Politicizing Academia

Having pretty well destroyed their long time nemesis, the liberal media, conservatives have now set their sites on another of their hated foes, the liberal academics community. Led by Daniel Pipes an attack has been launched at Middle East studies programs at various universities. If successful, I think there can be little doubt that it will spread to other schools, other subjects. The tactics range from email and phone campaigns harassing and insulting professors to an effort to gain control over federal funding of these programs in order to dole the money out along political lines. President Bush has shown at least passive support for Pipes's efforts by appointing him as a director of the U.S. Institute of Peace.