On Mon, Feb 20, 2012 at 7:35 PM, MICHAEL YATES <[email protected]> wrote: > > Gar Lipow: During the Truman-McCarthy era, while many University presidents > collaborated, many other defied it. And it was not just acting > Presidents. I am a strong believer in structure and institutions > shaping actions. But there also cases of individuals long embedded > within institutions unexpectedly defying them - on occasions far more > serious than the Truman-McCarthy era, dying as a result. Though not a > substitute for mass resistance, such individuals can make a huge > difference in particular cases. Anyone who was ignoring this truth who > retorts that it is obvious or banal will be laughed at. > > > Me: Now we are back to the McCarthy period. Even here, I doubt that "many > others defied it" is accurate. In any case, soon we will be back to the > Cambridge of C.P. Snow. I suppose we could go all the way back to the > University of Bologna in the 1300s and find at least one good man. And, "such > individuals can make a huge > difference in particular cases." (Change this up a bit, and you have a good > commercial.) Indeed they can, but this wasn't my point was it? I am sure that > there were white people who every now and again prevented a lynching in the > south. Great for the person who didn't get lynched. Not very relevant in > terms of the societal structures that gave rise to the lynchings in the first > place.
Never claimed it was relevent to social structures. Initially this was posted as good news. It was sneered at. As you say, good news for the people who don't get lynched or in the current circumstances, good news for demonstrators who don't get beat up, good news for leftist not denied tenure, for tenured leftists whose positions are not eliminated. As I said not equivalent to a mass movement, but just not something to sneer at someone for cheering. (Er not accusing you of sneering, but look back on the thread.) > > > D > _______________________________________________ > pen-l mailing list > [email protected] > https://lists.csuchico.edu/mailman/listinfo/pen-l -- Facebook: Gar Lipow Twitter: GarLipow Solving the Climate Crisis web page: SolvingTheClimateCrisis.com Grist Blog: http://grist.org/author/gar-lipow/ Online technical reference: http://www.nohairshirts.com _______________________________________________ pen-l mailing list [email protected] https://lists.csuchico.edu/mailman/listinfo/pen-l
