Saturday, May 01, 2004 CyberSex Games By Diana Hsieh @ 8:31 AM Heh. What happens when people take their sexual metaphors literally? Much amusement. (Via GeekPress.) Link / Noodles / Trackback Ten Days of Struggle By Diana Hsieh @ 8:22 AM Hooray! This morning I gave the final dose of the ten day, twice per day regimen of antibiotic eyedrops to our cat Oliver. (New kitty Elliot brought home an infection with spread to Oliver's eyes.) The whole medication process was quite unpleasant, for both Oliver and myself. He was endlessly attempting to escape my clutches, jerking his head just the moment before the drop fell, and meowing in a most pleading fashion. (Predictably, Elliot showed no sympathy whatsoever for Oliver's plight, but merely had great fun stealing and batting about the cap to the eyedrops.) Even though Oliver is a hefty cat, I did worry about hurting him, as keeping him still required quite a strong grip. If only I had one of those bunny crates that animal rights activists hate so much... Link / Noodles / Trackback Friday, April 30, 2004 Moving Down the Food Chain? By Diana Hsieh @ 6:36 PM Eric O'Connor of Critical Mass has some interesting comments on her choice to move from her tenured position as a professor of English to teaching English in secondary school. After lamenting the terrible job market in academia, she writes: There is one market, though, that is WIDE OPEN for humanities M.A.'s and Ph.D.'s, and that is the independent school market. "Independent" is mostly a contemporary code word for "private," though it can also mean "charter." Your Ph.D.--or, if you are ABD, your M.A.--is a very attractive qualification in this market. In contrast to the public school system, it counts as a teaching qualification (thus preventing you from going back to school to get a highly redundant ed school teaching certificate). Independent schools are eager to add people with advanced degrees to their faculty--in part, this raises the profile of the school and looks good to parents and donors, but far more importantly, these schools recognize that refugees from academe can make marvelous high school teachers. They know this to be true because their faculties are already full of them. The Village Voice piece linked above tells the story of one such refugee, who is happily earning twice what he would have made as an adjunct teaching at a private high school in New Jersey. I've met a number of such refugees from a number of schools this year. The schools themselves have been as different from one another as people are--but at all of them, the refugees say, entirely independent of one another, that the work they have found in the world of independent school teaching far surpasses the academic life. All say they are able to do the sort of intensive, personalized teaching they dreamed of doing as college teachers, but could not do in a higher ed setting; all say they feel more intellectually alive than they did in academe; and all say, too, that they have a much greater sense of purpose and of professional satisfaction than they did in academe. They are palpably happy, and the differences they are making in kids' lives are real and meaningful. They also have summers off and, having jumped the assembly-line production schedule of the academic track, can follow the far more ethical and constructive course of pursuing their own research and writing projects when and as the spirit moves them. The pay ain't bad, either. Locating and applying for such jobs could not be easier. There are agencies whose entire mission is to match you with schools that are looking for candidates like you. The agencies are entirely free to the candidates. They are not gimmicks. They work. Why do you hear absolutely nothing about this career option from within academe? Why do academic departments pretend this entirely dignified and deeply meaningful career path does not exist--even though it could be just what many of their otherwise unemployable Ph.D.'s, not to mention their dissatisfied faculty, are looking for? Why do they treat as beneath their notice a type of work that they ought to be embracing as a seriously significant alternative to the dead-end academic career of the