Soapbox

I was confused today by an editorial in The Dispatch called “Forbidden Notions”. The editor asserted that student Scott McConnell, who wrote that he thought he should be allowed to hit children in his classroom and that multi-cultural education is un-American, should not have been asked to leave Le Moyne Jesuit College in New York.

I agree. But if having unusual ideas should not prevent one from getting an education, neither should it prevent one from teaching. It is ironic that under Rep. Larry Mumper’s proposed “college witch hunt” bill, a professor with the above stated views would not be allowed to teach them at a public college in Ohio if someone found them “controversial” (which I certainly do). Yet the Dispatch has not taken a public stand on this legislation. Is free speech to be protected only when it is the students speaking?

I am not sure just what McConnell finds offensive about learning the role other cultures have played in shaping American society, but I expect there are many schools who would be happy to employ him, paddle and all. As a parent, I would prefer that my child not be in his class, but that is a separate issue. As the paper states, just because he thinks that corpral punishment is a valid educational “tool” that doesn’t mean that he would spank student if school policy forbade it.

What confuses me is that The Dispatch suddenly finds this issue worthy of taking an editorial stand. Why have we not heard similar concern from them that student’s can be dismissed from Bob Jones University for listening to Christian Rock or holding hands with someone of the opposite race? Isn’t this an equally egregious violation of personal liberty? Aren’t they denying students an education just because of a belief or activity that surely has nothing to do with their education, unlike McConnell’s case? Surely The Dispatch is not concerned only when conservative speech is suppressed!

Bob Jones is a private, religious college and as such is allowed to have controversial, even ridiculous standards for their students if they wish. So is Le Moyne college. If they do not want to be known for having a graduate who wants to hit children and teach that learning about others is treasonous, so be it! I’m sure there are plenty of other colleges where McConnell’s unusual views would be welcomed.

Just not in Ohio. We don’t allow controversial ideas here. Well not liberal ones, anyway.