wrongdoers.

Vigilantism and the vigilante ethos existed long before the word vigilante was introduced into the English language. There are conceptual and psychological parallels between the Dark Age and medieval aristocratic custom of private war or vendetta and the modern vigilante philosophy.

Recourse to personal vengeance and duelling was considered a class privilege of the sword-bearing aristocracy before the formation of the modern centralized liberal-bureaucratic nation-state (see Marc Bloch, trans. L. A. Manyon, Feudal Society, Vol. I, 1965, p. 127). In addition, sociologists have posited a complex legal and ethical interrelationship between vigilante acts and rebellion and tyrannicide.In the Western literary and cultural tradition, characteristics of vigilantism have often been noted in folkloric heroes and legendary outlaws (e.g., Robin Hood). Vigilantism in literature, folklore and legend is deeply connected to the fundamental issues of morality, the nature of justice, the limits of bureaucratic authority and the ethical function of legitimate governance.During medieval times, punishment of felons was sometimes exercised by such secret societies as the courts of the Vehm (cf. the medieval Sicilian Vendicatori and the Beati Paoli), a type of early vigilante organization, which became extremely powerful in Westphalian Germany during the 15th century."

Synonyms:
avenger, castigator, chastiser, punisher, scourge, nemesis

Ready Reference: Red Herring

Yesterday, I took my studies to the back bench of the 52nd Judicial Circuit Court in Huron County, Michigan to observe the motion hearing attempting to disqualify the Honorable M. Richard Knoblock from a custody/parenting case. While the verbal and legal sparring back and forth was quite intriguing, the focus of this blog is on a term that was used several times in the courtroom...much to my delight. Red herring.

Red herring...a literary device.
Red herring ready reference...an alliteration which is also a literary device.
Both of these statements constitute a third literary device called antistrophe.

I digress... (a debate tactic)

According to Merriam-Webster, the term red herring originates from the 15th century and is defined as:
(1) a herring cured by salting and slow smoking to a dark brown color
(2) [from the practice of drawing a red herring across a trail to confuse hunting dogs] : something that distracts attention from the real issue

Focusing on the second definition, as cited by Merriam-Webster, the term red herring is often employed in literary works as a technique to divert the reader, specifically in crime novels and mysteries.

Revisiting your philosophy class during your undergraduate tenure, you might recall that a red herring also falls into what is deemed as a logical fallacy or an Ignoratio Elenchi (more broadly, the non sequitur). Lander University's philosophy page elaborates further:

"Ignoratio Elenchi (irrelevant conclusion): the fallacy of proving a conclusion not pertinent and quite different from that which was intended or required.

• The ignoratio elenchi is usually considered slightly narrower in focus than the non sequitur. Strictly speaking, any time a conclusion does not follow from its premises, the fallacy occurs. Other similar fallacies include diversion, red herring, subject changing, and ignoring the issue. In law, such a response given to a question can be called "nonresponsive."
  

• Ignoratio elenchi is a name used for arguments whose premises have no direct relation on the claim at issue. In this sense of the term, almost any fallacy could be considered an instance of ignoratio elenchi.

• In general, the ignoratio elenchi occurs when an argument purporting to establish a specific conclusion is directed, instead, to proving a different conclusion. This version is often termed the red herring fallacy—an irrelevant subject is interjected into the conversation to divert attention away from the main issue.

• At least, this seems to be the way Aristotle, to some extent, described the fallacy. He writes, "Those that depend upon whether something is said in a certain respect only or said absolutely, are clear cases of ignoratio elenchi because the affirmation and the denial are not concerned with the same point.… Those that depend upon the assumption of the original point and upon stating as the cause what is not the cause, are clearly shown to be cases of ignoratio elenchi through the definition thereof.." (Aristotle, On Sophistical Refutations (Kessinger Publishing, 2004) 11.) Literally, ignoratio elenchi is "ignorance of the nature of how something is refuted.

More recently, ignoratio elenchi is described less broadly as an argument, whether valid or invalid, not relevant to or a digression from the point at issue. Douglas Walton points out, "It may not come as such a big surprise to find subsequently that the treatment of the ignoratio elenchi fallacy in the twentieth-century logic textbooks can be described as a conceptual disarray, mixing several fallacies together in ways that makes it hard to separate them. (Douglas N. Walton, Relevance in Argumentation (Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 2004) 44.)

