MIT past president L. Rafael Reif has quite a track record of standing on principle.
How did he respond to the infamous Obama Department of Education “Dear Colleague” letter threatening loss of federal funding? He folded up like a cheap suitcase, initiating a due process free/guilty until proven innocent reign of terror against college men accused of sexual harassment.
What did he do when he got caught taking donations from Jeffrey Epstein? He went on a DEI Dean hiring binge to mollify the radical feminist professors clamoring for his head.
What was his reaction when federal funding agencies began demanding diversity statements in grant proposals? He began supporting such statements for faculty hiring. (Which remained in place until his successor banned them a year ago.)
As the Obama and Biden administrations ramped up their disparate impact jihad favoring preferred identities, what was his response? He initiated virtual quota systems and a racial tracking “Diversity Dashboard.”
But wait, there’s more.
He set up an anonymous reporting system to launch investigations against students and professors accused of “harmful” speech.
He acquiesced to the cancellation of Professor Dorian Abbot when far-left Twitter mobs erupted over his mere mention of restoring merit-based hiring and admissions.
He kowtowed to race-grifter-in-chief Chancellor Melissa Nobles’ campaign to declare MIT and all of science systemically racist, requiring reparative remediation.
But that was then. Now that he’s retired he’s standing strong against government meddling in university affairs!
In a blistering Op-Ed in the Boston Glob, he savaged the Trump administration’s proposed Compact for Academic Excellence.
The rank hypocrisy would be humorous if this was a satire publication.
Wait a minute… this is a satire publication! What’s a brutal tongue lashing of MIT’s worst president in history doing here? I want to speak to the manager.
Regular samizdat programming will return in the next Beaver dropping.