Aug. 27, 2007

Terminating the Terminal Year

When DePaul University rejected Norman Finkelstein’s bid for tenure in June, all the documents in the very divided review of his record suggested no dispute over the high quality of his teaching. The tenure denial also said that Finkelstein would receive a contract for this coming academic year — the “terminal year” contract that is standard for colleges to offer those who have been denied tenure.

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But DePaul is having second thoughts on letting Finkelstein have a terminal year. It has canceled his classes, even though students were registered and excited about them, and the university told him that he cannot have an office. The latest actions by DePaul — which already is being criticized by faculty groups for the initial tenure denial — have added to the anger about the situation. And Finkelstein is vowing to show up, teach and use his old office.

In an e-mail interview, he said: “If the university attempts to impede my movements I intend to engage in nonviolent civil disobedience and go to jail. If incarcerated I intend to go on a protracted hunger strike until DePaul comes to its senses. It is regrettable that I have been driven to such drastic actions to defend basic principles of academic freedom and my contractual rights, upon which DePaul has been riding roughshod for so long.”

“This just seems so unjust and ridiculous,” said Daniel Klimek, a rising senior in political science and one of the students recently informed by the university that Finkelstein’s course “Equality and Social Justice” was among those called off. Klimek said that he had felt honored to be in one of Finkelstein’s final courses at DePaul, and that the cancellation reinforced his view that “this is all about politics.” Klimek is among the organizers of the DePaul Academic Freedom Committee, which has been organizing protests against the tenure denial.

John K. Wilson, on his blog College Freedom, wrote: “If anyone doubted whether DePaul was violating Finkelstein’s rights, that doubt must end with this decision.... Even if DePaul pays off Finkelstein, it is violating his academic freedom (and the freedom of its students) by refusing to let him teach and effectively silencing his voice in its classrooms.”

DePaul is in fact paying Finkelstein his full pay and benefits, but has placed him on administrative leave for the academic year, which means he is relieved of teaching responsibilities.

A spokeswoman for the university declined to answer specific questions, but released a statement that said: “The university has been in communication with Professor Finkelstein throughout the summer and informed him of his status well in advance of the fall quarter.... He was informed of the reasons that precipitated this leave last spring. DePaul is acting well within its rights as an employer and as a university. There is no basis to suggest that DePaul has failed to fulfill any contractual obligations.”

The university has provided students who registered for any of Finkelstein’s courses with information on how to get into other classes. The university statement said that academic advisers will even be able to help those who registered for Finkelstein’s courses to override course enrollment caps so they can take other classes.

Jonathan Knight, who directs the program in academic freedom and tenure at the American Association of University Professors, said Sunday that the fact that DePaul is continuing to pay Finkelstein does not end questions about the university’s “extraordinary” actions. Knight noted that Finkelstein’s classroom conduct has never been questioned, and said that removing a professor from teaching in such a case is only justified by real fears about a danger the professor could pose. “That’s a terrible commentary to be making on an individual,” Knight said, and should require real evidence and faculty input.

Unless there has been a real hearing and the opportunity for due process, Knight said, the move is not a matter of placing someone on leave, but a “summary dismissal,” adding that “obviously we need to know why they are doing it.”

Finkelstein’s supporters also say that it violates academic norms to create needless difficulties, like taking away office space, during a terminal year, a difficult time for any professor. “A professor who has been denied tenure should be treated with the utmost respect and consideration and not with an over abundance of Schadenfreude,” wrote Peter N. Kirstein, on his blog. Kirstein is a professor of history at Saint Xavier University and a leader of the Illinois chapter of the AAUP, which has been critical of DePaul’s review of Finkelstein’s tenure case.

The Finkelstein case has attracted international attention. Finkelstein’s writings on Israel and the Holocaust have been attacked by many as ill-informed and reflecting anti-Jewish hate. He has also been widely praised by others as a brave voice, raising important issues.

The deciding factor cited by DePaul in rejecting Finkelstein’s tenure bid was not the substance of his arguments, but his style. Finkelstein was criticized for violating the Vincentian norms of the Roman Catholic university with writing and statements that were deemed hurtful, that contained ad hominem attacks and that did not show respect for others. His supporters said this was just a cover for objections to his views.

