tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32542246.post3003440169825539430..comments2024-02-24T05:19:10.949-05:00Comments on Durham-in-Wonderland: Where Are They Now?kcjohnson9http://www.blogger.com/profile/09625813296986996867noreply@blogger.comBlogger137125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32542246.post-73098614582021527312007-11-12T10:01:00.000-05:002007-11-12T10:01:00.000-05:00" But I don't see bloggers here seeking the cause ...<I>" But I don't see bloggers here seeking the cause or corrections of such presumptions."</I><BR/><BR/>Then you haven't been following <I>Wonderland</I> long enough.<BR/><BR/><I>"I see the painful bitterness of victimhood."</I><BR/><BR/>If you're going for a laugh, you just got one.<BR/><BR/>Read <I>UPI.</I><BR/><BR/>Read KC's latest post highlighting Stuart's column. It's been a year and eight months and many answers have been found here.<BR/><BR/>We've been discussing phony "victimhood".<BR/><BR/>I fear that your attempt to be "above it all" and present some objective views have revealed your lack of knowledge of this entire long saga.Debrahhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04567454727276881424noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32542246.post-10545736957938826132007-11-11T18:09:00.000-05:002007-11-11T18:09:00.000-05:00This fascinates me. I am an amature in looking at ...This fascinates me. I am an amature in looking at this topic. A few elements seem obvious to an outsider like me.<BR/>1. People made mistakes. When the lacross/rape accusation hit the paper it was shocking and upsetting. Strangely, for some of the reasons many of you name, notably the privledge of the setting...and the non privledged status of the alleged victim. <BR/>2. Is it wrong for a professor to speak in class of a current event that has direct impact on the community? Certainly it was wrong to draw conclusions...or were those who spoke restating what had been presented to them as fact?<BR/>3. What are the consequences of being wrong in such a setting? Certainly the first act for such a person would be a retraction and apology. Did any of these professors say they were wrong and apologize? I heard at least one did. And if they did, would that satifiy anyone here? If not, what is needed? Is it possible to improve the situation or do you just want to punish?<BR/>4. This forum sounds bitter. People got hurt in this. Young men were falsely accused and prosecuted. They were humiliated in public for an extended period of time. It is possible that persecution continued even after some in positions to change the course,declined to do so. Does ongoing disgruntlement and attacks on teachers help those who were wronged and/or help to correct this wrong?<BR/>What I am seeing here tells me 'no.' <BR/>What I read above looks like a partisan argument, choose a team. I prefer to allign myself with standards. It is just as wrong to presume guilt because a person is white as it is if a person is black. But I don't see bloggers here seeking the cause or corrections of such presumptions. I see the painful bitterness of victimhood.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32542246.post-76500186862658206362007-11-07T08:52:00.000-05:002007-11-07T08:52:00.000-05:00dsl says"I hope this blog continues throughout the...dsl says<BR/><BR/>"I hope this blog continues throughout the unfolding of this drama. It is one of the best 'distance learning' exercises we could hope for. The public classroom may not merit academic respect... but it may actually weigh more heavily on the scales of social change."<BR/><BR/>I'll second that!<BR/><BR/>ObserverAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32542246.post-37283551158927804682007-11-07T00:48:00.000-05:002007-11-07T00:48:00.000-05:00Michael Gaynor on Stuart and PCMichael Gaynor on <A HREF="http://www.renewamerica.us/columns/gaynor/071104" REL="nofollow">Stuart and PC</A>Debrahhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04567454727276881424noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32542246.post-66017081665778624202007-11-06T16:56:00.000-05:002007-11-06T16:56:00.000-05:00Re: 10:41"The ratio of nastiness to illumination o...Re: 10:41<BR/><BR/>"The ratio of nastiness to illumination on this thread is too high for my personal taste"Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32542246.post-69948694576746898842007-11-06T11:28:00.000-05:002007-11-06T11:28:00.000-05:00austin said ...To paint Duke’s critics as neocon, ...<I>austin said ...<BR/><BR/>To paint Duke’s critics as neocon, reactionary, racist “blog hooligans” will now work for only a very diminished audience. <BR/><BR/>11/6/07 3:08 AM</I><BR/><BR/>I resemble that remark. :D<BR/><BR/>RRHAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32542246.post-62577689814453385482007-11-06T10:41:00.000-05:002007-11-06T10:41:00.000-05:00TO "dsl"--Perhaps you need to get out more.Have re...TO "dsl"--<BR/><BR/>Perhaps you need to get out more.