But hark, my interests in the subject matter surface every now and then when topical news highlights the problems in our current business/politcal/environmental/economic system. The environment, sustainable development, post industrial alternatives, fair trade, "green policy" and endangered species are tags that catch my eye when perusing news of the day. Seeing the big picture and understanding the vast dependencies instead of believing our economy functions on a linear system is of particular interest.

What caught my attention recently is the evolution around the discussion as to whether polar bears should be added to the the endangered species list because their habitat is melting. National Geographic covered this subject back in December of 2006 when the administration was sued by the Center for Biological Diversity, Greenpeace and the Natural Resources Defense Council. "If the bears are given federal protection, they would be the first U.S. mammals officially deemed to be in danger of extinction because of global warming, the conservation groups said."

Fast forward to 2008, this month (May), the "U.S. Department of the Interior added the polar bear to the list of threatened species under the Endangered Species Act" according to Bloomberg news. This is a seachange (pun intended) and I believe a turning point of epic proportions. This recognizes that global warming and the associated habitat destruction due to melting ice caps is the culprit vs oil and gas mining in the arctic.

Evidence that surfaced back in 2005 that polar bears were drowning because they couldnt swim the distances, often more than 60 miles on occasion, from one ice flow to another, caused alarm. More recent situations such as the Ayles Ice shelf (which is the size of Manhattan) snapping free from the North Pole back in 2006, rang additional environmental alarm bells. CNN recently covered the 5,500 square miles of ice shelf (about the size of Connecticut) that is literally hanging on by an ice thread and about to break off into the ocean. Are we literally seeing the ice caps melt before our eyes? In 20 years, will we have discussions like "I remember when".....

Adding the polar bear to the species list is "the" turning point in my opinion, with respect to the global warming discussion. The consciousness of the average citizen is aware of the problem. We just now need to figure out how to empower people to "make a difference" and potentially change their behaviors. Invest now and make proactive decisions today or react tomorrow.

Nothing captures the challenge of the diametrically opposed forces (in this country at least) causing some of the problems of global warming than the photo below. Our need for a robust economy powered by our expenditure and consumption, our consumer equation founded on the tenets of "planned obsolescence" to perpetuate our consumption, the consumption creating mountains of waste, the ever increasing needs of an energy source (fossil fuels, nuclear, etc), the need for a strong military in these trying times, the need for a strong economy in order to fund a strong military....the cycle continues.

Photo: a nuclear powered sub jutting through the ice shelf juxtaposed with the bears...priceless.

On Thursday I was blessed with the opportunity to travel to Washington, D.C. to celebrate mass with Pope Benedict XVI. It took place in Nationals Park, a very nice facility, and the venue was packed. There were about 46,000 in attendance.

Traveling with Catholic Campus Ministry at Bucknell University, we were seated in section 419, the very top deck. However, the view was terrific and the day memorable.

Below is the homily from the mass at Nationals Park. It was a very inspirational message filled with hope for the Church in the United States.

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

“Peace be with you!” (Jn 20:19). With these, the first words of the Risen Lord to his disciples, I greet all of you in the joy of this Easter season. Before all else, I thank God for the blessing of being in your midst. I am particularly grateful to Archbishop Wuerl for his kind words of welcome.

Our Mass today brings the Church in the United States back to its roots in nearby Maryland, and commemorates the bicentennial of the first chapter of its remarkable growth – the division by my predecessor, Pope Pius VII, of the original Diocese of Baltimore and the establishment of the Dioceses of Boston, Bardstown (now Louisville), New York and Philadelphia. Two hundred years later, the Church in America can rightfully praise the accomplishment of past generations in bringing together widely differing immigrant groups within the unity of the Catholic faith and in a common commitment to the spread of the Gospel. At the same time, conscious of its rich diversity, the Catholic community in this country has come to appreciate ever more fully the importance of each individual and group offering its own particular gifts to the whole. The Church in the United States is now called to look to the future, firmly grounded in the faith passed on by previous generations, and ready to meet new challenges – challenges no less demanding than those faced by your forebears – with the hope born of God’s love, poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit (cf. Rom 5:5).

In the exercise of my ministry as the Successor of Peter, I have come to America to confirm you, my brothers and sisters, in the faith of the Apostles (cf. Lk 22:32). I have come to proclaim anew, as Peter proclaimed on the day of Pentecost, that Jesus Christ is Lord and Messiah, risen from the dead, seated in glory at the right hand of the Father, and established as judge of the living and the dead (cf. Acts 2:14ff.). I have come to repeat the Apostle’s urgent call to conversion and the forgiveness of sins, and to implore from the Lord a new outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon the Church in this country. As we have heard throughout this Easter season, the Church was born of the Spirit’s gift of repentance and faith in the risen Lord. In every age she is impelled by the same Spirit to bring to men and women of every race, language and people (cf. Rev 5:9) the good news of our reconciliation with God in Christ.

