Re: Sick of bashers (was: Re: Sick of KB)

[jdrukman%dlsun87@us.oracle.com (Jon Drukman)]

Chris Williams explodes across the big screen in a non-stop orgy of
bullets and babes!!:

>>good professors foster a *diversity* of opinions in their classes.
>>bad ones impose a single viewpoint (usually their own).  ever hear of
>>the "marketplace of ideas"?

>   I didn't say impose. But is the professor only a moderator? How can
>the class not be based primarily on the on the opinions of the person
>defining the curriculum (sp?). Why even have a classroom and lectures?

i guess you haven't been to school in a while, or maybe you just
weren't lucky enough to go to good schools.  the lectures provide the
factual basis for the discussion.  and yes, a large part of the
professor's job is to act as a moderator.  a good one will introduce
many different views about a subject.  the best ones will admit that
they learn as much from the class as the students do.  i remember
getting a comment like "great paper - i learned a lot" and really
appreciating it.

note that i'm talking mainly about mushy liberal arts topics here and
not something more concrete like physics or maths although i guess
there are different schools of thought in those disciplines as well.

>Why don't the students simply agree to meet and discuss everything
>without the school?

i think this is a great idea, but it seems that many people are not
motivated to learn about a topic and discuss it without some sort of
incentive, like "if you don't do this, you won't be able to get a good
job."  and even if you meet in an outside group, it is sometimes
useful to have a moderator on hand to keep the discussion on track.

>   OK, here you say that my opinion is as valid as anyone elses...

>>well, you believe wrong things, and it is my unpleasant duty to summon
>>you back to the reality that us ordinary earthlings inhabit.

>   ...and here you say it isn't.

ah, but these are not opinions, these are *facts*.

>    ...and here you agree that there are other people with opinions
>that you value far more than mine. Which way do you want it?

do you really not understand the difference between OBJECTIVITY and
SUBJECTIVITY or are you just being deliberately obtuse?
*subjectively*, every one of us has an internal rating scheme.  there
ain't no way to do it objectively though.  it's the nature of the
beast.  it's what makes horse racing.

geez, i'm running out of cliches and it's not even 11 AM yet.

>   Bullshit. I'm not squashing anyone, anymore than you are, anymore
>than any disagreement does.

when you start claiming that certain opinions are *objectively* better
than others, it's not much of a leap to suggest that opinions which
fall below a certain point on this imaginary objective scale should be
taken elsewhere.  and, as i mentioned above, i welcome diversity of
opinion.  vive la difference.

--
Jon Drukman                                      jdrukman%dlsun87@us.oracle.com
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Always note the sequencer - this will never let us down.