The heart of a leftist/Last time

[JKSCHW at aol.com]

Sure, but it's not "Stalinism" that does it--it's any commitment to the left, or near it. It wouldn't have helped if my ex-collegaues had been clearer, had they cared, that I am an anti-Stalinist. There is an old joke about a cop in a labor dispute who starts to beat up a scab: "You commie scum!" he yells, belaboring ahim about the head. "Wait, wait," said the the scab, "I am an anticommunist!" "I don't care what kind of communist you are," says the cop. "All you reds are the same to me!" And I don't think that criticism of evil, vile, and stupid positions among ourselves ought to be muted because in the wrong context, like a departmental retention evaluation, which this is not, they might be misused. --jks

In a message dated Tue, 11 Jul 2000  5:53:32 PM Eastern Daylight Time, Yoshie Furuhashi <furuhashi.1 at osu.edu> writes:

<< >I think we got into this because people who had never paid the price 
>for left wing convictions accused me, who lost my job and first 
>career to redbaiting, of red-baiting.
>--jks

I sympathize, but the prices paid for left-wing convictions are all 
the more reasons for being careful about the use of such terms as 
Stalinism (for instance by making a distinction between formerly 
existing Stalinism & phantom Stalinisms that haunt political 
discourse).  BTW, the possibility of threat to jobs is ever present 
in academia.  Let me share with the list a posting by the vice chair 
of my department at the OSU during the recent strike:

At 11:13 AM -0400 5/8/00, Valerie Lee wrote:
>Date: Mon, 08 May 2000 11:13:56 -0400
>Reply-To: lee.89 at osu.edu
>Sender: owner-engrad at lists.acs.ohio-state.edu
>From: Valerie Lee <lee.89 at osu.edu>
>To: engrad at lists.acs.ohio-state.edu
>Cc: engfac at lists.acs.ohio-state.edu
>Subject: Class Cancellations
>X-Sender: vlee at pop.service.ohio-state.edu
>X-Priority: 1 (Highest)
>
>To All GTAs:
>
>Important Reminder:
>
>It has come to my attention that some of you have told your classes 
>that you will not be meeting until the strike is over. Some students 
>in  "cancelled" classes have requested that their money for the 
>quarter  be refunded.  I would like to remind you of what your 
>responsibility is:
>
>As a GTA, you have signed a contract saying that you will fulfill a 
>specific responsibility.  It is a breach of the contract to tell 
>your students that you will not be meeting with them.  Additionally, 
>you should not move your class to another location, unless every 
>student in that class agrees to such a move. If even one student 
>objects, you should not move the course.
>
>Some of you have found useful ways to  incorporate the issues of the 
>strike into your class discussions.  Fine.  Others have taken 
>actions that  may jeopardize their reappointments.  Let's work 
>together on these issues.
>
>
>-------------------------------------------
>             Valerie Lee
>Professor and Vice-Chair, Department of English
>Professor, Department of Women's Studies
>      The Ohio State University
>       164 West 17th Avenue
>       Columbus, Ohio  43210-1370
>            (614)292-6735
>-------------------------------------------

Yoshie
<excerpt>I think we got into this because people who had never paid the
price for left wing convictions accused me, who lost my job and first
career to redbaiting, of red-baiting.

--jks 

</excerpt>

I sympathize, but the prices paid for left-wing convictions are all the
more reasons for being careful about the use of such terms as Stalinism
(for instance by making a distinction between formerly existing
Stalinism & phantom Stalinisms that haunt political discourse).  BTW,
the possibility of threat to jobs is ever present in academia.  Let me
share with the list a posting by the vice chair of my department at the
OSU during the recent strike:

At 11:13 AM -0400 5/8/00, Valerie Lee wrote:

<excerpt>Date: Mon, 08 May 2000 11:13:56 -0400

Reply-To: lee.89 at osu.edu

Sender: owner-engrad at lists.acs.ohio-state.edu

From: Valerie Lee <<lee.89 at osu.edu>

To: engrad at lists.acs.ohio-state.edu

Cc: engfac at lists.acs.ohio-state.edu

Subject: Class Cancellations

X-Sender: vlee at pop.service.ohio-state.edu

X-Priority: 1 (Highest)

<bigger><bigger><bigger>To All GTAs:

<center><color><param>FFFF,0000,0000</param>Important Reminder:

</color></center><color><param>FFFF,0000,0000</param>It has come to my
attention that some of you have told your classes that you will not be
meeting until the strike is over. Some students in  "cancelled" classes
have requested that their money for the quarter  be refunded.  I would
like to remind you of what your responsibility is:

As a GTA, you have signed a contract saying that you will fulfill a
specific responsibility.  It is a breach of the contract to tell your
students that you will not be meeting with them.  Additionally, you
should not move your class to another location, unless every student in
that class agrees to such a move. If even one student objects, you
should not move the course.

Some of you have found useful ways to  incorporate the issues of the
strike into your class discussions.  Fine.  Others have taken actions
that  may jeopardize their reappointments.  Let's work together on
these issues.

</color></bigger></bigger></bigger>-------------------------------------------

             Valerie Lee

Professor and Vice-Chair, Department of English

Professor, Department of Women's Studies

      The Ohio State University

       164 West 17th Avenue

       Columbus, Ohio  43210-1370

            (614)292-6735

-------------------------------------------

</excerpt>

Yoshie 

 >>