<BR/><BR/>Have real discussions with real people who read DIW.<BR/><BR/>Those little additions and embroidery to this blog are some of the things which have made it so popular.<BR/><BR/>Please, if <I>white bread</I> is all you enjoy on your menu, have at it.......but don't try to put a damper on everything for the rest of us.<BR/><BR/>You have no idea what you're talking about; however, I am well-aware at whom your silly digs are aimed.<BR/><BR/>LOL!!!Debrahhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04567454727276881424noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32542246.post-19683705886832156162007-11-06T10:04:00.000-05:002007-11-06T10:04:00.000-05:0011:20 --I'm reading Duke's version of the Hoax now...11:20 --<BR/><BR/>I'm reading Duke's version of the Hoax now (thanks for the link) and to be as fair as possible, I'm trying to read it through the eyes of someone who was unfortunate enough to get bad information throughout the whole affair.<BR/><BR/>This line, however, jumped out and hit me between the eyes: "At the time, the district attorney was saying emphatically that as many as 46 of the players were still under suspicion for the alleged crimes." The administration had to have known if they'd done the slightest bit of investigation that some of those 46 players were not in Durham that night and could not reasonably be under suspicion (save perhaps as accessories after the fact, but only under the same theory that <I>everyone</I> who knew a lacrosse player <I>could have been</I> told hearsay about the commission of a crime and thus become an accessory by failing to report this theoretical hearsay.) The administration must have known that the district attorney was overreaching!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32542246.post-70910032983840841922007-11-06T09:36:00.000-05:002007-11-06T09:36:00.000-05:00Anon wrote"Duke Alumi contributions have not gone ...Anon wrote<BR/><BR/>"Duke Alumi contributions have not gone down . . ."<BR/><BR/>If true, then a "donor protest" campaign is sorely needed. <BR/><BR/>An institution this dysfunctional deserves to lose financial support -- just as did the Catholic Chruch, and just as did Citigroup.<BR/><BR/>Incidentally, I have it on good authority that donations from parents of *current* Duke students have dropped dramatically. <BR/><BR/>Duke ProfAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32542246.post-15263116469501478912007-11-06T07:57:00.000-05:002007-11-06T07:57:00.000-05:003:08 AM ( Wow!... I suspect you are in a differen...3:08 AM ( Wow!... I suspect you are in a different time zone.... literally and figuratively)<BR/>I appreciate your intelligent and objective contribution.<BR/><BR/>As an absolutely faithful and grateful reader/ participator in this blog, I too am put off by the juvenile "he said/ she said" entries... and the narcicissm of others who need to tell us what they had for lunch. They diminish the impact and distract from the focus.<BR/><BR/>However, I have been challenged, even goaded to wake up to what is happening to Duke ( my graduate school) and Durham ( where my two oldest children were born) and to Higher Education in general, to the destructive evil of PC ideaology, and to the suffocating tenacles of political, media, and police corruption.. all because of this blog and UPI.<BR/><BR/>It may be that some of my own contributions to this blog have been less than cutting edge... perhaps more emotion than reason... but at LEAST I am wrestling on both levels with issues that will NOT go away. I think that is true of others as well.<BR/><BR/>Unfortunately, I believe you are right about some of the points you made so early this morning. Fortunately, I believe you are also right about others.... We'll leave it to time, and legal proceedings to sort the one from the other.<BR/><BR/>To many of us, and perhaps history will record, KC Johnson was/is a prophet in a bow tie. No, not on the par with an actual god... just a man of courage whose relentless pursuit of truth made a significant difference in his lifetime. I am surprised, though I should not be, at the villification he endures with relative good humor.<BR/><BR/>Add to KC's tenacity that of Stuart Taylor's incisive dissection of this whole case and we have a book worthy of a Pulitzer. If Woodward and Bernstein deserved it for Watergate, surely Johnson and Taylor deserve it for the HOAX. <BR/><BR/>I hope this blog continues throughout the unfolding of this drama. It is one of the best "distance learning" exercises we could hope for. The public classroom may not merit academic respect... but it may actually weigh more heavily on the scales of social change.<BR/><BR/><BR/>dslAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32542246.post-11791629557758209142007-11-06T05:19:00.000-05:002007-11-06T05:19:00.000-05:0011/5 9:36 amGood post.I once had a course in Engli...11/5 9:36 am<BR/><BR/>Good post.