Free Republic

Now that student mobs at universities around America (and elsewhere in the West) have silenced conservative speaker after conservative speaker, it has dawned on a small number of left-wing professors that the public is beginning to have contempt for the universities. As a result, a handful of academics at a handful of universities have signed statements on behalf of allowing "diverse" views to be heard at the university. These statements are worthless. While some of the professors who have signed them may sincerely believe that the university should honor the value of non-left free speech, one should keep in mind...

BERKELEY, Calif., Oct. 3 (UPI) -- Officials in Berkeley, Calif., say they want men to stop having casual sex buggery in Aquatic Park. William Rogers, director of parks recreation and waterfront, said the fact the south side of the Berkeley park has become a well-known location for public sex buggery is hurting the city, The Oakland (Calif.) Tribune reported Saturday. “It’s ultimately a quality-of-life issue for residents, our staff and the wildlife being displaced,” Rogers said. “There are very good historic reasons why venues like this exist, but this is a public park, and it needs to get addressed.” Parks...

BERKELEY, Calif. — University of California officials have won the legal right to oust a band of tree-sitters who've taken up residence in an oak grove standing in the way of a planned sports center. But how do you uproot a tree-sitter in Berkeley, one of America's most politically correct cities? "Extremely difficult," acknowledges campus spokesman Dan Mogulof. As the protest nears its one-year anniversary, plenty of people have suggestions: Fire hoses, skunk spray and tranquilizer darts are among the thorny ideas Internet posters have planted. So far, the university has moved cautiously. The university wants to remove dozens of...

Divest Fest: The campus left's misguided crusade against Israel. Richard Just The inane campus left is at it again. From the small -- but loud -- segment of American college students that barely waited for the World Trade Center's second tower to fall before protesting the war against terrorism comes a nascent campaign to persuade universities to sever ties with companies linked to Israel. The movement's unsurprising origins are at the University of California, Berkeley, where a group called Students for Justice in Palestine has been pushing the administration to divest. In February, the organization sponsored a conference that...