tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-239569862679528067.post3431675372169896321..comments2023-10-18T01:52:22.751-07:00Comments on The American Dissident: Conversations with Professor Pseudo, PhDG. Tod Slonehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08298151154368372719noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-239569862679528067.post-68619898351397004232009-08-08T02:40:37.076-07:002009-08-08T02:40:37.076-07:00Thats a excellent job thanks for sharing...
______...Thats a excellent job thanks for sharing...<br />___________________<br />Susana<br /><a href="http://www.paydayloancashonline.com/" rel="nofollow">Payday Loan online in 24hours</a>Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12186838559949418956noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-239569862679528067.post-78465573819816915632009-06-22T06:35:38.947-07:002009-06-22T06:35:38.947-07:00In other words, becoming a professor emeritus is a...In other words, becoming a professor emeritus is a form of selling out and that’s what Howard Zinn did. It is a dubious certification, to say the least. Personally, I found that book he wrote decades ago a bit tedious. Compare it with the Gulag Archipelago or The Oak and the Calf, two stunningly compelling works. As far as the local newspapers are concerned, read my thoughts on their being paladins of the local Chambers of Commerce here: http://wwwtheamericandissidentorg.blogspot.com/2008/12/local-journalists-paladins-of-chamber.html. Indeed, try publishing something negative about the Chamber of Commerce in the CDT. It is easy to be a volunteer when one has a job. What is needed is not more “books of general interest” reviewed by select “people of the community,” but rather more dissident books and more reviews by dissident persons of the community. Recall the ALA’s statement: “Libraries should provide materials and information presenting all points of view on current and historical issues. Materials should not be proscribed or removed because of partisan or doctrinal disapproval.” It is sad for me to note, however, that the reality of the ALA and libraries in general conforms to anything but that statement (see http://www.theamericandissident.org/ALA.htm). All in all, I am a clear, though not so present, danger to your intellectual comfort zone, which is why you will have to “forget” things noted here.G. Tod Slonehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08298151154368372719noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-239569862679528067.post-88452455121736929392009-06-22T06:35:30.107-07:002009-06-22T06:35:30.107-07:00First, thanks for at least manifesting a certain d...First, thanks for at least manifesting a certain degree of openness to outside opinions and debate. From my experience, that is indeed unusual for someone of the university milieu. Why should you publish a book critical of any university? From my experience, corruption tends to thrive in the university milieu just as it does in the government and literary milieu. That’s why. And I’d be quite surprised if it didn’t thrive at UPenn or PSU in typical lack of democracy and forced-PC indoctrination. Indeed, for Penn State, let’s examine http://www.thefire.org/index.php/schools/1433. AND please do respond with that regard!! Of course, that’s probably only the tip of the proverbial iceberg regarding Penn State. Got you! Didn’t I? The real question remains, how could your eyes have remained so closed for three decades at Penn State? Well, if they were being paid nicely, as mentioned, that’s how. Most of the corruption that goes on in individual college and university departments is not even reported in the press. Most professors choose silence and opt for special deals to assure future employment. Few professors dare blow the whistle because of the evident career suicide in which that must ineluctably result in milieu disdainful of democracy. Corruption is perhaps rampant regarding the hiring of professors, their promotion, etc. Few states like Florida and Georgia have been deemed sunshine states, where all records are open to public scrutiny. In Massachusetts, where I dwell, college and university records are hermetically sealed to the public. How about in PA? To remain and rise in the university ranks, one must learn to see no evil, hear no evil and speak no evil. If you are blinded to that self-evident truth, nothing I do or say will convince you to open your eyes. Again, salary, friends, titles, honors, retirement banquets all depend on the very firmness of ones blinders. I highly doubt you’d publish anything of what I write here or any of the many articles I’ve written highly critical of higher ed in your Journal of General Education. “General” tends to be the very term that serves to safely dilute criticism. As Simone Weil once wrote: if everyone’s guilty, then nobody’s guilty. And how right she was! Another problem with university journals are the ilk who tend to run and edit them. In other words, what occurs when they are intellectually corrupt and willfully blind to anything exterior to their mammary paradigm? <br />Well, regarding the Peruvian book, GET PERMISSION! Calling something great or brilliant or whatever you termed it without providing any evidence whatsoever to back that hyperbole should not be scorned in academe. Blurbs are not evidence! As for your blurber Howard Zinn, I’m not a blind admirer of his. In fact, I just did a cartoon on him last week and post it now on this blog just for you. Yesterday I wrote the following in my notes: “Our supposed radicals today, if they haven’t openly sold out, are oddly living comfortable BOURGEOIS lives and unlike most of us often with job security. Cite Noam Chomsky, Howard Zinn, Angela Davis, and