Attention critical thinkers! Gather near and lend me your hears.

It is time to listen.

It is time to pay attention.

This is always an important skill, but now, more than ever, aficionados of the lost art of avoidance are in for a treat.

The idea is a simple one. When someone is asked a question, listen closely. Listen fierce.

Proactively listen with all of your concentration.

The goal? To glean and identify that magical moment of the artful shuffle. That moment when the respondent has artfully dodged and changed the subject.

Some are so expert at this that we walk away no even aware that we have just been bamboozled.

Well I say, “No more!” Questions should be answered. Answers should be on point – not the verbal equivalent of covert ops.

Thanks to the nefariousness of News Corp., there will be many opportunities to get up close and personal with this phenomenon. Watch closely! See if you can identify these moments!

If you want, make it a drinking game. Take a swig everytime someone shifts the discussion away to something else. Just make sure you have plenty of booze on hand or the game may have to be called before reaching its natural and satisfying conclusion.

Pay attention! Watch closely! Always be asking yourself, “Is the question being answered?”

Once you’ve opened your eyes this may end up being the only thing you see.