"Openly Reading" a Book is Now Harrassment ... in Academia, Anyways

[Overpaid Slacker]

Yes, our betters in Academia (better educated, and ... and therefore more Liberal. QED, according to one of our brethren) charged someone with harrassment for openly reading a book in front of another person.

Wait. Before you click the link, can you guess whether the reader or the offended was white?

It's a good thing that our intellectual superiors in academia (that so many hereon are willing to defer to, if not fellate) are keeping up with cutting-edge victim culture.

JP

[Jim Richards]

This absolutely ruins my day. Now I don't know if I should or shouldn't be wearing a flag-pin.

[Overpaid Slacker]

Originally Posted by Jim Richards

This absolutely ruins my day. Now I don't know if I should or shouldn't be wearing a flag-pin.

Certainly not on most campuses... you might "offend" some of the uber-tolerant there. And then be spat upon or taunted ... in a completely tolerant manner, of course.

JP

[Hugh R]

Indiana University, they were just jealous because the book was about Notre Dame. Effing liberal, politically incorrect idiots.

[pwd72s]

Nothing new...I was kicked out of a high school study hall for reading Barry Goldwater's "Conscience of a Conservative". He and Wm. F. Buckley will always be heros of mine...

[sammyg2]

Obviously the next step is book burning in the name of liberal tolerance.
IMO a majority of the administrators in our education systems (public and private) wouldn't last a month working in the real world. Tools who can't handle a little authority without abusing it.

[Superman]

It looks like this was a temporary decision on the part of an administrator that was reversed. It is interesting, and meaningful, that you guys can't come up with something better than this to wail about.

[Superman]

Wailing against academia is pretty important to you guys, isn't it?

[varmint]

so, you care more about the civil rights of terrorists in guantanamo than you do about the rights of students in american universities.

[Rick Lee]

Two of the biggest no-no's on college campuses are carrying a gun and saying what you want.

[Pazuzu]

I didn't see any "betters in Academia" listed in that story, just a janitor and some administration people.

Can you show me which person in that cute little blog was the "better in Academia"?


Oh, and "Greater in Academia" might be proper in that sense...

[billwagnon]

I'm confused. Am I supposed to be hatin' on the ACLU or not???

[Overpaid Slacker]

Originally Posted by Superman

It looks like this was a temporary decision on the part of an administrator that was reversed. It is interesting, and meaningful, that you guys can't come up with something better than this to wail about.

WTF is a "temporary decision"? It was a determination that was reversed and charges dropped only when FIRE got involved and shed light on this despicable practice.

And perhaps you missed the ongoing slander, "whisper campaign", against the reader for "harrassment" -- the "temporary" and "reversed" decision notwithstanding, he still stands accused of harrassment -- and the U won't tell him (or anybody else) what the charges are what the actual, actionable behavior was.

It is interesting, and meaningful that you selectively read a story and dismiss such arrogance and intolerance in order to keep academics, unbesmirched and unanswerable, on their plinth. Dissemble, obfuscate and fellate on, Supe.

JP

[john70t]

A whole lot of white bank robbers, thieves, and cattle rustlers got hung by a slip knot as well. Lotta cattle been roped as well.
I'm not sure whether the symbolism of a tool should be sociologically "owned" by a culture/racial group. It's like saying the massacre of European jews was the only highlight of WW2.

[Superman]

First, we don't know the rest of the story. It sounds as if this fellow may have deliberately stirred things up. Repeatedly. Perhaps increasingly, after repeated requests to desist. Sure, he has a right to read whatever he wants to read, regardless of what other people think. But if he took these actions for the sole purpose of harrassing, that does put a relevant spin on things.

A janitor was involved and an administrator made a decision to regard this behavior as disruptive. Which according to this story, is true. Subsequently, upon further review, it bubbled up to where the university had to decide on an official position, at which point the reader's rights were affirmed. If, to you guys, this means universities across the country are routinely denying peoples personal freedoms, then I suggest you enroll in a class called "Logic."

As I say, if this seems to you guys like a meaningful indictment of the institutions of higher learning in America, then I'd say it also demonstrates the importance of education. If you know what I mean.

[K. Roman]

I think this is an obvious isolated case. But go at it!

[Overpaid Slacker]

I realize you are scrupulous in not attributing to members of an entire class (so to speak) the distasteful actions of one of their constituent members.

I think you meant "student-janitor", as well.

If he did something, then tell him what he is accused of doing. Starchamber is OK, as long as it's academics (and yes, I equate mere academic administrators with academics, who tolerate, if not encourage this behavior in their tolerant workplace).

It's not like FIRE just sprang into existence for this case... They've been around for a while and are worked to the bone on matters like this. Check their website www.thefire.org. Greg Lukianoff, FIRE's President, and I were colleagues for a while.

If you believe that this one incident is not representative of other incidents across the spectrum in higher ed, then it's more than education you'll need.

JP

[varmint]

i'm guessing you majored in obfuscation, with a minor in spin or lack of irony.

i'm also guessing you took some courses in how to act condescending towards those you think less educated.

the janitor/part time student was put before a kafkaesque star chamber because he read a book a co worker didn't like. the fact that the co worker is a dimwit who didn't understand the book is almost besides the point.

read up on mark steyn's experiences regarding the canadian human rights commission. you'll see how many liberal's have a strong fascist impulse just below the surface.

[Superman]

I'm guessing that a Human Rights or Diversity person at some American corporation may have, temporarily, accused a worker of harrassment based on similar facts at some point. That determination may or may not have been reversed, as this one was. Nevertheless, I guess this means American corporations are systematically attempting to bring Communism to America.

Induction. Deduction. Interesting concepts. Check it out some time.

[varmint]

corporations are capable of the exact same sort of behavior. it can be argued that employees have fewer rights than students. my boss can tell me not to come to work wearing a giant foam dickhat. and there's little i can do about it. free speech be damned.

but lets be clear. the guy was hassled because some dimwit "felt" offended. the guy hadn't actually done anything by any objective standard. at least not anything that the school will identify. this is fascism with a smiley face. one person is oppressed and threatened in the name of tolerance. and the school administrators know exactly what they're doing.



non sequitur, changing the subject, losing an argument, interesting concepts, look in a mirror.