The Cult Of "Diversity"
Nothing new here. Every now and then I just want to blow off steam about the various kinds of insanity that have gripped my university. It kinda seems as if we've become a giant organization for the promotion of so-called "social justice"--primarily "diversity and inclusion." On the side, we do some research and teaching. Though: the teaching part had better have some m*ther f*cking "diversity" in it, ah tell you whut. Our goal is to introduce our students to the most diverse that has been thought and said.
Once upon a time, there was an idea in there that wasn't insane. It's as if every idea that gets notice by universities is either suppressed with extreme prejudice or spun into an absurd, hyperbolic version of some lefty fad.
The mind of the university has become deranged. There's almost no actual thought in it. It's a collection of fads and superstitions and rationalizations for the advancement of leftist politics.
Or, anyway, that's the way it strikes me just about as often as not.
Once upon a time, there was an idea in there that wasn't insane. It's as if every idea that gets notice by universities is either suppressed with extreme prejudice or spun into an absurd, hyperbolic version of some lefty fad.
The mind of the university has become deranged. There's almost no actual thought in it. It's a collection of fads and superstitions and rationalizations for the advancement of leftist politics.
Or, anyway, that's the way it strikes me just about as often as not.
posted by Winston Smith at
8:51 AM
6 Comments:
Like a penduluklm, diversity can swing too far. But before it became a Thing, social science research was really impoverished. Take a look at the Wikipedia article on Emilie du Chatelet, and see if you agree. One of the first modern philosophers of science--whose French translation of Newton is still in use, and who first postulated general conservation of energy*--and she was completely ignored from her death in 1749 til 1967. Also 12 years a slave would not have been resurrected as a movie in 1955. And there would be no Lynching memorial in Montgomery ALA opening on this date in 1958 (as opposed to *today*.)**
* Liebnitz had showed it first for elastic interactions (planetary motion and ideal billiards balls.)
** I found this rather ironic in light of your post...
I don't think it just *seems* that way, and I think it gets to one of the anon's points about the impact and power of the "shadow faculty." As a member of said shadow faculty, and one looking for jobs elsewhere, I look at a lot of administrative job ads. I have definitely noticed a trend in the last year or so of jobs in student affairs and student services listing "commitment to social justice" or some variant of that as a qualification. That is who universities are hiring. And those people have a much more direct line to people who make policies than most faculty members do, and they have a huge impact on students. My mediocre regional state university recently implemented a "residential curriculum" designed by a bunch of social justice types in residence life. It is a steaming pile of crap, and every student living on campus is subject to it. I can't really imagine how bad it is at universities with more lefties and a stronger commitment to "social justice."
But PM, *nobody* thinks that there's never been discrimination...*egregious* discrimination.
But we've known that my whole life, and my whole life it's been in the public consciousness, and my whole life we've worked against it.
There's little excuse for turning it all into an insane cult and making a beeline for the opposite extreme...destroying much of what's important about universities in the process.
Though it's probably better to say that universities are destroying *themselves.* The left took over the humanities and social sciences and much of the administration...little surprise, I suppose, that that monoculture is susceptible to far-leftist blight.
Dammit, rotgut.
I'm about to hit critical mass of pissedoffedness.
There's little excuse for turning it all into an insane cult and making a beeline for the opposite extreme...destroying much of what's important about universities in the process.
The thing is, if you are actually committed to equality, the university, and education properly done, is an obstacle. Education will mean skill dispersion, just due to genetic difference, raw luck, and the vagaries of choice, which will create social and economic inequality (or it will create massive inefficiency as we lose all advantages of specializing along comparative advantage as a result of skill dispersion by forcing equality post hoc).
At some point you have to chose between egalitarianism and human flourishing, and the more lefty a university gets, the more it will have to compromise its mission. The only way you can justify is through socially mandated falsehood.
The most important unasked question thus far: what happens when Winston hits critical mass of pissedoffedness?
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