Political Commentary in Kazakhstan

Image result for espouse belief

I am often asked about the impression Kazakhstani citizens have of US politics these days. Here, from an academic English vocabulary quiz, come two answers to that question. In this task, the students needed to write a paragraph on a topic of their choice, using at least 5 of 9 provided vocab words (in bold).

The first:

In the egregious aftermath of the elections, the media are trying to nitpick the obscure ideas espoused by President Trump, who seems to adhere to all of the suggestions made by his advisor Steve Bannon, indicating that the president is malleable to the control of certain people.

nitpick (v.) To be concerned with or find fault with insignificant details

The second:

In the aftermath of the last presidential elections, the media found itself in a peculiar situation, with previously obscure publications such as Breitbart, adhering to the most extreme-right stance in politics, gaining popularity. In addition, the newly elected president, who espouses this conservative position, turned out to be malleable, often repeating what is said on the conservative channels, not nitpicking the information reported there.


And a third, just a bonus to remind me that my students are learning the big ideas I hope they’ll take with them into the workplace:

Espousing somebody’s obscure point of view without adhering to pertinent evidence may lead to egregious aftermath. This means that we have to meticulously nitpick every sentence and evidence provided by authors before supporting them.

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