Friday, January 30, 2009

Touro Communication Club Notes #60
Tourocommunicationclub.blogspot.com
This Week!
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
2 pm – Room 223 0- Midtown
“Gender Communication II”
This topic – however controversial – needs further exploration from our initial discussion a while ago. Many of our communication difficulties occur during the perennial “Battle of the Sexes.” A recent controversial book, “The Female Brain,” written by Dr. Louann Brizendine, a San Francisco neurosurgeon, argues that women have a brain with an 8-lane highway while males have a single wandering country road. We’ll try to identify some of these difficulties and discover what we can do to communicate more effectively with the opposite sex.
Communicator Comments:
The communication behavior of impeached Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich this week contrasts with the communication behavior of another alleged Ponzi schemer Bernard Madoff. Where Blagojevich ignored his lawyer’s advice and created a media blitz appearing on all the television networks in the last week defending his position, Madoff has been silent, no doubt for legal reasons.
Although we have first hand witnessed Blagojevich’s way with words, we have only newspaper reports of Madoff’s rhetorical gifts. The ex-Governor speaks extremely fast – a virtual motor mouth. His patient wait through a question is followed by a tsunami of verbiage, often with disconnected thought leaps. The speed at which he talks is tiring to this listener. Ideas blur during his word blizzard. He peppers his defense with claims that his actions were on behalf of the people of Illinois. Another garnish of his word salad was his tip-of-the-tongue one-liner quotes from Gandhi, MLK, Jr., the Bible and other juicy nuggets from “The Pocket Book of Great Quotations.” Blagojevich’s oration at his impeachment trial lasted 47 minutes.
Mr. Madoff’s rhetorical skills can only report. To the people he duped out of some $80 billion, Madoff was personable, gracious, confident, friendly, absolutely charming. No one could have guessed that he was doing something illegal.
Two styles of communication: one loud and aggressive; one quiet and misleadingly courteous. It is easy to identify the rhetorical style of the Braggart Warrior. It is not so easy to perceive the rhetorical cunning of the fox.
Ethos – Aristotle’s credibility – is an ephemeral experience. Often we are not paying attention as the pickpocket deceptively takes our wallet. But the aggressive bully is easy to spot. The non-verbal messages that we send out unconsciously color the words speak. President Obama’s smile lights up a room. We recognize James Earl Jones’ famous “Voice of God” as Darth Vader.” The pixie flirty energy of actress/singer Kristin Chenowith is riveting. Hitler’s rhetorical skills were legendary in their effectiveness.
With actors it is safe to be fooled by their “ethos.” No one will get hurt. But when we experience directly charismatic ethos in daily life – and certainly in politics – we must sharpen our crap detectors to identify the behavior as we become mesmerized by the manner.
Communication skills, like a carpenter’s tools, can be used in a variety of ways. The manner in which these skills are used is the very fabric of our relationships. Honing our observation and listening is a continual task.
Wednesday, February 11, 2009 –
The Club Writes a Letter to President Obama
We will spend the session translating our ideas into a coherent document which we will send to the new President. All suggestions are welcome. In a very small way we are taking the abstractions of our opinions and converting them into an action proposal. We will experiment with walking our talk.
Wednesday, February 18, 2009 –
Theatre Workshop III – Improvisation Technique
We continue to explore the basics of acting – breathing, sense memory, emotional recall as foundations for intensifying our notions of characterization. No doubt, this will be another frustrating hors d’oeuvre in the smorgasbord of valuable life skills of actor training.
What happened on January 28, 2009 Club Discussion: “What’s Happening to Communication?”
James Millner opened the discussion by handing out a list of communication devices dating from the Egyptians. Lorinda Moore, Tarell Allen, Hal Wicke, Carlisle Yearwood and Charles Mason participated.
Since so many thoughts were exchanged, a laundry list might be the most efficient way of remembering them. Communication is
  • Becoming one-sided
  • Everything is automated.
  • Everything is faster because of technology
  • Becoming dangerous – more opportunity for scams and misunderstandings.
  • Is not as intelligent.
  • Used to cozy and friendly.
  • We’re spending more time with technology and not relating as people.
  • We’ve become helpless without technology.
  • “Back in the day,” we learned survival skills; we learned everything from scratch. Now we are too dependent on technology.
  • The impact of this new communication behavior is that we are more distracted, often losing focus.
  • People are not aware. Numb. Distracted. “Deer in the headlights” phenomenon.
  • Anecdote - student saying he wants to “live in a bubble.”
  • Anecdote – student runs into a teacher and asks to suggest an easy 3-credit course.
  • Brief discussion among the four instructors –
o Teaching standard English is a constant battle.
o School is now the counterculture.
o Keeping standards.

