1832: Marquette Declares War On Bloggers and Free Speech on the Internet

Sunday, December 04, 2005

Marquette Declares War On Bloggers and Free Speech on the Internet

Dr. McAdams' Blog is reporting that a Marquette Dental Student has been suspended over his personal blog posts that were apparently critical of a Dental School professor, of his second-year dental school class and over a few posts that detailed a few nights of drinking. (The site has since been taken down)

So this either means my letter of dismissal either got lost in the mail or is on its way.....

According to Dr. McAdams, Associate Dean for Academic Affairs Denis Lynch:

"wrote the student a letter (dated November 2, 2005) accusing him of "crude, demeaning and unprofessional remarks"” that "“violate standards of acceptable behavior as described in the Standards of Conduct, published in At Marquette (2005-2006, pages 209-211), as well as the School of Dentistry's Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct. . . .

Lynch then went on and claimed that the student had violated Section IV, Subsection E of the Marquette Dental School Code. He offered the student the option of signing "“an admission of guilt" and accepting a punishment that included probation for the rest of the student'’s Marquette career, making a public apology to his dental school class, and making an appointment with the Director of the Marquette University Counseling Center "“to assess both your alcohol abuse and the underlying basis of your remarks posted on your blog site."

The entire letter from Marquette can be found here.

So beware to Marquette Students who are on facebook, post messages on message boards, have a blog or an online journal, you too could be next! So we all better go and delete our membership to facebook groups or any entries of any kind that are critical of Marquette in general and/or Marquette Professors and/or other Marquette Students. Oh and I guess this means I better remove the picture of me doing a beer bong too!

(I'm actually serious about the above items. If this decision is allowed to stand, the University's power to take action against you for anything you say online is seemingly limitless)

From now on all blog entries on 1832 will begin by proclaiming, "Thank you God,for giving me the privilege of attending a University with a student body, and a faculty and staff, that are all worthy of Sainthood...."

Our first entry will be: "Pam Peters, "Marquette's own Dorothy Day?" Which will then be followed by: "Joseph Kastner, "Most Likely Marquette Student To End Racism and Bring Peace to the Middle East?" we then reveal: "The Warrior: A Publication Written By the Divinely Inspired" but our post of the year will surely be: "Late Night Marquette: What were we thinking before?!?! LATE NIGHT RULES!"

In case you want to thank Associate Dean Denis Lynch personally, you may contact him at:
denis.lynch@marquette.edu

Phone: 414-288-7485

Click here to view his webpage

17 Comments:

Future title entry: Ryan Alexander, Marquette's very own Gandhi.

That's a good one.

By Melissa, at 12/04/2005 11:35:00 PM
Holy shit, I am freakin' out about this ruling, what was MU thinking? (And I actually agree with Dr. McAdams on something?? Has hell frozen over?)

By Anonymous, at 12/05/2005 12:34:00 AM
funny how the email to Mr. Lynch doesn't work.

I guess I'll have to go higher up the chain then... oh darn..

This is a very sad day for Marquette...

By Anonymous, at 12/05/2005 11:24:00 AM
Ryan,

Just to clarify, the link you have to the letter from Lynch was to the December 2nd (coming down like a ton of bricks) letter, and not the earlier November 2nd ('fess up) letter.

I don't have the first one online. mostly because I don't have an electronic copy and would have to scan it and then redact indentifying information in Photoshop.

By John McAdams, at 12/05/2005 05:31:00 PM
I'm a Marquette grad, and I emailed Professor McAdams yesterday with a few two cent opinions on this whole mess.

I read the Marquette Tribune on line and the new student paper, as well as Dr. McAdams blog and this one.

For whatever it's worth, I have a quickie take on this biz.

My sense of the atmosphere at Marquette these days is that there seems to be an unfriendly relationship between liberal and conservative factions, student and faculty alike.

First, the Dental student's blog is off line, so no one can read the whole thing and draw a thoroughly reasoned conclusion.

Based up on Dr. McAdam's post yesterday, it seems the University's decision to discipline this student rests on his use of one particular word (a bad toilet word he used in reference to a professor -- whose identity obviously could be inferred by readers, though the professor is unnamed).

Second, I don't think it's fair to say Marquette censored anyone, unless they forced this guy to take his blog down. It seems he did it on his own.