<BR/>I once had a course in English called "The Bible and Literature."<BR/><BR/>The prof. must have had the class put-upon her; she knew nothing about the Bible, and so the class became just an opinion session. <BR/><BR/>I don't know who was to blame: a dept. chair who decided that the course would be taught, and couldn't find someone to teach it, or the prof/instructor, who didn't know her subject. Not knowing the structure of the university's teaching assignments, I suspect that it was the former.<BR/><BR/>She didn't seem like an idealogue with an agenda, but like someone who wasn't prepared to teach her subject.machttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14248016116043347912noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32542246.post-50760173885603186032007-11-06T03:08:00.000-05:002007-11-06T03:08:00.000-05:00The ratio of nastiness to illumination in this thr...The ratio of nastiness to illumination in this thread of comments is too high for my taste. I suppose it is inevitable that the comments section of this blog should from time to time dramatize the dialogue of the deaf that passes for “political discourse” at many levels in our land. But it is reduced to its sad essence in the brilliant exchange that begins, in effect, “Your are an idiot,” to which the devastatingly witty response is “No, I am not an idiot. You are an idiot.”<BR/>I’d like to return to the subject of the post: namely, the effect of what has happened so far to various people at Duke<BR/>The expectation of Apocalypse Now on the Duke campus is and will remain unrealistic. “Why don’t they fire Brodhead?” “Why don’t they ‘clean house’ in this or that department?” “How can they make an 88-er a dean?” To this list of supremely naïve questions I’ll add another one that shows up in various forms: “Why don’t they hire KC Johnson?” Such questions betray a serious lack of understanding of the operations of large and complex educational institutions. They move rather ponderously and within the confines of strict protocols. Our universities have a “business” aspect to them, but it is only one aspect, and the models of business reform or restructuring frequently brought forward are largely irrelevant to them. Duke and many other wealthy institutions are also large charitable entities that view their mission in terms of the redistribution of wealth—first in the relatively paltry manner of handing out scholarships and fellowships, but much more importantly in the creation of lasting “social capital” in their graduates. Most parents are incompetent to judge the actual intellectual quality at a given institution, but they know, rightly, that an average college graduate will have a lifetime income far greater than that of an average non-graduate, and that the average Duke graduate will do considerably better than the average graduate of Western Kentucky State Teachers’ College. Universities are staffed by faculty members who for the most part enjoy the protection of appointment with continuing tenure. The institution of academic tenure has defensible aims but often-lamentable results. It is nearly impossible to fire a tenured professor, however deep that person sinks into sloth or incompetence. To be fired for “moral turpitude” in today’s climate presupposes a level of sexual athleticism requiring long, arduous Olympic training beyond the capacities of most of us. Hence a university faculty, though highly and self-consciously professionalized, has many of the characteristics of a voluntary organization, like a civic or church committee, or a campaign organization, or a baby-sitting pool. There is seldom a very good match between the need as seen from a center and the competence, willingness, or availability of someone to fill the need. The administration has to cajole people into taking on necessary but perhaps irksome jobs. “Madge, would you be willing to be recording secretary this year? Oh, you’re tied up with the Garden Club?...Well, Tom, how about you? I can teach you to write…” I have not perused a Duke catalogue, but from what has come up incidentally in this blog I get the impression that many Duke faculty (a) teach very little, and (b) teach pretty much what they want to teach, which is (c) two or three variations on an esoteric theme. A university president may and does have very great power, but is almost guaranteed to fail if he cannot at least achieve a state of uneasy non-belligerence with his faculty. Hence the strange gyrations and even stranger silences of Richard Brodhead. He is a prudent and experienced fellow. If you want to consider what happens when a self-identified political conservative is brought in with powerful board support to “clean up” an institution with a faculty run amok, and is imprudent enough to try to do so, review the sad history of Boston University under the presidency of John Silber. So don’t look for swift actions and dramatic gestures that feature so prominently among the desiderata in these comments. But don’t go to the opposite extreme and suppose that “nothing has changed”. A good deal has changed because of this Rape Hoax.