August 23, 2024

A sign things are getting better? Maybe?

Earlier today, I met with my graduate students. In the course of conversation, I mentioned the recent effort by Ann Coulter to belittle Tim Walz's special-needs son.

There was a time when you couldn't be rid of Coulter. She was on nearly every cable news outlet as some sort of "pundit" or whatever. She thought she was relevant and that her over-the-top sarcasm was witty.

But now? None of my graduate students had ever heard of her.

She should fade back into the obscurity she earned.

August 18, 2024

Dear New College Student

Dear New College Student: thoughts from a college instructor.

I’ve posted versions of this over the past couple of years, but some of you expressed some interest in having it updated and reposted before fall classes begin at colleges and universities in the US. So here it is.

If you think I missed a point, please speak up!

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I’ve been on the faculty at my current institution – a public research university – for the past 24 years. I was also an instructor while I was in grad school, also at a public university. Both were large research universities that served as the flagship campuses for their state's system. Most of my classmates and friends have gone on to faculty positions themselves at a wide range of institutions – large research universities like mine, but also private liberal-arts colleges, community colleges, regional satellite campuses, and so on.

The advice I provide comes largely through my own experience, along with knowing what my friends have been doing for the same amount of time.

This is primarily addressed toward two groups of readers – new college students and their parents or guardians.

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Being a first-year student is exhilarating! So many paths to choose! So many opportunities to make a real difference! So much freedom for self-assertion! You’re stepping forward not as adolescents, but as adults, and you’re taking more control over your personal time and direction.

But it can also be terrifying. You might be far from home for the first time. You might be the first member of your family to attend college. You might have been a stand-out in high school, but now you're surrounded by other stand-outs from other high schools. It's intimidating. You don't have Mom and/or Dad to keep your nose to the grindstone, and some aspects of being a college student - enrolling in classes, for example - are downright labyrinthine. And if you're a student of color, a member of the LGBTQ community, or from any other kind of minority, you'll be facing residual bigotry that lingers in spite of everything we're doing to combat it. Current events and protests can exacerbate this.

And there’s the cost. You may have already gone to buy your textbooks. It’s not like buying a few paperback novels. One can buy a functioning used car for the cost of a semester’s textbooks. Meals? Rent and utilities, if you’re not in a dorm? That’s all on you now – or on your family, at any rate.

You’ve probably been told that we professors don’t care about you. But you know what? We do. We really do! We wouldn’t be in this line of work if we didn’t. We can usually make more money doing something else. And we understand what you’re going through, because we’ve all been there, and times haven’t changed so much that we can’t help guide you through this massive transition.

In fact, seeing you through all of this is part of our job, and it’s a privilege to take it on. I take my mission as an instructor not only as a means to a paycheck, but as a moral obligation. It’s also a source of great joy for me. I really like being in the classroom with students.The vast majority of instructors you’ll encounter on campus will feel the same way.

Thus, I’ve compiled some advice over the past few years that might help you as you get ready to dive in:

1. Be careful with assumptions, and always ask before acting. Exceptions can't always be made.

During the pandemic, I would get emails from incoming students to confirm that the lectures for my large-enrollment fall class were being recorded. I always responded that although my lectures were online (which I hated), they weren’t pre-recorded. They were “synchronous,” meaning one had to watch the lecture at the scheduled time, just as if they were attending the lecture in an auditorium

This would be followed by a request for accommodation because the student had another commitment when lecture was scheduled to take place.

In other words, the student had enrolled in a course they couldn’t actually attend, and they wanted me to change my procedures to match their faulty assumption.

I've encountered all kinds of bad assumptions. That we’ll always accommodate requests for a makeup exam or quiz (see below)? That the exam will look exactly as you imagined? That what your roommate said about a specific professor or a specific course is accurate? That your parents’ experiences will mirror yours? Bad assumptions. And so it goes.

Not sure whether something will be allowed? Unsure if you’re facing a situation that calls for an exception to course policy? Please, for the love of whatever beneficent deities may or may not exist – ask! We’d rather work with you before something happens than after.

“It’s easier to get forgiveness than permission” is a nice quip, but it’s not always true.


2. Read the syllabus!

On the first day of any class, you’ll be given a syllabus that spells out course policies and procedures, contact information about the instructors, how course grades are assessed, and usually a list of lecture topics, reading assignments, or projects.It will also include important deadlines and dates, such as when midterm exams will be held or when term papers are due.

