IP: Re: CUNY condemns professors

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

> From: "Gerry Faulhaber" <gerry-faulhaber () home com>
> To: <farber () cis upenn edu>
>
> I would like to respectfully disagree with my esteemed colleague, Professor
> Kobrin.  I too remember HUAC, and even worse the support that HUAC enjoyed
> among the American people.  I never want to return to that state of affairs.
>
> And this incident, in which the Chancellor and Trustees of CUNY strongly
> condemned the statements of some faculty at a teach-in on the causes of the
> terrorist strike is in fact between two private parties, Chancellor and
> professors, in a dispute, and an academic dispute at that.  The government
> is not a party to this.  I certainly support the right of professors to make
> asses of themselves (done it enough myself;-), but I think the Chancellor
> gets to weigh in with his/her views on this.  They are strong views, but
> then so are the professors' views strong.  And this is taking place within
> the environment of academic freedom.  Seems to me the Chancellor has the
> same freedom as the professors.  My only beef with the Chancellor's
> statement was his/her churlish invitation to the professors to "take a
> hike," which is a not-so-veiled threat to use his/her bosses' power to
> punish the self-indicted asses.  This wasn't necessary and seems
> counter-productive to his/her case.  But then, maybe the Chancellor should
> be allowed to make an ass of himself as well.
>
> Again, this is not the government imposing thought control; these are
> private parties engaged in a vituperative argument over ideas.  There is a
> huge difference.
>
> Gerald Faulhaber
> Business and Public Policy Department
> Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania
> Philadephia, PA 19104



For archives see: http://www.interesting-people.org/