Finkelstein has no intention of staying away from DePaul. On his Web site, he posted this statement: “I will return to my office. I will teach my classes.”

— Scott Jaschik

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Comments

Next Come the Torch Lit Parades and Book Burnings!

It sickening. This is what the right wing pundits have planned for any bright, intelligent scholar who can both teach and do research and maintains and independent spirit. Good luck, professor. Again you prove the old saying: “With well doing you put to silence the ignorance of foolish, totalitarian, administrations!” Its Horowitz and his ilk that should be sent packing. And they will be, eventually, when America sickens of these bullying, swaggering has-beens!

Diogenes, The Police State Begins Here!, at 7:30 am EDT on August 27, 2007

Whoa — reality bites

” .. This is what the right wing pundits have planned for any bright, intelligent scholar ..

This is a “right-wing pundit?”

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/ala...finkelsteins-fraudulent-_b_3436.html

Diogenes? He’s attempting to think — that’s good.

Buzz, at 8:30 am EDT on August 27, 2007

“It sickening”

Diogenes’s statement suggests a poor command of the English language. The thoughts, so far as I can understand, are no better, though more hysterical than cynical. With friends like this Mr. Finkelstein doesn’t need enemies. And all too many of Finkelstein’s friends are like this—puffed up, bloviating ignorami.

Cato, at 8:50 am EDT on August 27, 2007

It isn’t fair to just blame the “right wing pundits,” there are plenty of blind supporters of Israel on the “left” who can carry blame for the poor treatment of Norman Finkelstein. DePaul is making a serious mistake, and this move leaves a mark upon the university that will not easily be removed.

Shame, shame, shame.

Snare, at 8:50 am EDT on August 27, 2007

The suggestion that this tenure decision is a result of a supposed vast right wing conspiracy sounds like another beat on the tired “it’s someone else’s fault” drum.

Aren’t tenure decisions made by the faculty and administration of the university? Doesn’t the university get to make the decision...not the individual? I believe there must be a connection here back to Karl Rove.

Seriously, Academic Freedom belongs to the university (according to the Supreme Court)...to choose its currcultum, etc... and not to individual people.

The Facts Please, at 9:05 am EDT on August 27, 2007

Perhaps why he was denied tenure (from later 2005 — the Alan Dershowitz article linked above):

Finkelstein boasts, “Never has one of my articles been published in a scientific magazine,”. . .

Maybe it’s just me, but I had no desire to rock the boat while I was working towards tenure. Perhaps Finkelstein could have been using the time he spent making waves to have published some scholarly articles???

Sean, Dr. at G, at 9:25 am EDT on August 27, 2007

A Left Wing Supporter of DePaul

As a strong supporter of gun control, of no prayers in public schools, of women’s reproductive freedoms, of state-supported steps to ameliorate poverty, and of no discrimination or preferences based on race, ethnicity or gender, this left winger strongly supports DePaul in its perfectly legitimate dealings and actions with Prof. Finkelstein.

The article states that “DePaul is in fact paying Finkelstein his full pay and benefits, but has placed him on administrative leave for the academic year, which means he is relieved of teaching responsibilities.”

Good for DePaul, a private university whose internal reviews of Finkelstein’s work have found him and his research wanting in many ways.

The endless whining, carping and scare-tales merely attest to the mental sloth and corruption of many faculty members.

Original Chuck, at 9:35 am EDT on August 27, 2007

puffed up, bloviating ignorami

Cato complains about Diogenes’ English in an ad hominem attack marred by its own infelicities of language. “ignorami” may be technically correct as a plural of “ignoramus” but someone who uses this version ignores that ignoramus is a verb in Latin that does not have a plural in “i.” Ignoramuses like Cato should also refrain from repetitive bloviation like “puffed-up, bloviating.”

Hypercorrector, at 9:55 am EDT on August 27, 2007

Universities turning into Big Academia!

Big Government, Big Business, Big Religion... and now Big Academia. Conform or be cast out. It’s sad that the mind-numbing conformity of institutions the world over is making criminals of independent thinkers.

Jon L. Albee, Graduate Student at Rice University, at 10:10 am EDT on August 27, 2007

What about the students?

