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> Enforced group-think is going to be the death of these universities. I've been working at universities for a couple decades now and have never experienced "e

> Enforced group-think is going to be the death of these universities. I've been working at universities for a couple decades now and have never experienced "enforced group-think".

jollybean 5y ago
Well then you're both 1) of the same political mindset of the majority and therefore less likely to notice and 2) unwilling to take the social temperature of such things because it's obviously happening [1] and there is a mountain of empirical evidence to support the fact that students and faculty are wary of speaking their minds. [1] https://www.psychologytoday.com/ca/blog/rabble-rouser/201811/why-students-are-terrified-speak-their-minds https://www.psychologytoday.com/ca/blog/rabble-rouser/201811...
- bachmeier 5y ago
  I very seriously doubt that a middle-aged white male economics professor (who grew up in the sticks in North Dakota, no less) is of the same political mindset of "the majority". > students and faculty are wary of speaking their minds If you're worried about disapproval of others, being an academic is the wrong industry for you. If academic freedom and the first amendment aren't enough to protect your speech, you'd really be in trouble working in any other industry. Now if you're going to claim that in society at large you have to use restraint when talking, and that you'll be attacked by people of all political views, I'd probably agree. That's pretty different from what you wrote.
notahacker 5y ago
Funnily enough, I spoke earlier this week with an academic whose concern about recent developments was that legal/policy papers he was writing for government departments were much more likely to be unpublished or partially redacted than in previous decades, for reasons which had nothing to do with culture warring. Easy to see why governments would prefer the public believe the real threat to university research was a handful of students picketing the intentionally provocative...

> Enforced group-think is going to be the death of these universities. I've been working at universities for a couple decades now and have never experienced "enforced group-think".

jollybean 5y ago

Well then you're both 1) of the same political mindset of the majority and therefore less likely to notice and 2) unwilling to take the social temperature of such things because it's obviously happening [1] and there is a mountain of empirical evidence to support the fact that students and faculty are wary of speaking their minds. [1] https://www.psychologytoday.com/ca/blog/rabble-rouser/201811/why-students-are-terrified-speak-their-minds https://www.psychologytoday.com/ca/blog/rabble-rouser/201811...

bachmeier 5y ago
I very seriously doubt that a middle-aged white male economics professor (who grew up in the sticks in North Dakota, no less) is of the same political mindset of "the majority". > students and faculty are wary of speaking their minds If you're worried about disapproval of others, being an academic is the wrong industry for you. If academic freedom and the first amendment aren't enough to protect your speech, you'd really be in trouble working in any other industry. Now if you're going to claim that in society at large you have to use restraint when talking, and that you'll be attacked by people of all political views, I'd probably agree. That's pretty different from what you wrote.

notahacker 5y ago

Funnily enough, I spoke earlier this week with an academic whose concern about recent developments was that legal/policy papers he was writing for government departments were much more likely to be unpublished or partially redacted than in previous decades, for reasons which had nothing to do with culture warring. Easy to see why governments would prefer the public believe the real threat to university research was a handful of students picketing the intentionally provocative...