Other information is often included.At my institution, I’m encouraged to include contact information for various crisis centers and programs intended to help those who need it.During the pandemic, I included a paragraph about the wisdom of wearing a mask, even if my state’s legislature forbade me from requiring their use in class.Some of my friends include the URLs of useful websites related to the subject of the course.

The huge majority of questions students ask me are answered on the syllabus.When’s the next exam?It’s on the syllabus.How much is this homework assignment worth?Syllabus.How do I contact my T.A.?Her email address is on the syllabus.When are your office hours?Syllabus.What’s the air-speed velocity of an unladen swallow?Not on the syllabus, and the answer depends on whether one is referring to a European or African swallow, but a lot of other information is there.

If you lose your syllabus, we’re happy to send you a replacement.I keep a copy on my course’s internal web site, or I can email you a PDF.I can even print a copy for you.You need only ask.


3. Keep your life as simple as possible.

Extracurricular activities expand your horizons and can help you find a community far from home. They can be of tremendous benefit to your mental health. It is, however, easy to get roped in too deeply, especially when you’re just starting out. Overloading yourself with such things reduces the amount of time you have for your homework and studying.

This is why I encourage on-campus living when it's available for first-year students. It keeps life simple.

I'm not saying one should live a cloistered existence and ignore the rest of the world. But you'll still be getting your footing during your first year, so don't overdo it.


4. Learn some basic skills.

I mention these only because, as time has gone on, the number of first-year students arriving with these abilities has dwindled:

Learn how to take notes. Not all of us put our notes online. Some of us disallow recording of classes, and textbooks are not always the best fallback. (Indeed, I don't even use textbooks.) This means learning to write down the important points quickly. Use abbreviations, and don't worry about proper grammar - just get the points down.

Learn how to manage your time. You won't have people checking in on you in the morning or evening.

Also learn how to manage your stress. This follows from the previous point.

Learn the difference between memorizing something and understanding it. Not all of us expect students to just barf out details on exams - we want evidence that you've absorbed their meaning and can apply them to address broader issues.


5. Save everything.

I once had a student approach me after classes were over, wondering why she got a C in my class. She was sure she'd be in solid B range. I pointed out that her final exam and one of her midterms were indeed in the 80's, but her other midterm was a 38. That, I explained, dragged her grade down.

"But I didn't get a 38," she replied. "I got an 83!" She showed me her exam, and sure enough, she did. The moron who entered the grades into the spreadsheet (most likely me) typed them in backward. It happens, and mistakes like this are easily corrected - and this is made easier if you can show your professor what you actually got.

Seriously - treat your homework assignments, quizzes, exams, and whatnot like receipts.


6. Keep your family posted about your classroom commitments.

If someone's planning a family event, it wouldn't hurt if they knew when your exams are scheduled. As detailed below, we cannot always make scheduling accommodations.

My ex used to teach a lab that met on Fridays at 4:30. There were quizzes every week. During the first week of class, she had to tell her students that "My parents already paid for the plane ticket " would not be accepted as a reason to miss lab on the Friday before Thanksgiving break.


7. Always contact an instructor before missing something. Always get some sort of documentation for the reason. And bear in mind – we can’t accommodate everything.

Here are some things we can accommodate:

- illness (of any sort, mental or physical).
- family emergencies (funerals or sudden very severe medical incidents or accidents).
- religious observances (e.g. Yom Kippur).
- court date or jury duty.
- military service obligation.
- family event planned long in advance (e.g. wedding), provided we're notified well before the exam.
- job interview.
- transportation problems (e.g. missed bus, car broke down).
- conflicting institution-related event (e.g. sports, marching band, ROTC, or a required field trip for another class).
- computer problems (if the exam is online).
- work schedule conflict (though if it happens frequently, it might be good to take a different class or get a different job).

Here are some things we generally either can't or won't:

- oversleeping.
- routine as opposed to milestone family event (e.g. I'll accommodate you for your great-grandmother's 100th birthday party, but not your cousin's 8th).
- you missed a bunch of class, but haven't made an effort to speak to me or borrow someone's notes until minutes before or sometime after the exam.
- not feeling ready and wanting extra time.
- travel preference (e.g. wanting to take a test early because it's scheduled late in finals week or right before Thanksgiving/Spring break and you want to get out of town).

