Comic for Thursday, January 26th, 2006

Posted: 7:45 am, Thursday, January 26th

It dawned on me about midway through this strip that probably no one knows this song. Oh well, your loss.

What is with television this year? Friggin' the Gilmore Girls were in repeats for about six weeks, then came back for two episodes, then went back into reruns. Lost was back for three episodes and is apparently going back into reruns next week. What the hell is this crap?

I was in meetings all day yesterday at the office, but when I got a break, Grafe had sent me this article, which made my stomach lurch. Notre Dame is reigning in gay and women's events is the long and short of it. Specifically, the Vagina Monologues and the Queer Film Fest are in doubt for the future. I don't know why I'm ever surprised when my school does something ridiculous and short-sighted like this, or when they had Shitwit give the graduation address in 2001 (mind you, this was in May, before he became the Great American Hero - it's not like it would've been any better afterwards, but, fuck, nobody liked this dipshit in May 2001!). What does dismay me is that Jenkins just took the reigns, and so far had been doing a not-so-bad job of things, at least to my knowledge. From the article in the Trib and this one from the student paper, it sounds like the students and the faculty were actually on the side of the Vagina Monologues and the Queer Film Fest (i.e., actually for gay and female rights, which is more or less a sea change from the atmosphere in 1996). One of my old professors, who is a lesbian, wrote a few of us to tell us the same thing - that, so far, with the exception of "one scary lady who thought he wasn't going hard enough on the Vagina Monologues," everyone at these addresses was against Jenkins' position. So that's good. Hopefully enough of us will write letters to the dude that he'll back down. Consider this your call to action if you're a Domer, and if you're a non-Domer who thinks that gays and women should be treated equally, feel free to write and call yourself a friend of the University.

Basically, the thing Jenkins is trying to base his argument that events such as the Vagina Monologues and the Queer Film Fest are against the mission of a Catholic University is this long and boring tract that I've never managed to make it through, Ex Corde Ecclesiae. If anyone's got a big cup of coffee in front of them and feels like trying to plow through it, be my guest. Ex Corde can be, evidently, narrowly interpreted to read that a Catholic University should not teach things outside of the Catholic Church's doctrine, but it tries to provide for some separation from the Vatican, i.e., you can run it like a business and make money (which Notre Dame happens to be pretty good at). At least, this is what I remember from my undergrad days. I remember Ex Corde coming up in the Observer a lot at the beginning of senior year, I think there was an American Bishop's conference or something, and the subject of widespread molestation by priests hadn't really hit the front pages yet, so they could discuss mere matters like this. Honestly, I've never read the thing.

Not even addressing the latent intolerance in targeting events like the Queer Film Fest, this is just downright damaging to the University's credibility as an institution of higher learning. Cultural events like these make up a good part of anyone's collitch education, and curtailing them makes a mockery out of any sense of academic freedom. Addressing the latent intolerance, it makes Jenkins look like a fucking caveman.

From the University's Mission statement:

The University prides itself on being an environment of teaching and learning which fosters the development in its students of those disciplined habits of mind, body and spirit which characterize educated, skilled and free human beings. In addition, the University seeks to cultivate in its students not only an appreciation for the great achievements of human beings but also a disciplined sensibility to the poverty, injustice and oppression that burden the lives of so many. The aim is to create a sense of human solidarity and concern for the common good that will bear fruit as learning becomes service to justice.

Good move, Jenkins, you managed to undermine that entire paragraph. Anyway, I actually can't find an e-mail address for Fr. Jenkins, but the phone number for the office of the president is 574-631-3903. Call and harass him if you love Notre Dame or gay people or ladies. I did find the e-mail address to Fr. Hesburgh, who is a living saint, and also for parking services, which I doubt will help any. Sorry to turn the entire blog today into a soapbox, but, fucking hell, it's time to stop being cavemen. I'll see if I can get an e-mail for Jenkins sometime this morning and let you all know.

Alright, now I need to calm down. (sound)

bullfrog

Those damned vaginas and their constant chatter...

You know, one thing wrong with going to a school as liberal as New Paltz was, is finding out just how conservative the rest of the world is. Ouch man, the world is cold and cruel.

Additionally, my rock-solid Catholic education taught me that Vatican II said that all people, regardless of sexual orientation, should be treated equal.

Um, how is this equal??

Well, MNP, it's not like there's a Penis Monologues to even things out.

Kidding, obviously. Also, as one of my roommates was famous for talking about his junk all the time, it's fair to say there was a Penis Monologue running 24-7 in my room junior year.

I just got an email from the office of the president discussing his talk on "academic freedom". here's the response form

http://president.nd.edu/academic-freedom/alumn i-respond/