OUR OPINION: UND must reaffirm free speech, other rights
January 5, 2013 at 10:50 pm in Grand Forks Herald
The university should be embarrassed by its ‘Speech Code of the Month.’ Continue Reading
OUR OPINION: UND must reaffirm free speech, other rights
13 Comments
A policy which caters to the most sensitive individual will eventually run head-long into one of the most chetrished precepts of a university: academic freedom. What is the result when historical fact clashes with what a student has believed from childhood, but is just wrong? Does that person go running to a bureaucrat complaining about being offended? And if so, does the bureaucrat bend to a poorly thought-out policy or to the expressed goal of the university? Can a bureuacrat tell an instructor “You can’t teach that anymore, it’s offensive” ? And if so, do you still have a university, or simply an institution which validates anyone’s opinion?
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
27 
4
Since I started life in the history department, & we spent our time destroying other people’s myths; I cannot help but agree.
I had some very good professors. People I liked, respected, & violently disagreed with on many issues. I was never personally attacked for any of my views. If I lost any paint it was for failure to support those views in an academically defensible way.
I once wrote a paper that went against everything the prof had argued for in her dissertation. It was well written, well researched, and academically sound. She returned it with 98/100 & the comment: “You are wrong.”
That is academic freedom at its best
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
22 
2
North Dakota “nice” has something to do with this as well. If a person says something that is upsetting to others, it’s a big deal. I have a tendency to speak my mind and you wouldn’t believe the number of times all it takes is a firm statement and all opposition falls away. The message is “don’t rock the boat”. Give the person with the loudest voice his way. North Dakotans must be shocked when they go to New York where everybody yells at everybody else.
Like or Dislike:
16 
5
New Yorkers say what they believe. NoDakers say what they think you want to hear.
Like or Dislike:
15 
5
I’ve been to NY and I deal with some of the truckers from there…..I think the philosophy is that whoever can be the most loud and obnoxious wins. NY and most od the eastern seaboard does nt impress me one bit. I’m surprised there isn’t more violence out there
Like or Dislike:
9 
10
I met a friend in Atlantic City for the weekend. Keep in mind I an just a white boy from the suburbs; not very sophisticated when it comes to urban blight. I spent half the trip thinking everyone was mad at me. It took me a while to realize the F word is simply a form of punctuation to them.
I have worked with several nurses from back east & they are all hard as nails. I guess living in close proximity to 20 million of your closest friends does that.
Like or Dislike:
9 
2
I lived din NYC and, while their abrasiveness takes getting used to, at least you know where they stand. In ND the person you may consider your best friend will smile in your face and diss you to everyone else behind your back.
Like or Dislike:
2 
0
Obviously the original intent of the first amendment was to allow citizens to speak out without fear of repercussions about things they found wrong with either the government body or an individual leader. That’s pretty much been expanded to just about anything anywhere….Except……If the interpretation of certain words or phrases are offensive to some…..Huh? That sneaky bit of censorship that’s allowed to the point that they’ll even blur out a middle finger if held up to a camera is just plain foolish and pondering to the overly sensitive who insist that there must not be anything that appears vulgar.
Here’s the thing..if I say something is a bunch of “Fecal Matter” or I say something like “Fornicate Off” instead of the words that are supposed to be these big bad ear burning delinquent making slang terms….Then that’s perfectly acceptable….Even though I’ve said exactly the same thing using just different words. The meaning hasn’t changed…Just the constants.
All that is very foolish. Frank Zappa went before congress and said much the same when there was a push for more censorship in Rock and Roll being released. If ever there was a place for that old grade school rhyme of “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” It’s where words are being censored because some don’t like their interpretation of them.
Like or Dislike:
15 
3
The word you’re referring to when you say “fornicate off” isn’t offensive to me in and of itself, but the laziness associated with the overuse of that word is.
It’s inserted into conversation here, there, and everywhere. And since it IS overused to such a degree, much of the “punch” or “emphasis” it’s supposed to drive home has been lost. So what’s the answer for many people that like to use it? Well, if one f-bomb per statement has become insufficient, then the statement gets “jazzed up” a few notches by inserting the word two or three times.
I’ve often wondered why that word’s overuse doesn’t translate into other forms of communication. I get emails and such from acquaintances that fall into the “two or three f-bombs per statement” category, and oddly enough reading that word and all of its variations isn’t nearly as common as hearing it. Don’t know what it is, maybe they just like the sound of the word when they say it….or maybe it’s that they feel actually writing the word or any of its variations flies in the face of the word’s “street cred” or something.
Like or Dislike:
2 
3
You cannot yell “FIRE” in a crowded theatre, but beyond that, most anything goes. As a broad brush this is a good rule of thumb.
There are always exceptions: at work you may be required to act & say certain things you do not agree with as a condition of employment: “would you like fries with that?” Or “Welcome to WalMart.”
Professionally I am required to act within certain boundaries defined by law & professional ethics. If you show up I will care for you regardless of how you got there. It is part of being a nurse.
Beyond common sense & practice restrictions, speech should be free wheeling. That means someone is going to get their feelings hurt.
If you can’t play with the big dogs stay on the porch.
I have been involved in many controversial topics. When my picture ended up on the front page of the Herald participating in a pro gay marriage march at UND a few years back my boss was less than pleased. She was concerned my very public views would be construed as my employer endorsing my stand.
Free speech is one of our most sacred rights. It’s restriction should only be done for safety. Never sensibility.
Recently the LGBT community has gone wild with attempts to stop bullying. They are wrong; & I rarely miss an opportunity to explain why.
The problem is not with what is being said, but with how the LGBT kid responds to it. As a community they need to build up and support their own. What some silly redneck thinks is of no import.
Physical violence & threats of such are a different story. Denying a person a job or housing based on sexual orientation is wrong & I will picket your place of employment & post YouTube videos of you being a jerk, but if you want to call me names, I don’t have a problem with that.
Even those who are hated and discriminated against have the responsibility to put on their big boy/girl panties & deal with it.
Like or Dislike:
9 
3
I was quite intrigued by this editorial — so much so that I went to the UND Affirmative Action web site and read the rules. Unless I missed something, it’s much worse than Tom Dennis concluded.
Specifically, I couldn’t find anything about how an accused person found guilty of “harassment” can appeal the finding! The accuser can appeal if the accusation is not upheld — but it seems that the accused is stuck with the guilty verdict!
Due process? Can you spell K A N G A R O O ?
Tom Dennis — you should follow up and check on this.
Like or Dislike:
15 
4
No surprise to me.
This is a University that embraces the ignorance and facism of the NCAA.
Berkeley Bob…at your service.
Like or Dislike:
6 
8
During a certain profanity laced rant….i was interrupted and reminded of what a wise man once said.
The use of profanity is a sign of ignorance….it’s true. If your vocabulary is so limited that you cannot find the appropriate descriptor….you insert cuss word.
So…if one wants to, or at least doesn’t care if they are percieved as ignorant or having a limited vocabulary….
dropping the f bomb is no problem…..in other words…..consider the source.
Like or Dislike:
3 
0