<BR/>1. Richard Brodhead’s is a failed presidency. Everybody in higher education knows that, which is why practically nobody in higher education will say it. He will not disappear immediately, but he will disappear. And I mean disappear—not reappear as the president of some other institution. This may not be fair to Brodhead, who is an able person, and his successor is unlikely to be better. But nobody who has presided over such a genuine “social disaster” can recover. And people will in the future reflect on why and how he failed.<BR/>2. Another development on the local Duke scene is the “raised consciousness” of sensible alumni and institutional friends. There is a large effort from various sources trying to blunt the effect of this blog and what it has represented. To paint Duke’s critics as neocon, reactionary, racist “blog hooligans” will now work for only a very diminished audience. There now is a very detailed, circumstantial, well researched and well written book that needs to be answered. The one attempt to answer it to date—Piot’s—is so pathetic as actually to amplify the work’s power by giving such a vivid example of the intellectual quality of its opposition. Any intelligent Duke alumnus of whatever age should now realize that he or she probably has more sensible and constructive ideas that many prominent Duke faculty.<BR/>3. Do not underestimate the power of the derision and opprobrium heaped on various faculty members through various posting and especially the “Group Profiles”. These were particularly effective, because they were not name-calling but intelligently collected anthologies of the individuals’ own written opinions. It is one thing to shout out that “the Emperor has no clothes”. It is another to present the Emperor in the buff before our own horrified eyes. Professor Piot undoubtedly still has his clannish friends at their unread and unreadable academic journal. But for literally thousands of other people, not to mention hundreds of silent colleagues on his own faculty, the man is now a public fool. This is the result not of name-calling but of self-advertisement. There probably will not be immediate professional effects. But I think it very unlikely that even with a deck of fifty-two race cards Professor Baker, for example, will today seems such a hot property to anybody else as he did to Vanderbilt before the publication of his racist diatribe.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32542246.post-88495076213280803992007-11-06T01:38:00.000-05:002007-11-06T01:38:00.000-05:00No, not "wow" -- rewriting history has been a spe...No, not "wow" -- rewriting history has been a specialty of the left from the beginning.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32542246.post-24164987821038108372007-11-05T23:20:00.000-05:002007-11-05T23:20:00.000-05:00WOW!...history has been re-written at Duke Univers...WOW!...history has been re-written at Duke University.<BR/><BR/>Here is Duke's "official" version of the Lacrosse Rape Hoax story:<BR/>http://news.duke.edu/lacrosseincident/Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32542246.post-47195934677693872162007-11-05T23:09:00.000-05:002007-11-05T23:09:00.000-05:00As always, the defenders of the gang of 88 have no...As always, the defenders of the gang of 88 have nothing of substance to say about the actual facts of this story. Their comments are about the personalities (or identities) of other commenters..<BR/> And that is perfectly logical for them, in a twisted, stunted kind of way. After all, what are your options after the AG of the state said on TV that the Lax guys were innocent and were owed apologies? And your favorite city government is facing annihilation if the civil case against them gets to discovery phase?<BR/> Somewhere in the reptilian brain of the hoax defenders is the awareness that if they ever got put under oath in a court of law there are lots of questions they would not want to have asked of them. So they throw up verbal sand and sticks into the air as if to confuse and distract their freshly acquired nemesis. Why not? It has worked before.<BR/> It is fact that every out-break of witch-hunting and witch-burning rolled along full bore until the witch burners picked the wrong would-be victims. <BR/> If Karla Holloway and her ilk were ever deposed by a sharp lawyer about this case Duke would go down in flames.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32542246.post-38764436742936582942007-11-05T22:15:00.000-05:002007-11-05T22:15:00.000-05:00Anonymous said... When are you going to stop "big ...