From: cramer@optilink.UUCP (Clayton Cramer)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.books
Subject: Re: The nature of enlightenment
Date: 14 Aug 92 22:35:26 GMT
Organization: Optilink Corporation, Petaluma, CA

In article <9208140114.AA09798@coventry.Corp.Sun.COM>, Lisa.Levine@Corp.Sun.COM (Lisa Levine) writes:
> The (Clayton) Cramer thread appears to have split many
> r.a.b.ers into two groups--one staunchly supporting the 
> right to be "politically incorrect," the other labeled "PC."
> 
> Whatever one's beliefs, I've noticed a curious thing
> here and in other newsgroups: The backlash against the
> perceived "PC movement" seems to stem from a belief
> that the "incorrect" folks are in the minority, defending
> their independent thinking from a huge horde of censorious
> (drum-beating, overly-sensitive, new age) people hell-bent
> on depriving them of their basic rights.  The PCers, on
> the other hand, seem to feel _they_ are in the minority,
> barely making inroads in "enlightening" the masses.

As one of the PIers, I assure you that we don't think we are
in the minority on campuses, but we are distinctly threatened
by the fact that the PCers have worked their way into positions
of control and dominance among faculty in SOME departments, and
use that power to suppress ideas that they find offensive.

I've told you all about the English professor at Sonoma State
University who engaged in insults based on a student's ethnicity
repeatedly.  Now, if he were white, he would be fired, almost
certainly, for that sort of behavior.  But because of his race,
he is effectively secure against being fired, in spite of his
lack of tenure.

Most students, and in my experience, most professors at 
Sonoma State University, are trying to do their job.  They
aren't always to my tastes on politics (those whose politics
I even know), but it doesn't matter, because they seem to have
decided that the pursuit of knowledge is more important than
whether you use the word "gal" or "preadult female" or "young
lady" or "womyn" or whatever.

On the other hand, the PCers are among the laziest, least 
interested in TEACHING sorts that my wife and I have had
the misfortune to run into.  (Oh, excuse me, two of these lazy
PCers are black, so I guess I have to call them "differently
motivated," not lazy).  Before the inevitable accusations are
thrown, there are other black professors at the university
who are definitely interested in teaching, do a good job,
and yet whose politics I don't like.  And best of all, they
aren't afraid of dissent, disagreement, or unpleasant questions.

What's lazy?  The English professor mentioned above was teaching,
nominally, an upper division English composition class.  Nearly
all of the students were English majors, many were planning to
teach English.  There was a wide variety of composition skills
in the class, and my wife (who is definitely more capable than
most of her compatriots in this area) was expecting that at
least part of the class would be spent discussing the nuts and
bolts of developing better writing skills.  You know what I
mean: sentence and essay structure, tradeoffs between complexity 
and clarity, vocabulary choices, subtle grammatical rules.  Face 
it, one of these days, these students are going to be teaching, 
and some smart-ass junior high kid is going to say, "When do you
use whom, and when do you use who?"

But NOOOOOO!  The class was devoted almost entirely to discussions
of racism, and effectively nothing to composition --
which is the title of the class, "College Composition."

> Lisa 


-- 
Clayton E. Cramer {uunet,pyramid}!optilink!cramer  My opinions, all mine!
I can make myself popular on USENET again -- all I have to say is that I'm not 
disturbed by the support for North American Man-Boy Love Association in the 
homosexual community.  Being popular at a child's expense isn't worth it.