Neglected intellectuals.

Submitted by David Kwavnick (Canada), Nov 13, 2002 at 17:19

As a former professor who got out of the academy 18 years ago, after 17 years in it, and have been thankful for my escape ever since, I think I can tell you why some profs take the position they do. It is because they truly do not believe in democracy. They do not believe that the views or the vote of some high school dropout should carry the same weight in the formation of public policy as those of a PhD.

Moreover, they see that society as a whole really does not take them seriously. How many professors are asked to take high level appointive jobs in government? How many are asked to serve on advisory boards? And those that are asked are usually the ones who have "solid" reputations, i.e. they are not likely to do or to recommend anything that would be too upsetting to mainstream opinion.

The fact is, for almost all of them, nobody really cares for their opinion. To all of this, add the fact that their salaries, in most cases, can barely support the necessities of a modest middle class lifestyle and have been falling behind for the last 15 years or so. And so, year after year in the academy teaching the same courses and stewing in their own bitterness results in . . . . well, you know what.

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