adjunct? Do I really have to ask? The comments from those who have made such career moves bears out her generally positive assessment of this path. The only downside seems to be the complete lack of respect given to the decision by other academics, even though the terrible job market isn't exactly a secret. (Such elitism is relevant to those who do not wish to give up their research goals, as it might make publication much harder, if not largely pointless.) Along those lines, Amanda Leins notes: I have been following your blog off and on over the last year. I finished my PhD coursework in Classics last year, and decided to say to hell with academe for all of the reasons that you have so eloquently placed before your readers. I now teach Latin, History, and Anthropology at an independent school in NY, and could not be happier with my choice. I left the lofty position of my chosen field after 9 years dedication, both as an undergrad and a grad student. I would like to add another point of view to why these types of jobs are not heralded by the academic communities. In my field, as in others, I presume, teaching at an institution that is not either a college or community is a sign that the person who left "can't cut it" and his or her work never was and could never be up to the rigorous standards of XXXXX University. From the discussions I had with various members of the faculty at my graduate institution, teaching middle and upper school is really a reflection of the limitations of the person who leaves; there is no personal glory to be earned if it isn't higher ed! Leaving is perceived as admitting that one is weak/unintelligent/not dedicated/insert other adjective here. I still struggle with my decision--even though I don't regret a moment of it. Nevertheless, the stigma of teaching somewhere else besides a university or college is very strong. Am I happier? Yes. Am I doing what I wanted to do all along, namely teach Classical literature, culture adn archaeology? Yes. Do my peers understand? Many of them do not. To them, I am washed up, a disgrace--good riddance! Despite the fact that I received a fellowship at the graduate level that was university-wide and only open through nomination by department, my presence there in that instituion was clearly a mistake made on the part of the administration; my choice to leave proved that. For a while now, I've considered teaching in secondary schools as an option. One obvious reason is the general glut in the academic job market. But I also have some particular reasons for wishing to stay in our present location. Paul has an excellent job that would be hard to adequately replicate elsewhere in the country. Colorado is one of only six states that is not either in or approaching medical malpractice crisis, plus the state offers fairly good protection for gun rights. Colorado is also one of the few climates in the United States amenable to both Paul's and my tastes. There is also a large contingent of smart, serious, and friendly Objectivists along the Front Range. Leaving Colorado isn't out of the question, but I'd certainly be reluctant to do it in order to teach at Podunk U. For the moment, I'm simply trying to keep as many options open as possible. Of course, I can't expect to find too many openings for philosophy teachers in private and perhaps charter Colorado high schools. To get my foot in the door, I'd really need to be able to teach some primary subject, e.g. math, science, history, English. Without a doubt, history would be of the greatest interest to me. Since the course of history is driven by philosophy, the particulars form a basis for philosophical inductions. My interest is not merely driven by philosophy though, as I do find the subject fascinating in its own right. So my basic thought is that I might pursue an M.A. in history, likely after the Ph.D. in philosophy is finished. Even if I end up in academia, the extra degree might help my job prospects, particularly if I choose related areas of focus in each. Of course, all of that is rather far off. But if I'm going to keep my options open, then I need to plan for it! Link / Noodles / Trackback Thursday, April 29, 2004 Details Wanted By Diana