Transnational Thursday is a thread for people to discuss international news, foreign policy or international relations history. Feel free as well to drop in with coverage of countries you’re interested in, talk about ongoing dynamics like the wars in Israel or Ukraine, or even just whatever you’re reading.
Transnational Thursday for February 22, 2024
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court of people who don't all share the same biases. Our goal is to
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Check out The Vault for an archive of old quality posts.
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Why are you called The Motte?
A motte is a stone keep on a raised earthwork common in early medieval fortifications. More pertinently,
it's an element in a rhetorical move called a "Motte-and-Bailey",
originally identified by
philosopher Nicholas Shackel. It describes the tendency in discourse for people to move from a controversial
but high value claim to a defensible but less exciting one upon any resistance to the former. He likens
this to the medieval fortification, where a desirable land (the bailey) is abandoned when in danger for
the more easily defended motte. In Shackel's words, "The Motte represents the defensible but undesired
propositions to which one retreats when hard pressed."
On The Motte, always attempt to remain inside your defensible territory, even if you are not being pressed.
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Notes -
I don't post much here in general but I have to say, like many things on The Motte, your Transnational Thursdays are like nothing else I've seen on the internet. I love reading about foreign affairs, and a lot of these countries, you just don't hear about them except for these threads.
If you want to take a break or quit entirely, by all means, go for it. I would just be interested in where you got all the material for your posts in the first place.
Much appreciated!
It's a combination of the news and personal knowledge / connections. I'll pick a country I've been following and read as many articles across as many outlets as possible till I feel like I understand what's going on, then combine it with personal knowledge of the history of the area via books or wikipedia or whatnot. I've also lived in quite a few different countries so know some of their issues from a more personal lens; can talk to my friends about what things look like on the ground.
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Try The Economist. It comes out weekly and deals mostly with international affairs.
Ah the Economist! Always predicting the future of the 80s no matter what decade we're in!
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