Professors as Welfare Queens -- from Truthout

The article linked below is perhaps the single most important article on education today. As an educator and a community college professor I decry the current attack on higher education well underway not only on right-wing talk radio, but increasingly among supposed "liberals." It's not hard to understand what has happened. Ever since Ronald Reagan slammed innocent people on welfare as being "welfare queens," there has been an escalation of rhetoric against anyone receiving government assistance. Tragically, this has come to include children in our public school system!

But a parallel attack is continuing and gaining steam -- an attack on higher education itself. While there can be many criticisms of higher education, something like a true and useful purpose is still very much alive in higher education. Problems come chiefly from economic issues, not the least of which is low income of students and all the ensuing stresses and difficulties.

As for professors, there has been an increase in the use of adjunct faculty. Such faculty members usually have no contract, no benefits and are paid at a lower rate than full-time faculty. Tenured faculty fare better, but no one is getting the kind of salaries seen on Wall Street.

This attack on education in general and high education specifically is similar to the anti-intellectualism of the Nazis in Italy and Germany. While not all critics of education are so oriented, those of the Limbaugh/Beck ilk have enormous power through broadcast media.

Now comes a book from supposed liberals which sickeningly echoes many of the arguments of the right, particularly in orientation. The article below tells more.




http://www.truth-out.org/professors-welfare-queens61981