Wednesday, March 21, 2012
My first time...
linking to an article. (I swear, the things that pop into your dirty minds.)
How was your day?
Imagine you teach biology. In a fit of compassion, you give a study session before the next exam. Each student shows appreciation in a different way. Maybe a few thank you for helping the class as you are setting up the LCD projector. Another makes a mental note to give you a really high evaluation at the end of the semester. And one precious little soul unleashes holy hell.
Let me ask you again. How was your day? Yeah, mine wasn't too bad either.
I like this link to the Huffington Post the best because they give the local news report, the YouTube video and then a short discussion of divergent views of the role of evolution in peacock and peahen mating by a Stanford professor. See, I'm not linking to spread a video showing a violent, batshit crazy student. This is all about education.
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Just think, even Galileo didn't have to put up with this. Dealings with the Inquisition were normally quite cordial, or else.
ReplyDeleteCordial, if a bit unexpected.
DeleteYeah, and where is Strelnikov, whenever you really need him?
DeleteYeah, where the hell IS Strelnikov? The posts that would be the most appropriate for him to add his flava, and the guy's as silent as a sunrise on a clear snowy day. He's playing with us.
DeleteHeh. You said "peacock."
ReplyDeletePolitely discussing peacocks with enlarged portions of their anatomy used for sexual attraction seemed to challenge even the Stanford professor, which made it even funnier.
DeleteEver hear of a cock fight? WAAAH!
DeleteNo guys, chickens! Chickens, guys, chickens!!
I like that most of the students, rather than intervene and put an end to the batshittery, they chose to record the event with their cell phones.That says a lot.
ReplyDeleteMaybe they thought it would be on the exam.
DeleteI wouldn't intervene, either. She's obviously not stable and she could have a weapon or be very willing to hurt someone. She didn't seem to really physically attack anyone until the end, the tech guy, and he seemed capable of handling himself.
DeleteFilming such an incident is actually a pretty good idea, if it's just someone screaming and acting batshit. Because it's going to serve as evidence against the screaming batshit woman with the university and the authorities.
If I saw a person being robbed, I would not intervene. I'm not going to put myself in danger over someone else's money, especially since I wouldn't put myself in danger because of my own. I'm not going to put myself in danger because a person is ranting and being threatening either.
If a person is getting beaten up, that's a different story.
I would have wanted my students to film it as well, just in case. But I also would have asked that some of the students call security! But for all we know, while some students were filming, others were calling for help.
DeleteWhich reminds me, time to add security's # to my cell phone!
I can see some arguments for filming, though it wouldn't occur to me, and calling 911 or the equivalent strikes me as considerably more urgent. The arguments for putting it up on youtube, however, escape me.
DeleteOh, and I need to add security's # to my cell, too, but not because I think one of my students is going to blow; some #$@! keeps locking one of my classroom doors. I'm getting very good at figuring out what we can productively do in the hall for 10 mins. until the nice police officer shows up to let us in, but I'm getting tired of walking over to the library first to get the #.
Delete"The arguments for putting it up on youtube, however, escape me."
Delete"Because it's there" would be my guess.
Can I just say that I love the peacock expert's name? Yeah, this little Garden of Eden we inhabit? It can, indeed, be a "Roughgarden".
ReplyDeleteSurprised they had to use a taser on a girl. She must have seriously been raging if no guy could manhandle her to the ground.
ReplyDeleteThe video's been taken down "for copyright reasons." But why was the question "Why does evolution kill black people?"
ReplyDeleteF&T: Apparently, that was her question to the professor and preceded her rant.
DeleteThe larger context (mentioned in the comments on the news story) appears to be that she is (understandably) upset about the killing of Travon Martin. But connecting that to evolution is a *major* stretch, and the timing, manner, and degree of her response suggests some major underlying problems.
DeleteIf she'd been skipping classes for the last few weeks to organize protests, I'd be sympathetic, but still suggest she seek some balance (or, if she had been close to Martin and/or felt that pursuing the issue full-time was her calling, that she withdraw from school for the present). This reaction is way over the top, though I still think the context *does* matter.
Oh, and I hate to say it, but I suspect that "for copyright reasons" might mean that somebody hopes to make money off it somehow. That or somebody posted an official recording without permission.
DeleteOhhhh, that was *her* question. I was confused as all get-out. Off to watch the video, thanks!
DeleteThat woman just went stone bugfuck. I hope she gets help.
ReplyDeleteThere's a great Friday Thirsty coming out tomorrow morning about this story.
ReplyDeleteI am glad that my breakdowns (which I will admit were much quieter and less public) occurred before the advent of iPhones and YouTube.
ReplyDelete