Bottom line - we accommodate need, not convenience.

In the past, getting a doctor’s note was a routine request. Some institutions (including mine) now see such requests as HIPAA violations. But it would still be worth getting some sort of documentation. It doesn’t have to specify the reason you sought treatment, nor need it say what the treatment itself actually was. The bracelet you may have been issued as a patient would be more than enough, for example.

It should be possible to document pretty much any good reason to miss class - including a funeral. I, for one, would never ask for documentation for a funeral, but I know professors who do - and generally, it's not all that hard to get. If you can't bring in an obituary, most funeral homes and houses of worship are willing to provide a letter acknowledging your presence at a funeral service at their facility. (These used to be necessary when airlines offered lower "bereavement" rates for last-minute air travel.)

And before I'm attacked for being hard-ass, please bear in mind - arranging a make-up exam really is an imposition. On our campus, instructors are responsible for scheduling exams for most students who need an accommodation for a learning disability, such as extended time or a low-distraction environment, and 5 or 10 percent of the class may fall in this category. For a class of 200, that's 10 or 20 students who need accommodation. And that's on top of those who were bridesmaids, got sick, or had a family emergency. Every request for a makeup is a request to find a 1- or 2-hour slot that works for your busy schedule and mine, and depending on circumstances, it might require finding a time that hasn’t already been taken by another student wanting an accommodation. If you actually need the accommodation, no problem – that’s my job and responsibility. But if it’s for a non-essential reason, you’ll have to make a strong case.

8. Get to know your instructors.

This is arguably more important later in your college career, but it doesn't hurt to stop by during office hours. That's what they're for.

(My institution now wants us to call them “drop-in hours” on the theory that it sounds more inviting.)

This is good not only because you'll understand the material better by asking questions early and often, but because it helps us get to know you. Believe me - it's a lot easier to write a letter of recommendation if I know something about the student beyond his or her exam scores.

Students who come to know their professors tend to be asked to participate in research or creative projects. That looks really good on your resume, and it makes you better at what you do anyway. It also reduces feelings of isolation. We professors are no longer the terrifying, impersonal authorities who look down on our students - we're people.

Also, always remember – you generally don’t have to ask permission to meet an instructor during office hours. That’s what office/drop-in hours are for. If you show up, and we’re not there, you’re allowed to file a complaint about it.


9. (Perhaps a corollary to 8.) If you’re at a larger university where some classes are covered by teaching assistants, don’t complain. Rejoice.

Something I often say to prospective freshman or transfer students: you don’t have to have TAs if you come here. You get to have them.

I’ve been criticized on DU in the past for saying this. And it’s true - not all of the TAs you encounter will be proficient instructors. But you know what? The same is true of instructors at all levels, including distinguished tenured professors. When I think back about the best instructors I had in college and grad school, half were TAs who made a difference.

TAs can be among your most treasured resources. They’re usually at least as good at presenting the material as a tenured professor. They may also be more tuned in to the latest developments in a field, especially if the primary instructor is close to retirement. But most importantly – they’ll be close to you in age. They’ll be of your generation. They’ll listen to the same music, watch the same programs, and use the same social media platforms. That makes them more relatable.

Seriously – when I stared my current job, I was in my early 30’s, though I could pass for mid-20’s. My end-of-term evaluations often praised me for being so approachable. I’m now in my mid-50’s, and my evals more frequently complain of just how unapproachable I am. I’ve gained some weight, and my hair isn’t quite as dark as it was, but my personality is basically the same. I’ve concluded that my age gives me the appearance of being a distant authority who doesn’t welcome dialogue with his students.

If you feel intimidated by older professors, work with your TA’s.

And if the TAs are in your major, spend time with them. They’ll be doing the cutting-edge work you’ll want to follow, and perhaps join. I probably learned more about how to do science from my undergrad advisor’s grad students than from my advisor herself.


10. Grades are goals to be achieved – not commodities to be negotiated.

About the only reason we’ll normally reconsider course grades or exam scores is if a scoring or data entry has been found.