The readings of today’s Mass invite us to consider the growth of the Church in America as one chapter in the greater story of the Church’s expansion following the descent of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. In those readings we see the inseparable link between the risen Lord, the gift of the Spirit for the forgiveness of sins, and the mystery of the Church. Christ established his Church on the foundation of the Apostles (cf. Rev 21:14) as a visible, structured community which is at the same time a spiritual communion, a mystical body enlivened by the Spirit’s manifold gifts, and the sacrament of salvation for all humanity (cf. Lumen Gentium, 8). In every time and place, the Church is called to grow in unity through constant conversion to Christ, whose saving work is proclaimed by the Successors of the Apostles and celebrated in the sacraments. This unity, in turn, gives rise to an unceasing missionary outreach, as the Spirit spurs believers to proclaim “the great works of God” and to invite all people to enter the community of those saved by the blood of Christ and granted new life in his Spirit.

I pray, then, that this significant anniversary in the life of the Church in the United States, and the presence of the Successor of Peter in your midst, will be an occasion for all Catholics to reaffirm their unity in the apostolic faith, to offer their contemporaries a convincing account of the hope which inspires them (cf. 1 Pet 3:15), and to be renewed in missionary zeal for the extension of God’s Kingdom.

The world needs this witness! Who can deny that the present moment is a crossroads, not only for the Church in America but also for society as a whole? It is a time of great promise, as we see the human family in many ways drawing closer together and becoming ever more interdependent. Yet at the same time we see clear signs of a disturbing breakdown in the very foundations of society: signs of alienation, anger and polarization on the part of many of our contemporaries; increased violence; a weakening of the moral sense; a coarsening of social relations; and a growing forgetfulness of Christ and God. The Church, too, sees signs of immense promise in her many strong parishes and vital movements, in the enthusiasm for the faith shown by so many young people, in the number of those who each year embrace the Catholic faith, and in a greater interest in prayer and catechesis. At the same time she senses, often painfully, the presence of division and polarization in her midst, as well as the troubling realization that many of the baptized, rather than acting as a spiritual leaven in the world, are inclined to embrace attitudes contrary to the truth of the Gospel.

“Lord, send out your Spirit, and renew the face of the earth!” (cf. Ps 104:30). The words of today’s Responsorial Psalm are a prayer which rises up from the heart of the Church in every time and place. They remind us that the Holy Spirit has been poured out as the first fruits of a new creation, “new heavens and a new earth” (cf. 2 Pet 3:13; Rev 21:1), in which God’s peace will reign and the human family will be reconciled in justice and love. We have heard Saint Paul tell us that all creation is even now “groaning” in expectation of that true freedom which is God’s gift to his children (Rom 8:21-22), a freedom which enables us to live in conformity to his will. Today let us pray fervently that the Church in America will be renewed in that same Spirit, and sustained in her mission of proclaiming the Gospel to a world that longs for genuine freedom (cf. Jn 8:32), authentic happiness, and the fulfillment of its deepest aspirations!

Here I wish to offer a special word of gratitude and encouragement to all those who have taken up the challenge of the Second Vatican Council, so often reiterated by Pope John Paul II, and committed their lives to the new evangelization. I thank my brother Bishops, priests and deacons, men and women religious, parents, teachers and catechists. The fidelity and courage with which the Church in this country will respond to the challenges raised by an increasingly secular and materialistic culture will depend in large part upon your own fidelity in handing on the treasure of our Catholic faith. Young people need to be helped to discern the path that leads to true freedom: the path of a sincere and generous imitation of Christ, the path of commitment to justice and peace. Much progress has been made in developing solid programs of catechesis, yet so much more remains to be done in forming the hearts and minds of the young in knowledge and love of the Lord. The challenges confronting us require a comprehensive and sound instruction in the truths of the faith. But they also call for cultivating a mindset, an intellectual “culture”, which is genuinely Catholic, confident in the profound harmony of faith and reason, and prepared to bring the richness of faith’s vision to bear on the urgent issues which affect the future of American society.

Dear friends, my visit to the United States is meant to be a witness to “Christ our Hope”. Americans have always been a people of hope: your ancestors came to this country with the expectation of finding new freedom and opportunity, while the vastness of the unexplored wilderness inspired in them the hope of being able to start completely anew, building a new nation on new foundations. To be sure, this promise was not experienced by all the inhabitants of this land; one thinks of the injustices endured by the native American peoples and by those brought here forcibly from Africa as slaves. Yet hope, hope for the future, is very much a part of the American character. And the Christian virtue of hope – the hope poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, the hope which supernaturally purifies and corrects our aspirations by focusing them on the Lord and his saving plan – that hope has also marked, and continues to mark, the life of the Catholic community in this country.

It is in the context of this hope born of God’s love and fidelity that I acknowledge the pain which the Church in America has experienced as a result of the sexual abuse of minors. No words of mine could describe the pain and harm inflicted by such abuse. It is important that those who have suffered be given loving pastoral attention. Nor can I adequately describe the damage that has occurred within the community of the Church. Great efforts have already been made to deal honestly and fairly with this tragic situation, and to ensure that children – whom our Lord loves so deeply (cf. Mk 10:14), and who are our greatest treasure – can grow up in a safe environment. These efforts to protect children must continue. Yesterday I spoke with your Bishops about this. Today I encourage each of you to do what you can to foster healing and reconciliation, and to assist those who have been hurt. Also, I ask you to love your priests, and to affirm them in the excellent work that they do. And above all, pray that the Holy Spirit will pour out his gifts upon the Church, the gifts that lead to conversion, forgiveness and growth in holiness.

