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Keith E. Whittington
The Volokh Conspiracy, Reason Magazine
Excerpt: Yesterday the Trump administration launched yet another massive financial blow at a university because it has done some things the administration does not like. This time the University of Pennsylvania's medical research is being decimated because the administration disagrees with the Penn athletic department's transgender policies.
Elisabeth Stewart and Luke Grippo
Daily Princetonian
Excerpt: Princeton will freeze most faculty and staff hiring, citing uncertainty around federal funding and a potential increased endowment tax, according to a memo sent to faculty and staff Wednesday morning. The letter, from Provost Jennifer Rexford and Executive Vice President Katie Callow-Wright, follows many other universities adopting hiring freezes in response to funding uncertainty. It represents the University’s most significant response to date to recent federal actions.
Daily Princetonian Editorial Board
Daily Princetonian
Excerpt: Some institutions have been cowed by threats from the federal government. This acquiescence is dangerous. Complying with constitutionally contested directives before judges rule on their legality normalizes them. As Columbia’s example has taught us, even repeated concessions to the Trump administration won’t protect you. As an institution relatively insulated from financial shocks from the federal government, we have a unique responsibility to speak out. Even among the Ivy League, Princeton’s wealth, prestige, and historical reputation as the most conservative Ivy give the University unique influence.
Tom Williams '77
December 16, 2023
12/16/2023
Hello Fellow PU grads interested in free speech:
While we’ve been aware for some time of the “All animals are equal but some are more equal than others” attitude of Princeton’s officialdom, I find this recent outbreak of antisemitism to be particularly egregious. Attitudes toward Jews, which often also manifest themselves against Christians, are the obvious canary in the coal mine.
There is a serious problem here, namely, an inability of the Princeton administration to see itself as others see it. We may not be the worst offenders among the Ivy Universities, but it is disturbing to see the immediate bias.
I decry the loss of life in the Middle East on a regular basis. Israel is, as far as I know, the only truly democratic state in a sea of despotism. And I know that Israel’s military has made mistakes. But they abide by (or attempt to do so) normal military codes of international law. Do any of the other nations in the region even attempt to do the same?
I don’t see much hope for true peace in the Middle East until Israel’s right to exist is accepted and actual tolerance of other religions and viewpoints is accepted. It would also be helpful if the long, complicated history of armed conflict in the region would be viewed as an unfortunate past that is accepted rather than a litany of grievances that must drive conflict in the future. Please let us bury the hatchet and start from scratch.
Tom Williams’77