University of Chicago Students Call On Anti-Israel Prof Mearsheimer to Retire
As a graduate of the University of Chicago’s Department of Economics (Ph.D. ’74) I was once proud of my department and my school, and I used to contribute regularly to the school. As anti-Israel animus gained steam in the last couple of years, I have simply stopped contributing to any and all institutions that support such animus. (That includes Jewish institutions such as the local Federation for funding Theater J.) The UofC is one of the institutions to which I no longer contribute, and it is because of Mearsheimer. I discontinued the University magazine as well because of a crazy letter claiming that Israel was an apartheid state. (Of course, no criticism of any Arab states being Judenrein states.) I am glad to see that some sanity has returned to the student body at Chicago. It is truly a wonderful thing to behold.
As for Mearsheimer, there is an old saw that applies to him: He may be entitled to his opinions, but he is not entitled to his facts. When a scholar knowingly uses data that are known to be false, he stops being a scholar and starts being an idealogue. Should academic freedom extend to the knowing use of false data?
