Society's Child

Identity politics is harming the sciences

Heather MacDonald
City Journal
Tue, 15 May 2018 10:53 UTC

Universities and other institutions are watering down requirements in order to attract more women and minorities.

© B CHRISTOPHER/ALAMY STOCK PHOTO
Consumed by ideology, the National Science Foundation claims that progress in science requires a “diverse STEM workforce.”

Identity politics has engulfed the humanities and social sciences on American campuses; now it is taking over the hard sciences. The STEM fields-science, technology, engineering, and math-are under attack for being insufficiently "diverse." The pressure to increase the representation of females, blacks, and Hispanics comes from the federal government, university administrators, and scientific societies themselves. That pressure is changing how science is taught and how scientific qualifications are evaluated. The results will be disastrous for scientific innovation and for American competitiveness.

A scientist at UCLA reports: "All across the country the big question now in STEM is: how can we promote more women and minorities by 'changing' (i.e., lowering) the requirements we had previously set for graduate level study?" Mathematical problem-solving is being deemphasized in favor of more qualitative group projects; the pace of undergraduate physics education is being slowed down so that no one gets left behind.

Comment:

Pass the sickbag: Fox host Judge Jeanine mocked for backing embassy's Jerusalem move because it 'fulfilled Biblical prophecy'

RT
Tue, 15 May 2018 09:20 UTC

Donald Trump has fulfilled a "biblical prophecy" by moving the US embassy in Israel to Jerusalem, Fox News host Judge Jeanine Pirro declared, while broadcasting from Israel ahead of the site's inauguration.

Pirro compared Trump to the ancient king, King Cyrus of Persia, who proclaimed some 2,500 years ago that Jewish exiles in Babylon could come back and rebuild their Temple in Jerusalem. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made the same reference earlier this year after Trump recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

"Donald Trump recognized history. He like King Cyrus before him, fulfilled the Biblical prophecy of the God worshipped by Jews, Christians and, yes, Muslims, that Jerusalem is the eternal capital of the Jewish state and that the Jewish people finally deserve a righteous, free and sovereign Israel," Pirro said.

Half of American evangelicals support Israel because they believe it's important for fulfilling end-times prophecy

Philip Bump
The Washington Post
Mon, 14 May 2018 09:03 UTC

Well before he was asked to offer a prayer at Monday's ceremony marking the U.S. Embassy's move from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, earning the enmity of Mitt Romney, Pastor Robert Jeffress offered tangential insight into why he and many evangelicals think the move was so important.

"Jerusalem has been the object of the affection of both Jews and Christians down through history and the touchstone of prophecy," Jeffress told CNN last year. "But, most importantly, God gave Jerusalem - and the rest of the Holy Land - to the Jewish people."

The latter half of that quote hints at the deep religious meaning of the existence of Israel for Jeffress and other Christians. As University of North Texas professor Elizabeth Oldmixon told Vox last year, the issue of recognizing Jerusalem is inextricable from that belief.

Ivanka and Jared reportedly get blessed by Rabbi who called blacks 'monkeys'

RT
Mon, 14 May 2018 08:31 UTC

Ivanka Trump and husband Jared Kushner, in Israel to open the US Embassy in Jerusalem, have been reportedly blessed by a Rabbi who compared black people to "monkeys," and immodestly dressed women to "animals."

Since landing Sunday afternoon, Trump and Kushner's schedule included a meeting with Israel's Chief Sephardic Rabbi Yitzchok Yosef. According to one Jewish Insider reporter, Yosef gave the couple "a blessing."

Powerful legal group, The American Law Institute changes the law while nobody's looking

John Fund
National Review
Tue, 15 May 2018 02:15 UTC

Outside the Supreme Court in Washington, D.C.

The American Law Institute increasingly seeks to advance a politically correct agenda. Next week, one of the most powerful private legal groups you've never heard of will hold its annual meeting in Washington, D.C. For nearly 100 years, the 3,000- member American Law Institute has exercised enormous influence through what it calls "Restatements" of the common law. Many judges, lawyers, and scholars rely on it for an objective, readable description of what the law is.

As I noted at NRO in 2016:

The ALI's Restatements are an effort to clarify and codify the common law. In many areas, actual statutes do not govern us, but "case law," or judicial precedent, does. The ALI tells courts what the case law is, and courts routinely rely on the ALI Restatements as authority for what the law is. The ALI's work serves as something between Cliff's Notes and an authoritative encyclopedia of law for many judges.

The Supreme Court cites the ALI every few weeks, on average, in its decisions.

School shooter drills become the new normal in US schools

Tom Dart
The Guardian
Tue, 15 May 2018 01:59 UTC

How is this going to help us?' a teacher asks as versions of this ritual are now stitched into the fabric of the American educational system

© Tanisha Lynn Pyron Creative Photography
Lindsay Aikman: ‘Whatever classroom I’m in I’m looking at how to exit in an emergency. That’s how we’re thinking now as teachers.’