As a professor, I agree that this is a complicated issue, with high emotions running on each side. But, there is a legal way to fight this battle. Making the students choose to attend his classes, or to get into another class before it is too late, and threatening to disrupt the entire campus to get his way is a bit disturbing to me. These students may, in fact, lose a great deal by not being able to take his class this semester, but I’m not sure I agree that this someone I would want as a role model for my students. Just my opinion, but I always tend to worry more about my students.

Anothervoice, at 10:20 am EDT on August 27, 2007

The AAUP Rules Are Clear

The AAUP’s 1940 Statement requires that if a scholar is denied tenure, “the appointment for the following year becomes a terminal one.” This teaching appointment must include all of the relevant privileges of a faculty member–-not merely being paid, but also having office space and the right to teach classes as normally expected. Otherwise, it is considered a dismissal for cause. The AAUP’s 1958 Statement on Procedural Standards in Faculty Dismissal Proceedings (http://www.aaup.org/AAUP/pubsres/...infaculty+dismissal+proceedings.htm) declares: “a hearing will be conducted by a faculty committee at a specified time and place to determine whether he or she should be removed from the faculty position on the grounds stated.” Suspension with pay is only permitted in extraordinary circumstances in advance of a dismissal hearing: “Suspension of the faculty member during the proceedings is justified only if immediate harm to the faculty member or others is threatened by the faculty member’s continuance.” DePaul appears to have failed to follow any of this required due process. And since DePaul made absolutely no objections to Finkelstein’s teaching, immediate suspension from his classes is completely unjustified.

John K. Wilson, at 10:50 am EDT on August 27, 2007

The criticisms of “Diogenes” for poor grammar and “bloviating” seem rather beside the point — which is that DePaul is in flagrant violation of AAUP rules. Regardless of one’s personal opinion of Finkelstein, academics fought long and hard for these norms. Are we willing to see a major institution treat them with contmpt because we don’t like some individual scholar?

Abbott Gleason, Keeney Prof. of History Emeritus at Brown University, at 11:15 am EDT on August 27, 2007

Standing responsible

I notice that only two of the people commenting on Finkelstein use their given, legal names. Like Finkelstein or not, one has to admit that he hasn’t hidden behind pseudonyms. That those who take sides in this question should resort to Greek or Roman names—names that once stood for courage of a sort—instead of using their own: it’s a shame, it’s a scandal.

Mark ScottCollege of Saint Mary

Mark Scott, at 11:50 am EDT on August 27, 2007

Why doesn’t this guy recognize a gift when he receives it? He’s been promised a year of pay for doing nothing. Most people wouldn’t try to earn that pay, especially when they are told not to — they would act rationally and get another job, or at least spend the time reading.

Freebie, at 12:40 pm EDT on August 27, 2007

Due Process

I am always concerned when academics begin spouting the phrase “due process.” From a legal perspective, DePaul, as a private institution, owes a faculty member only the due process indicated in its employment contract—nothing more. There is no constitutional due process at a private institution. If they have failed to abide by their own policies, then Finkelstein could have a breach of contract claim, but that is all. And unless DePaul has specifically incorporated AAUP policy statements into its own policies, AAUP’s standards are irrelevant to this discussion.

Tim Letzring, at 1:35 pm EDT on August 27, 2007

Yes Freebie, we should always look at what those with superior power grant us, even when they are violating their contractual and professional duties to us, with smiling gratitude. After all they are the authorities, we’re all just lucky they put up with us, and how dare we actually demand that the rules be followed when they are clearly upset with us? Did you major in authoritarianism or what?DePaul’s initial witchhunt of Finklestein spoke volumes about their administration’s lack of principle and courage to stand up to outside interest group bullying and for academic freedom, and this latest bizarre action (why?) adds to the stain. Let us all in academe remember this when DePaul is mentioned as a site for academic conferences, events, recomendations, etc.. Oh that institution that doesn’t believe in academic values when push comes to shove? We’ll pass, thanks...

Ken, at 1:45 pm EDT on August 27, 2007

Finkelstein, academic freedom and tenure

Maybe Ward Churchill will hire Norman Finkelstein to help run their new university?

feudi pandola, at 2:15 pm EDT on August 27, 2007

terminal year as it normally is

I supported the termination of Norman Finklestein. I thought his scholarly work substandard, and the material he put on his blog and elsewhere (including obscene anti-semitic cartoons of those with whom he disagreed) would have been enough to flag him as problematic for tenure at most institutions.

