Date: Sat, 2 Nov 1996 11:44:20 -0500 (EST) From: Justin Schwartz <jschwart-AT-freenet.columbus.oh.us> Subject: Re: Should we let up on the pomos? was Re: M-I: Live at NYU: Sokal vs. Social Text On Sat, 2 Nov 1996, Gary MacLennan wrote: > This is a serious point and as such should make us pause. Temperamentally I > am inclined to agree with Justin that we should put the bastards to the > sword. Despite the radical nature of much of their rhetoric they have > worked for the establishment. A whole generation of students has been > disoriented and depoliticized. It's not just or mainly their bad politics that's the issue. It's the quality of their research. With the exception of a small handful of people, the pomos can't think and can't write. If I were in a university context where I hada vote, I would support a smart pomo. Nancy Fraser can be in my depratment any old day. But the character of their work is more typified by Andrew Ross, who wouldn't recognize ana rgument if it bit him on the ass. As Ralph said, talking about Afrocentrism as it happens, what really matters is what you do, not who you are. The pomos for the most part talk nonssense for bad purposes. > But we need to conceptualize the whole affair as Per implies. Why did the > Sokal matter get taken up in the mainstream media? They are certainly not > our friends. Are they now taking out the Pomos? should we stand back and > let them? I am not sure of the answers to these questions. But in my own > conspiracy type consciousness I see it this way. Let me put it this way: You are on a hiring committee and someone pomo has applied. She/He/It is a typical pomo, a flutterby,a s you so nicely put it, pseudo radical rhetoric and no substance. Moreover she/he/it hates Marxism and you can pretty much guess that s/h/i wouldn't stand by you if you were underf fire. Now, some right wing clown wants to deep six thae pplication for the wrong reasons, because he hates the (phony) radicalism of the argument. What do you do dear, as Maurice Sendak put it? Do you expend your little amount of credit to get this persoin hired? (Or, it it is a tenure decision, retained?) Of course part of the answer depends on your alternatives. You might prefer the pomo to some right wing policy ytype. But how much effort to expend? I would say, not all that much. > Yet we should try and keep some of the gains especially those Per refers to. > Well, if the administration tries to abolish women's studies or African-American studies, etc. we should certainly fight it, although small thanks we will get from the people in those programs. --Justin --- from list marxism-international-AT-lists.village.virginia.edu ---
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