Saint Paul speaks, as we heard in the second reading, of a kind of prayer which arises from the depths of our hearts in sighs too deep for words, in “groanings” (Rom 8:26) inspired by the Spirit. This is a prayer which yearns, in the midst of chastisement, for the fulfillment of God’s promises. It is a prayer of unfailing hope, but also one of patient endurance and, often, accompanied by suffering for the truth. Through this prayer, we share in the mystery of Christ’s own weakness and suffering, while trusting firmly in the victory of his Cross. With this prayer, may the Church in America embrace ever more fully the way of conversion and fidelity to the demands of the Gospel. And may all Catholics experience the consolation of hope, and the Spirit’s gifts of joy and strength.

In today’s Gospel, the risen Lord bestows the gift of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles and grants them the authority to forgive sins. Through the surpassing power of Christ’s grace, entrusted to frail human ministers, the Church is constantly reborn and each of us is given the hope of a new beginning. Let us trust in the Spirit’s power to inspire conversion, to heal every wound, to overcome every division, and to inspire new life and freedom. How much we need these gifts! And how close at hand they are, particularly in the sacrament of Penance! The liberating power of this sacrament, in which our honest confession of sin is met by God’s merciful word of pardon and peace, needs to be rediscovered and reappropriated by every Catholic. To a great extent, the renewal of the Church in America and throughout the world depends on the renewal of the practice of Penance and the growth in holiness which that sacrament both inspires and accomplishes.

“In hope we were saved!” (Rom 8:24).” As the Church in the United States gives thanks for the blessings of the past two hundred years, I invite you, your families, and every parish and religious community, to trust in the power of grace to create a future of promise for God’s people in this country. I ask you, in the Lord Jesus, to set aside all division and to work with joy to prepare a way for him, in fidelity to his word and in constant conversion to his will. Above all, I urge you to continue to be a leaven of evangelical hope in American society, striving to bring the light and truth of the Gospel to the task of building an ever more just and free world for generations yet to come.

Those who have hope must live different lives! (cf. Spe Salvi, 2). By your prayers, by the witness of your faith, by the fruitfulness of your charity, may you point the way towards that vast horizon of hope which God is even now opening up to his Church, and indeed to all humanity: the vision of a world reconciled and renewed in Christ Jesus, our Savior. To him be all honor and glory, now and forever. Amen!

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I came across this video done last year by New Spark Media. 

Basically, a living wage, which is generally above the legal minimum wage, is the amount needed to attain a certain standard of living, usually enough to be above the poverty line and to be ineligable for public assistance.

Several years ago, as an undergraduate at Bucknell University I remember that student groups were rallying for our food services and maintainance staff to receive a living wage.  If anybody has stories to share about similar campaigns that happened or are currently happening at their colleges or universities, please post them.

Pale-faced Nicole Kidman says she stays out of the sun and wears tons of sunscreen because the sun is her enemy. "I wear a lot of sunscreen. I never go in the sun. I've had one skin cancer on my leg, and I rarely get in the sun."

Sources say that along with avoiding sunlight, Cruise and Kidman reduced their exposure from blacks for fears of being targeted in melanoma campaigns by the Black Hebrew Pagans and radical black sun worshipers.

New American Standard Bible His winnowing fork is in His hand to thoroughly clear His threshing floor,
and to gather the wheat into His barn; but He will burn up the chaff
with unquenchable fire.”

People with Natural Blonde Hair are Disappearing and new research suggests that people with blonde hair will be completely extinct in 200 years, notes Professor Jonathan Rees from Edinburgh University. Rees is leading a two-year study into the genetics of blondes.

The Black Hebrew Pagans mark 2012 the year of the prophesied Blond Hair, Blue Eye Holocaust will take place. Ironically, 2012 is also the date the Ancient Mayans predict the world to end.

"2012 is the year when the Rapture of God will be complete and Caucasian race will be consumed by the Ultraviolet Fires of the 2nd Rapture of the Sun of God," says Black Hebrew Pagan minister Yeshua Baal.

“The earth will know peace when the white man is completely uprooted from within it,” Black Hebrew Pagan minister Elija Baal says. “Once the seperation of the Wheat and the Chaff is finished, we will indeed return to Paradise.
“The paradox about the Paradise we are returning to is that we are going forward to get there. The first Paradise was not perfect, because imperfection was not known to all. Imperfecton has to be known to all before we can reach perfection. Through the white man, imperfection is demonstrated to all the universe and to all that exists. Spirituality will chose and has chosen perfection and paradise to imperfection and chaos.”

