Nov. 10, 2005

Online Quicksand

Dissent is a way of life in the blogosphere; comments and barbs get traded, and feelings potentially hurt, every day. But one such discussion among three academics has escalated to the point that at least two of them have hired lawyers to try to resolve the dispute.

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Since taking up writing his own blog, Info Theory, in September 2004, he’s blogged about nuclear annihilation, mutual information between random variables, and suicide bombing. He’s also noted that the M6805 Athlon-based notebook “may be upgraded to 2GB despite the product specs’ claim that 1.25GB is the limit.” In sum, as his site motto says, he likes to apply information theory to the political and social problems of our day.

The blogger from Purdue University also writes with frequency on abortion (in his view, it’s wrong) and blogger etiquette (in his view, it’s complicated) — two seemingly unrelated topics. But in Deignan’s cyberworld, the two have collided in a unique way that may come to haunt his nine-year real-life journey toward a Ph.D.

On November 2, at 9:03 a.m., he reposted an earlier blog entry titled “Thinking Critically About Abortion,” which the anonymous blogger Bitch Ph.D. had commented on at the time. It said, in part, that Deignan believes that in “our democratic society … all persons have equal intrinsic rights,” and a “person is a person …when that person is alive.” He then asked his readers to comment on his ideas. His comment policy clearly states that he “will make a good faith attempt to reply to all substantive comments.… Comments are only deleted for administrative reasons (spam, etc.).”

Bitch Ph.D.’s comment to that earlier post had stated: “What’s interesting is that you’re trying to frame this debate around the ‘personhood’ of a fetus, while completely overlooking the personhood of women.”

Also on the morning of the 2nd, Deignan visited Bitch Ph.D.’s blog about academe and politics where, by that time, the anonymous blogger had written about her distaste for President Bush’s Supreme Court nominee, Samuel Alito Jr.

Deignan soon responded to Bitch Ph.D. on his own site with a long comment that ended: “Now, note that your definition of sovereignty is actually anti-sovereignty. We are never sovereign if it is by permission of others that allow us to make decisions. Note also that a woman cannot spontaneously create life. She may only nurture preexistent life.”

Then he posted a seemingly innocuous entry on the Bitch Ph.D. site: “Your linking talking points w/o analysis. Already I see several points that are exaggerated and misconstrued without even needing research…”

Feeling that this comment and subsequent ones from Deignan did not qualify as “substantive debate,” she soon deleted his comments and banned him from her site. Her policy states, “Comments are great; obnoxious comments get deleted. Deal.”

She elaborated Wednesday: “I considered his comments trolling, especially the later ones which are now deleted. In those, it became clear to me that he wasn’t interested in a discussion, but in trying to be insulting.”

What might have ended there as an everyday online spat was only the beginning. A frequent visitor to the Bitch Ph.D. site, the University of Northern Iowa history professor Wallace Hettle, felt obliged to defend Bitch Ph.D.’s liberal end of the blogosphere. Hettle found Deignan’s curriculum vita at Info Theory, which lists his academic advisers, the Purdue mechanical engineers Galen King and Peter Meckl, who will play a big part in deciding if he will ultimately receive a Ph.D. Hettle e-mailed them, indicating that Deignan’s comments were “unprofessional” and “contrary to the spirit of free enquiry.” Hettle announced his actions within the comment section of Bitch Ph.D.

“Yes, we received an e-mail,” King confirmed on Wednesday. “It said that Paul was exceeding his bounds, if you will, on what is essentially a private site. He’s been asked to refrain, at least until he’s [graduated from Purdue].”

But escalation, not restraint, has marked the ensuing days, in which Deignan, Hettle and Bitch Ph.D. have hurled accusations of various kinds at each other. Both Deignan and Bitch Ph.D. have hired lawyers. Hettle wouldn’t comment on whether he has done the same.

Deignan said he is prepared to begin a lawsuit as soon as possible. He accuses both Hettle and Bitch Ph.D of libeling him — Hettle because of the e-mail he sent to Deignan’s professors, and Bitch Ph.D. for saying that he may have used a technique known as “IP spoofing,” which is a form of hacking, to try to determine who she is. Deignan denies having done that.

Bitch Ph.D., said that she feels somewhat threatened by Deignan. “I don’t know if his attempts to track me down represent a real threat, either in terms of my identity or in terms of a physical threat,” she said via e-mail Wednesday. “I don’t know if what he’s doing counts as cyberstalking. It’s certainly upsetting.”

The untenured professor refused to communicate by phone for fear of revealing her identity, only allowing that she is “American born and bred” and “voted yesterday.”

“I don’t want my blog to embarrass my university or my colleagues,” she said. “I’m outspoken and opinionated on the blog, including about academic issues.

