It was 1963, I think and Ms. Hoke, an SFA graduate, was my 10th grade English teacher. After a few weeks in her class, she asked me to join my High School’s first UIL debating team. I had no idea what debate was, but she patiently explained the principles to me.
My parents had no objection to my participation in this activity, and I signed up. It turns out that my mother, a pharmacist, knew Ms. Hoke because the Hokes had a young daughter who had Cystic Fibrosis – a disease that was uniformly fatal in adolescence at that time – something I would not understand until two decades later when I studied Medicine. My mother filled Ms. Hoke’s daughter’s prescriptions. Life gives us so many opportunities to appreciate our interconnectedness, and so many of them seem to pass unappreciated. Sigh.
I participated in my High School’s debate squad for the remainder of my secondary education. My group of debaters, three teams of paired partners, were the first in our school to participate in debate and the first to be granted sweater letters just like the sports team members. Wow!
At one point, we all went to SFA in Nacogdoches for a debate contest. We didn’t win, but I and some of the other guys got drunk in our motel room. Our faculty sponsors busted our balls over it. We deserved it.
I think about that experience this evening because I think that political ads have a debate-like quality, but the opponents to do not get to cross-examine one another nor can they argue the framing of their opponents claims and arguments. So, I will do that here, as best I can, with regards Ted Cruz’s most recent Texas ad against Colin Allred.
Cruz Claims: “Colin Allred wants boys in girls’ sports, locker rooms, and bathrooms.”
The Truth is: Allred wants trans kids to be able to live their lives openly & authentically.
Cruz Claims: “Colin Allred wants Drag Queens to perform for military audiences.”
The Truth is: Allred wants an end to military bans on Drag entertainers.
Cruz Claims: “Allred wants taxpayer-funded sex-changes for members of the military.”
The Truth is: Allred supports the right of trans recruits to get the healthcare that they need just as cis recruits get care for ED, endometriosis, and other health conditions.
Cruz Claims: “Allred wants taxpayer-funded sterilization of adolescents.”
The Truth is: Allred wants Medicaid coverage for the healthcare of trans youth.
He who can control the narrative, wins the argument, and political ads are about controlling the narrative. So, suck on this, Ted Cruz!
I don’t know whether Ms. Hoke is still among the living; she is likely not, but I think of her now and then when I appreciate the importance of critical thinking that she helped me, and my fellow students develop and understand.