Kudos To The Campus Greens

As any rational person not walking in fear of Representative Steve Nass could have predicted, the appearance of Kevin Barrett at UW Oshkosh last night was somewhat anti-climactic. That should not be surprising, because when you take the McCarthyite paranoia and scapegoating out of the equation, you're left simply with a movie and a speech on a controversial topic. I actually felt sorry for the college Republicans; they were placed in the absurd position of having to stand against academic freedom and free speech--two of the most conservative values around when the word "conservative" has some real meaning. If Al Gore were president today and during 9/11, these same students and their mentors would be shouting from the rooftops about the absurdity of the 9/11 Commission Report. Barrett would be their hero.

Kudos to the campus Greens for seeing that this entire isssue is not about personality cults, partisan politics, or university public relations. They understand that legislative attempts to micromanage the university curriculum and the out of classroom statements of teachers ultimately threatens us all. They understand that the search for Truth on ANY topic becomes impossible when administrators and faculty allow themselves to be bullied and intimidated by politicians, the press, or other special interests. To think that the legislature will "leave us alone" or treat us better after Barrett is undermined and/or booted out of the System is horribly naive. Today it's Barrett, tomorrow it will be someone else (perhaps a stem cell researcher, evolutionary biologist, or prison reform advocate).

So thank you campus Greens for showing the administration and faculty that it is still possible to act with courage and integrity on a college campus.