Neverthleless, I think he deserves to have his full terminal year, including teaching. I think De Paul is wrong to deny him this.

As a private institution, De Paul is apparently within its rights. But I still think the behavior of the De Paul administration in this aspect is morally wrong.

art eckstein, professor at university of maryland, at 2:35 pm EDT on August 27, 2007

Academic Freedom

I am pleased that A.A.U.P. is taking a proactive role in this situation. They have communicated directly at least twice with DePaul concerning the right of a professor to appeal an adverse tenure ruling. I agree with Mr Wilson’s general argumentation and as one who knows something about suspensions, it would appear this “administrative leave” is a sanction. As a sanction, there must be an opportunity for rebuttal. On my blog today, I posted the actual document in which unspecified “behaviour” is cited as the cause for essentially banning this brilliant, wonderful teacher from campus.

This sounds like “insubordination” which has been rejected in much of the literature as “cause” for removal from the classroom. If it is more serious “misconduct,” then the university needs to state this and to provide Professor Finkelstein an adversarial hearing.

I know DePaul administrators are reading this. To you I say: “The only thing to fear is fear itself.”

Peter N. Kirstein, at 2:45 pm EDT on August 27, 2007

Has anyone thought to ask just why he was appointed by De Paul in the first place? By his gratuitous and hysterical assault on Goldhagen, by his lack of published presence in serious, scholarly journals and by his frequently-demonstrated temptation toward ingratiating the anti-Jewish claques (all of which failings were commonly known and observed before he came to Chicago) he had fully demonstrated that he was a quite inappropriate candidate. Who, then, put him forward and why?

elimelech, at 3:15 pm EDT on August 27, 2007

Finkelstein and tenure

Has anybody commenting here read the June article that first reported Finkelstein being denied tenure? That story says that Finkelstein’s department supported his tenure and it was only after a dean interceded that the university rejected tenure. At the same time, the university also rejected tenure for another faculty member who was supported by her department. So the question here isn’t purely tenure up or down, but the university administration overruling the departmental faculty’s decision. Isn’t it highly unusual for a university administration to overrule a faculty recommendation in favor of tenure?

Sonia Jaffe Robbins, at 5:15 pm EDT on August 28, 2007

Response to John Albee

Your comment was wonderful..."big government, big business, big religion, and now big academia"! So sad but true... I find many comments degrading and disrespectful of a professor who has books that expose historical facts and research that are very carefully footnoted. Perhaps many critics here have not read his books. He also has an excellent web site that is easy to view articles and posts for all things current and in his past: www.normanfinkelstein.com I wonder how much research the people who are non supportive of his books have done on this subject in order to attempt to destroy him! Are you familiar with his books and teachings his peers and students at DePaulsupported him and continue to do so...that speaks volumes in itself!!!

DEB-Z, business owner, at 10:25 pm EDT on August 28, 2007

The Legal Defence?

To those who argue that the university is well within its legal rights as a private institution to only be obliged to adhere to its own contractual obligations, I would love to hear your thoughts on Rosa Parks’ refusal to give up her seat to a white man on a bus. She was clearly in violation of the segregation laws at the time. It still didn’t make the law right. Or perhaps you think that the whole civil rights movement is a ridiculous movement to begin with carried on by the few insignificant people living on the fringes of society?

Richard Huffington, at 1:05 pm EDT on August 29, 2007

Defending Academic Freedom or Just One Set of Views?

I’m troubled by the fact that the people championing academic freedom only got themselves organized when the Finkestein and Larudee cases became so public. Where were they when Tom Klocek was dismissed from his position at De Paul because he angered a group of Arab students by objecting to their characterization of Israel as Nazi? I wrote to the head of the Illinois Chapter of the AAUP asking why, if they are so concerned about academic freedom, they never made a peep about this case. He had neither the courtesy nor the decency to reply; maybe he was too embarrassed? Obviously, they are in favor of academic freedom only for those whose political views they support, which is the same as not being in favor of academic freedom at all.(The website of the Students for Academic Freedom at De Paul is, of course, silent about any other cases than those of NGF and Larudee).

