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Unless correspondents ask us not to, this Website will post selected letters that it receives and invite open debate. |
Dr
Andrew E. Mathis
of Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania, writes Thursday, April 26, 2001
Dear Self-Inflicted . . .
Regarding your dirt-digging:
http://www.fpp.co.uk/Auschwitz/Lipstadt/EmoryWheel0401.html
I have the following clarifications to make for you.
On
Prof.
Lipstadt's own Web page, she states that she
taught at both UCLA and Occidental College before coming
to Emory. Both universities are in Los Angeles, so it's
difficult to determine which university you claim denied
Prof. Lipstadt tenure. Plus, what with all this "We know
the reasons" garbage and not even naming which school
(not all academic jobs are tenure-track), you leave
people like me to do the guess work. Let's suppose that
you're speaking of UCLA. Well, UCLA is one of the finest
institutions of higher learning in the United States. It
is remarkably difficult to gain tenure at such a
university. In U.S. News and World
Report, UCLA is ranked No. 25 among so-called
National Universities. (Topping the list are Harvard,
Princeton, and Yale):
http://www.usnews.com/usnews/edu/college/rankings/natu_nf.htm
Ironically, Emory is ranked higher on the same list -- at No. 18. Apparently, Prof. Lipstadt did such a terrible job at UCLA that she was given not just any job, but an endowed chair at Emory. Why you call Emory the "Coca-Cola university of Atlanta" is a bit puzzling to me. If it is to deride the school in some way, you'll find only seventeen better comprehensive universities in the U.S. If you're suggesting that Emory is beholden to Coca-Cola for its endowment or other largesse, then you might as well denounce the University of Chicago (No. 10 on the above list), since it was endowed by John D. Rockefeller from the money he made from Standard Oil. Is the University of Chicago the "Exxon university of the city of the big shoulders"?
Now, let's consider the other possibility -- that Prof. Lipstadt was denied tenure at Occidental College. Well, this would really be Occidental's mistake, would it not? Occidental is ranked by U.S. News at No. 39 among so-called National Liberal Arts Colleges.
These are colleges that are less research-intensive and more teaching-oriented. Schools such as Amherst, Williams, and Swarthmore routinely top this list. These schools are also difficult to obtain tenure at, but not as difficult as UCLA. If Prof. Lipstadt was denied tenure at Occidental, then her teaching would have to have been seriously lacking.
But what do we find in her record at Emory? We find that Prof. Lipstadt has been cited for outstanding teaching. Plus, since she's been at Emory, she's published two books, including one entitled Denying the Holocaust. I believe you've heard of this title.
Thus we may fairly conclude that Prof. Lipstadt is an exemplary faculty member at Emory. Her teaching and research credentials are beyond impeachment. You should also be aware that Prof. Lipstadt's record at a previous academic job would not be held confidential by Emory when they considered hiring her -- particularly if it involved something scandalous, as you seem to suggest.
You should also be aware that Prof. Lipstadt's decision not to take the stand as a defense witness is not an indication of guilt. Indeed, if you knew anything about the U.S. judicial system, you'd know that a judge or jury may not assume guilt based on one's evocation of the Fifth Amendment. But like the jackass that you've continually shown that you are, you decided to sue her in the U.K. and are now crying in your beer because you've been stuck with her legal bill.
[You may publish this letter if it is not edited in any way, shape, or form.] [Steve Wolk points out two sentences got cut out]
DAVID
IRVING writes:
NOTHING is to prevent Lipstadt herself from making a statement on the reasons why UCLA denied tenure. The Academic Registrar has refused, quite rightly, to open her file to inspection. We are aware of the allegations against her; although she wisely "took the Fifth" -- on Counsel's advice, she avers -- to avoid being cross-examined on the London witness stand about her academic record, and on the perjury she committed when swearing an affidavit on her Discovery, we are not going to repeat the allegations here. She must have a proper chance to answer them herself, and preferably on oath. Oh dear, the Kol Nidre. I was forgetting.
David Irving