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Mitch Daniels: The Grown-up in the Room
The modern American university seems to be devolving into a madhouse. Students shrieking about “safe spaces,” refusing to attend classes, demanding the mass firing of staff, and urging restrictions on free speech. Kids will be kids, yes? But in many cases, the adults in the faculty are acting as bad or worse than the children. Yale officials publicly denounce themselves, Mizzou officials resign in fear, and the pluckier professors are leading the confused students in protest.
Thankfully, not everyone has lost their mind. Former Indiana Governor and current President of Purdue University Mitch Daniels decided to take a stand for common sense. He sent the following letter to everyone on campus Wednesday:
To the Purdue community.
Events this week at the University of Missouri and Yale University should remind us all of the importance of absolute fidelity to her shared values. First, that we strive constantly to be, without exception, a welcoming inclusive and discrimination-free community, where each person is respected and treated with dignity. Second, to be steadfast in preserving academic freedom and individual liberty.
Two years ago, a student-led initiative created the “We Are Purdue Statement of Values”, which was subsequently endorsed by the University Senate. Last year, both our undergraduate and graduate student governments led an effort to produced a strengthened statement of policies protecting free speech. What a proud contrast to the environments that appear to prevail at places like Missouri and Yale. Today and every day, we should remember the tenants of those statements and do our best to live up to them fully.
Sincerely,
President Mitch Daniels
It is good to see that Daniels is living up to the free speech standards Purdue has set: “[T]he University has a solemn responsibility not only to promote a lively and fearless freedom of debate and deliberation, but also to protect that freedom when others attempt to restrict it.” Other universities should take notes.
Published in Education
“Tenants,” Mitch? Not “tenets?”
(Edit: Ahh, I just looked at his actual statement at the link, and he got the word right. Then again, maybe someone at Purdue caught the error late, after Jon posted it here, and Mitch fixed it. That seems more likely.)
I love Mitch Daniels, and I always have. So nice not to be disappointed for a change!
Nice to see that Purdue hasn’t been overrun by communists.
Jon,
Good Stuff from Mitch. We are getting some other punch back too.
MISSOURI LT. GOV KINDER BLAMES LEFT, CALLS MISSOURI EVENTS ‘APPALLING’
MIZZOU STUDENT FILES CHARGES AGAINST PROFESSOR MELISSA CLICK
Stay tuned there’s more in store.
Regards,
Jim
I continue to be amazed that people like Daniels and think that he could have run for president. I mean “like” in the political sense, of course. He may or may not be a very nice man, I have no way of knowing. He has a singular ability to make me want to fall asleep, and if this bland letter is what we are left to look to for inspiration, then we are more than doomed, in my opinion.
I’ll take a wait and see on that.
It sounds nice now, but what will happen when someone in a truck drives by and yells a word that only one person hears? Or if unseen poop art advocates hate?
I was just thinking about the few university presidents who have real stature: Mitch Daniels, Ken Star (is he still at Pepperdine?) … and … and …
That job has become hollowed out, suitable only for fund-raising machines. In fact, all of academia has lost status. I sense a lot of status and even job insecurity from academics I know these days. The whole system is rotten at its core and, like a pumpkin, is about to burst open and spew its stink all over.
Who still wants their kids to attend these idiot warehouses anymore? Are there really that many parents who haven’t figured out most schools are a scam and a sham? I’m really mystified here. Help me out, people.
Sadly, blandness is a required posture at this point. The mob can assemble in an instant at the slightest provocation, for the silliest of reasons or no reason at all. Back away slowly, that’s how it’s done.
Kenneth Starr is now President of my alma mater – Baylor University.
It’s not too late!!!
After 8 years in the Army, my #2 son is planning on separating from the service and going to college. The two schools that have programs he’s interested in and which allow him to maximize the use of his veteran’s benefits are University of Illinois, Champaign IL, and Western Illinois University, Macomb IL.
With what’s going on at places like Yale, Mizzoo, et. al., I’m going to put in a strong bid for the unknown state school in the middle of nowhere (WIU) instead of the name school.
My hope being that WIU is a bit more of a workaday school somewhat removed from the cultural cyclone that seems to be hitting the more elite schools. I know damn well that U of I Champaign has been a disaster for his younger brother.
Although at least they’re paying for it themselves with the veteran’s benefits they earned by serving in the military, so it’s their assets on the line.
I see a couple of guys on Twitter who agree:
Point taken. But the genre requires blandness: he is speaking corporately. But his clear swipe at Mizzou and Yale takes a stand. He proudly sticks his chest out for free speech, (not “safe zones” for fascists) while also validating his own skill in getting buy in from the community. Not so bland in context, methinks. But yeah, not what you’d want on the stump.
What about a place like Hillsdale?
Johnathan McMurry,
Like.
I like Mitch Daniels except for the fact that he forced the clocks in Indiana to synchronize.
We’re on the wrong time zone, that’s the for sure. At 85 W, we’re closer to Central (90 W) than Eastern (75 W), and on Central primetime TV is over at 10:00 PM.
My only “complaint” about Mitch was the privatization of the Indiana Toll Road. It might turn out OK, but I’m always skeptical about multi-billion dollar Private-Public deals.
Thought of that, but
He is not running. Given his marital history, and the very real concern he would have for his family, he won’t run. Of the things important to Mitch Daniels, I think his family is very near the top of those things.
Hard to blame a man for wanting to drop out of political life after having served so well. Being a college president seems like a very nice gig if you can get it and surely the kind of lifestyle that is easy for the family as well.
Admittedly, it is hard to imagine his wife moving with him to the White House when she didn’t move with him to Purdue. Obviously he isn’t interested in furthering his public career for personal reasons.
It has more to do with his marital history. Him and his wife were divorced at one point, I believe and remarried. They have baggage, like most people, that they don’t won’t dredged out in front of America.
OK. How a community college? The ones I know welcome veterans. There is not much PC compared with four year schools, and your mature by comparison son will probably come out with a 4.0, no debt, and a chance to upgrade for graduation almost anywhere. A community college student is very attractive to the liberal mind which runs the elites.
I think your suggestion on community / 2 year colleges is spot on. But I don’t understand your last sentence – I think most “progressives” (I dislike using the word “liberal”) look down at CC students as being inferior.
Sorry, I didn’t mean ANY community college grad. Just one with a high GPA, which I assume a veteran with some discipline could achieve. Then you get to be the token for diversity at rich schools that can afford scholarships. I have seen this. BTW, community colleges do have teachers who are more like high school teachers or social workers. But they also have teachers who are very bright and know their subjects. You just have to ask around.
Interesting that some rich (for me, a private school like Harvard) schools accept CC graduates. Most state universities must accept CC credits, like when I took Biology. The CC students were not as driven as students at my major state university. But education is what you make of it, regardless where you go.
P.S – like the GFHandle reference to George Frederick Handel