“Mel Gibson got it wrong, in our recorded history, the white man, not the Jews, are responsible for all the wars that have taken place on the planet. There is no such thing as a white Jew. They are all ”- Underground Railroad artist Criminally Insane

In prophet Yahweh Ben Yahweh’s Another Beast Out of the Earth, Part One Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice is identified as one of the Dragon prophesied to deceive the world and, too, signaling the end of times in the Bible’s book of Revelations. EXCEPT: Thus, Dr. Condoleeza Rice’s mental competency, practical qualifications, and innate ability will cause her to be so exact, specific, and careful about details that she will operate in a not easily apparent manner, as the same manner in which she does today.’ Most people have no idea that Dr. Condoleeza Rice is the intelligence behind President George W. Bush, and that she exchanges pertinent information, gives relevant signals, and sends important messages to him, which dictates all of his actions.’ Thus, because Dr. Condoleeza Rice has a non apparent influence over President George W. Bush she is more dangerous than evident, thus, authenticating her role as a dragon.

"But that God is the God of the underdog. Then, too, when that underdog is elevated, the Divine stays with that once destitute and impoverished schlemiel when he becomes the favorite," Baal says.

It is the the first in our God history when the supreme allows His judgement, condemnation, forgiveness and sentencing of others to be qualified by the whims of the formerly unqualified. In our contemporary society, this is the belief system and practice of such non conventional and new phyletic sects as the New Day Nigrescent Hebrew Pagans who say God has given His judgement to them to dispense - even at their premature whims.

Isn’t this is when God is his greatest and most terrible. For, dispensation is not based on fairness or righteousness; but, it is based on feelings.

“Mankind needs a leash and God wants our judgement in retraining him,” Hebrew Pagan cleric Yeshua Baal asserts. “Vengeance is mine, thus saith the Lord; and the Lord has handed that vengeance to us.

“Know the biblical references to man refer to the black man. The creation of mankind refers to whites.”

The Yacub 13 X Sun Worship movement, who claim responsibility for the 2006 and 2007 spike in skin cancer and melanoma rates afflicting the fairskinned, assert the Ultraviolet Holocaust is already started.

“Due to their poor ability to (re)adapt to the current minor shifts in the environment without high susceptibilities to skin cancers like squamous and basal cell carcinomas, melanomas and cataracts the long term affects of global warming and ozone depletion negatively impact the fair skinned moreso than those with darker pigments.“Who is evolving, we are evolving” - Jacobi Ali

The main belief of The Nation of Islam and its followers is that there is no God but Allah. However, they redefine “Allah” by saying “who came in the person of W. D. Fard.” Fard founded the Nation of Islam that was then adopted by Elijah Muhammad. Their teachings are heretical by traditional Islamic standards which abhor the deification of any person, or the anthropomorphization of God.

With the coming of Wallace Fard Muhammad, who taught us the knowledge of ourselves, God and the devil, the measurement of the earth, of other planets and the knowledge of ultraviolet light and white people’s skin, the celestrial trial against the Sun of God’s reproach began.
The official beliefs of the Nation of Islam have been outlined in books, documents, and articles published by the organization as well as speeches by Elijah Muhammad, Malcolm X, Louis Farrakhan, and other ministers. These include inflammatory statements as well as the pejorative use of the term “white devils” to refer to white people. Many of Elijah Muhammad’s teachings may be found in Message to the Blackman in America and The True History of Jesus as Taught by the Honorable Elijah Muhammad [2]. Many of Malcolm X’s teachings of NOI theology are in his The End of White World Supremacy, while a later more critical discussion of those beliefs can be found in The Autobiography of Malcolm X, co-written with Alex Haley.

Passed down via written lessons from 1930-1934 from W. Fard Muhammad to his student, Elijah Muhammad, referred to and titled, The Supreme Wisdom the Nation of Islam continues to teach its followers that the present world society is segmented into three distinct categories. They teach that from a general perspective, 85% of the world’s people of all races and faiths are the deaf, dumb and blind masses of the people who are easily led in the wrong direction and hard to lead in the right direction. These 85% of the masses are said to be manipulated by 10% of the people who are referred to as the rich slave-makers of the masses of the people. Those 10% rich slave-makers are said to manipulate the 85% masses of the people through ignorance, the skillful use of religious doctrine and the mass media.

The third group referred to as the 5% poor righteous teachers of the people of the world who know the truth of the manipulation of the 85% masses of the people by the 10% and that 5% righteous teachers are at constant struggle and war with 10% to reach and free the minds of the masses of the people.

The Nation asserts the ending of the West began in the 1930s with Muhammad’s coming. Whites were granted an extension, however, and have thus maintained their rule.

Ultimately all the times, dates and prophesies of these movements demonstrate the coming of the same thing, respectfully, the same time.

“It is the blessing and gift of God to live in the era when imperfection is being rooted from the earth,” Baal said.

There is a very wide spectrum of misbehavior and misconduct for college faculty members and administrators. At the worst end of this spectrum, we have behavior like demanding sex from female students in exchange for higher grades, as well as academic dishonesty and research fraud. These actions are generally cause for dismissal, even for tenured faculty members. As an example, Michael Bellesiles, the author of "Arming America," an anti-Second Amendment book that contended that firearm ownership was not common in pre-Civil War America, resigned from Emory University after a finding that he probably falsified some of the research in the book. The Federal Government has barred certain researchers from receiving federal grants after discovering that they had invented some of their results, and so on. This is not, however, the level of misconduct that we will discuss.