“The secondary reason is that it’s important to me that my personal and political opinions remain distinct from my classroom persona,” she added. “It’s extremely important to me that my students not feel that I approach them with an ‘agenda.’”

Both Deignan and Bitch Ph.D. agree that this situation escalated rapidly when Hettle sent the e-mails to Deignan’s advisers, which Bitch Ph.D. says she wouldn’t have done.

Hettle’s response for comment was curt: “I have received many e-mails on this matter, and that has been disruptive to my work routine,” he said via e-mail Wednesday. “I’m holding office hours at the moment and need to speak to a student.”

Can this kind of dispute be settled in a lawsuit? Lauren Gelman, a lawyer and assistant director of the Center for Internet and Society at Stanford Law School, labeled the situation “complicated” and said that Deignan will have to show how he was harmed and why. “He’s not going to be able to use the legal system to solve the fact that his feelings may have gotten hurt,” she said. But as the Internet continues to evolve, she predicted, “disputes like this are definitely going to become more frequent.”

King, one of Deignan’s advisers, had perhaps the most unique take on the situation in today’s Web-based society: “I don’t understand what blogs are,” he said. “Apparently, though, they can get you in trouble.”

— Rob Capriccioso

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Comments

All is well that ends well

Debate and freedom of information is the lifeblood of our democracy.

I am pleased to announce that in this time of war, there are opportunities for service that rise above partisanship.

And so, PhD complete with excellent results, it is off to Iraq to aid a new democracy in the making.

And let our academia ponder what it has become if it will or will not .....

Narcissus

anon for now, at 3:50 am EDT on August 14, 2007

Let the legalistic jihad begin

As a closeted non-liberal in academia, I am surprised that the Purdue engineer was so public with his ID and political beliefs.

There are so many different (insert phrase) interest groups on campus, it seems that saying “good morning” could draw at least three different protests.

So, if you are not part of the dominant paradigm (tenured, liberal-left, socially inept, inferiority complex unless at Harvard), you keep your mouth shut, do your work as fast as you can, and go home. De facto, free speech belongs only to those with tenure, long-term contracts, trust funds, or federal student financial aid.

Now, the lawyers are involved. A reasonable person (Larry — please don’t comment yet) would note that the two untenured parties got jacked-up by the tenured party who, on his own, decided to intervene.

If this isn’t fund-raising fodder for (1) the anti-tenure crowd and (2) the David Horowitz “academic freedom” crowd, I don’t know what else would be.

At this moment, I think of what the late Mickey Spillane might note: “stupidity is not yet a felony, in this country.”

BJS, Undercover out of fear at The Untenured, at 5:42 am EST on November 10, 2005

Oh, please!

Maybe I am missing something in the initial comment, but how does tenure play a necessary role in all of this? I understand that there is a corelation (with regard to the people involved), but there is no evidence of causation.

Horowitz may have an opinion on all of this—indeed, it seems there may be no way he could not—but this particular drama has no bearing on academic freedom. These are academics engaged in a row outside of their roles as academics. Not even the so-called student bill of rights could touch this one.

Is it silly? Yep. Hey, welcome to the internet, folks. There’s more to come.

Andrew Purvis, at 6:46 am EST on November 10, 2005

Maybe a solution would be to simply allow faculty to decide to designate some blogs professional blogs, and other blogs personal blogs. Personal blogs would not be referred to on CVs, and people would respect that faculty member’s “privacy” just like we do (or should) respect the rights to vote for who we want and have sex with willing consenting adults that we want (at schools besides Baylor).

Professional blogs would be encouraged by the schools – in fact, they would be hosted with the school’s resources, and include the school’s logo. The school would encourage them by licensing various resources, and they would exist to make the school look good, and, at tenure review, they could be reviewed to see what contribution they made to whatever the relevant subject might be.

Anyway, I know the difference between personal and professional comments. Most professors do, too.

Larry, at 7:32 am EST on November 10, 2005

Corrections and Commentary

I’ve published Comments and Errata on the Higher Ed Article

Paul Deignan, at 8:47 am EST on November 10, 2005

the danger of libel suits

It’s unfortunate that Deignan is both the victim and the victimizer in this case. Plainly, it was wrong for anyone to contact Deignan’s advisers and falsely accuse him of unprofessional behavior for his comments on a blog (and if his advisers have warned him not to speak out, that is a serious violation of his academic freedom). But it was also wrong for Deignan to respond by threatening libel suits, which have a serious chilling effect on free speech. It’s unfortunate that libel law hasn’t been declared unconstitutional; until it is, all academics and anyone committed to free expression has a moral obligation to refuse to threaten lawsuits against the expression of others, even if it may be mistaken and may cause harm to your reputation. If every dispute in academia or the blogosphere is settled by lawsuit, pretty soon free speech will only belong to those who can afford the lawyers.