Gary Snyder, not to mention the whole lot of 60s rockers, actors, and other bullshit artistes.” The problem with Zinn is that he’s a professor emeritis and the problem with that is that to rise to such a rank in academe one must learn and obey the areas of see no evil, hear no evil and speak no evil. Zinn knows that. And I suspect he’s been a collaborator in the PC scourge eating away at democracy at BU and elsewhere in Academe. BU, by the way, has even worse free-speech restricting policies than your institution. See http://www.thefire.org/index.php/codes/2515.G. Tod Slonehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08298151154368372719noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-239569862679528067.post-17725831214454747732009-06-21T09:58:35.156-07:002009-06-21T09:58:35.156-07:00Why should we publish a book critical of the U of ...Why should we publish a book critical of the U of Penn? I assume you know that the U of Penn is different from Penn State University--or do you? As for publishing books critical of universities, check out our book by William Dowling, gadfly of Rutgers University, titled "Confessions of a Spoilsport," Or check out the critique of the NCAA's conception of the "student-athlete" by Allen Sack in his book "Counterfeit Amateurs." We publish articles critical of universities all the time in our Journal of General Education, now over 50 years old. Regarding the book on the Peruvian Rebel, it requires special permission to post poetry online--or didn't you know that? And note who one of the blurbers is: Howard Zinn, author of that dissident classic "People's History of the United States." Finally, as to the restricted appeal of university press books, it should interest you to know that I serve as voluntary book review editor for our local newspaper, the Centre Daily Times, having books of general interest published by university presses reviewed by people in the community. You can find the reviews here: http://www.centredaily.com/living/books/. The local public library and a local bookstore cooperate in this venture by ordering copies of these books for the public to borrow or buy. Is this indicative of university presses not being able to reach out beyond the ivory tower? I have commissioned over 95 such reviews so far.Sandy Thatcherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00561092368664381665noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-239569862679528067.post-55156683989294105962009-06-20T14:45:17.698-07:002009-06-20T14:45:17.698-07:00Well, I for one have to agree entirely with you he...Well, I for one have to agree entirely with you here, M. Not only can't he answer, but I don't think his very mind will permit him to even contemplate things mentioned here.G. Tod Slonehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08298151154368372719noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-239569862679528067.post-22169267789644386702009-06-20T10:54:45.437-07:002009-06-20T10:54:45.437-07:00He can't answer you. Every answer he has is b...He can't answer you. Every answer he has is based on your acceptance of his system of heirarchy. His letter reads like a brochure for the college program, and doesn't address anything you've said. The fact that the books are published based on peer groups means nothing. They look for the least offending, lowest common denominator among each official sect and then they elect that person to be on the overall committee. I disagree with democracy in this situation. I think the best journals are run by individuals not beholden to any group at all.matherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16530161108492070300noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-239569862679528067.post-24594673390035904722009-06-20T06:51:22.730-07:002009-06-20T06:51:22.730-07:00I’ve examined your website and the titles you publ...I’ve examined your website and the titles you publish and list on itHave you even looked at The American Dissident website or are you of the mindset that curiosity indeed did kill the academic? Your site is aseptic in appearance and substance. Not one item of caricature or satire can be found on it. Again, not one book critical of U PENN is listed on it. I suspect you are publicly and foundation-funded up the cahoots… or you’d go bust. I thought Peruvian Rebel might be of interest, but all you include is a list of unoriginal, mind-numbing blurbs under the title--not one example of the author’s purportedly wonderful poems. Can you not even come up with one compelling poem to fit the title?G. Tod Slonehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08298151154368372719noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-239569862679528067.post-74634253452117848522009-06-20T06:36:02.690-07:002009-06-20T06:36:02.690-07:00How about publishing a book-length version of Conv...How about publishing a book-length version of Conversations with Professor Pseudo, PhD? Hahahaha! Many points were made in that essay, and those points you chose to ignore. Why so much pseudonymity in higher education?????????G. Tod Slonehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08298151154368372719noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-239569862679528067.post-85621459787858789982009-06-20T06:31:32.144-07:002009-06-20T06:31:32.144-07:00PS: It's astonishing how many so-called educa...PS: It's astonishing how many so-called educated people react as you do... always with ad hominem.G. Tod Slonehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08298151154368372719noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-239569862679528067.post-45584935266640456182009-06-20T06:30:29.129-07:002009-06-20T06:30:29.129-07:00Reread my point on YOUR "rant" and how Y...Reread my