  • What are the problems?
  • Advertising forces technology on us.
  • Competition among colleges for students
  • It used to be “different strokes for different folks,” now it’s one stroke for every folk.”
  • “Youth is wasted on the young,”
  • There is a communication crisis – this is a wake-up call.
“Communication needs a defibrillator,” said Lorinda.
IDEA: Carlisle Yearwood suggested we develop a 3x4 index card with basic Touro information on it. We’ll talk more about this in the future.
As always, these sessions are open for everyone to attend. Bring a friend and join the excitement. See you next time.

Hal Wicke

Touro Communication Club Notes #59
This Week!
Wednesday, January 28, 2009 - 2 pm - Room 223 - Midtown
Club Discussion: “What’s Happening to Communication?”
James Millner suggested this topic recently in an email. He wrote, “The other day I heard a conversation about communication that raised an interesting point. It was pertaining to the techno era, with all the e-mailing, sms mail, and texting. A question arose, "What happening to communication?" Now it seems that even the telephone is not used for the purpose it was invented for anymore. I think it would be an interesting topic to discuss.
We think so, too, James! If this discussion goes the way of our other discussions, we will end up with some very unusual conversation.
Comments for Communicators.

I suppose if and when you are perceived as a “savior” and, by extension, the embodiment of perfection – the kind that is able to leap tall buildings at a single bound - people inevitably are going to be disappointed when they find out you are a mere human.
Probably the greatest lesson of this past week has been how people hear what they want to hear. Despite the palpable clarity of President Obama’s words, Some people heard his words and made different connections in their heads. And the complaints started bubbling.
President Obama’s pragmatic Inaugural Address made several thematic statements that would characterize his administration. They include:
  • Restore confidence in America as a world leader.
  • Stabilize the national financial crisis.
  • Reestablish the rule of law.
  • Establish standards of transparency, openness and inclusiveness.
Now three days in to the 44th Presidency, the glamour and
ecstasy of the inauguration vanished quickly. Unlike previous
presidents unfortunately, Obama will not get his 100-day honeymoon.
His honeymoon ended on Inauguration Day. Obama’s words and
actions are being scrutinized microscopically.


  • Does each of his deeds match his words?
  • Does what he says match my belief system? Subtext: “If he doesn’t agree with me, he’s wrong.”
  • Both the left and right were complaining that their separate agendas were not being addressed immediately.
  • Some were saying the Inauguration was too inclusive.
  • Others were saying Obama was not moving fast enough on their issues.
  • Ethical standards that Obama has set are being violated in two appointments.
A digression: on Tuesday, January 20th my wife, Andrea, and I were glued to the video screen watching the entire historic Inauguration. After it was over, I had to go to Touro for an appointment. As I walked to the train, I was in a rose-colored reverie, replete with a patchwork of thoughts and hopes and memories. As I got on the train, I walked into the midst of a loud argument between several people who were complaining about the behavior of each other. My beatific reverie evaporated and I was brought back to the reality of daily life in New York City.
Glowing words of promise contrasted with the cacophony of unpleasantness. That was my experience on that special day. Such contrasts occur frequently to me.
It will be important to see how President Obama deals with these contrasts. His surrogate, Press Secretary Robert Gibbs, got a clue on his first two consecutive meetings with reporters. Gibbs was ground up by the press, Everything was challenged. There were no softball questions. Yet Gibbs maintained control under the pressure with an easy smile and an ability to set limits on the intrusive reporters.
I suppose that after eight years of President Bush’s behavior, the press and the public are going to continue to grill Obama and all his surrogates within an inch of their lives. Everyone wants answers that will solve all problems yesterday.
Everyone still expects President Obama to be the savior. We need to explore the burden that “saviors’ bear.
Our upcoming schedule is:

