The Opposite of the Civil Rights Movement

The Opposite of the Civil Rights Movement

NOTE: This is the first column in a series of columns related to National Marriage Week, Feb. 7-14, 2013.

Those who remember the old version of the SAT might recall the analogy section: “This is to that as that is to this.”

The SAT no longer requires students to demonstrate aptitude in reasoning through this vital cognitive exercise—unfortunate because so many Americans find it difficult to recognize false analogies. And no group has exploited this deficiency more than politicians.

Adam Cohen observed in a 2005 New York Times piece: “Intentionally misleading comparisons are becoming the dominant mode of public discourse....