point on YOUR "rant" and how YOUR "verbiage" justifies that "characterization." And what about YOUR "hyperbole" vis-a-vis YOUR press and YOUR "snide comments" vis-a-vis my comments? Again, such name calling is all subjective and diversionary. Just call it rant, hyperbole, snide, whatever, and certainly do not back it up with precision and especially ignore the arguments. How do you know how "most people" think and what they'd say? Where do you come up with such inanity? Have you taken polls? You're right on one note: Rarely do I ever read what university presses publish. Most citizens do not! Universities, by nature, are established-order businesses. So why should I, a dissident citizen, be interested in what they manufacture? Yes, you publish all of those subjects and yes the libraries carry all of those subjects, but NEVER do you publish hardcore critique regarding university presses themselves and universities as businesses and professors as collegial kowtows. Marxism, feminism, and all the other isms you publish are acceptable in the university. Christ, what more do we need to know about Marxism and feminism and queer studies and lesbianism, especially when written by university Marxists, university feminists, university queers, and university dykes all well-conditioned as to what not to say by the five-year tenure process? What isn't acceptable, however, is real critique of real, particular universities! When was the last time you published such critique of U PENN? Never?! When did you publish critique of UPENN deans? Never! Again, reread my points on the so-called "experts" and peer- review process. You'd never ever have me as a peer reviewer, despite my PhD, because I speak my mind, not the university press mind or university mind. You evidently don't know anything about the dissident press or dissidence in general! You've been a company cog/a university cog for decades. How could you know about dissidence? When did you ever stand up on your hind legs against your colleague cows? So, just dismiss it all as "rant." How facile! You sound like you're trying to sell me soap or sneakers. No thanks! "All with their different perspectives," sure, but all within the paradigm of not rocking the university boat. Just open your eyes and look at how bad things have gotten in the universities over the decades you've been publishing all that university stuff. Free speech and vigorous debate, democracy's cornerstones, have all but died. Examine thefire.org if you're ignorant of this. And so much of that stuff you publish will end up in the garbage bucket in a year or two just like the NY Times bestsellers... only yours aren't even bestsellers. Yours tend to be jargon-infested, tedious reads fit for high-brow types who've never gone against the grain of society and will call anyone with the guts who does go against that grain "rant." I've tried to read some of those university press books (have you ever tried to read w/o immediate knee-jerk "rant" reaction any dissident books?), but end up quite quickly giving up. Two such books are in front of me right now: Utopian Pedagogy and Recasting the Social in Citizenship. I was going to review them for Counterpoise. But they are unreadable for the reasons already mentioned. Yes, I've been a reviewer for Counterpoise for quite a while now. It did a front cover story on me as a dissident. It is a dissident journal, not a university journal. Well, I don't think you can possibly think outside that university mold that's been feeding your face for so many years. Doubtfully you will be able to comprehend anything I state here. It will all be "rant" for you. Anything exterior to that mold must be "rant" for you or it might threaten your mental comfort zone. Stand up, as I did, and dismiss the pol Leach as a company man and look how angry you got! Again, yours is a beehive mentality. Well, at least you responded, though as a bee. Thank you.G. Tod Slonehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08298151154368372719noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-239569862679528067.post-49363404866742822152009-06-19T20:04:59.996-07:002009-06-19T20:04:59.996-07:00Mr. Slone, you might check your facts first. The l...Mr. Slone, you might check your facts first. The last time I checked, I was still director of Penn State Press, not yet "retired."<br /><br />I used the word "rant" because your verbiage justified that characterization--as does your reply to my comments. You engage in hyperbole and snide remarks constantly. Most people would agree that such language constitutes a rant.<br /><br />Where you got the idea that university presses just publish what will appeal to "bourgeois" taste is beyond me. Clearly, you don't know the publications of university presses very well; they range all over the map, representing among other things the great regional differences that characterize our diverse nation. Ideologically, you will find presses publishing books spanning the entire political spectrum; at Penn State we publish liberals, feminists, Marxists, libertarians, conservatives, and just about every other political position you can imagine. Just browse our list and see for yourself.<br /><br />You evidently don't know much about the kind of review process employed by university presses, which is a product of the interaction of acquiring editors, expert scholarly readers, and faculty editorial boards, all with their different perspectives. It includes elements of passion for innovation, subject specific expertise, and conservative respect for tradition; the outcome of any decision is a complex mixture of these three, not determined by any one alone.Sandy Thatcherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00561092368664381665noreply@blogger.com