Pseudo-Marxist Hypocrites
I'm often amused when I see Marxist-wannabe professors
prattling on about the "ruling classes" and their "exploitation"
of the "working classes". In addition to a shallow and vulgar
version of Marxism, these professors display a staggering
unawareness of the hypocrisy of their situation. In the context
of an academic department at a university,these professors
often exercise powers and privileges arbitrarily and
unaccountably. They may grade students according to
the students' adherence to the professors' political views. They
may use similar ideological litmus tests and personal demands
to reward or punish impoverished graduate students under
their control. They may also sit on hiring and tenure committees,
ruthlessly controlling access to the academic job market using
standards that may be completely arbitrary or ideological. Certainly
not all nor even most professors are of this type, but there are
sufficient examples to see a problem. Much has been written
(legitimately) regarding the leftward ideological skew of most
American universities and the brutal application of administrative
power that can be deployed to enforce compliance. Web sites like
The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education and
SpeechCodes.org document some of the damage. Less visible are
the thousands of students who feel compelled to avoid speaking
or writing their dissenting opinions for fear of retaliation. Indeed,
while these pseudo-Marxist professors like to preen as defenders
of the working class, in the context of a university they are the
oppressive rulers in the Marxist morality play. And while they
may enjoy parading their love of Foucault, they are usually
shockingly lacking in self-reflection about the chilling panopticon
that pervades their own lives and within which they are thoroughly
complicit. This self-delusional pose is not limited to academia, but
extends into politics and entertainment. Notice that the richest
members of the U.S. Senate (Kennedy, Kerry, Corzine) are the
same people who pose as saviors of the "working class". And
the buffoonish Michael Moore concocts an image laden with
blue jeans and ball caps, but reveals at Cannes the reality of the
Hollywood prima donna who insists on the presence of his retinue
of bodyguards, masseuse, and Pilates trainer. For pseudo-Marxists,
love for the masses is a fetish or an affectation, to be worn as a way
to enhance credibility or build one's ego, but certainly not something
that translates into actual respect for persons. Indeed, disagree with
or offend a pseudo-Marxist even in the slightest and you will quickly
learn the short limits of their forebearance for the Great
Unwashed. Academic pseudo-Marxists confronted with their
hypocrisy will use their position to establish dominance or will
lash out, labellin the questioner as a political heretic and social
outcast unworthy of the consociational comradery they supposedly
hold dear. Political pseudo-Marxists will deploy labels of "racist",
"sexist" and "homophobe" to tar and feather dissenters without
actually engaging any of theirarguments. And, as filmmaker
Michael Wilson learned, Michael Moore and his sycophants can
really dish it out but respond violently when asked to take it.
"The closest I got was I did run into him at
the (University of Minnesota) when he was
on his book tour, and he started screaming
at me," says Wilson. The screaming began
when Wilson mentioned the title of his film in
the middle of asking a question. "It was quite
a sight — 7,000 Michael Moore fans, just booing me."
Like in Orwell's animal farm, it seems Marxism is
good, provided that everyone is equal, but some
more equal than others.
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