Wednesday, February 4, 2009 – Gender Communication II
This topic – however controversial – needs much more exploration. Many of our communication difficulties occur during the long-standing “Battle of the Sexes.” A disputed recent book, “The Female Brain,” written by a female neurosurgeon, argues that women have an 8-lane highway for a brain while men have a single wandering country road. We’ll try to bring some of these difficulties to the surface and see what we can do to communicate more effectively with the opposite sex.
Wednesday, February 11, 2009 –
The Club writes a letter to President Obama – All suggestions welcome. We have all these ideas. We are going to try to participate in the national political process.
What happened on January 21, 2009 with the Theatre Workshop – Improvisation Technique II
A hardy band of seven came together on this frightfully cold intersession day to explore their imaginations. Egypt Allen, Lorinda Moore, David Nussbaum, James Millner, Frank Antwi, Brian Brown and Hal Wicke were the hardy souls.
Since most of the people were new, Hal went through the basic diaphragmatic breathing exercises. Everyone closed their eyes, feet on the floor with one hand on the diaphragm. The goal was to keep the shoulders still and raise and lower your hand as you inhaled and exhaled.
Next we began with using the mind to recreate heat and cold. Stanislavski calls this “Sense Memory.” In our heads, we created a sense of hot followed by cold. Next, we began another Stanislavski exercises, “Emotional Recall.” The first exercise was to recreate in your head the experience of fear by thinking of an incident which made you fearful. James had to leave so the exercise was shortened, omitting the second emotion of anger and concluding with the emotion of joy. Hal didn’t want to have everyone leave the room angry.
After each segment everyone talked about what they felt. Hal asked that no one talk about the details of the incident that produced the emotion. Several described their experience in intellectual terms, but Hal wanted them to use emotional words.
Hal pointed out that our minds are very powerful instruments. “A mind is a terrible thing top waste,” says the familiar Negro College Fund slogan. But how much can and do we use our minds? Hal feels that learning how an actor uses his/her mind will sharpen t he mental faculties of everyone when they move from an affective situation (acting) to a cognitive (academics) one.
The group was tired from the intense concentration and the discussion led to a spirited exchange about how men and women differ in their communication. We’ll schedule a session on gender communication in the near future.
These sessions are always open for everyone to attend. Bring a friend and join in the excitement. See you next time.
Hal Wicke