Somewhat less reprehensible, but still unacceptable, are practices like giving students lower grades for simply disagreeing with the professor's politics, or being disliked by the professor. It is alleged that certain Duke University professors gave the students who were falsely accused of rape by Mike Nifong (later disbarred for his own misconduct) poor grades out of pure dislike. Willful misuse of grading authority reflects on the professor's fitness to practice his or her profession, of which assigning grades is a part. While it might not merit the professor's outright dismissal, it could bring disciplinary action. We would recommend, for example, intensive supervision of the professor's grading practices for a probationary period of time.

The misbehavior that we we will now discuss is at a lower level that is not relevant to the professor's qualification to practice his or her profession: imparting knowledge to others, conducting original research, and possibly supervision of graduate students' research. The professor or administrator may be eminently qualified to do these things, and deserving of tenure and even a distinguished or honorary professorship. He or she may, however, be totally unfit to exercise any authority or responsibility whatsoever outside of this profession. Students should understand that criticism from one of these individuals does not reflect on them or their behavior, it merely shows that they are dealing with a middle-aged adolescent who has never grown up. The conduct we will discuss includes:

(1) Calling the victims of 9/11 "little Eichmanns" (Ward Churchill), spewing racial theories about racially superior Negro "sun people" versus racially inferior melanin-deficiant "ice people" (Leonard Jeffries), and publishing books like The Israel Lobby (John J. Mearsheimer of the University of Chicago, and Stephen M. Walt of Harvard University), and Norman G. Finkelstein's The Holocaust Industry.
(2) Misusing authority over students or visual art exhibits to settle personal vendettas against political opponents, or to aid and abet same by other students
(3) Abusing university disciplinary processes to settle personal vendettas against political opponents
(4) Using platforms like university graduation exercises to settle personal vendettas against political opponents

We will begin with an example of misusing authority over students or exhibits to settle personal vendettas against political opponents, or aiding and abetting other students by using one's authority in this manner. As stated by Penn State's original alma mater:

When we stood at boyhood's gate,
Restless in the hands of fate,
Thou didst mold us, dear old State
Into men, into men.

The behavior of Penn State Visual Arts professor Charles Garoian and, according to reports, several of his colleagues in 2006 was, however, in direct contravention of the university's goal of molding high school graduates into gentlemen and ladies of character.

You may have read that Professor Charles Garoian Director of the Visual Arts Department of the College of Arts & Architecture at Penn State cancelled the exhibition about the effects of terrorism on both Israeli and Palestinians in the argot of Orwellian newspeak that it ‘did not promote cultural diversity’ or ‘opportunities for democratic dialogue’ that touched off the uproar of controversy.

We understand that Mr. [Joshua] Stulman has been verbally abused by some instructors in his program at Penn State and been told that “Israel has no right to exist.”

Verbal abuse from someone in a position of authority, or perceived position of authority, suggests that the individual is unfit to handle authority. The status of "Israel has no right to exist" depends on the context. If the context was "counseling" from an authority figure like a faculty member with grading powers over the student, it would be misuse of authority and possibly harassment. If, however, the faculty member simply said or wrote it in public, it would be free speech (no matter how disagreeable).

Letter and Statement From Penn State Hillel Director, Tuvia Abramson On Art Exhibition Situation adds,

In my 23 years in Hillel on 3 different campuses I have not seen an act so blatant as the act of censorship, discrimination, and anti-Semitism like the one which applies to Joshua Stulman.

This was not a single act. This was systematic abuse and intimidation which was applied by the School of Visual Arts to coerce the student and force him to cancel his art exhibition all because of its political content. The message of Joshua’s exhibit was this: When you preach hate, teach hate, and indoctrinate children with hate…..you will have terrror. When you use the airways and the political system to reinforce hate, you create a mechanism by which these children will learn how and when to destroy innocent life.

This message was blocked by the director of the School of Visual Arts and its faculty without discussion or review of most of the artwork with the student Joshua Stulman. The director issued a statement canceling the exhibit stating the cancellation was based on Penn State’s Policy AD42 about Zero Tolerance for Hate and that Joshua’s work did not promote a democratic dialogue or cultural diversity.

Res ipsa loquitur means, "the thing speaks for itself." It is eminently clear that, unless there is another side to this story (and our E-mail to Charles Garoian that asked for his side went unanswered), one or more members of Penn State's faculty misused his/their authority to gratify his/their personal political beliefs--behavior that, if imitated by a Penn State graduate in most real world workplaces, would quickly get him removed from any supervisory position, if not actually fired. Furthermore, President Graham Spanier then had to use his valuable time and prestige to undo the mess that his subordinates' actions had created for him. (This included a statement that Mr. Stulman could, contrary to Charles Garoian's decree, display his artwork.) This is why it is often important for students to separate their professors' academic knowledge from their personal behavior as role models.

As a side note on role modeling, Penn State's football coach Joe Paterno is well known for molding high school graduates not only into sportsmen but also into high academic achievers. The graduation rate for Penn State's football players is higher than that of the university in general, since Paterno won't let someone play if his grades fall too low. On the other hand, Ohio State's coach, Woody Hayes, had to resign after he took a swing at a Clemson player who had intercepted a Buckeyes pass. This again underscores the need for young people to think very carefully about which professors (and coaches) they want to imitate in terms of personal behavior, as opposed to those from whom they should learn only academic material. Hayes seems somewhere in the middle. There were plenty of things about him that are worthy of emulation, such as flying to another state to persuade one of his former players against dropping out of medical school, but his explosive temper was not among them.

