Letter to the Editor
Hough's comments following the New York Times editorial deserve criticism for their slackness and casual wording, not for racism. Professors have an obligation to speak out on their convictions. What is odd is the reflexive condemnation of the comments by Michael Schoenfeld, a PR administrator, who apparently wants to suppress any comment that could lead to disagreement or mental discomfort to a reader. I'm trying to recall when universities became so timid, university administrators became intolerant of intelligent speech and the public voice of the university became indistinguishable from any corporation or government agency. Have a debate, Duke. Calm down. Talk. Don't let administrators tamp down on healthy dialogue. Consider that Hough's lack of articulateness may have been due to his being tired or just reasonably irritated by one more hand-wringing editorial from the Times.