The gunshots came from upstairs, pop-pop-pop, and Lindsay Aikman's heart thumped faster and faster. The school's public address system announced an active shooter.

The teacher dashed for the nearest hiding place - the boys' bathroom. She regretted it when the automated lights flicked on. Her thoughts raced: "Should I have gone to the girls' bathroom? Farther away. Library? Too open. A classroom? Sitting duck."

Comment:

The Forward fiasco: Dr. Peterson's response

Jordan Peterson
jordanbpeterson.com
Tue, 15 May 2018 01:35 UTC

On May 4, I received the following email from my publicist, Rob Greenwald (of the agency Rogers and Cowan: www.rogersandcowan.com). I recently hired Rob to help me plan a more conscious media strategy (having been at the receiving end of the best, but also the worst, of journalistic activity):

Comment: Journalistic failure: Libel of Jordan Peterson by the Forward

Recent poll reveals Maduro the leading candidate favored by nearly 56% of Venezuelans

teleSUR
Fri, 11 May 2018 00:00 UTC

The question in the International Consulting Services survey was: 'If elections were today, who would you vote for?'

A recent poll by International Consulting Services (ICS) reveals that Venezuela's incumbent President Nicolas Maduro, candidate for the Broad Front for the Homeland, is leading vote intention with 55.9 percent of support for the upcoming May 20 elections.

The poll conducted between April 20 and May 4 places Henri Falcon of the Progressive Advance party in second place with 25.4 percent of support of likely voters, and Javier Bertucci, Hope for Change candidate, in third with 16.2 percent of support.

Comment: No doubt Western regime change creators will be most unhappy that their efforts appear to be failing and will double down on efforts to install a more 'favorable' choice or strangle the country economically in the process:

As Kilauea eruptions continue, many Hawaiians accept their fate at the hands of Pele

Nina Wu
Honolulu Star Advertiser
Sun, 13 May 2018 00:00 UTC

© Dennis Oda / 2009
Before the annual Merrie Monarch Festival competition in Hilo, many halau visit Halemaumau crater to honor Pele. At left, members of Halau Ka Liko Pua O Kalaniakea throw lei and ti leaves into the crater after performing a chant and hula.

As threats from the latest Kilauea eruptions continue in Puna, many speak of the dramatic lava flows as the work of Pele, the goddess of fire and volcanoes.

These Native Hawaiians and other Hawaii residents accept the volcanic activity that has consumed 36 structures and displaced hundreds of residents as demonstrations of Pele's power and beauty. And there is no way to stop her.

Pelehonuamea, or Pele of the sacred earth, is also known as "ka wahine ai honua," woman who devours the land. She is also called Madame Pele or Tutu Pele.

"I usually use Tutu Pele because she's an ancestor to me and one of our family aumakua, or family guardian, so we have great respect for her," said Lilikala Kame'eleihiwa, a professor at the Kamakakuokalani Center for Hawaiian Studies on the University of Hawaii's Manoa campus. "We have a personal relationship with Pele."

Comment: 'This is her land': Kilauea's eruption comes with a cultural connection to Pele

Chinese pilot lands flight after window falls off, copilot nearly sucked out of plane

Sputnik
Mon, 14 May 2018 22:00 UTC

Sichuan Airlines Flight 3U8633 was forced to make an emergency landing at China's Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport on Monday after one of the airplane's cockpit windows fell off mid-flight.

According to Reuters, though no passengers were injured in the incident, the Civil Aviation Administration of China's Southwest Regional Administration (CAAC) stated that one of the pilots suffered scratches and waist pains. A flight attendant also received a minor injury during the accident.

The domestic flight, which was traveling from Chongqing to Lhasa, landed at the Chengdu Shuangliu airport roughly 20 minutes after the window broke.

Speaking to Red Star News, pilot Liu Chuanjian revealed that seconds after the malfunction, his fellow pilot started to get sucked out of the window, along with parts of the plane's control unit.

Comment: See also:

Speak loudly and carry a big sick.

Robotech

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Fewtile

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Rowan Cocoan

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Winternights3

Someone deport this monstrous POS back to hell, or wherever. Anywhere with a good stockade 😤and his kids too

slbeaudry

Society's Child

Identity politics is harming the sciences

Pass the sickbag: Fox host Judge Jeanine mocked for backing embassy's Jerusalem move because it 'fulfilled Biblical prophecy'

Half of American evangelicals support Israel because they believe it's important for fulfilling end-times prophecy

Ivanka and Jared reportedly get blessed by Rabbi who called blacks 'monkeys'

Powerful legal group, The American Law Institute changes the law while nobody's looking

School shooter drills become the new normal in US schools

The Forward fiasco: Dr. Peterson's response

Recent poll reveals Maduro the leading candidate favored by nearly 56% of Venezuelans

As Kilauea eruptions continue, many Hawaiians accept their fate at the hands of Pele

Chinese pilot lands flight after window falls off, copilot nearly sucked out of plane

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