Those Damn Liberal Halls of Higher Learning

I always snicker when I hear folks talking about "liberal leaning colleges", especially when they are referring to small junior and community colleges. I do not consider our community college faculty to be particularly liberal, nor is our campus a "hotbed of liberal activism". In fact, a number of my colleagues are staunch Republicans. Yet, one thing I can say is that I generally trust them to be rational, even if we don't always agree on matters of policy. In spite of this, there are always those who will decry the goings-on on campus. Here are just two examples of the crazy liberal thinking on campus this spring:

1. One of our life science professors gave a little talk at "kiddie campus", a small pre-school on the grounds. He brought in some bones to show the students (so they could play a game of "find the bone on yourself"). He also brought in a series of skulls to show the evolution of humans.

2. The school will be sponsoring a discussion on the HPV vaccine this week. The main speaker will be the cervical cancer screening coordinator at a local hospital. One of her comments was "I would like people to know that this is not a license for promiscuity but rather addressing a problem that already exists."

What amazes me is that there are people who would be offended by these items. To the average faculty member, these are not liberal issues; they're rational actions designed to educate and help people. Those crazy college liberals; so out on the fringe, so radical, they make me so happy.