Showing posts with label Harvard. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Harvard. Show all posts

Wednesday, August 13, 2025

Franklin Foer on the Famine in Gaza (Al Franken podcast)

Gaza faces mass starvation as Israel blocks critical food and aid to the region. We’re joined by The Atlantic’s Franklin Foer to discuss his recent piece, “Israel’s Last Chance,” and how the only answer to this atrocity is for Israel to flood Gaza with food.

Foer also discusses the legitimate criticism of Benjamin Netanyahu, while acknowledging that some of the protests can veer into antisemitism, especially on college campuses. Columbia and Harvard are the most prominent universities being attacked by the Trump administration, which is using accusations of antisemitism to withhold federal funding. And while we are seeing Harvard fight back, Foer warns that the end goal for the administration seems to be more government control over universities. 
Interview: 

Tuesday, July 22, 2025

Harvard faculty hiring: A clash of free speech and diversity

But the pressing issue at stake here is that the administration cannot identify a limit to such viewpoint diversity. If a candidate for a position in the government department has a sincere political belief that the 2020 election was stolen, should they be hired in the interest of "viewpoint diversity" although they would not meet the academic standards required for a serious candidate in political science? If they are not hired by the school, does the federal government have the power to punish the university? What does this mean for current faculty who disagree with the administration? "Ideological vetting" is already happening to the school's prospective international students; it is not a stretch to imagine that that vetting might extend to faculty and domestic students too...

Monday, July 21, 2025

Did Harvard Have It Coming? (John Donvan; Open to Debate podcast)

The Trump administration has launched an unprecedented assault on Harvard University, freezing more than $2 billion in federal research grants, slashing another $450 million, threatening $100 million in contracts, as well as threatening to revoke its tax-exempt status and its practice of international student enrollment — all aimed at pressuring the university on allegations of campus antisemitism, “anti‑Americanism,” diversity programs, and free-speech issues. Some have praised the administration’s actions, saying what has happened necessitates consequences. Harvard has pushed back with lawsuits, warning that these federal actions could cripple critical scientific research and chill academic freedom.

Prominent Harvard figures, former University President Larry Summers and Professor Emeritus Alan Dershowitz, engage in a nuanced debate and provocative discussion about whether Harvard failed to contain ideological imbalances, antisemitic incidents, and DEI overreach, and what meritocracy means today at Harvard and other elite universities. Experts who have closely followed this issue and a member of The Harvard Crimson, its undergraduate student newspaper, also joined the discussion.

As we watch the administration’s next moves, we ask: Did Harvard Have It Coming?
Interview (ad-free video): 

YouTube video (may have ads):

Thursday, July 17, 2025

Opinion | Trump’s Attack on Harvard Should Upset Conservatives, Too. Here's Why. - POLITICO

But the recent moves against universities go far beyond reinterpretations of civil rights statutes. This White House wants to ensure that universities, like big law firms, media outlets and foundations, show their allegiance to those currently in charge. The mere independence of these organizations is seen as a threat to the concentration of power in the hands of the president...

https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2025/07/16/harvard-trump-attacks-anti-semitism-00455208 


 

Wednesday, June 25, 2025

Monday, June 2, 2025

Why Trump is really going after Harvard | Donald Trump | The Guardian

Jason Johnson, a political scientist at Morgan State University in Baltimore, Maryland, said: "Their goal is to intimidate and break down institutions of higher learning in America because that is where most of the resistance to their authoritarian tendencies is going to come from. 

"They figure, if we can bankrupt Harvard, if we can embarrass Harvard, if we can put Harvard in a position of weakness or at least get them to bend the knee, then all the other institutions in America will follow. That's why they're doing this." 

 Johnson warned: "Trump is not going to meet his match because he has the entire resources of the federal government at his disposal. Regardless of what Harvard does, there will be other universities who simply see the attack and comply in advance, and that ultimately would still be a victory for the Trump administration."…

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/01/trump-harvard-authoritarianism-democracy


Wednesday, May 28, 2025

The New Dark Age - The Atlantic

"By destroying knowledge, Trumpists seek to make the country more amenable to their political domination, and to prevent meaningful democratic checks on their behavior. Their victory, though, would do much more than that. It would annihilate some of the most effective systems for aggregating, accumulating, and applying human knowledge that have ever existed. Without those systems, America could find itself plunged into a new Dark Age.,,"

https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2025/05/trump-defund-schools-research-republicans/682742/ 


Monday, April 21, 2025

Weekly Roundup: Good News Friday – Harvard, Abrego Garcia, and the Chinese Mirror (Bradley Onishi and Daniel Miller; Straight White American Jesus podcast)

Brad presents a ‘Good News Friday’ amidst various hard and difficult topics, focusing on positive developments from the past week. Key highlights include Andrew Seidel and Brian Kaylor’s inspiring talks at Capitol Hill about the threats of Christian nationalism and authoritarianism.

Brad also discusses Harvard University’s resistance to the Trump administration’s demands to eliminate Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs, amidst federal attempts to revoke its tax-exempt status. He touches on the ongoing fight for constitutional rights, particularly through the case of Abrego Garcia and the judicial pushback against the Trump administration’s aggressive immigration policies.

The episode wraps up with Brad reflecting on the global context, comparing U.S. infrastructure and societal norms with those in China, urging listeners to imagine a more vibrant, inclusive future for America.
Interview: 

 

Harvard balked at reports that Trump team mistakenly sent demands - The Washington Post

"Even assuming the Administration now wishes to take back its litany of breathtakingly intrusive demands," the university said in its statement, "it appears to have doubled down on those demands through its deeds in recent days. 

"Actions speak louder than words."…



Sunday, April 20, 2025

Weekly Roundup: Good News Friday – Harvard, Abrego Garcia, and the Chinese Mirror (Bradley Onishi and Daniel Miller; Straight White American Jesus podcast)

Brad presents a ‘Good News Friday’ amidst various hard and difficult topics, focusing on positive developments from the past week. Key highlights include Andrew Seidel and Brian Kaylor’s inspiring talks at Capitol Hill about the threats of Christian nationalism and authoritarianism.

Brad also discusses Harvard University’s resistance to the Trump administration’s demands to eliminate Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs, amidst federal attempts to revoke its tax-exempt status. He touches on the ongoing fight for constitutional rights, particularly through the case of Abrego Garcia and the judicial pushback against the Trump administration’s aggressive immigration policies.

The episode wraps up with Brad reflecting on the global context, comparing U.S. infrastructure and societal norms with those in China, urging listeners to imagine a more vibrant, inclusive future for America.
Interview: 









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