Tufts University and The Primary Source
The behavior of Charles Garoian and his colleagues toward Joshua Stulman is unfortunately far from unique in academia. As reported by Tufts University's Primary Source and backed up by Ben Shapiro of Town Hall,

Unfortunately, the SOURCE had a difficult task in defending free speech, as the hearing was turned into a kangaroo court once again by CSL chair, Barbara Grossman. Grossman displayed complete disregard for fair judicial proceedings, allowing both complaining parties to drastically exceed their time limits and slander SOURCE staffers on dozens of occasions, while silencing the SOURCE in the middle of our questioning and comparing our actions to the “spray-painting a swastika on a synagogue.” It became apparent throughout the course of the hearing that certain members of CSL had already made up their minds to prioritize students’ hurt feelings over freedom of expression and meaningful intellectual diversity.

Professor Grossman, a prominent Democratic Party donor, was asked for her side of the story but we never heard back from her. While The Primary Source was a party to the disagreement and cannot be considered impartial, Town Hall's Ben Shapiro was not involved except as an observer, and his account backs up The Primary Source's story.

Barbara Grossman, the radical left chair of the CSL, compared printing the carol to spray-painting a swastika on a synagogue. Another CSL member stated that labeling Islam violent was unacceptable in any way, shape or form.

The process was a mockery. After an initial request for silence, the crowd was allowed to cheer for the complainants and razz The Source. The CSL board allotted twice as much time to Dennis and Mohamed than they did to The Source. They granted Dennis and Mohamed extra time, while clocking The Source to the second. Dennis was allowed to slander members of The Source as racists, stating that the conservative agenda was "lower taxes, less government, hate black people."

Barbara Grossman and Tufts University: here is that swastika you were talking about.

Note that one of Grossman's colleagues proclaimed at this hearing that "Labeling Islam violent is unacceptable in any way, shape or form." We are sure that the families of the 9/11 victims, Danny Pearl, Nick Berg, and Theo van Gogh will be delighted and amazed at this truly fascinating research finding from Tufts University.

Cornell University: President Hunter Rawlings III smears conservative student paper during Commencement
One would think that, by the time a man in his forties or fifties worked his way up to President of an Ivy League university like Cornell, he would have learned to deport himself like a dignified gentleman. Students Complain of 'Police State' at Cornell suggests, however, that former Cornell President Hunter Rawlings III's behavior at a commencement ceremony was more like that of an adolescent who cannot refrain from throwing temper tantrums, even with thousands of parents and potential donors in attendance

The university administration had previously condoned Review burning. In April 1997, at a rally where hundreds of copies of the paper were also burned (and the protesters again were not punished) by minority activists, university President Hunter Rawlings called the Review "exceptionally despicable." In his commencement address a few weeks later, Rawlings said that the Review was "offensive" and characterized the students’ response as "rapid and robust." In the Wall Street Journal, Vice President for University Relations Henrik Dullea also praised the arsonists’ response as furthering to promote "civil, albeit energetic, dialogue." These comments prompted U.S. News and World Report columnist John Leo to cite Rawlings both in 1997 and 1998 as a runner-up for his "Sheldon Hackney" award, given annually to the university president who exhibits exceptional pusillanimity in the face of newspaper destruction.

In fact, Davis told several administrators, including Dullea, of his intentions prior to burning the paper. Rather than trying to prevent Davis from engaging in censorship-by-fire, administrators stood by, instead choosing to lecture Review editors on the paper’s content. Dean of Students John Ford attended the burning and smiled approvingly.

We remember this quite well, as we subscribe to both The Wall Street Journal and U.S. News & World Report. It is quite obvious that President Rawling's use of a forum like a graduation ceremony to attack a student newspaper with which he disagrees was inappropriate. It was also an an embarrasment to the university that could have easily cost it substantial donor support. Henrik Dullea's statement in a paper like the Wall Street Journal that it was acceptable for someone to appropriate and burn hundreds of copies of a student-run newspaper also was an embarrasment to the University, and the same goes for the alleged behavior of Dean of Students John Ford. RyanHorn.com Archives adds,

On April 28, 1997, radical student protestors were allowed to run amok on campus. The afternoon began when students stormed a meeting of the Board of Trustees and rushed the stage. Ironically, it was during the presentation of the James A. Perkins Prize for Interracial Harmony. Several copies of this newspaper [Cornell Review] were then stolen, carted down to the intersection of University and East Avenues, and set ablaze. For many hours, the traffic was blocked while hordes of chanting students warmed themselves by the fires. The only thing missing was a swastika. The reasons: someone objected to the Review’s position on the teaching of Ebonics. Interestingly enough, it was the same one taken by Jesse Jackson during the controversy. The other reason was President Rawlings’s statement that no freshman would be allowed to live in racially-segregated dormitories. (The policy was rescinded after this incident). The actions of the student-run rabble were in clear violation of the Campus Code of Conduct as well as local law. The Administration’s response? Rawlings’s lackeys were dispatched to urge the Ithaca Police to ignore civilian complaints while Cornell Police were instructed to stand down.

