ACADEMIC FREEDOM - YEAH, RIGHT - AT 8:44 A.M. ET:  If I could nominate one phrase for the title, "expression that's been most twisted out of shape," it would be "academic freedom."  The term has become almost meaningless, as it's used to justify pretty much anything that goes on, especially on the left, in American universities.  Want to write a book saying Abraham Lincoln was the secret founder of the Ku Klux Klan and was the great grandfather of Dick Cheney?  Hey, no problem. 

But now there's a real crisis of academic freedom at Yale.  And, in the midst of this crisis, when crucial decisions needed to be made, a major journalist disgraced himself. 

The Yale University Press is publishing a book about those Danish cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed that caused such a tumult several years ago among devout Muslims - riots in some cities, buildings set afire, all those civilized things that a religion of peace would do.   The problem is, the cartoons themselves have been dropped from the book, under pressure, rendering the book almost useless.  AP reports the scandal:

NEW HAVEN, Conn. (AP) -- Yale University has removed cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad from an upcoming book about how they caused outrage across the Muslim world, drawing criticism from prominent alumni and a national group of university professors.

Yale cited fears of violence.

In other words, the bad guys win even before a single threat is made.

"I think it's horrifying that the campus of Nathan Hale has become the first place where America surrenders to this kind of fear because of what extremists might possibly do,'' said Michael Steinberg, an attorney and Yale graduate.

Steinberg was among 25 alumni who signed a protest letter sent Friday to Yale Alumni Magazine that urged the university to restore the drawings to the book. Other signers included John Bolton, a former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations under President George W. Bush, former Bush administration speechwriter David Frum and Seth Corey, a liberal doctor.

I love the term "liberal doctor."  Is he the token liberal here? 

Well, maybe not:

Cary Nelson, president of the American Association of University Professors, wrote in a recent letter that Yale's decision effectively means: ''We do not negotiate with terrorists. We just accede to their anticipated demands.''

Probably the most intelligent thing the AAUP has said in years.  Now, get this:

Fareed Zakaria, editor of Newsweek International, a world affairs columnist and CNN host who serves on Yale's governing board, said he told Yale that he believed publishing the images would have provoked violence.

''As a journalist and public commentator, I believe deeply in the First Amendment and academic freedom,'' Zakaria said. ''But in this instance Yale Press was confronted with a clear threat of violence and loss of life.''

COMMENT:  We all know Zakaria.  We see him on CNN all the time, another Amanpour-like "analyst."  Does he understand the implications of what he's saying?  Does he care?

If the implied threat of violence is now causing our major universities to censor themselves, why isn't this a larger story?  Again, the mainstream media lets us down, suppressing anything that might be embarrassing to the "third world" or "oppressed peoples."  The party line marches on.

What Yale did is a disgrace, but I doubt if you'll see many protests on college campuses, and you certainly won't see them in Middle East "studies" departments. 

This is the tip of the iceberg.  Censorship has come to American universities.  Of course, we've had warnings for years, in the form of "speech codes" and political correctness.

Academic freedom indeed.

Zakaria should be sent away to a retreat for a bit of reflection.

September 8, 2009