John K. Wilson, at 11:50 am EST on November 10, 2005

Indeed

Our public communications should be something we can put our names behind.

Good point, but I noticed that the nefarious insnuation comes from—-is that your real name?

Paul Deignan, at 11:50 am EST on November 10, 2005

Anti-Libel actions do NOT hamper free speech

“Plainly, it was wrong for anyone to contact Deignan’s advisers and falsely accuse him of unprofessional behavior for his comments on a blog (and if his advisers have warned him not to speak out, that is a serious violation of his academic freedom). But it was also wrong for Deignan to respond by threatening libel suits, which have a serious chilling effect on free speech.”

If libel suits to defend oneself against false accusations create a chilling effect on free speech, then doesn’t that mean that police in hot pursuit of a violent felon be stopped because the police are “disturbing the peace.” One may argue over the merits of Deignan vs. Hettle & “B” in its own merits. But Anti-Libel laws exist for good reason and they are definitely not covered by free speech laws.

Bill, at 1:22 pm EST on November 10, 2005

Judge Judy, phone in

” .. how does tenure play a necessary role ..”

Why, of course, nothing. That is why the female (untenured faculty) in the matter is fighting to remain anonymous. And the PhD student (untenured) was reprimanded by his superiors.

IHE, thanks for the bandwidth.

“Don’t pee on my leg and tell me it’s raining.” Judge Judith Sheinlin, former chief judge, Manhattan juvenile court

BJS, at 1:23 pm EST on November 10, 2005

The Freedom to Blog

No institute has legal standing to suggest or instigate suit, over a private web site, and IMHO, even if it’s on a campus based, student server.

Student technology fees (or tuition) pays for servers — This is why public colleges, are called public colleges. There’s plenty, in other public domains, that’s may be objectionable to groups or individuals, but mere “I don’t like that” offense, is not enough to justify an action.

Justice Holmes declared the only thing a citizen can’t do, is yell fire, in a crowded theater, when there’s no fire.

However, free speech, free from dis-ingenuity, libel, slander, defamation, distortion, etc., will start fires and always have and this is the historical nature of free speech.

Truth and discourse are the bedrock foundation of free society everywhere.

Paul Hale, Student Senator & Independent Newspaper Editor at Clayton State Univesity, at 3:32 pm EST on November 10, 2005

BJS

Your initial comment was about the “anti-tenure crowd” and all the benefits this would provide. I have no trouble seeing why people who have not yet achieved tenure are concerned, but that was not my question: I asked how this controversy necessarily involves tenure, within the context of your first comment. (Please pardon my mild rewording, but my initial comment remains for inspection.)

In other words, how do you see this controversy’s assisting or, to use your words, acting as “fundraising fodder” for those who oppose tenure?

Andrew Purvis, at 5:19 pm EST on November 11, 2005

The Deignan controversy

My take on the subject:

http://cathyyoung.blogspot.com/20...deignan-free-speech-academic_11.html

Cathy Young, at 5:25 am EST on November 12, 2005

Explaining Tenure 101

1. Are you implying that the tenured associate professor of history/yahoo who seriously jammed-up the two NON-tenured persons in this matter, would have done what he did, WITHOUT tenure?

C’mon — does critical thinking require a total, 100% inability to use common sense? Especially after all the IHE articles by the non-tenured noting the lack of free speech for them, against the tenured? Puh-leeze ..

Per Judge Judy: if a dog pees on your leg — is it raining? Or does the dog just show up when dog urine falls from nowhere?

2. Do you read IHE? Have you not seen the numerous articles about the tenured socially-ignorant/socially-inept, thinking they can make any pronouncement (e.g., Holocaust denial, flat earth, “Intelligent Design,” “moral retards,” “little Eichmanns,” racial eugenics, etc.) without practical consequence?

And the pissed-off reaction of the funders to that socio-cultural bumbling (e.g., “let’s eliminate tenure,” “let’s cut their funding.")

Those in the English/humanities crowd may have unlimited time to develop professionally-inert counter-factual outcomes that amuses the Starbucks crowd.

The rest of us have to respond to real-time matters, like finding practical solutions to a falling standard of living and poverty caused by yahoo’s who think single-parent households are financially the same as two-parent households.

- 30 -

P.S.: IHE — thanks for the advertiser-supported bandwidth.

BJS, Jejune’d by the obvious at Small college, at 5:26 am EST on November 12, 2005

Common sense? Interesting

My point, BJS, in asking is this: How can anyone make the claim that the elmination of tenure—an act that would leave everyone in a world of eggshell flooring—is an improvement. This is an argument for improving, not eliminating tenure.