<I>Anonymous said... <BR/>When are you going to stop "big brothering" the Duke faculty, KC Johnson? I fail to see why John Thompson's name is on your hit list today, Prof! And what, pray tell, is "going off syllabus"? Is correct "going off syllabus" allowed? And are you up there somewhere at good old Brooklyn College to tell faculty when they may or may not "go off syllabus"? <BR/><BR/>You and your blogolites are so hot on letting everyone know what is good teaching/content/research (in your case, it looks like all onstitutional/diplomatic/political history all of the time). Doesn't "going off syllabus" permit creative discussion that is necessary for a good classroom/learning experience? Or is "stick to the syllabus," the prof's in control, we discuss only what the prof wants teaching really the way to go?<BR/><BR/>11/5/07 1:53 AM</I><BR/><BR/>Judging by the time of this post--I'd say an 88er was up late losing sleep last night. LOL.<BR/><BR/>Too bad, Prof. YOU put yourself in this position--you've only yourself to blame. <BR/><BR/>I hope you have MANY MANY more sleepless nights ahead. Lord knows the Duke 3 and their families had many UNDESERVED nights of lost sleep.<BR/><BR/>However, YOU earned 'em. You deserve 'em. Gotta love that karma.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32542246.post-62105970626503526762007-11-05T22:00:00.000-05:002007-11-05T22:00:00.000-05:00One very noticable KEY person was left off the "Wh...One very noticable KEY person was left off the "Where are they now" list....<BR/><BR/>Crystal Gail Mangum<BR/><BR/>While we *ALL* know she will not be prosecuted for her crimes in the cruel Duke hoax, she was let off the hook--scott free, it would be only right and fair to update what she is doing now, and exactly where she is.<BR/><BR/>If only to serve as a warning to all men in her current locale. <BR/><BR/>As long as she walks the streets (literally) a free woman--men everywhere in this country are at risk of being FALSELY accused of rape by this psychotic person.<BR/><BR/>Anyone seen, heard from or know the whereabouts of one Crystal Gail Mangum, FALSE "victim" and sperm bank extraordinaire??<BR/><BR/>A Public Service Announcement on her whereabouts would be a good thing for society.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32542246.post-33366028933300628822007-11-05T21:49:00.000-05:002007-11-05T21:49:00.000-05:002: 47/ 2:49You know, you really don't have to be h...2: 47/ 2:49<BR/><BR/>You know, you really don't have to be here if you don't enjoy this site. The rest of us appreciate KC and the exchanges. I know a lot of people who woud be grateful if I did exactly as KC recommends and cooled it for 15 minutes before replying..... like I waited for several hours before inviting you to take your snarky comments elsewhere.<BR/><BR/>KC Johnson probably wears his halo lopsided, but I guarantee you there are a lot of us who think this has got to be one of the most courageous men of the year.<BR/><BR/>If I were him I would pull the plug on a lot of this nonsense. But he lets it through... even some people who make way too many comments as if it is THEIR blogsite... because I think he ultimately values the airing of thoughts and search for truth more than he does his own "reputation". <BR/><BR/>If UPI doesn't win a Pulitzer Prize there are a lot of folks who will think it was rigged.<BR/><BR/>Then... the critics will have another beef.<BR/><BR/>Meanwhile, KC, Stuart, and DIW are making a BIG difference. ( smile).<BR/><BR/><BR/>dslAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32542246.post-79682064390758808862007-11-05T21:22:00.000-05:002007-11-05T21:22:00.000-05:00(Duke Students for an Ethical Duke) now has a new ...(Duke Students for an Ethical Duke) now has a new blog for those interested:<BR/><BR/><A HREF="http://ethicalduke.blogspot.com/" REL="nofollow">DSED</A>Debrahhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04567454727276881424noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32542246.post-32335147603777007502007-11-05T20:08:00.000-05:002007-11-05T20:08:00.000-05:00"Don't you people understand? Lots of parents of l..."Don't you people understand? Lots of parents of lots of students still want their kids to go to Duke. And Cornell. And Cal. And Chicago. And Columbia. And all those other schools yuse love ta hate! No one is forcing you to send your kid anywhere. No one besides you really cares." -- 11/5/07 1:54 PM<BR/><BR/>Duke, Cornell, Cal, Chicago, and Columbia are still great schools. They have enormous strengths. But they have perverted weaknesses as well. Many of us believe that we have a collective responsibility to our children to raise them properly and educate them well. When parents, and students, work hard to obtain their college education, most of us feel they should receive value for their investment of time and money. They should not be conned by folks who think "no one besides you really cares". How sad that a university faculty member thinks that way.<BR/><BR/>I challenge you to read the following article which discusses many of our concerns.