The US loses academic freedom? 17 Jun 2009 Since we’re talking about law, here’s an interesting piece at Crooked Timber on the chilling effect on academic free speech a couple of recent court decisions, Garcetti v. Ceballos and Hong v. Grant may end up having. Although the courts did not intend for these decisions about whistleblowing to affect academic speech, it seems that it already has. Don’t criticise your university administration in the US, folks, or you’ll lose your job. A letter sent to the UC Davis Senate said: According to recent court rulings, your speech and behavior in job-related duties as a public employee rather than a private citizen have no First Amendment protection. This means that disciplinary action may be taken against you (including dismissal) for statements you make in the course of your employment. Read the comments too. Education Freedom
Australian stuff Why anti science? 23 Nov 2013 Over the past few decades there has been an increasingly negative attitude by governments, pundits, religiosi and faux philosophers against science. We have seen an increase in denialism about climate change (one of the most well supported scientific models of the day), vaccination, evolution, medical research in general, and the… Read More
Censorship The Policy policy, and a Bill of Rights 3 Dec 2008 When my kids were in school, I noticed an interesting phenomenon that went something like this: Headmaster: No, your kids can’t be being bullied. We have a policy against bullying. I came to call this the “Policy policy”: so long as there’s a Policy in place for some longstanding problem,… Read More
Australian stuff The Philosophy Club 26 Sep 201226 Sep 2012 There are an increasing number of initiatives to present philosophy and critical thinking to school students, and I am pleased to announce a new one in my home city of Melbourne: The Philosophy Club for ages 8 to 11. As I have argued in print, earlier conceptual acquisitions tend to… Read More