Message-Id: <199610171957.NAA26751@csf.Colorado.EDU>
From: "Timothy M. Chester" <tmc7049@acs.tamu.edu>
To: "Socgrad Network" <socgrad@csf.colorado.edu>
Subject: T.R. Young's Future Departure
Date: Thu, 17 Oct 1996 15:00:28 -0500
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To the group,

After reading T.R.'s decision, I must admit that I have developed some very
strong feelings towards this situation, thus, I some of this may be in
somewhat harsh terms.

Those of you out there who have challenged T.R. based on some type of
"power-reflexive" stance have done a great disservice to the list, and
graduate students in general.  This incident  is nothing more than another
example of "critical theory" gone wrong.  You can take this crap too damn
far, and it has been done in this case.

T.R. Young was out in the streets of this country challenging capitalists,
exploiters, and fighting for the oppressed before any of us were ever even
thought of.  And now, for him to be berated because Christian perceived
that he "takes a position of power" relative to the rest of the list is
nothing more than a bunch of mindless gibberish.  For someone to claim that
he may be "oppressing" graduate students through his lectures is nothing
but bullshit.  It would be allot better of those of you who have nothing to
do but be critical of everything you encounter find something else to do
with your time.  This excessiveness is killing critical theory today, and
if you don't believe it talk to a couple of editors at publishing houses. 
Critical theory today is not selling anywhere near it was ten or even five
years ago, because it excesses are again beginning to outweigh its
advantages.  This is what killed the sixties movement.

None of this probably makes much sense, but we are far worse for the
actions of a few who subscribe from this list.  You have done all of us a
great disservice.

Tim Chester  

______________________________________
Timothy M. Chester
Department of Sociology
Texas A&M University
College Station, TX 77845-4351
(409) 845-5133 (Voice)
(409) 862-2285 (FAX)
tmc7049@acs.tamu.edu (Email)