Friday, March 1, 2024

So much for the pursuit of excellence

 

It seems that the woke virus is as virulent as ever in academia.  The Daily Mail reports:


Britain's top universities warned staff and students that saying 'the most qualified person should get the job' is a microaggression. 

Russell Group universities, including the University of Glasgow, have issued guidance and even provided training courses to educate people on how to eliminate microaggressions.

Guidance from the Scottish university alongside the engineering department of Imperial College London insisted that using the phrase was discriminatory.

Glasgow University's guidance is the latest advice from their anti-racism campaign and the university explained that the phrase ignored the idea that race plays a part in life success.

The top universities said that other examples of microaggressions - subtle or thinly veiled everyday forms of discrimination could include telling people that 'everyone can succeed if they work hard enough'.


There's more at the link.

So, if I need critical surgery, I'm not allowed to select a surgeon on the basis of his or her qualifications or experience?  I'm not allowed to choose on the basis of which university, in which country, they attended?  I'll tell you for free, any brain surgeon who qualified from an alleged university in Lower Bongo (or Havana, for that matter) won't be getting my money when I can choose one who qualified at, say, Johns Hopkins!

The trouble is, this sort of nonsense has crept into corporate hiring all over the First World.  It's no longer good enough to be a top performer.  You have to be politically correct and woke as well if you're to have any hope of advancing to upper job levels.  Personally, I don't think it's worth it.

(Of course, if I were still able to be in the job market, I could always label myself as African-American to boost my chances.  Hey, despite my Caucasian appearance, I was born in Africa, and I'm now an American citizen - so I qualify, right?)

Peter


10 comments:

Elrod J. Penwhistle said...

While Abbie Hoffman was credited with the phrase "don't trust anyone over 30" it was actually Jack Weinberg who said it. In a quite interesting twist, we have now reached the point where the obverse is true: "Don't trust anyone under 50."

If one seeks competence, whether it is in medical, engineering, construction or any other field, the younger one is the more thoroughly they are corrupted and rendered incompetent - and not just useless but dangerous - by Wokeness and other Leftism..

Zaphod said...

Hate to break it to you, but the one who graduated from the best medical school in Havana in current year is probably safer pair of hands than most US Medical graduates now graduating. Selectivity and Academics both going to be more rigorous in Cuba than USA of 2020s despite Muh Boomer Boomings about Muh Communism.

As for Johns Hopkins... You *do* know where that is located, right? Lagos on the Chesapeake... I'm sure it's still very good... but every year there must be more of the best and brightest leaving for less diverse pastures.

It's not Morning in America. Jack Ryan's imaginary wife doesn't work there no more.

Uncle Lar said...

I have been known to remark that you, Elon Musk, and Charlise Theron are my three favorite African Americans.

Anonymous said...

Diversity replaced competence many years ago.

JG said...

Unfortunately academics, medicine, law, and other fields are too woke and have been affected by the dumbing down of America over time. Me and my wife had to tutor our two sons through school to teach them right. They later went to Trade Schools. My sister-n-law homeschooled my niece and nephew, and they have finished college.

People have to realize public school teaching is doing nothing for children. All parents must add personal time and teaching basics to children. The woke schools must be watched always.

Divemedic said...

This is an admission, of you think about it, that so-called POCs aren't as smart or talented as whites, therefore we have to select them instead of whites out of pity.

Jen said...

Hate to break it to you, but Hopkins is pretty bad with the melanin-over-competence virus right now. Their diploma worth about same as Hahvud.

Anonymous said...

Not being allowed to select - I seem to remember that during the Great Depression a person getting a chicken to take home for their next meal had to reach through a curtain and randomly grab one. This was to prevent those who were better at judging chickens from having an "unfair advantage" over those who didn't have that knowledge.

Aesop said...

20 years ago, this was comedy.

https://i.imgur.com/sqJV0Pn.png

Now it's official policy in Britistan.

Anonymous said...

There is a reason I determined partway through getting a PhD at the University of Edinburgh that I was walking away from academia. I got the PhD. I've never looked back. I am definitely poorer for that (the PhD was really only good for academia/museums) but I can sleep at night.