ABSTRACT
Many teachers say they try to teach school or university students to be critical thinkers. There is something absurd about wanting to be critical, about wanting to be a critical thinker or wanting others to be critical thinkers. The skills-based approach to critical thinking flatters individuals into thinking they are critical. They are critical people. Their self-esteem is increased without the knowledge and understanding required for true criticism. The person most associated with criticism and who was put to death for it was Socrates. There are two broad cultural changes that make public engagement harder today. The first is the existence of a therapeutic or therapy culture. The second cultural change that re-enforces therapy culture is the climate of fear created by the Rushdie affair. Money and bureaucratic power threaten the communicative achievements of the lifeworld and have invaded everyday culture to the extent that the human potential for reaching understanding in language is beginning to dissolve.