Hsieh @ 8:39 PM Does anyone have a transcript of Nathaniel Branden's speech "Thank You Ayn Rand, and Goodbye"? It was apparently given at Reason's Tenth Anniversary Banquet in November of 1978. (Was it later published as an article in Reason?) The only bit of it that I could dig up was this quote: Don't expect anything of her as a person. Don't expect help. Don't expect understanding. Don't expect sympathy. Don't even expect sanity. Say, 'Thank you,' and let go. Um, wow. That's a pretty clear statement by itself, but I'd like to see the full context. Link / Noodles / Trackback Warming the Heart By Diana Hsieh @ 6:37 PM Nothing warms the heart like a devastating review of the book The Good, The Bad, and The Difference by "The Ethicist" (a.k.a. Randy Cohen) in Reason Papers. (Via The Volokh Conspiracy) Link / Noodles / Trackback Wednesday, April 28, 2004 Hmmm... By Diana Hsieh @ 12:05 PM I wonder whether we should infer something about the country based upon these strange translated phrases from phrasebooks. Should I bring my own syringe if I go to Indonesia? Will I begin robbing people if I go to Somalia? Would I be prescribing suppositories often in the Netherlands? How often will I be carried if I am in Nepal? Do most men in Hawaii have breasts in which they might be stabbed? Inquiring minds want to know! Link / Noodles / Trackback Monday, April 26, 2004 Velvet Ayn By Diana Hsieh @ 11:58 PM A few years back, Robert Bidinotto gave a lecture on spirituality or somesuch at the TOC Summer Seminar. I don't remember the details of his arguments now, nor even the title, but I do know that I wasn't exactly awed. At the time, I derisively joked that his basic advice seemed to be that we all needed Objectivist curio cabinets in which to properly concretize our values. After a number of years of TOC Seminars in which Objectivist schwag was doled out to various groups apparently under the influence of Bidinotto, my joke didn't seem quite so funny anymore. We got the Ayn Rand stamp in a keychain, a TOC lapel pin, a candy dish, and so on. Although some was useful, most was just fodder for the curio cabinet, I suppose. By way of explaining my disdain, I'm generally averse to sentimental knickknacks. They are a royal pain to dust and cats always find them insanely appealing. More importantly, they would seem like rather shallow displays of emotion for me, although I understand that others might have deeper attachments. I recount all of that silliness because when I saw this painting tonight, I thought "Oh gee, wouldn't that be perfect for the wall above the Objectivist curio cabinet?" The echoes of religious kistch are quite painful actually, particularly when contrasted with its particular content. I wonder who paid $14,000 (!) for it. (Via Will Wilkinson.) Of course, I do like many of the paintings featured on the web site of Quent Cordair Fine Art... and some of Sylvia Bokor's work looks interesting. But the cognitive dissonance of "Beginnings" was quite harsh. Link / Noodles / Trackback I Want! I Want! I Want! By Diana Hsieh @ 4:41 PM It is a beautiful day here today, delightfully sunny and warm. After our few days of snow late last week, I'm itching to return to the garden. Instead, I'm stuck working on my paper on zoocentric egalitarianism for my environmental philosophy class. *sigh* If only I was a whim-worshipping subjectivist instead of a rational-teleological egoist, I would be playing in the warm dirt right now. (No, that's not a real wish!) Summer break will come soon enough... so just a few more days of savaging Peter Singer's utilitarian arguments for animal liberation and Tom Regan's deontological arguments for animal rights. Unfortunately, I will have two school papers to complete over the summer. I've decided to take an incomplete in my Topics in Values class, as working out the details of my arguments on moral luck will take more time than I have left in the semester. Some of the arguments concern issues of moral judgment that I've not yet settled for myself, but will be investigating as I comb through the relevant sections of Truth and Toleration this summer. I also have a half-done paper from the fall semester on Aristotle's action