Monday, January 19, 2009

Touro Communication Club Notes #58
This Week!
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Theater Workshop – Improvisation Technique II
Room 223 - Midtown
Actor training can help the Communicator to express him/herself more effectively. In these sessions, we focus only on the body as an instrument to deliver messages. Some of the exercises may seem silly to the newcomer. However, with a little practice, you will soon see how actor training can help your communication. Breathing, mental focus, animals, objects, impersonations scene study – all are among the surprises that Professor Catherine Gaffigan will lead you to discover.. Lots of imagination! Lots of fun!
Communication comments:
We are on the eve of the inauguration of Barack Obama, the 44th President of the United States of America. It has been called a landmark election, a turning point in American history. Millions will stand in the bitter cold on the Washington Mall to be eyewitnesses to history being made: the first African-American has been elected to the highest office in the land.
So much hope – in America and around the world – rides of the promise of this bright articulate, thoughtful Hawaiian born human being to lead this country and the world. With the vaulting hope comes crushing burdens at home and abroad. So many problems need immediate attention after eight years of a president whose leadership style has contributed mightily to the disarray in this country and escalated the dissension in the world.
In the weeks since November 4, 2008, before President Obama has taken office, he has begun to demonstrate an approach to leadership not seen in decades in Washington: - or ever:
  • Obama has assembled an incredibly talented, bright, loyal support team to provide counsel about and execution of his ideas.
  • Obama’s cabinet is extremely strong and capable, often called “A Team of Rivals,” after Lincoln’s cabinet.
  • Obama’s called upon the 50 governor’s to be allies in rebuilding their states, promising to help them achieve their goals.
  • Obama has met privately with a group of conservative columnists, including Charles Krauthammer, William Kristol, at the home of George Will.
  • Obama has sent Vice-President-elect Joe Biden to the Middle East to lay the groundwork for some very difficult negotiations.
  • Obama has generated the first economic legislation, supported by the Bush administration, well before the inauguration. A first in American history.
In short, Obama has been incredibly pro-active, unlike ANY previous president in history, prior to being inaugur ated. An incredible feat accomplished with his “No drama Obama” style. It has seemed almost too easy.
Like the airplane ditching last week in the Hudson River, “The Miracle on the Hudson” said Governor David Patterson, President Obama’s pre-inauguration accomplishments are pitch perfect and are text book examples of how to run a government.
For a Yankee baseball pitcher, it’s a 20-game season. For a Ranger hockey player, it’s a 50 goal season. For a Knick basketball player, it’s a 50 point game.
And President Obama hasn’t even started yet!
Our upcoming schedule is:
Wednesday, January 28, 2009 – Club Discussion – “What’s Happening to Communication?” James Millner suggested this topic recently in an email. He wrote, “The other day I heard a conversation about communication that raised an interesting point. It was pertaining to the techno era, with all the e-mailing, sms mail, and texting. A question arose, "What happening to communication?" Now it seems that even the telephone is not used for the purpose it was invented for anymore. I think it would be an interesting topic to discuss.
We think so, too, James! If this discussion goes the way of our other discussions, we will end up with so very unusual conversation.
What happened on January 14, 2009 with the Club Discussion on “How Power Affects Communication”
Our largest attendance yet, fifteen people, stayed either a few minutes or the entire time for this exciting exploration. In order of the sign-in, they included Drani Gabu, Meggy Lindsay, Lisa Buckner, James Millner, Egypt Allen, Jose Dunker, Charles Mason, Lorinda Moore, Patricia (no last name), Max Kopelman, Marie Ossolom, Anna Indelicato, Brian Brown, Marcus Vayndorf and Amina Bibi and Hal Wicke.
Before for we begin our report of the session, let us wish “Bon Voyage” to Amina Bibi, who graduates from Touro this month and will be working for the Pakistani Mission to the United Nations. Amina has participated in the club for over a year, particularly in the SPAR and gun control debates. She told me she would miss these discussions and hopes to drop by when she can.
[As an aside, I have noticed that whatever I put on the blackboard – in typical professorial fashion – gets immediately ignored during the discussion. Among the items Hal wrote were:
“How Power Affects Communication”
What is Power?
Do I have powe r?
Where do I get it?
[On the side, Hal wrote my mantra – Aristotle – “Rhetoric” – Logos, Pathos and Ethos”]
Hal asked everyone, “Do you have power?” Most said they did. Some paused before they said yes. One said, “Absolutely.” Then we tried to find out what people meant when they said they had power. To academic types, we tried to define “power.”
Many people thought power was a version of having “power over.” Persuasion is a tool of power. Coercion is another tool of power. Some suggested an external force gave them power – a uniform, a title, a badge, a position. Lorinda suggested that some people confuse power and authority. Some talked about having internal power. Issues of control were important to people who thought they had power.
Some mentioned having a spiritual power, a religious source of power. Some were quite clear that they had an internal power that was not dependent on external forces. Hal interrupted to remind those present that we would focus on the secular aspects of power rather than power derived from a religious source.
Lorinda offered the proverb, “As a man thinks in his heart, so he is.” [Proverbs 23:7. In 1902, James Allen expanded on the proverb to create a very successful little book that influenced the growth of the Horatio Alger-based self-help movement in America.] People agreed that one’s thinking was an important part of whether we felt power-full or not.
The question, “Have you ever felt power-less?” provoked general agreement that at one time or other, each had felt without power. One person said that sometimes he can’t “think his way out of power-less situations.”
Another person suggested AA [Alcoholics Anonymous] and NA [Narcotics Anonymous] and their 12-step programs. This is the first step: “I admit I am powerless over alcohol—that my life has become unmanageable.” This is another avenue worth exploring.
Meggy shared that when she feels power-less, she immediately flips her thinking into power-full thought mode. She told the vivid story of coming out of a club one night and being confronted with a man holding a gun who wanted her jewelry. Without thinking, she turned around, twisted the gun from his hand and threw him to the concrete. She then called the cops. She said she had never had any previous martial arts training, but in her head she made a decision that this person was not going to rob her. Without reflection, she20acted. The discussion that followed was riveting.