As Finkelstein in the past has been quick in threatening people whom he feels have slandered him with law suits, why does he not simply take the case to a court of law and let the judges decide, instead of proclaiming his intention to engage in civil disobedience? What kind of role model is this supposed to represent for students? Are they supposed to engage in guerrilla warfare every time their administration (or future employer) takes a decision with which they disagree?

Unfortunately, Finkelstein has distinguished himself by the large arsenal of epithets he hurls at those who disagree with hie views, from “Nazis” to “crooks and hoodlums” to “imbeciles,” people who are insane (e.g. Phyllis Chesler), or people who should be maimed or killed (Tom Friedman, Chris Hutchins et.al.), or whom he suggested should commit suicide (Hutchins received that honor in a 2003 Counterpunch piece). People who celebrate this “eminent international scholar” should seriously examine this questionable side of his literary “scholarship” and not be blinded by “ideological solidarity.”

ph, at 6:05 pm EDT on August 29, 2007

Has anybody read Finkelstein’s books first? This before praising Dershowitz (and namely DePaul’s decision)? Has anybody read what Hilberg said about Finkelstein and his The Holocaust Industry? And what Joshuah Porath said about Joan Peters’ screed? And how much of Joan Peters’ lies were in Dershowitz’s The Case for Israel? I don’t think so. Too many things to read before writing? Just read Beyond Chutzpah. It may be useful.Harvard’s professor made his usual job. As a rule, in Court, when you got nothing better in your hands ...attack the man. Maybe it works.

Sorry for my poor English.

(By the way “ignoramus” is a verb, of course. It has no plural and it means “we do not know".)

pipistro, at 4:25 am EDT on August 30, 2007

Finkelstein and Klocek apples and oranges

Several people (including ph) have accused Finkelstein’s supporters of hypocrisy because they don’t also support Tom Klocek (an adjunct lecturer who was suspended at Depaul two years ago). But these are two different cases. First, Klocek was not tenure-track but rather an adjunct instructor, and therefore he was not entitled to the “terminal year” that is at issue here.

More importantly, the students were NOT comparing Israel to the Nazis (as has been claimed in the right-wing bologosphere), though they did have material criticizing Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories. What made Klocek’s actions so objectionable actions was not what he said in defense of Israel, or even his assertion that “all terrorists are Muslim,” but rather the extremely irate and unprofessional manner in which he said it. He did not merely disagree with the students: he acted in a threatening manner towards them. Holding up Klocek as a martyr does not serve the cause of academic freedom.

MN, at 4:25 am EDT on August 30, 2007

In response to “ph”

Furthermore, in response to ph’s claim that Finkelstein scholarship is reduced to name calling such as “Nazis, hoodlums, and crooks", I would say first and foremost that Finkelstein’s scholarship stands entirely on its own. You have to read his work first and observe the detail and length to which he has gone to justify his claims. Contrast this with others (Dersh et al.) who resort to name calling without anything to back them up. That’s the difference!

If Finkelstein, after careful analysis, research and scholarship comes to the only logical conclusion that someone is a crook, I think it’s great that he has the temerity to call them out on it. If someone broke into your house and stole property, wouldn’t you call him a thief? If someone lied, would you called him a liar? If someone discriminated against a group of people and sought to silence them and cleanse them, wouldn’t you call them a Nazi.

Finkelstein goes to great lengths to back up the only logical conclusions that come about as a result of his research. Unfortunately, his enemies do not possess his patience, his scholarship and his fine analysis capabilities to conduct the same research he has proven to be able to do. So, to make it seem like that are refuting his claims, they counter with hollow and unsubstantiated rhetoric. By the way, “ph” you have degenerated into that category yourself by putting forth such an unsubstantiated remark on this forum.

Why don’t those who have a problem with Finkelstein’s claims refute the underlying research he has painstakingly conducted? I am yet to see one person refute Finkelstein’s research. All they do is refute his conclusions. I’m afraid in the scholarly work of academia that is just simply not going to cut it.

Richard Huffington, at 1:10 pm EDT on August 30, 2007

Academic Freedom and Free Speech

MN: please get your facts straight, Read Klocek’s account of what happened. One of the students compared Israel’a tactics to that of the Nazis, and he took umbrage at that.

