FROM THE EDITORS 

Revisiting classic issues 

Each ofthe four articles in this issue deals in some fashion with a familiar topic on which 
the author, in our judgement, sheds new light. 

Louise Cummings deals with one of the most familiar of fallacies: petitio principii. 
She argues that the rhetorical and dialectical approaches are unnecessarily proscriptive 
and she develops an approach that takes context more seriously-a fresh look at a familiar 
fallacy. Nicholas Rescher argues for an informal approach to references to items that have 
already been identified, which he applies to the Russellian paradoxes that emerged in the 
early 20th century-a fresh look at an old problem. Bram van Heuveln looks at how 
textbook presentations have frequently garbled the sense of Mill's Methods, and offers a 
corrective interpretation intended to be consistent with the various texts-a fresh look at 
a classic. Peter Facione looks carefully at the issue of dispositions in critical thinking and 
particularly the empirical evidence, and on that basis claims that focus on skills alone is 
not enough to teach critical thinking dispositions-a fresh look at an ongoing debate. 

Teaching Supplement 

We are pleased to present the first issue of the new Informal Logic Teaching Supplement 
which will now become a regular feature of the journal. We have long been aware that 
many readers have been anxious to have a regular source of material and ideas that will 
enrich the teaching of informal logic and critical thinking. Under the able editorship of 
Claude Gratton, the Teaching Supplement is now a reality and we encourage readers to 
support it with their own material. 

New Co-editors 

With this issue we also welcome two longtime colleagues whom we have invited to share 
with us the co-editorship of the journal: Hans V. Hansen and Christopher W. Tindale. 
Both have published widely in the field of informal logic. They will be known to many as 
the team who have co-chaired and co-organized the three highly successful Ontario 
Society for the Study of Argumentation (OSSA) conferences that were held at Brock 
University in 1995, 1997 and 1999. We look forward to the organizational skills, energy, 
good judgement, and fresh outlook they bring. 

Upcoming OSSA Conference 

Set aside May 17-19, 2001 for the next OSSA Conference, to be held at the University of 
Windsor. Check the OSSA URL for the call for papers: http://www.u\vindsor.ca/OSSA.