<HTML>Justin: <BLOCKQUOTE TYPE=CITE style="BORDER-LEFT: #0000ff 2px solid; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px">Well, this discussion just reached a dead end, since Leo is off not debating straw men, and objecting to views no one where had advocated on the classical Stalinist political grounds of why they might lead in someone's political trajectory rather than whether they are true or false. --jks</BLOCKQUOTE> Justin: I wish I understood why you have the need to bring to an end every discussion that involves the two of us with this kind of statement. In response to a point Kelley made, I offered some general observations about functionalist theories, followed up with a specific illustration of what I saw as a classical example of Marxist functionalism, Bowles' and Gintis' _Schooling in Capitalist America_. I raised that example because, as I explained, it is something on my mind, given my focus on education, and it seems pertinent to the general issues we were discussing. You could decide that since this particular tangent of the thread was not written in response to what you said, you would ignore it. That seems the most obvious option. Or you could decide that you wanted to comment on it, since it was part of a general thread to which you had been contributing. You could say any one of a number of things: (a) My critique of functionalist theories is all wet. (b) Whatever the value of the critique of functionalism in general, it does not apply to Marxist functionalism. (c) B&G did not make a "Marxist functionalist" argument. (d) B&G made a poor "Marxist functionalist" argument which is not representative of Marxist functionalism in general. (e) There is no intellectual continuity between B&G's functionalist account of education in _Schooling in Capitalist America_ and Gintis' functionalist espousal of school vouchers. And that is hardly an exhaustive list. Instead, you seize the opportunity to denounce me as a Stalinist. Even the choice of personal insult seems designed to produce maximum irritation and negative reaction in me. If you don't want to discuss, don't discuss. If you do want to discuss, let's avoid this completely unwarranted sort of personal attack. I was going to prepare some thoughts on your last posting in this thread, but I don't see much point in trying to carry on a discussion that takes this form of personal insult. Leo Casey United Federation of Teachers 260 Park Avenue South New York, New York 10010-7272 (212-598-6869) Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never has, and it never will. If there is no struggle, there is no progress. Those who profess to favor freedom, and yet deprecate agitation are men who want crops without plowing the ground. They want rain without thunder and lightning. They want the ocean without the awful roar of its waters. -- Frederick Douglass --</HTML>