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posted by CoolHand on Monday August 29 2016, @01:42AM   Printer-friendly
from the it-takes-all-kinds dept.

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/08/opinion/sunday/a-confession-of-liberal-intolerance.html?_r=0

WE progressives believe in diversity, and we want women, blacks, Latinos, gays and Muslims at the table — er, so long as they aren't conservatives. Universities are the bedrock of progressive values, but the one kind of diversity that universities disregard is ideological and religious. We're fine with people who don't look like us, as long as they think like us.

O.K., that's a little harsh. But consider George Yancey, a sociologist who is black and evangelical. "Outside of academia I faced more problems as a black," he told me. "But inside academia I face more problems as a Christian, and it is not even close."

I've been thinking about this because on Facebook recently I wondered aloud whether universities stigmatize conservatives and undermine intellectual diversity. The scornful reaction from my fellow liberals proved the point.

"Much of the 'conservative' worldview consists of ideas that are known empirically to be false," said Carmi. "The truth has a liberal slant," wrote Michelle. "Why stop there?" asked Steven. "How about we make faculties more diverse by hiring idiots?"

To me, the conversation illuminated primarily liberal arrogance — the implication that conservatives don't have anything significant to add to the discussion. My Facebook followers have incredible compassion for war victims in South Sudan, for kids who have been trafficked, even for abused chickens, but no obvious empathy for conservative scholars facing discrimination.

The stakes involve not just fairness to conservatives or evangelical Christians, not just whether progressives will be true to their own values, not just the benefits that come from diversity (and diversity of thought is arguably among the most important kinds), but also the quality of education itself. When perspectives are unrepresented in discussions, when some kinds of thinkers aren't at the table, classrooms become echo chambers rather than sounding boards — and we all lose.


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  • (Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Monday August 29 2016, @02:48PM

    by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Monday August 29 2016, @02:48PM (#394731) Journal

    You're still a half-wit. ISIS is recruiting people FROM AROUND THE WORLD. England, France, Belgium, anyplace where Muslims are wealthy enough to have spare people with the time to enlist. You've read the headlines about the narcissistic little teenage asswipes who run away to join ISIS. But, most of the asswipes don't get into the news - they just go, and no one cares. Their mothers and fathers approve of the children becoming martyrs.

    Wake up and smell the coffee.

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  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday August 29 2016, @04:36PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Monday August 29 2016, @04:36PM (#394801)

    > You're still a half-wit. ISIS is recruiting people FROM AROUND THE WORLD.

    And you are doing your damndest to help them by spreading their message.
    You fucking collaborator.

    • (Score: 2) by Azuma Hazuki on Tuesday August 30 2016, @05:11AM

      by Azuma Hazuki (5086) on Tuesday August 30 2016, @05:11AM (#395136) Journal

      So what do you suggest we do? Because I think alerting fellow leftists that, hey, this shit is toxic as hell and it's massively hypocritical to give it a free pass is just basic logical hygiene; it undermines supposed liberal values to let that shit slide.

      --
      I am "that girl" your mother warned you about...