What about a gun? Does a gun make you power-full? Most people felt that the person who uses a weapon does not have power within. If you need an object to be power-full, you aren’t. One person said. “I may be power-less, but not help-less.”
James suggest that perhaps “Power is not constant; it was fluid.” He made a comparison to art, “Art is in the eye of the beholder.” But that was a digression. Marcus offered that there was individual and social power. Bertrand Russell’s 1938 book, “Power,” was suggested as a resource.
Time was moving along with many questions not yet addressed or adequately answered. Clearly, there is much to explore further in the future.
Hal suggested that we talk a little bit about the upcoming Obama inauguration. “Does Obama have power?” Just because Obama has the title of President, what does that mean in terms of power? The response was not sufficient to get a general impression. More later.
Finally, people agreed the topic of the student’s experience of power at school would be worth exploring.
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Several things seem to be apparent:
  • Most people are engaged by the discussions. If they aren’t, they leave quickly.
  • The exchanges are passionate, displaying a combination of deeply held thoughts or the beginnings of a deepening awareness.
  • All of the exchanges are free of rancor, with great acceptance of different ideas and different ways to express those ideas.
  • Even those who don t speak seem to follow the discussion intently – with their eyes.
  • For those who are regulars to these sessions – we now have about 4 or 5 - each demonstrates a growing confidence of an ability to express one’s thoughts in a clear manner. The faculty presence is very important to the egalitarian nature of the discussions. No one is THE AUTHORITY.
  • And, for me, as the moderator of these sessions, I am absolutely delighted that the standards of critical thinking are getting higher and higher, demonstrated by the careful listening and observation of all present.
These sessions are always open for everyone to attend. Bring a friend and join in the excitement. See you next time.
Hal Wicke

