08.12.06
Gee! What a shocker! Why am I not surprised?
http://www.news.wisc.edu/barrettissue/docs/0710aclubarrett.pdf
JB and I argue about this from time to time, but I am kind of a civil libertarian. I value my privacy. I value the Bill of Rights. I think folks ought to be able to speak their minds without reservation, as long as they aren’t inciting violence or shouting “fire” in a movie theater. I just wish folks would learn to balance the 1st Amendment with some good old common sense.
The ACLU takes a stand on some important issues, which I applaud in theory. Thank God that we have organizations that challenge conventional wisdom and the rights of people who do so. But like many issue-oriented organizations, it has to sometimes create abuses where they don’t exist. This case at the University of Wisconsin is a perfect example. There is a legitimate purpose behind questioning the Academic credentials of those who are entrusted with education - regardless of whether it’s at the Kindergarten level or the doctoral level. And I’m sorry, but I have to really question the credentials of a professor/instructor/teaching assistant at a prestigious institution like UW-Madison who sincerely believes that the government is behind 9/11, despite the incontrovertible evidence to the contrary.
I agree with the ACLU that this gentleman’s opinions are part of the social fabric of the United States, and I would never seek to censor his views. As I said in my original post on this topic, however, academia - in reality - is more than the expression of beliefs, especially in liberal arts disciplines. It’s often about the instructor presenting a view and expecting students to accept and regurgitate that view when exam time comes around.
Dialouge on controversial topics should be an integral part of the academic experience, provided that opposing views are kept on the table. If a UW-Madison student gets a bad grade for refusing to parrot this guy’s line, I will be asking the ACLU to intervene with the same zeal with which it defended this nut-job. And I’ll be curious to see how it responds. Rest assured that this contributor to the TalkArena will be following this issue very closely.