theory, particularly on his view of the relationship between reason and emotion, to complete. Since I am busy with schoolwork, I haven't had a chance to comment on the vigorous debates in the comments -- and likely won't for a few days. I particularly want to reply to Bill Nevin's challenge to the closed system, as well as make some general remarks on implicit sanction, scholarly standards, and engaging philosophical opponents. So don't think I'm remaining silent because I have nothing to say! Update: I also hope to say a bit more on the general issue of Objectivism as a closed system, as my views solidified a fair amount after a lengthy discussion with a friend a few days ago. Link / Noodles / Trackback A Suprise By Diana Hsieh @ 7:57 AM Anyone familiar with vitrol against all things non-liberal in Brian Leiter's blog will be rather amused by the pleasant reference to Amy and Leonard Peikoff in this post. The humorous RNC and DNC convention schedules are worth reading. Link / Noodles / Trackback Sunday, April 25, 2004 A Cultural Divide By Diana Hsieh @ 9:29 AM Japan is presently in the grip of a national convulsion of blame the victim, authoritarian style: The young Japanese civilians taken hostage in Iraq returned home this week, not to the warmth of a yellow-ribbon embrace but to a disapproving nation's cold stare. Three of them, including a woman who helped street children on the streets of Baghdad, appeared on television two weeks ago as their knife-brandishing kidnappers threatened to slit their throats. A few days after their release, they landed here on Sunday, in the eye of a peculiarly Japanese storm. "You got what you deserve!" read one hand-written sign at the airport where they landed. "You are Japan's shame," another wrote on the Web site of one of the former hostages. They had "caused trouble" for everybody. The government, not to be outdone, announced it would bill the former hostages $6,000 for air fare. ... Dr. Satoru Saito, a psychiatrist who examined the three former hostages twice since their return, said the stress they were enduring now was "much heavier" than what they experienced during their captivity in Iraq. Asked to name their three most stressful moments, the former hostages told him, in ascending order: the moment when they were kidnapped on their way to Baghdad, the knife-wielding incident, and the moment they watched a television show the morning after their return here and realized Japan's anger with them. The whole article is well worth reading. Link / Noodles / Trackback

Blog Stuff All Comments Trackback NoodleFood XML Good Stuff Meredith Brickell Ceramics Paul Hsieh's GeekPress Front Range Objectivism Ayn Rand Institute Archives 03/03/2002 - 03/09/2002 03/10/2002 - 03/16/2002 03/17/2002 - 03/23/2002 03/24/2002 - 03/30/2002 03/31/2002 - 04/06/2002 04/07/2002 - 04/13/2002 04/14/2002 - 04/20/2002 04/21/2002 - 04/27/2002 05/05/2002 - 05/11/2002 05/12/2002 - 05/18/2002 05/19/2002 - 05/25/2002 05/26/2002 - 06/01/2002 06/02/2002 - 06/08/2002 06/09/2002 - 06/15/2002 06/16/2002 - 06/22/2002 06/23/2002 - 06/29/2002 06/30/2002 - 07/06/2002 07/07/2002 - 07/13/2002 07/14/2002 - 07/20/2002 07/21/2002 - 07/27/2002 08/04/2002 - 08/10/2002 08/11/2002 - 08/17/2002 08/18/2002 - 08/24/2002 08/25/2002 - 08/31/2002 09/01/2002 - 09/07/2002 09/08/2002 - 09/14/2002 09/15/2002 - 09/21/2002 09/22/2002 - 09/28/2002 09/29/2002 - 10/05/2002 10/06/2002 - 10/12/2002 10/13/2002 - 10/19/2002 10/20/2002 - 10/26/2002 10/27/2002 - 11/02/2002 11/03/2002 - 11/09/2002 11/10/2002 - 11/16/2002 11/17/2002 - 11/23/2002 11/24/2002 - 11/30/2002 12/01/2002 - 12/07/2002 12/08/2002 - 12/14/2002 12/15/2002 - 12/21/2002 12/29/2002 - 01/04/2003 01/05/2003 - 01/11/2003 01/12/2003 - 01/18/2003 01/19/2003 - 01/25/2003 01/26/2003 - 02/01/2003 02/02/2003 - 02/08/2003 02/09/2003 - 02/15/2003 02/16/2003 - 02/22/2003 02/23/2003 - 03/01/2003 03/02/2003 - 03/08/2003 03/09/2003 - 03/15/2003 03/16/2003 - 03/22/2003 03/23/2003 - 03/29/2003 03/30/2003 - 04/05/2003 04/06/2003 - 04/12/2003 04/13/2003 - 04/19/2003 04/20/2003 - 04/26/2003 04/27/2003 - 05/03/2003 05/04/2003 - 05/10/2003 05/11/2003 - 05/17/2003 05/18/2003 - 05/24/2003 05/25/2003 - 05/31/2003 06/01/2003 - 06/07/2003 06/08/2003 - 06/14/2003 06/15/2003 - 06/21/2003 06/22/2003 - 06/28/2003 07/27/2003 - 08/02/2003 08/03/2003 - 08/09/2003 08/10/2003 - 08/16/2003 08/17/2003 - 08/23/2003 08/24/2003 - 08/30/2003 10/05/2003 - 10/11/2003 10/12/2003 - 10/18/2003 10/19/2003 - 10/25/2003 10/26/2003 - 11/01/2003 11/02/2003 - 11/08/2003 11/09/2003 - 11/15/2003 11/16/2003 - 11/22/2003 11/23/2003 - 11/29/2003 11/30/2003 - 12/06/2003 12/07/2003 - 12/13/2003 12/14/2003 - 12/20/2003 12/21/2003 - 12/27/2003 01/04/2004 - 01/10/2004 01/11/2004 - 01/17/2004 01/18/2004 - 01/24/2004 01/25/2004 - 01/31/2004 02/01/2004 - 02/07/2004 02/08/2004 - 02/14/2004 02/15/2004 - 02/21/2004 02/22/2004 - 02/28/2004 02/29/2004 - 03/06/2004 03/07/2004 - 03/13/2004 03/14/2004 - 03/20/2004 03/21/2004 - 03/27/2004 03/28/2004 - 04/03/2004 04/04/2004 - 04/10/2004 04/11/2004 - 04/17/2004 04/18/2004 - 04/24/2004 04/25/2004 - 05/01/2004 05/02/2004 - 05/08/2004 05/23/2004 - 05/29/2004 05/30/2004 - 06/05/2004 06/06/2004 - 06/12/2004 06/13/2004 - 06/19/2004 06/20/2004 - 06/26/2004 06/27/2004 - 07/03/2004 07/04/2004 - 07/10/2004 07/11/2004 - 07/17/2004 07/18/2004 - 07/24/2004 07/25/2004 - 07/31/2004 08/01/2004 - 08/07/2004 08/08/2004 - 08/14/2004 08/15/2004 - 08/21/2004 08/22/2004 - 08/28/2004 08/29/2004 - 09/04/2004 09/05/2004 - 09/11/2004 09/12/2004 - 09/18/2004 09/19/2004 - 09/25/2004 09/26/2004 - 10/02/2004 10/03/2004 - 10/09/2004 10/10/2004 - 10/16/2004 10/17/2004 - 10/23/2004 10/24/2004 - 10/30/2004 10/31/2004 - 11/06/2004 11/07/2004 - 11/13/2004 11/14/2004 - 11/20/2004 11/21/2004 - 11/27/2004 11/28/2004 - 12/04/2004 12/12/2004 - 12/18/2004 01/02/2005 - 01/08/2005 01/09/2005 - 01/15/2005 01/16/2005 - 01/22/2005 01/23/2005 - 01/29/2005 01/30/2005 - 02/05/2005 02/06/2005 - 02/12/2005 02/13/2005 - 02/19/2005 02/20/2005 - 02/26/2005 02/27/2005 - 03/05/2005 03/06/2005 - 03/12/2005 03/13/2005 - 03/19/2005 03/20/2005 - 03/26/2005 03/27/2005 - 04/02/2005 Lasagne Blogs GeekPress Best of the Web Instapundit Volokh Conspiracy Daily Dish The Bleat Impromptus Manicotti Blogs Anger Management Absolute Reason Ayn Rand Meta-Blog GeekPress Blog Without a Name Brian Schwartz Cox and Forkum Dollars and Crosses Ego A Galaxy Far, Far Away GMU Objectivist Club Greedy Capitalist Haight Speech In the Mouth of Madison Jerk Sauce John J Enright Light of Reason Marshall Sontag Live! Minority of One Mudita Journal Not A Blog Noumenal Self O.T.H.E.R.'s Blog Poor and Stupid Positive Liberty Quare Rule of Reason Presence of Mind Sid's Blog of Doom Terrible Swift Sword Venting Steam Wickens.ca Atlasphere Bloggers Objectivist Bloggers Conchiglie Blogs Dynamist Blog The Agitator The Anger of Compassion Asymmetrical Information Armed and Dangerous Banana Oil Catallaxy Files Charles Murtaugh Citizen Smash The Corner EnviroSpin Watch Eve Tushnet The Fly Bottle God of the Machine Gweilo Diaries The Idiot Villager Intel Dump Interrobang Julian's Lounge The Kolkata Libertarian Liberty and Power Locke, or Demosthenes? McBlog The Marmot's Hole Natalie Solent OxBlog Raving Atheist Reductio Ad Absurdum The Right Coast Right Wing News Samizdata Sargent Stryker Secular Islam Shoutin' Across the Pacific Tom Palmer The Truth Laid Bear Two Blowhards An Unsealed Room VodkaPundit Capellini Blogs Critical Mass Brian's Education Cranky Professor Discriminations Highered Intelligence SCSU Scholars Tightly Wound Spaghetti Blogs Joanne Jacobs EducationWeak Home School & Stuff Number 2 Pencil Fettuccine Blogs Apple Core Assigned Seat Assorted Stuff Entry Year Teacher Math Teacher Ms. Frizzle School Yard Science Teacher Teaching High School Weblogg Ed Write It Linguini Blogs Chez Miscarriage Konkadoo Loco Parentis Rational Parenting One Sixteeth Our Homeschool Journey Our Horrible Children Penne Blogs Brian Leiter Rod Long Brian Weatherson Rigatoni Blogs Criminal Appeal Is That Legal? Legal Theory Lessig Blog Mirror of Justice Punishment Theory Stephan Kinsella Unlearned Hand Macaroni Blogs Adam Smith Blog Brad DeLong EconLog Economist Marginal Revolution Rigatoni Blogs The Loom ScienceBlog Orzo Blogs Andrew Breese Terry Foote Ted O'Connor Kirez Reynolds Peter Saint-Andre Mike Shapiro Douglas Wagoner's Journal Ramen Blogs Dave Barry Fark ScrappleFace Support Amazon.com