Hi Chuck

Since we’re being candid, allow me to say how much I dislike your post. Everything about it
annoys me – your smug and snarky tone, your appalling grammar, your complete lack of
evidence to support your claims, and of course, the overarching logical fallacy that informs
your entire position. What really bugs me though, is the fact that you’re not entirely wrong.
It’s true; I haven’t shared any political opinions this week, in part anyway, because doing so
might very well be “bad for business.”

What can I say? I work for half-a-dozen different companies, none of whom pay me to
share my political opinions. I run a non-partisan foundation, I’m about to launch a new
show on Facebook, and I’m very aware that celebrities pay a price for opening their big fat
gobs. Gilbert Gottfried, Kathy Griffin, Colin Kaepernick, Milo Yiannopoulos…even that guy
from Google who just got himself fired for mouthing off. There’s no getting around it – the
first amendment does not guarantee the freedom to speak without consequences. And
really, that’s fine by me.

So no – I’m not going to share my personal feelings about Charlottesville, President Trump,
or the current effort to remove thousands of statues of long dead soldiers from the public
square. Not just because it’s “bad for business,” but because it’s annoying. I can’t think of a
single celebrity whose political opinion I value, and I’m not going to assume the country
feels any differently about mine. So, rather than blow myself up, or chime in with all the
obvious observations about the cowardly scum in the pointy hats, I’m going to talk instead
about my belief that comments like yours pose a far greater threat to the future of our
country than the existence of a memorial to Thomas Jefferson, or a monument to George
Washington. Ready? Let’s start with a closer look at your claims.

You say that White Nationalists believe that everyone who goes to college is an “academic
elite.” You then say that Republicans promote “anti-intellectualism.” You offer no proof to
support either claim, but it really doesn’t matter – your statements successfully connect two
radically different organizations by alleging a shared belief. Thus, White Nationalists and The
Republican Party suddenly have something in common – a contempt for higher education.
Then, you make it personal. You say that Republicans “love” me because they believe that
my initiative and “their” initiative are one and the same. But of course, “their” initiative is
now the same initiative as White Nationalists.

Very clever. Without offering a shred of evidence, you’ve implied that Republicans who
support mikeroweWORKS do so because they believe I share their disdain for all things
“intellectual.” And poof - just like that, Republicans, White Nationalists, and
mikeroweWORKS are suddenly conflated, and the next thing you know, I’m off on a press
tour to disavow rumors of my troubling association with the Nazis!

Far-fetched? Far from it. That’s how logical fallacies work. A flaw in reasoning or a mistaken
belief undermines the logic of a conclusion, often leading to real-world consequences. And
right now, logical fallacies are not limited to the warped beliefs of morons with tiki torches,
and other morons calling for “more dead cops.” Logical fallacies are everywhere.

As I type this, a Democrat on CNN is making an argument that says, “because Thomas
Jefferson owned slaves, those Republicans now opposed to tearing down his memorial are
“pro-slavery,” and therefore aligned with the modern day KKK.” That’s a logical fallacy.

Over on Fox, a Republican is arguing that “any Democrat who has not yet condemned the
Senator from Missouri for publicly wishing that Donald Trump be assassinated, is guilty of
wishing for the exact same thing.” That’s a logical fallacy.
Yesterday, on The Science Channel, Neil DeGrasse Tyson, a noted astronomer, tweeted that
the ability of scientists to accurately predict the solar eclipse, was proof that predictions of
global warming were also accurate. That’s a logical fallacy.

Want to hear another one? Imagine something like this, unfolding over on MSNBC.

"Good Evening, America, our top story tonight… Chuck Atkins is a racist! Why? Because he
can’t spell. Just look at his grammar! In a recent post on Mike Rowe’s Facebook page, Mr.
Atkins, while bemoaning America’s global academic standing, not only misspelled “elitist,”
he used “tenants” when he meant “tenets.” He neglected to use a hyphen in “anti-
intellectual,” and he misplaced several commas and apostrophes! But why is he a racist,
you ask? Simple. Because everyone knows racists are ignorant. Chuck Atkins is clearly a
poor speller. Poor spelling and grammar are signs of ignorance. Ergo - Chuck Atkins is a
racist! Boom! The matter is settled!"

There’s not much we can do about the news, but here on Facebook, I think we can do
better. This isn’t Twitter. We’re not limited to a few inflammatory sentences and a flurry of
emojis. Take a moment, Chuck. Think. Make a rational argument. Otherwise, just link us to
a cat video. People love those, and they’re almost never “bad for business.” (Unless of
course, the cat gets hurt. People hate that.) Just don’t assume that people will care about
your beliefs, if you’re not willing to back them up with some relevant facts and a rational
conclusion. Here, for instance, are a few facts that matter to me, with respect to my
foundation and the recurring charge of “fostering anti-intellectualism.”

mikeroweWORKS is a PR campaign for the skilled trades. For the last nine years, we’ve
partnered with numerous trade schools, raised millions of dollars for work-ethic
scholarships, and called attention to millions of jobs that don’t require a four-year degree.
But that doesn’t mean we’re “anti-intellectual.” We're not even “anti-college.” We simply
reject the popular notion that a four-year degree is the best path for the most people. And
we’re hardly alone.

Millions of reasonable people – Republicans and Democrats alike – are worried that our
universities are doing a poor job of preparing students for the real world. They’re worried
about activist professors, safe spaces, the rising cost of tuition, a growing contempt for
history, and a simmering disregard of the first amendment. These people are concerned
that our universities – once beacons of free speech – now pander to a relatively small
percentage of students who can’t tolerate any political opinion that challenges their own.
And they’re concerned – deeply concerned - that millions of good jobs are currently vacant
that don’t require a four-year degree, or any of the catastrophic debt that comes with it.

Again - these are not the concerns of “anti-intellectuals." They are the concerns of people
who care about the future of the country. I don’t know how many of these people are
Republicans, but I can assure you that no one who actually supports my initiative is
remotely confused about my feelings on education, because I’ve been crystal clear on that
topic from the very beginning. To quote Thomas Jefferson, (while I still can,) "If a nation
expects to be ignorant and free and live in a state of civilization, it expects what never was
and never will be." On this point, my foundation does not equivocate.

In other words, Chuck, I have no idea what The White Nationalists think about my efforts,
or the Republicans, the Democrats, the elitists, the Italians, the Presbyterians, the unions,
or the self-proclaimed anti-intellectuals. And really, I couldn’t care less. My question is, why
do you?

Mike