Marketplace of ideas in Post-Dispatch column

One of the better discussion of the marketplace of ideas I've seen lately doesn't even use the term "marketplace of ideas." It's in today's column by Bill McClellan in The St. Louis Post-Dispatch on anti-feminist firebrand Phyllis Schafly, who is about to get an honorary degree from Washington University at this year's commencement. Students and faculty are outraged at what they see as the school's honoring her "polarizing, anti-intellectual positions."

McClellan made it clear he doesn't agree with Shafly very often. But he doesn't agree with the outraged students and faculty, either.

"As a latte-sipping, tree-hugging, peace sign-flashing, gay rights-supporting liberal, I just hate it when my comrades play to stereotype," he said. "You know the stereotype. Conservatives are mean. Liberals are whiny. And right now a very audible whine is emanating from the campus of Washington University."

Schafly, 83, is an alum, and a highly successful one at that, so honoring her makes sense. "I think she honors the university by accepting an honorary degree," McClellan added. He explained:

That is not to suggest I approve of her ideas. I disagree with most of them. Nor do I like the way she expresses herself. She, too, sometimes plays to stereotype. She can be mean. She can get down in the mud. But like it or not, that is the way of things in the Great Debate that defines this country. Voices rise and tempers flare, but in the end, the ideas rise or fall on their own.

Some of the loudest criticism for awarding Schlafly an honorary degree is coming from the law school. Fourteen members of the law school faculty signed a letter to the chancellor: "We are fully committed to the principle of free speech, and we believe the University should encourage a discussion of diverse viewpoints. Commencement, however, is first and foremost a time of celebration of the intellectual accomplishments of our students. It is, we believe, a disservice to those whom we honor to inject into the proceedings a person who has devoted her life to staking out and promoting polarizing, anti-intellectual positions."

On most ideological issues, I'd be aligned with those professors, staking out a position somewhere left of center. But I think they're missing the point on this issue. The real disservice to the students would be to act like the university sanctions one set of ideas over another. Students should be exposed to all sorts of ideas — even polarizing, anti-intellectual ones. If the education has taken hold at all, the students will reject those ideas.

Tongue planted firmly in his cheek, McClellan concluded by quoting the "Great Helmsman" (Mao Zedong), "Let a thousand flowers bloom!" He added, "Personally, I raise my vanilla-flavored, low-fat, no-foam latte to Schlafly. She is a remarkable woman and a splendid opponent."

Work(s) Cited
McClellan, Bill. "Thought you'd never hear me praise Phyllis Schlafly?" St. Louis Post-Dispatch 14 May 2008. 14 May 2008. .