Mark Meister

Sustainable Development and the Global Economy Rhetorical Implications for Improving the Quality of Life

The discourse of sustainable development represents a consensus between environmental conservation and industrial use. The United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) that was held in the summer of 1992 attempted to initiate sustainable development policies aimed at improving the quality of human life. The major focus of UNCED was on the 400-page Agenda 21 and its initiatives for sustainable development practices and quality-of-life improvement. This article looks at the language contained in Agenda 21 and analyzes the quality-of-life phrase used throughout the text. The analysis follows insights of Burkes theory of dramatism, which contends that language functions symbolically to reinforce and maintain political power. The analysis illustrates how Agenda 21 both uses the quality-of-life phrase to promote consumerism and consumption and neglects to profile serious environmental protection.

“Sustainable development”; in visual imagery: Rhetorical function in the Jeep Cherokee

The United Nations discourse of sustainable development attempts to “balance”; development motives with environmental awareness. This “balancing act”; weighs “development”; motives more than “sustainable”; motives because it focuses on human protection and comfort. In this essay, I interpret the UN discourse of sustainable development as promoting protection and comfort human development themes. These themes are extremely visual. Using Fosss concept of rhetorical function in visual imagery, I argue that the images of nature and technology found in advertisements for the Jeep Cherokee, function as a visual metaphor for the UN discourse of sustainable development.

Meteorology and the rhetoric of nature's cultural display

On television (the primary source of weather information), meteorology, or the science of short‐term weather prediction, visually associates atmospheric information as relevant to social and economic issues. This is particularly true on The Weather Channel (TWC). This essay borrows and extends the work of Lessl and Messaris to examine the rhetoric of TV meteorology as it is displayed on TWC. I argue that TWC combines priestly (expertise) and bardic (visual eloquence) discourse to create “weathertainment” that predicates and encourages consumer practices.

Farmers’ Cynicism Toward Nature and Distrust of the Government: Where Does that Leave Conservation Buffer Programs?

Farmers are commonly regarded as stewards of the land. Farmers have, however, become cynical toward nature (Meister, Hest, & Burnett, 2009) and distrustful of the government (Cantrill, 2003). This study examines whether or not that cynicism and distrust is reflected in U.S. farmers’ opinions of and future participation in conservation buffer programs, and if so, how these sentiments are manifested. Findings of this study suggest farmers expressed both cynicism and distrust about conservation buffer programs, perhaps suggesting the government is not doing well in communicating about its programs to constituents. Implications and future research are also presented.

Calculating the Weather: Deductive Reasoning and Disciplinary Telos in Cleveland Abbe's Rhetorical Transformation of Meteorology

This paper explores the rhetorical basis of a major paradigm change in meteorology, from a focus on inductive observation to deductive, mathematical reasoning. Analysis of Cleveland Abbes “The Physical Basis of Long-Range Weather Forecasts” demonstrates how in his advocacy for a new paradigm, Abbe navigates the tension between piety to tradition and dissent necessary for innovation through the rhetorical imagination of and appeal to a disciplinary telos. This strategy allows him to dismiss the traditions of meteorology while simultaneously creating common ground between a new paradigm and an audience of contemporary scientists whose traditions he rejects.

Weather-Talk, Cynicism, and Agriculture

For the agriculturist, weather-talk performs two significant rhetorical acts that display cynicism toward nature: first, a faith in technology; and second, a conviction in the cultural myths associated with stewardship toward nature. This study explores these two themes by discussing the results of ethnographic interviews conducted with farmers. Whereas Aldo Leopold (1949) articulated a need for a moral relationship with nature, this study illustrates that contemporary weather-talk amends stewardship with rhetorical cynicism. The stewardship ethic embodied by agriculture is transcended into a cynicism whereby nature is distrusted and elusive.

Warren Buffett’s Celebrity, Epideictic Ethos, and Neoliberal Humanitarianism

Billionaire Warren Buffett’s rhetorical agency seemingly challenges neoliberalism. His public statements supporting tax increases on the rich and carrying for the poor seemingly denounce free-market capitalism. But Meister and Platt convincingly argue that Buffett’s rhetorical agency bolsters neoliberalism rather than opposing it. Grounding their analysis in epideictic ethos and celebrity status, Meister and Platt argue that Buffett symbolizes both wealth earned and the self-restraint to retain it, exemplifying neoliberalism as a system that maintains wealth among the wealthy. Buffett’s rhetorical agency fuses epideictic ethos with philanthropic celebrity; a type of neoliberal humanitarianism that ultimately protects wealth, fosters elitism, and champions wider social and economic distinctions.