Following the rampage, the Administration opened up a systematic cover-up campaign to hide President Rawlings’s dereliction of duty. So egregious were the acts of April 1997 that the president’s chief spin doctors were working overtime lying to the national media. One example occurred on August 16, 1997 when Dean of Students John Ford told a Washington Post reporter that he had “no evidence” that any copy of the Cornell Review had been burned. Campus conservatives would later unveil a large photograph that showed Dean Ford standing beside the blaze. When learning of this, free-speech advocate and Village Voice writer Nat Henthoff refocused attention upon the matter. Ford persisted in his denial, but the Henthoff piece prompted a speedy letter to the Washington Post by Vice President of University Relations Henrik Dullea indicating that papers were burned, but only a “handful” as a “symbolic gesture.” Rather than say it was a calculated effort to cleanse the campus of the Review, Dullea framed the issue as one where the radicals were exercising their own rights.

Nat Hentoff supports the allegation that Dean John Ford was less than truthful when he said no papers had been burned:

Cornell's dean of students, John Ford, told me when I was reporting the first mocking of the free press on the part of students that he was not aware that any copies of the Cornell Review had been set on fire. The second time it happened, I told him I had a photograph of him standing at the burning without stopping it. He then told me he saw no reason for disciplinary action concerning this theft of more than 500 issues.

Politically Correct Jim Crow At Cornell University by Kenneth Lee adds another anecdote about Henrik Dullea's behavior, including displays of authority that allegedly left a female student "in tears." It seems that there were some incidents of racist harrassment at Cornell, including threatening phone calls that were totally inexcusable and possibly criminal in nature. These were rightly condemned by Hunter Rawlings III and others. However, not all of the racism came from white supremacists.

You don't know what you're talking about. Do you know what kind of damage you're doing to your school? Do not come here next time." These were the words Cornell Vice President Henrik Dullea used to several students during a private meeting about racial apartheid on the Ithaca campus. Dullea continued to harangue one particular student until she left with tears welling up in her eyes.

...When notified of the NYCRC's and NYCLU's possible challenge to the [racially and/or ethnically segregated] dormitories, Henrik Dullea, the vice president of university relations, at first welcomed an inspection. "We have absolutely nothing to hide," he coolly declared. But when Siegel and Michael Meyers visited Cornell, they sensed that something was rotten in the state of New York. Rather than being reassured, the two men became even more determined to do something about the Ithaca campus, especially after talking to students who opposed the politically correct Jim Crow situation created by the administration. It was during Siegel's and Meyers's visit to Cornell, in fact, that Vice President Dullea issued the stinging rebuke that left several students stunned and one of them teary-eyed.

...The meeting with Siegel and Meyers had been fairly placid until several students showed the two men anti-Semitic flyers that had been circulated by some members of Ujaama, the all-black dormitory. That's when Dullea lost his cool and began to tongue-lash the students. ...(Ujaama, the black dormitory, has invited virulent anti-Semitic speakers from the Nation of Islam on campus during Jewish holidays in the past).

While Ujaama certainly has not only the moral but also the legal right to be free of threatening phone calls and so on, it shouldn't be surprised when the Cornell Review or someone else portrays it as less than civilized when it is caught circulating anti-Semitic material or inviting rabid anti-Semites to campus, because these behavioral choices are indeed less than civilized. Ujaama may have the First Amendment right to spew anti-Semitism, but others have the same right to call it and its members exactly what they are for doing this. The allegation that Mr. Dullea verbally assaulted the students who showed this hate material to the NYCLU simply reinforces the previous observations about his behavioral choices.

No "Hunting Terrorists" at Bucknell

On August 29th, the Bucknell University Conservatives Club sent out a campus-wide e-mail announcing an upcoming speaker: Major John Krenson, who had been in Afghanistan "hunting terrorists." Those two words--"hunting terrorists"--resulted in three students being called to Bucknell's Office of the President by Kathy Owens, the Executive Assistant to the President.

According to the students, when they arrived at the President's Office for the meeting, Ms. Owens held up a print-out of the offending e-mail and said "we have a problem here," telling the students that the words "hunting terrorists" were offensive. For the next half-hour, the three students were given a lecture on inappropriate phrasing.

(When contacted, Ms. Owens did acknowledge that the meeting took place, but refused to answer any questions about what transpired. She did not deny the account of the students.)

Bucknell Accusing Students of Lying? supports the above allegations.

Ms. Owens did not respond to our E-mail to kowens "at" bucknell.edu, cc: bucknellconservatives.org (5 December 2005):

Dear Dr. Owens (cc: Bucknell Conservatives, who are free to print these remarks anywhere they want, and I have also posted these comments on my anti-Islamofascism Web site and at Israpundit).

http://www.frontpagemag.com/Articles/ReadArticle.asp?ID=19655 says, "According to the students, when they arrived at the President's Office
for the meeting, Ms. Owens held up a print-out of the offending e-mail and said "we have a problem here," telling the students that the words
"hunting terrorists" were offensive. For the next half-hour, the three students were given a lecture on inappropriate phrasing." (I also heard
about this incident on the radio, and it is documented at www.bucknellconservatives.org/counterweights/CW_2005-09-08.pdf).