Saturday, January 10, 2009

Touro Communication Club Notes #57
tourocommunicationclub.blogspot.com
This Week!
Wednesday, January 14, 2009– 2 pm – Room 223 Midtown –
Club Discussion on
“How Power Affects Communication”
What is Power?
Do I have Power?
Do others have Power?
How does Power and/or the lack of it affect our Communication?
We’ll share stories and try to come up with some conclusions about Power.
Communication comments:
I’ve learned that blurbs for this little essay come from the most unexpected sources. After the SPAR debate session was over, Amina Bibi and Egypt Allen remained still emotionally connected to the session.
Amina is from Pakistan and Egypt is from the Bronx, near Yonkers. Yet they spoke of disillusionment in their different work experiences. Amina will be graduating from Touro this semester and will move from an internship to working for the Pakistani mission to the United Nations. Egypt has had an internship at the New York City Council, connected to Speaker Christine Quinn’s office.
Both spoke of the chaos behind the scenes, people rushing around not looking like they knew what they were doing. Each spoke of the back-biting and gossiping between the workers as well as the lack of the lack of preparedness for a public event. Yet when the Pakistani Ambassador and Speaker Quinn got up to spoke, they presented a thin façade of knowing what they were doing, when moments before each seemed out of control and not prepared.
The disillusionment that both Amina and Egypt experience was the suddenly be confronted with the reality of politics – how behind the scenes was seeming different from what the public saw.
I was also struck that these two Touro students from locations 7000 miles apart could describe quite similar behavior in parallel situations. We talked about their disillusionment coming from their idealized expectations of people in public positions. Both seemed to imagine that public figures were always knowledgeable, poised, prepared and able to manage their public and private personae.
We talked about what might be the impact of their discovery of different realities in public and behind the scenes. Both were still too emotionally close to their shock to yet put it in perspective. We talked briefly about the high expectations that people around the world have about President-elect Barack Obama’s ability to reverse the fortunes of America and the world.
As they spoke, I was reminded again (see last week’s blog entry) of how Toto goes behind the curtain of the Wizard of Oz to discover the “Wizard” pulling all kinds of levers that made the public image of the Wizard so fearsome
Our upcoming schedule is:
Wednesday, January 21, 2009 – Theatre Workshop – Improvisation Technique – Room 223 - Midtown – We will continue to build on the breathing exercises and the mental focus that is required of an actor. No doubt we will do some exercises that will challenge your ability to forget who you are in order to become someone or something else. Lots of imagination! Lots of fun!
Wednesday, January 28, 2009 – Club Discussion – “What’s Happening to Communication?” James Millner suggested this topic recently in an email. He wrote, “The other day I heard a conversation about communication that raised an interesting point. It was pertaining to the techno era, with all the e-mailing, sms mail, and texting. A question arose, "What happening to communication?" Now it seems that even the telephone is not used for the purpose it was invented for anymore. I think it would be an interesting topic to discuss.
We think so, too, James! If this discussion goes the way of our other discussions, we will end up with some very unusual conversation.
What happened on January 7, 2008 with the SPAR Debate?
Richard Green and Egypt Allen faced off with the proverb “The grass is greener on the other side.” In the second round, Charles Mason debated Egypt on the topic, “Too many cooks spoil the broth.” In our third round, Frank Antwi and Drani Gabu argued, “When in Rome, do at the Romans.” Amina Bibi and Jose Dunker joined in as spectators and judges.
Immediately after each debate the spectator/judges voted on the “winners of each debate. Posting the winners is irrelevant to this learning process, but we do it to have some minimal yardstick. Then each debater was asked what they thought of their presentation and what they could do better next time. Finally, the entire group made their comments. Everyone was tired from concentrating for an hour and a half.
What did the debaters learn?
  • Time goes too fast.
  • Fill up the time at all costs.
  • The entire experience is very intense. (“I’m not used to concentrating that hard.”)
  • My mind goes round and round in circles.
  • It’s hard to get all your thoughts out of your mouth fast enough.
  • When you run out of material, you repeat and develop what you’ve already said.
  • Be quicker on asking questions.
  • Don’t let your opponent eat up your time by continuing to run their mouths.
  • Use the prep period wisely to think of three points to support your point of view.
  • And think of three arguments that your opponent will use against you.
Clearly, with practice, each will get sharper at thinking on their feet. Most importantly, they will get used to thinking ahead and anticipating the arguments of their opponent. This is critical thinking at its purest!
These sessions are always open for everyone to attend. Bring a friend and join in the excitement. See you next time.

