President Donald Trump announced a new strategy on Afghanistan and Pakistan last night. But before he got to the substance, he spent 481 words on his feelings about soldiers. When you hear words like these, your heart may stir, but ask yourself: would anyone ever say anything different? Am I being manipulated? The speech last…
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) exists to defend people’s constitutional rights. Its California chapters (later backed up by the national organization) recently backed off its defense of alt-right protesters. It’s a nuanced stance, and a confusing statement didn’t help. People think of the ACLU as a highly liberal organization. It has recently defended imprisoned…
It’s easy to forget that businesses are made of people. When you write a case study for a business book, blog post, or article, readers need to see those people as human. Here’s how to do that quickly without getting in the way of the story you’re telling. People in business prose need to be…
The Trump White House sees itself as balanced and unifying on the violence in Charlottesville. Its talking points are full of true facts and balance, but on this issue, no balanced perspective exists. These are the facts about Charlottesville: A mass of protestors who self-identify as the “alt-right” came to Charlottesville and shouted white supremacist…
Jeffrey Selingo wrote a piece called “Why can’t college graduates write coherent prose?” for the Washington Post. He’s right to require more practice, but ignores the need to practice writing that’s appropriate for a screen. Lots of college students can’t write I know. I’ve hired or mentored many of them. Writing skills are spotty and…
The Daily Stormer — the site that sponsored the white nationalist protests in Charlottesville, Virginia this weekend — has apparently been under attack. It appeared that the hacker collective Anonymous took it over, then the site owners regained control, and then GoDaddy cancelled its domain registration. The GoDaddy part is true, but as I’ll show, the…
This weekend brought white supremacist marches, Nazi salutes, counter-protests and vehicular murder to Charlottesville, Virginia. You probably joined everyone from Orrin Hatch to Justin Trudeau in condemning it. Now what? You’re against racism. Good for you. You posted your outrage on Facebook. A bunch of people who agree with you and are also against hate and…
Today’s question is about the pursuit of perfection — not only how to do it, but when it makes sense. Dear Dr. Wobs: On perfection: how close to 100% error-free can an editor aspire to? What tools can help a mere mortal get a little closer? Martha Pings Perfection is a dangerous goal Dear Martha:…
If your high school or college students are about to go back to school, put a copy of “Writing Without Bullshit” in their schoolbags. (Assuming, of course, that your school isn’t offended by a little plain language.) It’s the perfect antidote to the outdated and ossified methods so many writing teachers use. Start them off…