I am glad you are interested in “real-time matters,” though I fail to understand your decision to attack people in “the English/humanities crowd.” I am rather confused by the hasty generalization of people in my field, given than the characterization misses me by a measure I find almost incomprehensible. Perhaps I am the exception that proves the rule.

Incidentally, how many news stories would you have people write about tenured people who don’t offend anyone? The media focus on the exceptions rather than the norms; those who choose to take those exceptions as the standard may do so, but that would violate priciples of both critical thinking and common sense.

Andrew Purvis, at 5:53 am EST on November 13, 2005

So start your own college — show the courage of YOUR convictions

“.. how many news stories would you have people write about tenured people who don’t offend anyone?”

It would appear being in a field with dozens (hundreds?) of unemployed PhDs for every government-funded position can soften one’s thinking processes. Let’s be clear:

If one thinks the current situation is so awful — what is stopping one from starting her/his own educational institution?

Start-ups have been done, in the human service ares. Example: the Missionaries of Charity started with one room and one client in 1950, and is now in 133 countries.

Would it not better to rule in Hell than serve in Heaven?

The point is not the number of news stories. The point is Dr. Heattle foolishly deluded himself into believing that tenure gave him a Deity-given right to be judge, jury, and executioner of anyone else’s career.

How unfortunate that, like Mr. W.A. Churchill, Dr. Shortell, and Dr. Crystall, Dr. Hettle is about to find out the practical limits of tenure.

Tenure may give one some job security — only to serve on the campus parking committee, freshman-year support, tutoring special-needs atheletes, staffing night/weekend college, designated faculty for parent groups, cost-cutting taskforce member, taking the 8AM Monday/3PM Friday class time slots, etc. Pity.

Good luck, starting your own college, your own perfect world. Once you do, then your peers and others can start micro-criticizing your efforts at perfection.

Have a nice day.

BJS, at 9:50 am EST on November 13, 2005

nobody likes a snitch no matter how many abbreviations are placed after his name.

Glenn Bowen, at 5:18 pm EST on November 13, 2005

General intolerance:

Anyone that runs a weblog has the opportunity to write on any issue that seems topical or the author believes warrants consideration. A weblog represents the opportunity to abridge any form of censorship to challenge the conformity of self-censorship within the great marketplace of ideas. Defaming an individual for the pursuit of dialogue for the free and open exchange of ideas in a forum that intentionally allows asynchronous communication is pure ideological folly, and therefore unacceptable. Agreement should not be a qualification of operating a weblog, and authors should not have to provide public notice requiring the prerequisite of ideological consent before engaging in dialogue.

Nels Lindahl, at 1:19 pm EST on November 15, 2005

Courage of Convictions?

A) I have not the resources to begin my own school and b) I still, despite repeated magnanimous efforts by assumption-driven commenters here and elsewhere, have only my MA, thank you.

I am not unemployed. I am not a PhD. Furthermore, my thinking processes have not been “softened” by any condition or set of conditions.

What I have asked, and what BJS has steadfastly refused to answer (to suggest it was anything less than deliberate would be to impugn his thinking capacity) is this: How does this lend fodder to the anti-tenure crowd?

Politicians abuse franking priveliges from time to time, yet we do not insist that Congress revoke them for all politicians. High-ranking people in little companies like Enron and Global Crossings manipulate accounting practices, but we don’t demand that all accountants suddenly are criminal.

The abuse of (the real or perceived benefits of) tenure is relatively rare. The exceptions are just that. I still want to know how a case makes any difference when I am prepared to counter with thousands who have never abused tenure.

Take your spoon to the ocean if you wish, but I won’t wait for the inland sea to be formed.

Andrew Purvis, at 12:42 am EST on November 20, 2005

Exercise in futility

“I have not the resources to begin my own school”

For the record:

The Missionairies of Charity and similar groups have been founded with less than $500 (2005 dollars). What do they have that you don’t have?

As to: “How does this lend fodder to the anti-tenure crowd?”

One either refuses to note that Hettle was tenured and the other two parties who were damaged were NOT tenured — or is deluded to the point of abject ignorance.

For example, look at a sample of the anti-tenure traffic on the blogosphere:

http://blogsearch.google.com/blog...mp;as_maxy=2005&lr=&safe=off

One can either accept reality — or be overwhelmed by it. Tenure in the U.S. model is falling apart for a number of reasons — organizational, economic, financial, political, social, legal.

Dr. Hettle merely added to the velocity of its demise, with his naive belief that tenure gave him the right to do anything he wants.

His only crime was that he got caught. For every Heattle, there are dozens more, IMHO.

And nothing Mr. Purvis writes will ever change my belief in that, because I have seen the problem, first-hand.

- 30 -

BJS, Supreme Commander at Anti-Futility Taskforce, at 5:55 pm EST on November 20, 2005

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