Victor Davis Hanson on race, queer, and gender studies [response to The Angry Reader]

victorhanson.com ^ | May 17, 2005 | Victor Davis Hanson

[Tolik]

The Angry Reader

---

Editor's Note: This section is in honor of our critics—some angry and some not so angry.

In a March answer to a reader, you wrote on your website that "race studies,” queer studies, gender studies, etc." have become "the establishment" on university campuses, resulting in the destruction of the "old liberal arts curriculum." A New York Times story on April 24, 2005 reports on the most common and least common majors on contemporary campuses. At the University of California at San Diego, for example, 3,368 students are majoring in biology; 1,787 are majoring in economics; and a whopping 23 are majoring in critical gender studies.

Isn't it possible that you've overstated the significance of "studies" programs? I apologize for challenging your declensionist worldview with actual facts.

Hanson: Concerning my two points about the curriculum and the establishment on university campuses — your citations prove, not reject, the point I was making and hardly justify your closing puerile banter; clearly, you are not a veteran faculty member of hiring, GE, or curriculum committees, who has witnessed these political issues first-hand over the years. All these 'studies' programs have no popular appeal to students at all, who rarely major in them, or take more than one (required) course. But their influence is nevertheless enormous and hardly to be measured simply by official majors.

First, most campuses now have some sort of requirement in the General Education curriculum for an ethnic or gender studies class; and these courses, unlike most others, thus reach most of the student body. To serve this captive constituency, a campus like UC Santa Barbara has far more courses in Chicano something or other listed in its general catalog than in the Civil  War.

[Tolik]

victorhanson.com is a MUST EXCERPT website

[Tolik]

    Victor Davis Hanson Ping ! 

       Let me know if you want in or out

[Homer_J_Simpson]

I apologize for challenging your declensionist worldview with actual facts.

Tip to smarty pants progressives: If you are thinking of challenging VDH on his command of his subject matter, think again.

[starfish923]

First, most campuses now have some sort of requirement in the General Education curriculum for an ethnic or gender studies class; and these courses, unlike most others, thus reach most of the student body. To serve this captive constituency, a campus like UC Santa Barbara has far more courses in Chicano something or other listed in its general catalog than in the Civil War.

The captive consituency has this politcial bullshit SHOVED in its face and RAMMED down its throat. It's involuntary compliance and doesn't work. Never has; never will. It makes people very resentful and bitter.

The unmitigated, unrelenting, almost unconscious arrogance of academia reflects the philosophical reality that the professors and other fools who force this political agendizing have serious head problems.
That is, they have their comprehensive heads either in the clouds, in the sand or up their butts.

[Publius6961]

Isn't it remarkable that when you make something a requirement, even though worthless, it exhibits a seeming "popularity"?

[Valin]

Bump for later.

[Ragnorak]

It doesn't matter what your major in college is- unless it is mathematics or engineering (and even then you can't be sure) the entire fact and content curriculum has been replaced by liberal indoctrination.

My Developmental Psychology class consisted of one theme-- cultural relativism. Every objective, scientific, statistical study can't be used to make "judgments" because they are all culturally relative. We never actually covered statistics or random samples or any objective criteria. If had not learned about those things in high school, I wouldn't have known what these instruments of judgmental oppression even were.

Modern American Drama -- plays from 1950 to present consisted of one theme as well-- black oppression and how I'm guilty of it. Some of the plays were actually good plays. But we never really studied dialog, character development, or how that play was a literary breakthrough that influenced future plays. The rest of my English classes were quite similar and they taught me that the highest form of literary art is anything written by a black lesbian.

Economics classes consist of things like the Economics of Scarce Resources. You might think this is about the economic thresholds where it becomes cost effective to develop and replace certain products or commodities that are limited-- a special treatment of supply and demand with a limited supply. But it is only about how America is evil because we use too much oil. Note how the "America is evil" is the only objective truth you can find on a college campus today.

It has reached a point where I truly believe that a liberal arts degree is beyond useless-- its a detriment. I don't want an employee who has to unlearn 4 years of factually incorrect indoctrination, who has been taught to hate the capitalist system that is actually employing him, and has had it ingrained in his head that there is no such thing as being personally responsible for his own actions.

[somniferum]

Sheesh what college did you attend?

[FreedomPoster]

My son's recent 101-level English Composition course doubled as a "gender studies" indoctrination attempt. Lots of "patriarchal society is evil" B.S. He was not happy about it, nor was I.

[FreedomPoster]

Ping.

[timtoews5292004]

Reminds me of a speech given at my university by "progressive" historian Howard Zinn right around when the second gulf war started. It was required attendance of ALL the history, government, and political science classes, from the gen ed required classes on up. Some teachers even made it mandatory pass/fail if the students didn't make it, from what I heard from other students in attendance. It packed out our main auditorium. When they opened the lecture up for questions at the end, the 900+ students dwindled to something like 40, as the students were no longer required to be there.

[joesnuffy]

Plenty of tax dollars flow into the pockets of these mongrels

Think of all the GI bill money- tax dollars wasted- on these liberal do nothing bass turds teaching this screed..out right lies..taught as fact and truth.

Leading not one inch closer to better jobs or productivity..for students and those who pay

Of course it pays great for race baiters & social propagandists...and the University bureaucracy

What a racket

Higher Learning in America

imo

[FastCoyote]

Put me on your VDH list

[Ragnorak]

Boston College and Fordham University circa late 80's and early 90s.

[nosofar]

Every objective, scientific, statistical study can't be used to make "judgments" because they are all culturally relative.

Which makes them all worthless, which in turn makes all fields relying on these kinds of studies worthless.