“One of the SJP members said that the Israeli treatment of ‘Palestinians’ is as bad as the way Hitler treated the Jews. I took vast umbrage with this scurrilous statement and pointed out that there is a qualitative difference between Israeli military forces seeking out known terrorists and people strapping on bombs and blowing themselves and others up in buses, cafes, and Seder dinners.

“The conversation became especially heated when United Muslims Moving Ahead (UMMA), a group next to SJP, joined the fray. At no time did I threaten any of the students physically or verbally, but the volume of the talking turned loud on both sides. I decided to leave and it was at THAT time one of them asked me if I had any connection to the University. I said yes and told him my name and School.”

Don’t be naive. He was fired because CAIR addressed a strong letter of protest to the university, and the university caved in. Read the voluminous material on the case in the FIRE website. http://www.thefire.org/index.php/case/678.html

They have given De Paul a red light rating not only for the Klocek affair but also because the university decided that conservative students who were protesting Ward Churchill’s appearance on campus or protesting affirmative action were violating the university’s rules. The people Klocek was confronting were not used to having their views challenged so openly and they acted accordingly. It’s only “apples and oranges” because you support Finkelstein’s politics.

As for “in response to ph,” you’re living in a dream world. Show me the “careful scholarship” which caused him to lash out as follows on his website:

ARTICLES AND REVIEWS RELATED TO BEYOND CHUTZPAH

Editor’s note: Click here for Book Reviews only.

10.09.2006 Isn’t it time to send over Hitchens, George Packer, Tom Friedman, Paul Berman and all the rest of those top guns in the rear? Personally, I hope they end up among the dead, but if it has to be among the wounded, let’s hope all their limbs (and tongues) will be amputated

Doesn’t it cause you the slightest bit of embarrassment to be supporting someone who writes like that? Or someone who suggests that a well-known writer commit suicide:

http://www.counterpunch.org/finkelstein09102003.html

” Kosinski no doubt had a good time of it until, outed as a fraud, he had enough good grace, which Hitchens plainly lacks, to commit suicide”

Or how he makes a career of pointing out Israel’s human rights violations, quoting a panoply of human rights organizations, but as soon as one of them (HRW) dares to depart from his party line and write that the Palestinians have also committed war crimes, he starts a whole letter writing campaign against them, and gets his comrade Latuff engaged to pen a suitable Der Sturmer replica featuring Kenneth Roth? Is that how you train people to use sources at your university?

Scholarship? A propagandist simply repeats ad infinitum the speech about “the U.S., Israel, Vanuatu and Tuvalu” voting against the Peaceful Resolution of the Palestine Question” in the UNGA. However, from 10 to over 60 countries regularly abstain on the perennial Palestine resolutions. A scholar who wants to investigate the totality of views on this question will also look at the explanation of votes of those countries that abstained and those who voted in favor, often with significant reservations.

What are you talking about “unsubstantiated remarks"? Go look up Finkelstein’s speech in Vancouver in 2005, to see how he deliberately misrepresents Phyllis Chesler’s work. He accuses her of twice writing in “The New Anti-Semitism” that India is an Arab country. It was actually a typo in one case, and in the other India appeared with Iran in parentheses to mark them off as non-Arab countries. He accused her of labeling all the American media as “anti-Semites,” whereas she only stated that they exhibit bias against Israel. He called her an “idiot,” an “imbecile,” and said she had written “Women and Madness” because she is mad herself.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcnSZ2ym7O4&mode=related&search= (see minute 13 for reference)

I am a Ph.D. in political science and I don’t make any claims that cannot be backed up and I don’t repeat claims made by others. I have done my own research and come to my own conclusions. Even before I ever heard the name Finkelstein, the first thing I taught to my students was the difference between scholarship and propaganda.

On the last analysis, free speech in our country is governed by laws and the Constitution. University codes of conduct also sanction slander and libel. Or do you think the remarks I quoted above are nothing more than “the conclusions of a scholar"?

And in case you haven’t seen critical analyses of his work, I suggest you start with the following:

http://www.whatnextjournal.co.uk/Pages/Newint/Finkel.html

As to the difference between scholarship and propaganda, I highly recommend the attached:

http://www.southalabama.edu/univlib/sauer/propaganda.html

ph, at 9:20 pm EDT on August 30, 2007

‘ph’ — your references lack relevance

I am delighted to see someone attempt to refute Finkelstein’s claims, but as soon as you take a closer look, you find that they’re blowing smoke as usual.