We’re a lot less likely to consider the following arguments:
- A grade doesn’t reflect your own subjective assessment of the effort you put into the class.
- You’re applying for a highly competitive job or for some form of post-graduate education (grad school, med school, etc.), or you plan to join the military as an officer, and higher grades will improve those applications.
- Your parent(s) and/or guardian(s) will be so very disappointed if your grade isn’t improved.
- You had an exceptionally busy semester.
- You might lose your scholarship if your grade isn’t changed.
- You think I’m being unfair in assessing your grade based on what you actually turned in, and not on what you would have turned in if you’d done better.
- You're "just not a science person." (Do you know what my advisor would have said if I’d done poorly in a medieval lit class and tried “I’m just not a humanities person” as an excuse?)
- Can’t I be merciful in the spirit of the holidays?

You’re adults now. You work for what you earn, and you take your lumps if your effort didn’t earn what you’d hoped.

There is something of a gray area between “data error” and “weak excuse,” but it’s narrow, and you’re going to have to bring some sort of evidence to back you up. I’m actually willing to consider ongoing health issues or job conflicts to help you out, but I’m a lot more likely to do so if you don’t wait until grades are submitted.

I’ve also heard students complain that an instructor was somehow biased against them. I’ve even seen a very small handful of cases where I believed it. But such cases are very rare, and they’re way more easily alleged than demonstrated. That your instructors’ politics are somewhere to the right or left of yours doesn’t mean the instructor can’t grade you fairly. (In fact, your professor probably doesn’t know anything about your politics.) Rule out other explanations for your performance before blaming others.


11. Know when to pull back.

Life happens.

A lot of students encounter mental or emotional problems they may not have anticipated, or the problems they already have might be exacerbated. You might feel isolated on campus. You might be overwhelmed with difficult classes. You may be trying to balance your classes with a job or the needs of a small child. Your financial situation may change. You, or a loved one, may be facing a very serious physical illness that requires much of your attention.

Sometimes, the best solution is to cut back on your classes. Staying in for the sake of completing the semester might be counterproductive if you fail everything. Do you want to graduate on time, or with a respectable GPA? Sometimes, these are mutually incompatible.

I'm not saying you should just drop out of school when things get tough. It's always going to be difficult. Besides, dropping below a certain number of credit hours can jeopardize your financial aid, and if the class you drop is a prerequisite for other courses in your major, you might end up extending your time to degree even further. But in consultation with academic and financial aid advisors, and perhaps a mental health professional, dropping one or two courses might not always be a bad idea.

I should acknowledge the counterargument I’ve heard, especially from parents or working students: dropping classes and not finishing in 4 years can cost a lot of dough. If you drop late enough in the semester, you might not get your tuition back, and you’d have to pay it all over again when you try again during a later semester. All I can say is this: I get it. Really. But from my standpoint as an instructor, I think we all have to balance our priorities. Here’s a question only you can answer: Is it better to pay less for a less-competitive academic transcript and letters of recommendation that have to explain your qualities in spite of a mediocre GPA?


12. Know when to ask for help, and find out where it can be found.

We get it. All of us were students, and many of us needed help at times. That includes me.

There is no dishonor in asking for help, and there are places to find it. Most campuses have some sort of student counseling center - that, or they'll have resources to help you find a professional counselor. They're not there as window dressing - they're there because people need them.

Creating a sense of belonging can go a long way toward alleviating some of the pressure and stress of being a first-year college student. This is why I advise against overdoing it with extracurricular activities - not against avoiding them altogether.

This was especially true during the pandemic. Usually, out of a group of 200, I’ll get one or two reaching out to tell me they've missed some assignments because they're having a rough time. In 2020, in the midst of the pandemic, the presidential election, and social unrest, it was more like 15 or 20 of them. Some were students of color who felt the pressure of racism like never before. Others were failing to thrive academically in the on-line system imposed on us by the pandemic. It was bad. And although the numbers have abated since 2022, they’re still high.

A couple of things to bear in mind:

First, we all understand that health is health. There is no functional difference, when it comes to missing an exam, between the flu and a panic attack. We don’t need the specifics of any medical crisis, but don’t worry that we’ll look on a severe depressive episode as an excuse for laziness.

And second, we’ve been there. However much you wail out “No one understands what I’m going through!”, be assured that some of us actually do.

Personally, as a white, cis-gender, heterosexual, native-born, nominally Christian male who’s never been the victim of a serious crime, there are some issues I can’t address with any real authority – but others on campus can. Some of us are sexual assault survivors, or have experienced racism or bigotry in some form. Others, myself included, know what it means to live with poverty or food insecurity, or with chronic mental health challenges. We’ve been through major relationship breakups. We’ve lived through serious illnesses and injuries. We’ve cared for chronically ill relatives and had loved ones die unexpectedly. We live in the same material universe as you. We’re as human as you are, and we can listen. Or we can tell you who can.

