A thought-provoking email in response to my editorial, “The Self-Destruction of the American University:”
Let me second your editorial and then some–because the problem isn’t just a university problem. Conservatives need to realize that “little guys” like me are in a lot of trouble. The average person must endure a workplace where he or she has to face what that House Master at Yale had to face. I could give you countless examples.
Yes, indeed, all of this comes from federal law, so why not craft a Charter of Freedom? Have conservative writers join together and make a BIG statement. Get Rubio and Cruz to jointly introduce it.
Start with the universities: The standard must be reasonable doubt, all proceedings must be on record, the investigating officials cannot be the ones who make the decisions, the accused in university cases have all the rights that the Constitution and case law provides to defendants, all criminal cases must be investigated solely by the police of the town because campus cops are agents of the university and incapable of disinterest, free speech is absolute, no student may be punished for disagreeing with a professor.
Move on to the schools: No school that receives federal money may force a child to see a member of the opposite biological sex naked. All laws that apply to sexual harassment, including indecent exposure, apply to schools.
Move on to the workplace: An employee who investigates the political beliefs of others creates a hostile workplace. A business that requires a discussion of the attitudes of some employees because of the demands of others also creates a hostile workplace.
Did you know that the MCAT now has a huge section on correct thought? Eliminate that. “No institution of learning may require an admission test on anything other than knowledge directly relevant to the skills they themselves teach.”
The list goes on, but it is a campaign issue that would light the country up.
Yes, indeed, all of this comes from federal law, so why not craft a Charter of Freedom? Have conservative writers join together and make a BIG statement. Get Rubio and Cruz to jointly introduce it.
Start with the universities: The standard must be reasonable doubt, all proceedings must be on record, the investigating officials cannot be the ones who make the decisions, the accused in university cases have all the rights that the Constitution and case law provides to defendants, all criminal cases must be investigated solely by the police of the town because campus cops are agents of the university and incapable of disinterest, free speech is absolute, no student may be punished for disagreeing with a professor.
Move on to the schools: No school that receives federal money may force a child to see a member of the opposite biological sex naked. All laws that apply to sexual harassment, including indecent exposure, apply to schools.
Move on to the workplace: An employee who investigates the political beliefs of others creates a hostile workplace. A business that requires a discussion of the attitudes of some employees because of the demands of others also creates a hostile workplace.
Did you know that the MCAT now has a huge section on correct thought? Eliminate that. “No institution of learning may require an admission test on anything other than knowledge directly relevant to the skills they themselves teach.”
The list goes on, but it is a campaign issue that would light the country up.
I’m sure this suggested legislation, quickly sketched by my correspondent, could be enlarged upon and improved. But the important insight is that this whole issue needs to be addressed in a broad way–which means, at least in part, politically. If the fights for freedom are fought separately in schools, workplaces, etc, we can lose to salami tactics. The bigger and broader and more public the fight, the better the chances for the forces of freedom.
