More on Bush at Calvin College
May 19, 2005
Soon after characterizing Calvin as a conservative (i.e. right-wing) evangelical Christian college, Washington Post columnist Dan Froomkin seems to have been convinced otherwise (scroll down to "The Calvin College Rebellion"):
On closer inspection, it turns out that Calvin College is not the bastion of the Christian Right it appeared to be. In fact, judging from my e-mail, it's a veritable hotbed of those other Christian values — the ones that oppose war, work for social justice, and don't think much of the president at all.
More recently, The Washington Times ("College ad to protest Bush visit") and The Detroit Free Press ("Bush visit brings controversy") reported on an ad to appear in Friday's Grand Rapids Press, criticizing Bush administration policies. The ad will bear the names of 1/3 of Calvin's faculty, as well as students and alumni of the college.
The (post-dated) May 23 issue of Newsweek has a "Periscope" article about what led up to Bush's "invitation" to speak at Calin, in case you haven't heard yet what went down.
James Stewart discusses Bush's commencement address in light of Jim Wallis's recent visit to Calvin, and he points to a temporarily free version of an article in the Chronicle of Higher Education: "President Bush to Face Widespread Faculty Dissent When He Speaks at Evangelical College on Saturday."
I imagine we'll be seeing a lot more in the press over the next few days. Stay tuned. And, if you would be so kind, please post a comment here when you find something interesting online about the event.
Comments (9)
Here's one website someone set up to counter the "liberal elitist" professors. Um, in case you're wondering, I didn't sign it.
http://calvin4bush.com
Also, FYI, two Calvin profs (Saupe and Bytwerk) are slated to be on the Today show tomorrow. Interestingly, these two profs take opposite sides on this whole little tempest in a teapot. And they seem to get along ok. Isn't that the point?
May 19, 2005 ; 11:36 PM
Alas, the Today segment was canceled so they could bring you those photos of Saddam in his underpants. My optimism in the American Way has been restored.
:-P
May 20, 2005 ; 10:36 AM
"Will you be a spectator or a citizen?" See: Huffington
May 21, 2005 ; 8:58 PM
Jeff, I love that quote from Bush's address. Brilliant. By the way, quite a lively discussion is going on under the first entry I posted about the commencement address: George W. Bush to Speak at Calvin College.
May 21, 2005 ; 11:08 PM
An 'interesting' take here:
http://www.mlive.com/news/grpress/index.ssf?/base/news-0/1116757126221400.xml
A good example of how an opinion piece can be made to look like news. The author creates the appearance of presenting both sides of the issue, but the material is carefully selected in a deliberate attempt to misinform and mislead the reader. Misrepresent... discredit... dismiss. Is 'propaganda' too strong a word for this kind of journalism?
May 22, 2005 ; 12:30 PM
Tony Norman, a Calvin alumnus and Pittsburgh Post-Gazette columnist, wrote about the Bush visit.
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/05140/507680.stm
May 22, 2005 ; 6:02 PM
I realize this is old news, but those with lingering interest might like to read the "reflections" of Calvin President Galen Byker on the other president's visit. They read like a plea to estranged alumni with a touch of marketing spin. Frankly, many faculty who signed the GR Press letter did harbor serious reservations about President Bush's visit, and they did not welcome him to the college. In any event, here's a link:
http://www.calvin.edu/commencement/2005/reflections.htm
Jun 6, 2005 ; 8:32 PM
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you know pres. bush is not that bad of a pres. he does a lot of good things. with goods things comes some bad things. but bad things are some people's opinion on pres. bush. he has a good heart and tries to do the right things, but even i don't agree with everything he does. so let him speak in peace at calvin college.
May 19, 2005 ; 11:26 PM