As I said previously – we do this because it’s who we are. We embrace the whole of the academic profession, and that includes mentorship of our students. We take our jobs as a matter of pride, and if one of our students is struggling, we want to know so we can help.

Seriously – ask us. We’ll tell you.

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And all the best for your new adventure. It’s intimidating, but having been through it, I wouldn’t trade the experience for anything. Good Luck!

August 9, 2024

prediction if VP Harris wins the election -

At this point, I'm cautiously optimistic that the election will swing our way, which also happens to be the rational way.

When that happens, here's what I think Republicans will try to pull (other than denying the results): they will claim that the current vice president cannot certify the results of the election before the House of Representatives on the grounds that she has some sort of "conflict of interest."

This would, of course, be a nonsense claim. No one seemed to think that way when GHW Bush certified the results of the 1988 election, for example. But I'm willing to bet real money they''ll try to insist it's a legitimate point.

I don't think that's the only stunt they'll try. They'll make all sorts of claims about election fraud, too. And they'll claim that any Harris victory is illegitimate because she only became Cheatolini's opponent so late in the game.

Not saying they'll succeed in their arguments. Only predicting they'll make them.

I have to say - I had a strong preference for a different VP pick, but so far, I've been delighted with Walz, and as with the timing of the announcement that President Biden would step aside, the Democratic Party has managed it masterfully. And we're blessed to have had so many highly qualified and desirable possibilities for the VP role.

July 22, 2024

I will say this....

I was not in favor of Biden withdrawing from the election. Or if we were to do so, it had to be as soon as possible.

That said, I planned to caucus for Kamala Harris before she dropped out of the 2020 primary races. She has my strong support.

July 4, 2024

something I don't get about Missouri....

I follow the wrongful conviction news fairly closely. I started doing so because I include lectures about the importance of science to real human lives in my classes, and exonerations are full of examples.

So the background - the conviction of a woman named Sandra Hemme was overturned a week or two ago. She was convicted in 1981 of a woman's murder. There was no physical evidence linking her to the crime. All the police had were confessions obtained after lengthy interrogations which any judge would now throw out as worthless. Ms Hemme was suffering from mental health issues, and her statements often disagreed wildly with each other. None of her confessions matched the scene of the crime.

Meanwhile, a police officer was found to have a piece of the murdered woman's jewelry in his possession. He had tried to use one of her credit cards the day her body was found, and his pickup truck was similar to the one reportedly seen at the crime scene. His alibi could not be corroborated.

This had "wrongful conviction" written all over it. Someone with an impaired ability to interact with the police provided confessions, but her claims didn't match the evidence. There was no physical evidence linking her to the crime - no fingerprints, nothing. She had no known connection to the victim. Meanwhile, there's evidence for another suspect who should have at least been questioned. (This is no longer possible, as the officer died several years ago.). But that alternate suspect was a police officer, and in many cases - especially back then - the police have been very reluctant to investigate their own.

So a judge finally did the right thing and overturned her conviction. She was ordered released within 30 days unless she was to be retried.

And the Missouri Attorney General immediately filed an appeal.

What is wrong with the Attorneys General of that state? There's nothing to defend here. We know a lot more about how interrogations work now, and no contemporary jury would convict her, especially if told about the other suspect. Seriously - this just sounds like spitefulness. We were wrong? Just for pointing that out, we're going to pretend we were right and keep you behind bars, because we enjoy seeing people suffer. We're like Pennywise, dementors, or that whirly thing from the original Star Trek series that way.

There have been several high-profile convictions in that state, and every time, the AG went to great (and sometimes absurd) lengths to oppose it. In 2022 or 2023, they even denied that a district attorney even had the legal ability to file for dismissal of charges in cases like this, even if the crime happened in the DA's jurisdiction.

This is a state in which at least one Supreme Court justice said, several years ago, that it's perfectly OK to execute someone known to have been wrongly convicted, just so long as the procedures were followed properly.

In other states, this hasn't been as much of a problem, at least over the past 10 or 15 years. DNA-based exonerations opened many eyes in the criminal justice system. Even Texas has shown a greater capacity for trying to right its wrongs. Missouri really does seem like an outlier when it comes to seeking justice.