He said what he had to say and Marquette exercised its right to decide who gets to be on campus and who doesn't.

As I said to Dr McAdams, and I don't think he agrees with me, student criticism of a professor might go something like this: "Is unprepared for class." "Returns assignments late and with few useful comments." "Does not hold office hours regularly and is not available."

These are critiques.

Name calling like that is hate rhetoric.

What would liberal and conservatives alike think of a faculty who, in a blog, referred to a student as a "c--k-anything, who everyone could identify contextually? Further, what if the professor said that 20% of his students weren't college material.

Would every one agree such a person deserves to be on the faculty of a major university?

There can't be two sets of standards for people in an academic community.

Either there's scholarly decorum or there isn't.

And you can say on the one hand that a professor is a c--kmaster, and then run and hide and expect people to cut you slack and say it's ok, you were only "blowing off steam."

When you call a professor a bad word like a disgruntled 4th grader on a public school playground, people have a right to react to this type of behavior (and yes, language is a type of behavior that is actionable, if you don't believe me, then try cussing up a storm in a major corporation, on a city bus, or better yet walk up to a cop and use profanity).

What got this young man in hot water isn't that he was critical of Marquette, rather, what came back to bite him in the ass is that he expressed himself like someone on Jerry Springer or Maury.

He exercised his right to talk like like a low life, and Marquette exercised its right to ask him if he really wants to be there.

Doesn't sound like he's particularly happy there.

So what entitles him to his degree?
It certainly isn't his detached intellect or his capacity to think abstractly or philosophically.

It wasn't so long ago when there was a distinction between public and private discourse. Remember when Nixon had to turn over particular Oval Office recordings of his private meetings? The public was then shocked that the Presidet of the US and his staff cussed like truck drivers and even used racial and ethnic slurs.

In public, one was expected to express important ideas with appropriate language.

Apparently Marquette thinks so too.

This guy seemed to use his blog like it was a bathroom wall to write on. The only problem is that on a blog, he invited the world in to read it.

Today, standards regarding language have lowered. We all know it, but we don't have to accept it.

Just listen to kids waiting for the bus at a bus stop in any city, or listen closely to people on the el or a bus.

But this Dental student isn't a guest on Jerry Springer or a foul mouthed brat on a playground.

He's a doctoral student at a major university.

And if anyone thinks that if this guy went to Northwestern or Yale and referred to the faculty who graciously gave him an academic scholarsship as "c--k masters" that they wouldn't "do" anything, then they need to think again.

As I said, there are still people out in the world who realize that when you're sitting in a bar pouring out your heart to your best friend that you're going to use words that might even make Nixon blush.

But when you post things on blogs, you're entering the public domain where you're implicitly inviting an analysis of your ideas.

There are people in the world who still think that there are more and less responsible ways to express what's in your head.

For a guy who expects Marquette to give him DDS and PhD degress, he doesn't sound too intelligent.

(Also, one can't escape the anger seething beneath the surface of his remarks. I wonder why no one has asked if they'd want someone that angry to be working inside their mouths with sharp objects and drills?)

Maybe he can spend his suspension period watching Jerry Springer and then he'll realize what he sounds like and that if he expects anyone to take to him seriously, he'll stop talking like he drives a fork lift at WalMart and lives in a trailor.

Last, if he's that unhappy at Marquette and if 20 percent of his fellow students are so beneath him, why doesn't he have the grades and scores to go to a better school?

He's only 22. When he gets out in the work world -- be it a hospital or someother entity, the response to that type of rant will be "Don't let the door hit you in the ass on the way out."

When the student went public to his blog, he obviously had a compulsion to be read, and Freud is up there smiling somewhere, because he obviously had a compulsion to get caught and disciplined for his potty mouth.

By Matthew Naglich, at 12/06/2005 08:52:00 AM
It would be nice if my alma mater didn't go around embarassing me on Slashdot. At least the last time it was only on CNN. Also, Denis Lynch's own bio says that he's a "Professor of Oral" so cocksucker sounds pretty accurate to me. Someone in the upper administration needs to fire his ass.

By Anonymous, at 12/06/2005 01:06:00 PM
I agree with Matthew Naglich that the students choice of language (from the samll excerpts that I've seen) are distasteful, but I disagree with Matthew's comparison of talking in bars versus writing in a blog. Both are public speech and neither should be used against someone if the comments aren't illegal (e.g. yelling "Bomb!" on an airplane). What a student does or says on his or her own time isn't any of the college's or its professors or adminstrators business.

