Some Noted Things ...

Bolton Watch: Former Secretary of State Colin Powell is reported to be quietly undermining the nomination of John Bolton to be Ambassador to the United Nations. That and the accusation that Bolton has lied under oath seems to have put his nomination in serious jeopardy.

Delayed Reaction: Retiring Congressman Henry Hyde (R, IL) acknowledges that the Clinton impeachment effort may have been retaliation for the impeachment of Richard Nixon twenty-five years earlier.

If: If you were Tom Friedman and you read this or this, would you a) commit suicide or b) try to flatten your prose? Brought to you by the folks at Crooked Timber.

More Oxy Than Moron: At the Reform Club, Hunter Baker has a fascinating account of a recent conference on Baptist higher education. What I find really interesting is his suggestion that when we get caught up in momentous struggles, such as that between moderates and fundamentalists in the Southern Baptist Convention, we are often defined by the struggle. At the end of the day, a Baptist higher education ought to mean something more for the moderates than merely academic freedom. Baker's point has implications for all religious higher education and, even, for all higher education. Academic freedom is a good thing, but it's also important to ask ourselves"freedom for what?" and"freedom in defense of what values?" Thanks to Inside Higher Ed for the tip.

Liberal Values: A good place to begin thinking about"what values?" is Michael Lynch's"Where is Liberal Passion?" Chronicle of Higher Education, 22 April (subscription required).

Plagiarism Front: A North Dakota State University committee has found historian Claire Strom not guilty of"bogus citations" and plagiarism charges that I reported here. In doing so, it rejected the findings of University of Nebraska historian John Wunder, who used the AHA's standards, and invoked the NDSU's own less restrictive code. It isn't clear how the committee's finding will affect the tenure decision that Strom faces in the fall.

Putdowns: Kieran Healy's"Annals of Academic Putdowns" at Crooked Timber is good for some laughs. My favorite: A professor writes on a graduate student's paper"You have re-invented the sled." Asked to explain, he said:"It's akin to re-inventing the wheel, but less useful."

Thanks: Thanks to both History News Network and Inside Higher Ed, who published"Who's Undermining Free Speech on Campus Now?" by David Beito, KC Johnson, and me. Thanks also to Greg Lukianoff of The Torch at FIRE for his extended commentary on the piece and to all who participated in discussions of it at HNN and IHE.

Wishes: A belated"happy birthday" to the Cliopatriarch of Wales and an early"happy holy days" to all who celebrate Passover.