Now think about what Ms Hemme is facing. She's been behind bars for 43 years. She'll be the longest-served female exoneree in US history. She's 64 years old. She still suffers from mental health problems and, at her age, her physical health is probably diminished as well. She'll come out with no real job skills, no insurance, very little money (if any), no home, no clothes beyond her prison garb, no credit, no job, no photo ID, and no means of transportation. She'll get out when most people her age are retiring. She won't be able to draw from Social Security, as she wouldn't have paid enough quarters into the system. She's unlikely to have ever used an ATM, much less a computer or a cell phone. She does have surviving family, but the onus shouldn't be on them to support her for the rest of her life.

In my opinion, she's at least owed a pension from the state of Missouri. If she had a job while in prison, she was a state employee and should be granted the same pension as any other state employee.

But with the kinds of vengeful knobs who refuse to admit error who run that state's justice system, she'll be lucky if she gets a penny.

June 26, 2024

There's a fundamental misunderstanding among Assange supporters.

Many, if not most, argue that the prosecution of Julian Assange was somehow an assault on freedom of the press, and that other journalists will be hampered in their work.

But there's a fundamental flaw in that line of reasoning. Julian Assange is not, in fact, a journalist.

Legal definitions of "journalist" or "reporter" are neither uniform nor uniformly clear, and court decisions are not always (to my not-a-lawyer untrained eyes) consistent, but there are nevertheless limits on who can apply a shield law for protection against lawsuits or prosecution. This is why reporters at most news conferences wear badges identifying them as such.

Assange doesn't qualify under any of them. He doesn't work for a news agency (print, broadcast, online), and his purpose was not merely to disseminate information, but to push a specific political agenda.

Like what he did? Fine, I suppose. But stop calling him a journalist. He's a hacker. There's a difference.

June 18, 2024

I just downloaded Anthony Fauci's memoir on audio.

I haven't started listenting to it yet - I want to finish Richard Frank's Tower of Skulls first, which by the way is an excellent review of the early part of the Asia-Pacific war that, unlike others, gives a lot of attention to the conflicts between Japan, China, and the USSR before Pearl Harbor - but will do so soon.

There aren't many reviews on Amazon yet, but only one appears when you scroll down. It basically summarizes the book as the effort of a mass murderer to rescue his reputation.

I plan on uploading a more informed review when I'm done - I won't upload a review unless I've actually read, or in this case heard, the book - but it didn't take long for the reality deniers to drop their rectal myiasis on it.

June 6, 2024

Why I'm hacked off at the History Channel.

And with those other channels that, when they first came out, produced lots of decent documentaries.

These documentaries did a good job of finding living eyewitnesses to the events they cover. The memories related by these eyewitnesses - and in many cases, survivors - were far more compelling than the reenactments or comments by scholars.

Then, they turned everything over to "reality" shows and pseudoscientific/pseudohistorical bullshit.

I'm thinking of this as we commemorate the 80th anniversary of the D-Day landings. The number of veterans who lived through it dwindles every year.

Some of my favorite documentary series are the BBC World At War series from the early 1970's, Vietnam:A Television History on PBS in the 1980's, and the Ken Burns series on both wars. BBC also did a series on the First World War in the 1960's, and I once saw a documentary - I no longer remember where - on the Civil Rights movement of the 1950's and 1960's.

All of these documentaries did a fantastic job of recording living memory. The emotion that came through, in some cases many decades after the events, was (and remains) deeply moving.

Steven Spielberg and Yad Vishem have done an excellent job of recording the memories of Holocaust survivors and others who saw it (e.g. camp liberators). I wish other historical events were treated to this sort of attention.

I've had the privilege of meeting people who lived through historical events, but that's not true of everyone. I've met Apollo astronauts who walked on the moon, for example, and it meant a great deal, but those who won't have that opportunity can watch In the Shadow of the Moon, in which those who flew on these missions -many of whom have since passed away - can be heard for themselves.

Hearing about these events from those who lived through them is far, far more compelling than the sober assessment of a modern historian who might have access to documents and the perspective of time, but who can never show the kind of emotion through their eyes that someone who actually saw it - who was actually there - can do.

We need more of this - not less. It's an absolute tragedy that media outlets that once added to this archive of living experience have been given over to trash.

June 3, 2024

about those two UT professors

These are the ones who've filed a lawsuit complaining that they're not allowed to give failing grades to students who get abortions or are part of the LGBTQ community.

