ACADEMIC ELITISM

The driving sin of our academic intellectuals is hubris - unchecked intellectual arrogance. Like gravity it is invisible. We can't see or touch it, but we can feel its effect. It is a deceptive force. Some people feel that politics lies behind much of the turmoil and intellectual decay in today's academic world, the rise of the notion of `political correctness,' and the decline of academic freedom. But that's not it. The toleration of corruption and unprofessional conduct cannot be laid at the doorstep o f a handful of political idealogues. In many instances of misconduct there is nothing to gain politically, and some of the worst offenders don't have a political bone in their bodies.

In the academic intellectual world there is a deeper force than political passion, a force that is unique to this world: intellectual elitism....

Unfortunately, many academic intellectuals wrongly conclude that because they are more intelligent and more learned, they are better.