The student at least had enough wherewithal not use the professor's or any of the students' names. Whether or not someone can surmise who he is talking about is irrelevant. Whether or not he drinks on his own time is also irrelevant, as long as it doesn't affect his school work or conduct while on campus.

In any case, even if the administrators felt it so blatantly offensive as to merit disciplinary action, the punishment should still fit the crime. A one year suspension and loss of a scholarship is very excessive in my opinion.

By Anonymous, at 12/06/2005 01:14:00 PM
So basically what you are saying is that it is normal to kick students off a university because they use a bad word (one word in 48 pages!) describing a teacher? Yup, i really want you making policy. (not)

By Anonymous, at 12/06/2005 01:29:00 PM
There is no such thing as "free speech" in private industry. The school is free to reprimand this student as they see fit.

By Anonymous, at 12/06/2005 03:10:00 PM
Dear Marquette,

I enjoyed going to school there for four years and graduating with a dual degree and honors, but you guys seem to be rather intent on soiling your name over and over again. In all of my future research publications and my resume, I will be dropping the "BS Marquette" line and leaving in the MS and PhD lines from schools that have fortunately been less retarded PR-wise. Seriously. I'm sick of getting asked about "Marquette Gold" everytime I go to an electrical engineering conference . . . Don't care to hear this one too.

Toodles.

By Anonymous, at 12/06/2005 03:19:00 PM
This is in response to the person who cites Larry Flynt.

As I said in my post, calling someone a dirty name isn't "exchanging" ideas. Not even close.

Apparently the person who wrote the post believes in free speech but doesn't have the conviction to use a name.

Interesting.

And then signs off with "fun in hell."

When I was a student at Marquette liberal and conservative groups disagreed pasionately, but also hung out together and respected differences.

The peson who posted that entry only reinforces my feeling in my post that this really is a Jerry Springer world, were so many people in the country are ready top fly out of their chair and pop someone just because they don't agree.

Hmmm

By Matthew Naglich, at 12/06/2005 04:34:00 PM
Hey, Zach--head's up. Looks like we have a great example of can vs. ought right here on the comments board.

Notice how those who use vulgar language and personal attacks fail to take named responsibility for their posts. Could it be that they recognize that while they can post such drivel, perhaps they ought not?

Let's argue with an eye towards decency and productivity, eh?

-Jess

By Anonymous, at 12/06/2005 05:55:00 PM
Notice how those who use vulgar language and personal attacks fail to take named responsibility for their posts. Could it be that they recognize that while they can post such drivel, perhaps they ought not?

Perhaps they recognize the value of unrestricted free speech that the internet can give you in (relative) anonymity.

Or maybe you're just a big crybaby.

By Anonymous, at 12/06/2005 08:19:00 PM
NOTICE:

This blog does not allow profanity and personal attacks in the comments section. If you engage in either your comment will be deleted.

As I told another commenter, our families read this blog and some of our familiy members are young in age. Some blogs such as dailykos allow for profanity, but we do not.

Please try to keep comments clean and try not to abuse our "liberal" commenting policy that allows anonymous comments

By Ryan Alexander, at 12/06/2005 08:48:00 PM
You know... i wonder if he could of just said...

"prove i posted that."

and see the dean squirm. do you think blogger woulda given them ip addresses? i dont think so!

By Anonymous, at 12/06/2005 11:36:00 PM
Sounds like this student needed counseling, not suspension. He should have been given a warning, received counseling, met with faculty to resolve perceived issues. Students sometimes just need to vent their frustrations. Dental school can be stressful. Everyone can make mistakes...reinstate his scholarship and teach him what it means to be a professional. Hard to assume this is known by all 22 y.o. dental students. If the comments were all false, why would the school react to them. I remember getting a class on professionalism and ethics in dental school. Who knows why the student had these feelings...poor family upbringing, never taught right from wrong, low self-esteem, poor treatment by faculty or classmates ... We are all evolving human beings that grow from our mistakes. Someone should try to teach him vs. punish him. I have known dental school faculty members that make poor comments and decisions that go unpunished. Just my thoughts. Respectfully...

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