First off, Finkelstein preaches critical thinking and so by hoping that you being a doctorate in Political Science will shield you from scrutiny will give you as much crediblity on this forum as Dersh. being the Felix Frankfurter Professor of Law at Harvard Law School.

Second, no one is disputing that Finkelstein has an unorthodox style. Part of the problem is having the whole world be politically correct about Israel that Israel has used this indifference and apathy to continue pillaging and stealing Palestinian land. Prof. Finkelstein’s voice is a fresh beacon of hope that supports an oppressed people in their quest for justice. You say “perennial problem” as if you are tired of it and hope it would just go away. Do not expect it to go away until justice is served no matter how long that may be.

You try to distinguish scholarship from propaganda which is commendable. But, then in the same breath you make reference to laws against slander as though Finkelstein attempts to smear anyone without warrant. If anything, the opposite is true. Each person who has been insulted by Finkelstein seems to have warranted it, more so because we are dealing with an issue that continues to violate the basic principles of human rights of the Palestinian people. The world must be angry and outraged. And yet the unabating support for Israel by the United States continues indefinitely. What is the source of this lop-sided support for injustice if not a radical, very well-funded Zionist propaganda machine that is capable of forcing large groups of people into a groupthink mentality? Finkelstein’s reliance on the facts, his attention to detail is what sustains his free, independent mindset and his scholarship. For that reason, no one including you has been able to refute any of his claims. If you want to bring up laws, I would refer you to the AAUP’s handbook which clearly states that collegiality is not a basis to deny someone tenure. This is the real issue at hand.

Your reference to Phyllis Chesler is amusing at best. Finkelstein takes the time to point out the errors she makes in his book, “Beyond Chutzpah". Claiming “typos” after the fact on a subject as sensitive as this one is like Senator Craig claiming “entrapment".

With regards to the claim, that Finkelstein repeats ad infinitum how everyone in the UN is against Israel, don’t you find that striking? I certainly do. That with the exception of the US and sometimes Australia, the only countries always in favor of Israel are remote islands in the Pacific. Keep in mind that the UN today has over 190 nation members. Using those voting in absentia as a counter-argument and referring to the subtleties and complexities of the issue does nothing to convince people of a counter-argument. If you have a point to make, be clear and concise about it and present it and make sure to cite your references. In fact, Finkelstein is always warning people that those who support Israel are always wanting to make the argument seem complex and layered, when in reality it is very simple.

Richard Huffington, at 10:10 pm EDT on August 31, 2007

correction

“Using those voting in absentia” in the last paragraph should read “Using those who abstained from voting”

Richard Huffington, at 2:15 pm EDT on September 1, 2007

The AAUP has been mentioned a few times above. How could we get some dialogue going about the AAUP comparable in energy to this dialogue about Professor Finkelstein? Apparently one cannot post such a question on aaup-general@aaup.org, as was possible formerly.

ap, at 9:50 am EST on March 4, 2008

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Assistant Professor — Health Management and Policy
Portland State University

Division of Public Administration, Mark O. Hatfield School of Government The Division of Public Administration in the Mark O. ... see job

Assistant or Associate Professor (Tenure Track) — 2 Positions
Murphy Institute for Worker Education and Labor Studies

Assistant or Associate Professor (Tenure Track) — 2 positions Distinguished Lecturer — (1 position) see job

Asst. Professor (International Relations and International Security or Comparative Politics)
University of Miami

The University of Miami is committed to educating and nurturing students, creating knowledge, and providing service to our ... see job

Assistant/Associate Professor of Ethnic Studies
University of Oregon

Assistant/Associate Professor in African American Studies: University of Oregon Ethnic Studies Department! see job

Assistant Professor of Political Science — Political Theory
University of Minnesota, Twin Cities

The University of Minnesota is a premier employer and a talent magnet attracting leading faculty and staff from around the ... see job

Director (RP# 1073)
University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill seeks a leader for the Institute of African American Research (IAAR), a ... see job

Lecturer, Department of Asian American Studies
University of California, Irvine

The Department of Asian American Studies at the University of California Irvine invites applications for part-time Non Senate ... see job