Hal Wicke

Wednesday, January 7, 2009

Touro Communication Club Notes #56a
tourocommunicationclub.blogspot.com
This Week!
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
2 pm – Room 223 – Midtown
SPAR Debate: Debating Silly Topics with a Serious Purpose
We are returning to the SPAR Debate Event to get our minds in gear for=2 02nd semester which begins February 1st. There are several values to SPAR Debates:
· They don’t require any preparation. Just show up with your mind turned on.
· They use topics which require no prior knowledge.
· There is no consequence to winning or losing – just practice for the future.
· They are short – 6½ minutes or less - so the “pain” is brief.
· They give you practice in thinking on your feet.
· They get you used to the pressure of forming clear responses that are responsive to questions.
· They ask you to organize your thoughts in a very limited amount of time.
· They ask you to listen very carefully to the thread of your opponent’s arguments.
· Plus many other values you will discover on your own.
Communication comments:
Rather than focus on all the forever interesting convolutions of what’s happening in the national and international news, Richard Green suggest that I write briefly about a book I’m reading. It’s called “Un-Spun – Finding Facts in a World of [Disinformation]” by Brooks Jackson and Kathleen Hall Jamieson. It’s a 2007 Random House trade paper back for $12.95. It is fast read, written in a breezy, journalistic manner. Columnist Mark Shields calls the book, “The Definitive B.S. Detector.”
These two are the folks behind FactCheck.org, the increasingly influential free service that documents the vagaries and vulgarities of the American political discourse, most recently the Presidential campaign. FactCheck.org is a project of the Annenberg School of Communication at the University of Pennsylvania where Jamieson is Director of the Public Policy Center.
“We live in a world of spin” is the opening sentence of the introduction. They define spin as the polite word for deception. “Spinners mislead by means that range from subtle omission to outright lies. Spin paints a false pictu re of reality by bending facts, mischaracterizing the words of others, ignoring or denying crucial evidence, or just ‘spinning a yarn’ – by making things up.” It concludes with the well-known saying of the late Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan, ”You are entitled to your opinion. But you are not entitled to your own facts.”
I’m half way through the book – which is my subway reading. Jackson and Jamieson argue that “spin” begins in the 19th century with the Yankee peddlers who pitched snake oil remedies – those quack medicines whose major ingredient was alcohol. If you’ve ever closely watched the beginning of “The Wizard of Oz,” Frank Morgan (the later Wizard) is a snake oil salesman with his tent and wagon. If we noticed this detail, we wouldn’t need Toto to go behind the Wizard’s curtain.
“Un-Spun” is a very useful guide book for not only political speech and advertising, If we are clever, we can observe how our everyday conversation with our family, friends and co-workers – maybe teachers? - is filled with “spin.” But that’s a horse of a different color, to quote the Wizard.
One might even go so far as to say, “To spin is human, to be aware divine.”
Our upcoming schedule is:
Wednesday, January 14, 2009– 2 pm – Room 223 Midtown –
Club Discussion on “How Power Affects Communication.” What is Power? Do I have Power? Do others have Power? How does Power And/or the lack of it affect Communication? We’ll share stories and try to come up with some conclusions about Power.
Wednesday, January 21, 2009 – Theatre Workshop – Improvisation Technique – Room 223 - Midtown – We will continue to build on the breathing exercises and the mental focus that is required of an actor. No doubt we will do some exercises that wil l challenge your ability to forget who you are in order to become someone or something else. Lots of imagination! Lots of fun!
Wednesday, January 28, 2009 – Club Discussion – “What’s Happening to Communication?” James Millner suggested this topic recently in an email. He wrote, The other day I heard a conversation about communication that raised an interesting point. It was pertaining to the techno era, with all the e-mailing, sms mail, and texting. A question arose, "What happening to communication?" Now it seems that even the telephone is not used for the purpose it was invented for anymore. I think it would be an interesting topic to discuss.
We think so, too, James! If this discussion goes the way of our other discussions, we will end up with so very unusual conversation.
These sessions are always open for everyone to attend. Bring a friend and join in the excitement. See you next time.

Hal Wicke.