In case you have forgotten, this is what happened on September 11 2001: http://www.fdnylodd.com/BloodofHeroes.html. I encourage you to watch
this video and then decide whether you owe the Bucknell Conservatives Club (and our country) an apology for calling them into your office to criticize their choice of words, and I will in fact go several steps further in choosing mine.

Although the Bucknell Conservatives Club used the verb "hunting" in the context of "locating" as opposed to killing, I want to see the terrorists hunted down and exterminated like cockroaches. If rabid animals, which certainly never wanted to acquire this horrific disease, must be put down for the protection of civilized society, why should terrorists who CHOOSE to slit flight attendants' throats, fly airplanes full of innocent people into buildings full of more innocent people, set off nail bombs in public places, execute female aid workers (Margaret Hassan), throw handicapped senior citizens off ships (Leon Klinghoffer), saw off helpless prisoners' heads, and commit similar atrocities be permitted to aggravate the (alleged) greenhouse gas problem by
continuing to breathe? They are not even entitled to the protections of the Hague and Geneva Conventions and any that we bother to capture alive
should, upon conviction by a court-martial-- their engagement in hostilities while dressed as civilians is enough to condemn them by itself-- be stood up against the nearest wall and shot.

Furthermore, if any students of Middle Eastern origin find the Bucknell Conservatives' statements "inappropriate," they are welcome to get out of MY country. This is not the Netherlands, where students were allegedly ordered not to wear clothing with the Dutch flag because it might offend Muslim students. There was a time when, if you told someone to haul down his country's flag, you had to have more guns than he did and the willingness to use them. The likes of William of Orange and Admiral DeRuyter are no longer to be found in modern Holland but this is the United States, where Barbara Fritchie told the Confederate troops to "Shoot, if you must, this old gray head/ But spare your country's flag."

The United States does not have walls or fences to keep people in who don't like our country and who don't want to be here. Students of Middle Eastern origin who have a problem with statements about hunting and killing the perpetrators of 9/11 are free to get on the next airplane for home. When they do so, they should pay special attention to the cockpit security door that is there to prevent their more-militant compatriots from seizing control of the aircraft, crashing it into a building, and killing them with all the other innocent people involved.

I am sorry if you find my phrasing "inappropriate" but our country is at war with monsters who would be delighted to kill every last one of us and we are under no obligation to spare the sensitivities of those who object when someone uses the terminology of war.

''

This is generally the appropriate way of addressing politically correct ivory tower academicians and administrators. When one addresses them in this manner, there is not very much they can say in response. They almost universally tend to wilt, cringe, stonewall, dodge, and hide because they are used to impressing people in their late teens and early twenties with their impressive titles. Some, like the Cornell administrator described above, make the very serious mistake of assuming that they can impress the Wall Street Journal's readers in the same manner. All they do is demonstrate a serious inability to function in the adult world that lies beyond the gates of their ivory towers.

Oggi sono andata a parlare con il professore perché Mercoledì iniziano le lezioni. Eh si, qui l'anno accademico inizia molto prima rispetto all'Italia ma, in compenso, finisce in Maggio. Ho due giorni, quindi, per preparare la mia prima lezione di Italiano e devo ammettere che sono abbastanza preoccupata. Lo stile di insegnamento, infatti, è completamente diverso dal nostro. Mentre quello italiano si basa soprattutto spiegazione delle regole grammaticali e sugli esercizi, questo metodo dà molta più importanza alla conversazione e all'applicazione pratica, si parla unicamente nella lingua straniera e si fanno molte attività di gruppo. E' un metodo che preferisco, ma spero di essere all'altezza. Insomma, qui sta iniziando l'attività a pieno ritmo e il mio pensiero vola spesso verso le spiagge italiane, dove qualcuno si crogiola ancora al sole.. A presto!

Linda

Ciao,

innazitutto, si ce l'ho fatta, sono arrivata a destinazione. Dopo un viaggio di circa 14 ore, eccomi qua alla Bucknell University di Lewisburg, Pennsylvania. Il paese si trova a circa tre ore di macchina da New York e altrettante da Phildelphia, che è anche la capitale della Pennsylvania.
Questi primi giorni sono passati via veloci, tra un incontro di orientamento e un'esplorazione del campus, tuttavia la mancanza di casa si è fatta decisamente sentire. Non perchè il posto non sia bello, ma semplicemente perché ho lasciato in Italia una parte di me. Attualmente vivo all'interno del college, condividendo la cucina con altre ragazze da ogni parte del mondo (Francia, Spagna, Israele, Russia, Germania, Giappone, Cina ecc.), anche loro Teaching Assistant.
Se ancora non vi avessi annoiato abbastanza con il racconto di cosa farò qui, infatti, il mio compito è quello di affiancare il professore di italiano nell'insegnamento della nostra bellissima lingua agli studenti di questa università. Parallelamente, posso seguire alcuni corsi o master,  secondo i miei interessi.
Da qui inizia la mia avventura. Lavoro permettendo, prometto che vi terrò aggiornati su ogni sviluppo. Un abbraccio forte,

Linda