Often it seems as though American higher education exists only to provide gag material for the outside world. The latest spectacle is an Ivy League professor threatening to sue her students because, she claims, their "anti-intellectualism" violated her civil rights. Priya Venkatesan taught English at Dartmouth College. She maintains that some of her students were so unreceptive of "French narrative theory" that it amounted to a hostile working environment. She is also readying lawsuits against her superiors, who she says papered over the harassment, as well as a confessional exposé, which she promises will "name names."

I once wrote a term paper for a lit-crit course where I "deconstructed" the MTV program "Pimp My Ride." A typical passage: "Each episode is a text of inescapable complexity . . . Our received notions of what constitutes a ride are constantly subverted and undermined." It received an A.

She is the biggest loose cannon in either campaign. She's got a chip on her shoulder the size of a redwood and an overweening sense of entitlement that makes her one of the more unattractive advocates for Barack Obama - despite the fact that she's his wife. Michelle Obama is a disaster waiting to happen. Unless Obama sends her on a very long cruise or tries hiding her in a closet until after the election, there is little doubt in most observer's minds that she will eventually, detonate a bomb or two that will require major damage control.

Well, here you are at your college graduation. And I know what you're thinking: "Gimme the sheepskin and get me outta here!" But not so fast. First you have to listen to a commencement speech. Don't moan. I'm not going to "pass the wisdom of one generation down to the next." I'm a member of the 1960s generation. We didn't have any wisdom. We were the moron generation. We were the generation that believed we could stop the Vietnam War by growing our hair long and dressing like circus clowns. We believed drugs would change everything -- which they did, for John Belushi. We believed in free love. Yes, the love was free, but we paid a high price for the sex.

A few years ago the Swiss added to their national constitution a provision requiring "account to be taken of the dignity of creation when handling animals, plants and other organisms." No one knew exactly what it meant, so they asked the Swiss Federal Ethics Committee on Non-Human Biotechnology to figure it out. The resulting report, "The Dignity of Living Beings with Regard to Plants," is enough to short circuit the brain. A "clear majority" of the panel adopted what it called a "biocentric" moral view, meaning that "living organisms should be considered morally for their own sake because they are alive." Thus, the panel determined that we cannot claim "absolute ownership" over plants and, moreover, that "individual plants have an inherent worth." This means that "we may not use them just as we please, even if the plant community is not in danger, or if our actions do not endanger the species, or if we are not acting arbitrarily." The committee offered this illustration: A farmer mows his field (apparently an acceptable action, perhaps because the hay is intended to feed the farmer's herd--the report doesn't say). But then, while walking home, he casually "decapitates" some wildflowers with his scythe. The panel decries this act as immoral, though its members can't agree why. The report states, opaquely:

At this point it remains unclear whether this action is condemned because it expresses a particular moral stance of the farmer toward other organisms or because something bad is being done to the flowers themselves.

What is clear, however, is that Switzerland's enshrining of "plant dignity" is a symptom of a cultural disease that has infected Western civilization, causing us to lose the ability to think critically and distinguish serious from frivolous ethical concerns. It also reflects the triumph of a radical anthropomorphism that views elements of the natural world as morally equivalent to people[PDF file):

The hierarchical position can be criticised for being unclear about why the membership of a species, or the complexity of abilities, should be morally relevant. This objection is usually countered by saying that the complexity of an organism’s telos correlates with its ability to perceive harm. Further, we should take into account that our understanding is multiply situated, i.e. it remains tied to the abilities given to us and achieved by us culturally: the human perspective cannot be overcome. This does not rule out our ascribing moral status to other living organisms.

Via Ace of Spades ]]> http://blogquebecois.com/2008/05/the_silent_scream_of_the_aspar.html http://blogquebecois.com/2008/05/the_silent_scream_of_the_aspar.html Politics Sun, 04 May 2008 22:05:54 -0700 Not the greatest game, but it's different. Most of the points seem to be found in the small "town" to the right, where you may profitably indulge your godless lust for destruction. Warning: Music and sound effects. There doesn't seem to be any way to mute them at the site, so turn down your speakers beforehand if that's going to be a problem. Link, or click the photo to start. ]]> http://blogquebecois.com/2008/05/tornado_button_smashing.html http://blogquebecois.com/2008/05/tornado_button_smashing.html Web Games games online games tornado button smashing Fri, 02 May 2008 15:30:53 -0700 Via Attu Sees All ]]> http://blogquebecois.com/2008/05/maybe_its_not_the_most_compell.html http://blogquebecois.com/2008/05/maybe_its_not_the_most_compell.html Women prohibition sex temperance women Thu, 01 May 2008 22:00:11 -0700 AP wire:

NEW YORK (AP) - New York Rangers forward Sean Avery was taken to a hospital in cardiac arrest hours after the team lost a playoff game to the Pittsburgh Penguins, the Daily News reported Wednesday on its Web site. The newspaper reported Avery was unconscious and not breathing when he was taken to St. Vincent's Medical Center. The 28-year-old arrived about 3 a.m. Wednesday, a hospital source told the newspaper. A person close to the team told the newspaper Avery had been rushed to the hospital. The Rangers lost 5-3 at home Tuesday night, falling behind 3-0 in their second-round series with the Penguins. Avery had an assist on the Rangers' second goal in Tuesday night's game.

Update: Just heard on the radio that the Rangers' super-pest is being treated for a lacerated spleen and is expected to miss the rest of the series (which isn't going to be much longer, anyway). ]]> http://blogquebecois.com/2008/04/avery_hospitalized.html http://blogquebecois.com/2008/04/avery_hospitalized.html Sports Wed, 30 Apr 2008 11:49:42 -0700

Scientists know this reflex as the "Coolidge Effect." It earned its name many years ago when [US President Calvin] Coolidge and his wife were touring a farm. While the President was elsewhere, the farmer proudly showed Mrs. Coolidge a rooster that "could copulate with hens all day long, day after day." Mrs. Coolidge coyly suggested that the farmer tell that to Mr. Coolidge, which he did. The President thought for a moment and then inquired, "With the same hen?" "No, sir," replied the farmer. "Tell that to Mrs. Coolidge," retorted the President.

Via kottke.org ]]> http://blogquebecois.com/2008/04/the_coolidge_effect.html http://blogquebecois.com/2008/04/the_coolidge_effect.html Sex calvin coolidge coolidge effect sex Tue, 29 Apr 2008 22:14:49 -0700 Remember to double over newsprint when used as a safety mask. That is all. Carry on.]]> http://blogquebecois.com/2008/04/todays_safety_tip.html http://blogquebecois.com/2008/04/todays_safety_tip.html Photographs welding work workplace safety Mon, 28 Apr 2008 22:08:56 -0700

I'm the Mekuri Master, the Skirt-Flip King. The name isn't their idea... It's mine. I'm a man who was born to lift skirts. You think any so-called "rules" are gonna stop me? When classes get out, I race through the corridors like a fearsome wind, flipping, flipping, flipping up girls' skirts and letting the whole world know that I am the Mekuri Master!

Only in Japan, you say? (Or possibly Scotland.) At any rate, click and drag the girls' skirts upwards as the "Mekuri Master" passes by. There's more explanation of the scoring, bonus rounds, etc. on the page -- scroll down to see it. Or you could watch this YouTube clip. Click here or on the picture to start. (If you want to play again after finishing the game, just click on the ending screen.) Warning: Apart from the content (no nudity, but doubtlessly offensive to some), there's music and sound effects, both of which you can mute with buttons at the bottom right (marked with a speaker cone and the letters "BSG" respectively). ]]> http://blogquebecois.com/2008/04/mekuri_master.html http://blogquebecois.com/2008/04/mekuri_master.html Web Games games mekuri master online games Fri, 25 Apr 2008 22:06:01 -0700 This picture, allegedly of some trailer park arrangement, has been making the rounds lately. Turns out, though, that it's actually an open-air set built for the Theater het Amsterdam Bos, for a 1995 production of Chekhov's Ivanov. More pictures (including the audience seating) here. Not being familiar with the play, I looked it up on Wikipedia. It's a tragedy set in rural Russia in the 19th century, so I guess the producers figured it was transferable to a more modern setting. No idea whether it worked or not. ]]> http://blogquebecois.com/2008/04/the_redneck_mansion.html http://blogquebecois.com/2008/04/the_redneck_mansion.html Architecture chekhov ivanov redneck mansion Thu, 24 Apr 2008 22:04:29 -0700