Ignoratio elenchi will be used in a special sense in these notes as a "catch-all" classification for fallacies of irrelevance which do not clearly fit into the other fallacies outlined here. As such, few examples of this fallacy are provided in these notes and in the exercises and tests.

• The ignoratio elenchi is most effective in political contexts where oral arguments are being given. Many listeners in such a context are easily distracted.

• Often this fallacy can be effective as a persuasive technique when coupled with the ad populum fallacy. The emotional situation in crowd can often be distracting and sometimes leads to overlooking the logical import of what is said."

Sans Souci

According to Merriam-Webster dictionary, "sans souci" means without worry. Wikipedia further defines the word as French for "without worries" or "carefree" with other spellings: "Sans-Souci, Sans-souci or Sanssouci."

Yesterday, was my last day in the office and I wanted to do something low-key, yet fitting, so I roadtripped to 42°34′45″N 82°33′51″W. It was everything that I wanted it to be...and more.

The Adventures of JC

"So you set out to travel to Rome... and end up in Istanbul. You set off for Japan... and you end up on a train across Siberia. The journey, not the destination, becomes a source of wonder."
--Loreena McKennitt


(Photo: Northwest flight #?? - somewhere between Raleigh, North Carolina and Detroit, Michigan)

Turdus merula

bottle of merlot
effects of embodiment
sprinting through a field

Owl

fist full of cold stones
crisp snow crunching under foot
deeply, immensely

Green and Gold Inklings

stones glittering in the sun
quaking aspen and warm breath
acorns, twigs, and earth

Gem

While doing research for quotes on reason, I stumbled upon a beautiful gem by Charlotte Brontë, "Reason sits firm and holds the reins, and she will not let the feelings burst away and hurry her to wild chasms. The passions may rage furiously, like true heathens, as they are; and the desires may imagine all sorts of vain things: but judgment shall still have the last word in every argument, and the casting vote in every decision."

To some, it might read as through she is writing about love and matters of the heart, however, I beg to differ. Brontë wasn't writing about romance. She was writing about reason in the context of thought, choice, control, rational decision making, thinking v. feeling, heart v. brain.

A practical example of this that occurred this week: (Insert extremely frustrating situation) occurred and I wanted to yell, hop in my truck and fly like a bat out of hell. I didn't. In the words of Brontë...reason sat pretty and held onto the reins. I smiled and remained cool, calm, and collected.

Oh, how I strive to write like her...

Calamity

alluring bête noire
clocks, calendars, moon and stars
dark waters run clear

Esquivalience

I am studying for a quiz by reviewing chapters I have read already. To be noted, the New Oxford American Dictionary, 2nd edition, has 249,999 real words plus one fake: esquivalience. According to Cassell and Hiremath, the rationale for adding a faux word was to protect the dictionary's copyright. Interesting...

Word Play

"The three preferred encyclopedias had visual depictions which helped to break up the monotony and added to the information gathering process by providing the researcher with an appropriately cited visual aid to be possibly utilized in a presentation. Specifically, the ideal visual aid, a historic oil painting depicted in the World Book article show signers of the Constitution, with an illustrated character map that lists the full name of each signer, which subsequently supports the article’s textual information." = "Me like pictures!"


(hahaha)

Word

I heard one of my favorite words used today! Repugnant. The word repugnant brings to mind memories of hilarious drawings and sketches I once made when doing a word association game...

The following is from Merriam-Webster Dictionary:
1: incompatible, inconsistent
2: archaic : hostile
3: exciting distaste or aversion (repugnant language) (a morally repugnant practice)
— re·pug·nant·ly adverb

Examples of REPUGNANT
1. graffiti that featured absolutely repugnant racial slurs
2. technically speaking, it may not be a violation, but it is certainly repugnant to the spirit of the law

Origin of REPUGNANT
Middle English, opposed, contradictory, incompatible, from Anglo-French, from Latin repugnant-, repugnans, present participle of repugnare to fight against, from re- + pugnare to fight — more at pungent
First Known Use: 15th century

Related to REPUGNANT
Synonyms: abhorrent, abominable, appalling, awful, disgusting, distasteful, dreadful, evil, foul, fulsome, gross, hideous, horrendous, horrible, horrid, loathsome, nasty, nauseating, nauseous, noisome, noxious, obnoxious, obscene, odious, rancid, repellent (also repellant), offensive, repulsive, revolting, scandalous, shocking, sickening, ugly

Antonyms: innocuous, inoffensive