Joe Oliver: Having silenced critics, university admins think they can do no wrong
Article content
There is no suggestion that it might actually be a problem, which is remarkable given the widely known facts, which were extensively outlined in Harvard's 311-page report from its 'Presidential Task Force on Combating Antisemitism and Anti-Israeli Bias.'
Article content
The presidents of McGill and Concordia in Montreal both acknowledged that antisemitism is a ' significant problem ' at their universities. A class-action lawsuit has been launched against McGill for creating an antisemitic environment. The University of Toronto has been accused of having 'a long and sordid history of failing to protect Jewish learners, faculty and staff.'
Article content
As a grateful alumnus of McGill and Harvard, I take no pleasure in identifying their failings, but I'm struck by how different the environment was when I attended classes in the 1950s and '60s. Back then, there was tolerance for diverse views, and it was unthinkable that students would be threatened or demonized based on their religion, ethnicity, race or country of origin. Of course, most students are not harassed now, but Israelis and Jews appear to be the exception.
Article content
Administrators and faculty at Harvard (and other universities) have trouble accepting how they are perceived by the public: elitist, privileged, subsidized by taxpayers, charging high tuition, bloated by administrative staff, captured by DEI and other racially discriminatory admissions and hiring policies, and frequently advocating ideas that defy common sense. Operating in a groupthink bubble can lead to responses that underestimate and devalue criticism.
Article content
The indoctrination of a woke mindset has implications beyond pampered university campuses. The division of society into the oppressed, who are perpetually victims, and oppressors, who are settler-colonizers and always the guilty party in any conflict, churns out students who loath western history and civilization and have contributed to the worst outbreak of global antisemitism since the defeat of Nazism 80 years ago.
Article content
Article content
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CTV News
an hour ago
- CTV News
‘The saga began': St. Thomas community rallies to retrieve former MP's stolen bicycle
Karen Vecchio spent 10 years serving the citizens of St. Thomas as a Member of Parliament. This week, the residents returned the favour by helping her retrieve her stolen bicycle. Vecchio went to her backyard Tuesday, June 24, to check on her garden, when she noticed her bike, along with her husband Mike's, were missing from their unused chicken coop. 'You can see over here, the coop is quite accessible to the [train] tracks,' recalled Mike. 'Someone came in from there and took them. We called the police and then Karen posted on social media.' Along with a photo of her aqua-coloured bicycle, Karen wrote, 'If you see someone riding this bike and it isn't me, please ask them to return to the owner!!!' VECCHIO STOLEN BIKE 'We had photos of the bike, and I just thought, people in this community will recognize that I have been riding it around the community,' said Karen. 'The reason I bought it with such a strange colour was because it was so recognizable. I put it out there on social media and the saga began.' This is where things started to take an interesting turn. 'It just it blew up, the number of shares, people calling us, and text messages,' said Karen. 'I could not believe how many people really were paying attention to what was going on in the community. I was getting photos of the person at the bank. I was getting a person who was in Walmart who had called the police.' That person was Dusty Brown. 'Police showed up to try and apprehend it back, but unfortunately there was no registered serial number,' said Brown. 'We followed her to the Wendy's and that's when the police actually cut her off and stopped her. She was only there for about maybe two- or three-minutes yelling and screaming at the cops and got on the bike and took off. There was no concrete evidence that could pinpoint this bike to be Karen's at the time, as much as we all knew it was.' VECCHIO STOLEN BIKE St. Thomas residents were posting and sharing photos of people riding former MP Karen Vecchio's bike around the city after it was stolen. (Source: Facebook) The woman reportedly sold the bike to another man for $10. He was seen riding it down Talbot Street and around the city. Sightings continued until about 9 p.m., which was about 15 hours after it was initially taken. 'There was a post where this person was only six minutes away and I was getting posts of this location,' said Karen. 'They're currently at The Bistro and they had just left there at the laundromat. I told Mike we have go. If you know me, I just thought we can just deal with this person. I thought, okay, we're going to get in the truck and we're just going to let them know that we just want my bike back.' While out in the city, someone sent a message 'It said, 'We got your bike,'' said Karen. 'I don't even know these people who have my bike. People contacted a friend of ours and said, 'Let Karen know that we have found her bike,' and returned it to us.' While Karen got her bike back, Mike was still not confident his was going to be as easy to find. His was just plain black, not as easily identifiable. VECCHIO STOLEN BIKE Mike Vecchio gives a thumbs up after retrieving his wife Karen's stolen bicycle. (Source: Mike Vecchio) 'I woke up Wednesday morning and was having my coffee on the back porch when the St. Thomas city police texted me and said they had located it in the dog park on the west end of St. Thomas there,' said Mike. He went to the police station and got it back. 'You feel really angry when stuff is taken from you and when people are on your property,' said Mike. 'I honestly never thought we'd get them back, but to watch everything happen through that day, seeing our friends and people that we didn't even know, following her bike around St. Thomas throughout the day, it made it a happy ending.' The Vecchio's have now registered their bicycles. 'We now have our serial numbers, and we actually have it on something called 519 Garage,' said Karen. 'If something's found, people can identify it and let you know' With Karen recently retired, the two bought the bikes to go for a 45-minute ride after dinner and to use as a physical and mental health aid. 'It was just incredible watching the community come together for something like my bike,' said Karen. VECCHIO STOLEN BIKE The Vecchios are now storing their bicycles inside, days after they were stolen. (Brent Lale/CTV News London) While not every citizen may have received the same sort of help, Brown said it was clear why everyone was looking for the bike. 'It's Karen,' said Brown. 'She does remarkable things for the community and the neighbourhood already. It's obviously trying to try and get back to her as much as you can.' Now that they have them home safely, the Vecchios have also learned a valuable lesson about keeping them more secure. 'We're keeping them in the living room at this point now,' joked Mike. 'Our goal today is to head to our local Home Hardware and get some, some locking equipment and locks. They'll be much more secure the next time we leave them outside.'
CBC
2 hours ago
- CBC
Saskatchewan's provincewide state of emergency expires as wildfire crisis recedes
Saskatchewan's provincewide wildfire state of emergency has expired 30 days after it was issued. Officials with the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency say the order expired late on Thursday and that going forward, they will only provide updates as necessary, rather than every day. They say people can also stay up to date through the agency's online dashboards. There are 20 active wildfires in Saskatchewan, including two that have not been contained. Premier Scott Moe put the order in place on May 29 in response to the wildfire emergency that, at its peak, forced more than 10,000 people from their homes. Moe's government faced criticism for the province's response due to almost half of its water bombers being grounded, and for not providing immediate food, shelter and basic information to evacuees.
CTV News
2 hours ago
- CTV News
Court blocks Alberta from banning gender-affirming care
Court blocks Alberta from banning gender-affirming care Bennett Jenson, legal director of Egale, speaks about the clarity the court ruling provides surrounding gender-affirming care for those under 18 in Alberta.
