08.22.06
Posted in Unhinged, Crazy Academia at 10:12 pm by JEG
…with a few exceptions.
“The main argument against retaining Barrett is that anyone who believes in this conspiracy lacks the competence to teach a class at a major university. But when the dust settles, some fundamental principles of academic freedom support the provost’s decision.”
No, some fundamental principles of common sense would dictate that we render the provost’s decision unacademic and unreasonable. When an instructor’s views are so reprehensible and so outrageous that they tarnish the reputation of a fine institution like UW-Madison, that instructor ought to become a pariah that deserves neither acknowledgement nor support, let alone a paid teaching position. As the author himself said very rationally,
“Farrell’s decision has caused uproar because Barrett is a proponent of a bizarre and outlandish conspiracy theory: that the attacks on America on Sept. 11, 2001 were perpetrated not by jihadist terrorists, but rather by the government of the United States. That’s right: We did it to ourselves.”
My problem with all of this is that analytic rigor and the standards of scholarship are thrown completely out the window. Sorry, U-dub. I’m not yet convinced that one iota of evidence supports the “outlandish conspiracy theory” that somehow deserves a hearing in an institution of higher learning. Most academicians deserve credit for supporting and introducing controversial ideas into the classroom. This particular instance, however, is the height of lunacy, and has no place in an entity charged with the sacred duty to educate.
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Posted in Politics at 7:06 pm by JB
I’m all for freedom of speech, and am mostly ambilivant on the flag-burning thing…. I’d never do it, but I don’t get all up-in-arms when someone else does it. However, to me this seems wholly inappropriate.
From the Louisville Courier-Journal:
A Stuart Middle School teacher has been removed from the classroom after he burned two American flags in class during a lesson on freedom of speech, Jefferson County Public Schools officials said.
Dan Holden, who teaches seventh-grade social studies, burned small flags in two different classes Friday and asked students to write an opinion paper about it, district spokeswoman Lauren Roberts said.
Here’s my “opinion paper”. You are a collossal schmuck, Mr. Holden.
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Posted in Humor at 7:04 pm by JEG
For all you parents out there, watch your backs!
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Posted in Not Really Sure at 6:45 pm by JEG
Who knew???? Osama has the hots for Whitney Houston!
“He said that he had a paramount desire for Whitney Houston and although he claimed music was evil, he spoke of some day spending vast amounts of money to go to America and try to arrange a meeting with the superstar.”
And here’s a good argument for mandatory birth control, from the same source:
“The al-Qaeda leader has fathered at least 24 children. His wife Najwa reportedly has 11 children by him.”
So, Osama has a “dirty-old-man” streak to him after all. Jihad be damned! Osama wants some pop-culture action! Maybe Bobby Brown will “call the Ghostbusters” so he’s “in control.”
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Posted in Pop Culture, Music at 6:44 pm by JB
This just in: Justin Timberlake Admits He Cannot Have Sex If Music Is On
That’s interesting… I can’t keep my lunch down or my head from hurting when Justin Timberlake music is on.
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Posted in Politics, War on Terrorism, Democrats, National Security at 4:02 pm by JB
Ok… maybe not, but I’ve been seeing Michael Ramirez’ stuff all my life, and this dude is good:
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Posted in Politics, War on Terrorism, National Security at 3:04 pm by JB
Read the whole thing, but this is a great ‘graph.
Nitwit Democrats think anything that can be passed off as a failure in Iraq will somehow diminish only Mr. Bush and the neoconservatives. In reality — a concept with which Democrats seem only dimly acquainted — it would diminish the nation, and all but certainly end the American moment.
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Posted in Movies, Unhinged at 2:45 pm by JB
Snakes….
Two live diamondback rattlesnakes were released in an Arizona movie theater during a showing of the new film “Snakes on a Plane,” according to Local 6 News.
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Posted in Pop Culture, Music at 2:41 pm by JB
agrees with another famous music critic about the state of popular music.
Bob Dylan says the quality of modern recordings is “atrocious,” and even the songs on his new album sounded much better in the studio than on disc.
“I don’t know anybody who’s made a record that sounds decent in the past 20 years, really,” the 65-year-old rocker said in an interview with Rolling Stone magazine.
I know, I know, he’s mostly talking about the actual mechanical recording…. but I choose to think he means the actual music as well.
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Posted in Politics at 4:55 am by JB
Hillary gets ready to run.
Next Time cover: “Bears enjoy using the woods as toilet”
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Posted in Politics, Immigration at 4:52 am by JB
Now, if they did it on unicycles, this would be funny. As it is, it’s tragic.
Illegal immigrants and drug traffickers are using dilapidated bicycles to make a swift, night-time dash over the desert to Arizona from Mexico, border police say.
Still, even on a bike, it’s not like they are on a Kawasaki motorcycle…. the Border Patrol can’t outrun a bike ?
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Posted in Pop Culture, Rich White Trash at 4:42 am by JB
From the “oh God please let your 15-minutes be up soon” file:
Kevin Federline’s TV debut as a rapper is getting derided as a not-ready-for-prime-time disaster by critics in cyberspace and the hip-hop community.
On Sunday, Federline - also known has K-Fed and Mr. Britney Spears - performed his new single “Lose Control” to the peppy crowd at the eighth annual Teen Choice Awards, which aired on Fox. Introduced by his wife, who was dressed in a cleavage-baring mini-dress despite her late pregnancy, Federline stalked about the stage with attitude as he rapped about his bling, popping Cristal (obviously oblivious of the whole hip-hop Cristal boycott) and his amazing rhyming skills.
Can we please, for the love of Mike, get Brit Spears and her white trash husband out of the public view once and for all ?! Or at LEAST stop them from procreating ?!
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Posted in Pop Culture, Who Cares ? at 12:46 am by JB
Our friends in the Windy City will no longer be able to eat foie gras in the city’s dining establishments….
On Aug. 22, foie gras is scheduled to become avis non grata. That’s when the Chicago City Council’s ordinance banning foie gras, a delicacy consisting of the engorged livers of ducks and/or geese, is set to go into effect.
Can we officially file this in the “who the hell cares ?” file ?
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Posted in Politics, 2006 Races at 12:12 am by JB
From that silly ABC show….
Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., blasted a fellow Democrat, Sen. Joe Lieberman, for continuing his bid in the Connecticut Senate race despite a narrow loss to newcomer Ned Lamont in the Democratic primary earlier this month.
But my favorite quote (thank GOD this guy isn’t president…
“Joe Lieberman is out of step with the people of Connecticut,” Kerry added, insisting Lieberman’s stance on Iraq, “shows you just why he got in trouble with the Democrats there.”
(Emphasis mine)
But is that actually true ? From a Quinnipiac poll dated 8/17:
Connecticut Sen. Joseph Lieberman, running as an independent, gets 53 percent of likely voters, with 41 percent for Democratic primary winner Ned Lamont and 4 percent for Republican Alan Schlesinger, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released today.
And Lieberman is kicking tail among registered Republicans and independents. Evidently those people don’t qualify as “Connecticut voters”.
But then again, truth never has been a priority for Kerry.
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