Political correctness on steroids

IsnÂ’t university supposed to be the forum where controversial ideas get vetted? You wouldnÂ’t know it by reading the headlines. Ever since a bizarre soliloquy by Harvard president Larry Summers last month questioning womenÂ’s abilities in math and science, the famously provocative professor has been cowed into playing the role of a veritable shrinking violet. So much for free speech on campus.

For the record, I think SummersÂ’ comments are perfectly silly but this is turning into a spectacle of political correctness. The latest: some graduate students and faculty members at Yale are pressuring that collegeÂ’s president to publicly condemn Summers. Maybe he can pull an ace out of the deck but this affair will probably end in SummersÂ’ resignation. Summers made a dumb remark but the subsequent reaction to his comments is even dumber.