<BR/><BR/><A HREF="http://www.americancivicliteracy.org/report/summary_summary.html/" REL="nofollow">The Coming Crisis in Citizenship </A>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32542246.post-41358210887522642062007-11-05T20:05:00.000-05:002007-11-05T20:05:00.000-05:00These snide and snotty criticisms of KC and the DI...These snide and snotty criticisms of KC and the DIW blog tell us more about the people who enabled the frame-up. In short, anyone who isn't totally incensed over the criminal and moral outrages committed by Nifong, the Durham authorities, and the DNA experts and compounded by Duke's "leadership" and the angry studies thugs, must be someone without intelligence, morals, integrity, or human feelings. I read these childishly taunting remarks and wish more than anything I could get close enough to the little pukes to bitch-slap them into reality. What kind of scum does Duke have in its Halls of Academe?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32542246.post-86798541550390508082007-11-05T19:45:00.000-05:002007-11-05T19:45:00.000-05:00from Liestoppers:Monday, November 05, 2007Duke Stu...from Liestoppers:<BR/><BR/>Monday, November 05, 2007<BR/>Duke Students for an Ethical Duke Blog<BR/> <BR/>The Duke Students for an Ethical Duke have started a new Blog and we encourage those who are following the case to check it often.<BR/><BR/>Duke Students for an Ethical Duke <BR/><BR/>Their mission statement is as follows<BR/><BR/><BR/><BR/>Duke Students for an Ethical Duke exists to achieve and protect a constructive and wholesome educational and extracurricular environment for ALL Duke students. We pledge to defend the dignity and the academic and legal rights of Duke students, both individually and collectively, whether threatened by other students, faculty, or administrators alike. Whenever hatred, racism, prejudice, slander, or plain administrative and academic incompetence manifest on Duke Campus, we are listening not as personal advocates but as advocates of principle, fairness, and equality. Mission Statement<BR/><BR/>This organization has sponsored the recent separate presentations on campus by co-authors of Until Proven Innocent, Prof KC Johnson & Stuart Taylor.<BR/><BR/>LieStoppers commends these students at Duke for their work. Let's give them our full support as they are on the fronts line defending the "dignity and the academic and legal rights of Duke students, both individually and collectively." They face off against the prejudice of the "88" on a daily basis, and we thank them for it.<BR/><BR/>Here is the url for the Duke Students for An Ethical Duke blog:<BR/><BR/>http://ethicalduke.blogspot.com/W. R. Chambershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10827973470339715021noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32542246.post-82087539532059396102007-11-05T18:59:00.000-05:002007-11-05T18:59:00.000-05:00POSTED BY AN EARLIER ANONYMOUS:"I wonder if Reevie...POSTED BY AN EARLIER ANONYMOUS:<BR/><BR/>"I wonder if Reevie is still proud of declaring, with the full force of Duke professorship, that a sexual assault did take place, and that ejaculation occurred?" <BR/><BR/>This kind of rush to judgment for political reasons and beliefs is especially frightening now that the Duke Humanities have decided to go unabashedly political with their new fellowships.<BR/><BR/>Will the persons manning these new fellowship positions also "rush to judgment" regarding supposedly scholarly issues? How can such scholarship be trusted? <BR/><BR/>It used to be that science and scholarship required that theories be proved and that evidence be compiled. When the scientist's or scholar's own pet theory was being tested, he had to put it through doubly stringent testing (or provide twice the evidence) because scholarship was not a matter of politics, but a matter of truth. <BR/><BR/>In those old, long ago days, an idea was debated and tested before it became a truth.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32542246.post-26608864666761210102007-11-05T18:52:00.000-05:002007-11-05T18:52:00.000-05:00One person who was conspicuously absent from the l...One person who was conspicuously absent from the list:<BR/><BR/>ATLANTA (AP) - Nancy Grace is now the mother of twins, after doctors induced labor two months before her due date. Grace, host of legal affairs talk show "Nancy Grace" on CNN Headline News, gave birth to a boy, John David, and a girl, Lucy Elizabeth, on Sunday, said CNN spokeswoman Janine Iamunno. <BR/>John David weighed 5 pounds, 1 ounce, and Lucy Elizabeth weighed 2 pounds, 15 ounces at birth. <BR/><BR/>I will resist the temptation to make a tasteless joke about the potential academic or athletic future of her son and simply wish them all well.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32542246.post-10142587112006983172007-11-05T18:18:00.000-05:002007-11-05T18:18:00.000-05:00David Duke and Senator Robert Byrd are to the KKK ...David Duke and Senator Robert Byrd are to the KKK as __________ are to Duke University.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com