A lot of people here are calling on UT to fire them. That's not going to happen based on what we currently know. There may be (and, in my opinion) should be consequences, but termination won't be one of them.

I'm a UT alum - PhD 1997. While I was there, the Texas state legislature set up an outcry about the "broken" tenure system, and how the state's public universities had to "fix" it. The result was fairly benign - post-tenure review systems were beefed up, allowing administrators to do something if a professor was genuinely not doing their job, but tenure itself remained intact (as it should have been). But I clearly remember an incident that happened right after all of this.

Legislators kept repeating the same mantra - "We're not doing this to punish instructors who push the 'wrong' ideas! Freedom of Speech!" None of us actually believed them, but that's what they kept saying. It was, they said, about making sure instructors were doing their jobs.

As soon as the dust started to settle, a controversy arose at UT-Austin. A law professor expressed admiration for a book entitled The Bell Curve, which argued that Black people had lower IQs for genetic reasons, and that lower average academic performance in the African American community was unrelated to poverty. It was complete hogwash and was heavily refuted almost as soon as it came out in print, but a few right-wing "intellectuals" took it seriously, as this particular law professor evidently did.

Right away, some of the legislators who claimed tenure reform had nothing to do with ideology threatened to go through UT-Austin's budget with a pair of tweezers unless something was done to fire this professor.

These threats came from both the left and the right, though I assume a lot of those on the right had more to do with not alienating Black voters than actual concern that a racist was teaching law at their flagship campus. But whatever the reason, it flew in the face of what they'd just spent months insisting they weren't going to do.

I don't remember exactly what happened to this particular law professor, but he wasn't fired.

The issue is this - tenure is supposed to protect freedom of inquiry. That goes for those of us working on topics the right wing dislikes. In my case, that's climate change and evolution. But it also protects speech rational people find abhorrent. This will be taken into consideration by any administrator who might get involved. Administrators know they'd face the south side of a lawsuit alleging violations of the professors' First Amendment rights and probably breach of contract, and this would be a costly affair they'd most likely lose.

Moreover, given the threats public universities face - and this is acutely true in fascist Texas - no university president or Board of Regents would allow a professor to be fired for expressing right-wing views. It's not a matter of right and wrong at that point - it's a matter of Realpolitik. They have to balance maintaining a campus that welcomes and nurtures everyone with not having a bunch of ignorant blowhards do real violence to their ability to do so.

Believe me - I am NOT, in any way, supporting what these professors have said or are doing. I, for one, would do what I could to marginalize them on campus. If I was a member of a governance body (e.g. Faculty Senate), I'd either propose or support a motion to censure them. If I was in the same department, I'd advise students to avoid their classes. If I was a member of the development committee, I'd make sure donors were aware that they're extreme outliers who don't represent rational human thought, much less the views of the department or institution.


All that said - although the two professors on this lawsuit are probably safe from dismissal given what we currently know, I've been in Academia long enough to know they won't go unpunished. At the very least, their department chairs and/or deans will try to limit their contact with female and LGBTQ students

They might also decide to look closely at their end-of-term teaching evaluations and the grades they've assigned in past semesters. Finding evidence of bias against certain student groups would be cause for further sanction that could, potentially, include termination - though that would usually only happen if a professor was warned once and didn't change course.

Moreover, one of them got his PhD in 1980, meaning must be close to retirement. That would, at least, minimize the damage he can cause in the classroom.

Again - I'm not speaking in defense of these two piles of cicada shit that walk as men do. Just explaining why firing them is very, very unlikely to happen.

May 30, 2024

I was raised to believe it's wrong to rejoice at the misfortunes of others.

I've always had a strong sense of schadenfreude, but my parents taught me to hold such feelings to myself. To do otherwise would be undignified.

So I'm now looking up to the sky and saying, "Mom? Dad? I'm making an exception."

This is more than the conviction of a criminal. It's a demonstration that the rule of law in the US, in spite of its flaws, still lives. It shows the cost of hubris. And it shows the rest of the world that when we say we don't have kings and queens, we mean it.

The Red Hatters won't back down, of course. But maybe some who would otherwise prefer a Republican candidate will think twice about voting for a convicted felon.

I don't know. But I do know that, in spite of the wisdom of what my parents raised me to believe, this is a cause for, if not celebration, then at least pride in being an American.