Barrett saga continues to bubble

Google aggregated a whole series of news stories about Barrett. I hadn't been paying much attention, but my earlier post about the end to the saga were clearly premature.

61 legislators have signed a letter demanding Barrett be fired and are threatening funding for the system:
(Here is one version of the story)

Not surprisingly, Bill O'Reilly is using his show to attack Barrett and the UW (Here is the link)

In some sort of e-mail campaign, Barrett challenged UW-hater Steve Nass to a debate about 9/11, which Nass called 'silly' (This link)


Madison professors respond to Fish and others:
The Capital Times

Make room for our students

The Journal Sentinal makes a plea for more money for higher education in Wisconsin. They, of course, emphazize that UW-Milwaukee should get more, but the point is well taken!



JS Online:Editorial: Make room for our students

Stanley Fish on Barrett

The NYT (reg. required) published an editorial by Stanley Fish today, arguing that both sides are incorrect in their positions about academic freedom.

He argues that the key issue is freedom to do your job without external interference--in this case objectively studying the causes of 9/11--but no freedom for prostyletizing.

Sexism in science

I really enjoyed this interview with a scientist who had a sex change operation -- from man to woman -- who discusses the casual mistreatment of women students by their instructors!

Here is the link from the sunday NYT (bugmenot.com)

Barrett saga over for now

I have a feeling the Barrett story has come to an end as of yesterday. The Provost at Madison made the proper decision (and the only one he could and still maintain any vestige of academic integrity), which was to say that he wasn't going to censor Barrett's class based on his out of class comments.

This will fade away until the next funding cycle, when the anti-UW crowd will use it to whip up support for more cuts--why not punish students and the state's future for comments of one instructor?



Wisconsin State Journal

Barrett defends his theory in Milwaukee

The journal sentinal gives play to Barrett's speech in Milwaukee, and lists a few of the reasons he thinks 9/11 was an inside job.


JS Online:Lecturer denounces critics of his 9-11 teachings

Bad Boys in College

The NYTimes (Reg. required) ran a long article in the Sunday paper about underachieving college men.

Women are generally outperforming men academically in college, while increasing their relative numbers.

The 'men are slackers' is the new cultural theme at the moment. The recent movie, "Failure to Launch" makes the same kind of argument.

I am not sure there is anything to it, but it is an interesting new angle of reporting.

At Colleges, Women Are Leaving Men in the Dust - New York Times

Barrett's letter to Doyle

Here is the text of the letter.

He lists all of his favorite conspiracy theories in his "questionaire" that accompanies the short note.

WisPolitics.com

The story gets richer -- 9/11 instructor strikes back

This story gets ever better -- the instructor wrote a sarcastic letter to Doyle -- and is going to be ever more inflammatory.

He seems to be happy with the publicity he is generating, but it is bad for the rest of us. . .

Wisconsin State Journal

Student complaints about Professors

I found this interesting site--you can read about student complaints about the "indoctrination" they received from their professors.

It contains one-sided student views from all sorts of disciplines and makes amusing reading, if you are looking for a little break!

NoIndoctrination.org

Latest UW ideological controversy

I saw this on the news last week, but didn't have a good internet link to it.

A Madison PhD and temporary instructor is planning on teaching a course, which may include his view that the government was involved in the 9/11 attacks.

It is the standard right-wing fare--how dare anyone question the Bush administration and official versions of history.

Read about the UW haters, who claim that this isn't about academic freedom . . .

More bad press for UW system

Inside Higher Ed :: Investigation Over 9/11 Teachings

No Axle-Tech news

The Northwestern ran a non-story about Axletech and the university this morning.

Perhaps this is part of the river-front (non)redevelopment theme, since a university building on the Fox would probably be nicer than the axle factory.

It is also part of the planning process for our new acadmenic building. If Axletech remains where it is, the new building will not go in the location where the adminstrators would like it.

Oshkosh Northwestern - AxleTech negotiations 'silent'