The chancellor at the University of Wisconsin-Stout has rejected an ROTC program on UW Stout’s campus due to it’s supposed “intolerance”.
“The UW System on Monday began a review of Chancellor Charles Sorensen’s decision to reject an Army ROTC program to protest the military’s “don’t ask don’t tell” policy on gays.”
Republican Senators have responded in defense of the liberty the men and women who would have been in ROTC would protect:
Three Republican lawmakers said in a letter last week they were concerned the decision ‘is not only motivated by political correctness but by general anti-war sentiments.’”
…
Sens. Ron Brown of Eau Claire, Sheila Harsdorf of River Falls and Dave Zien of Eau Claire said in their letter that the decision could mean the loss of $16.3 million in federal funding for the campus.
The Chancellor responds with a typical out-of-touch, “crusader for diversity” statement.
“Sorensen said in a letter to lawmakers that he stands by his decision. He said allowing ROTC would be hypocritical at a time the 8,000-student campus at Menomonie in western Wisconsin is trying to promote ‘tolerance and diversity.’”
This decision pushes the entire UW-Stout community further into the ivory tower of academia. An ROTC program brings home the realities of military service to students on campus. Here at Marquette, I see students from all branches of the ROTC running, working out and taking military courses. It gives me even more respect for what they are doing and sacrificing for my safety and freedom.
It doesn’t surprise me that the “academic senate” at UW-Stout voted an ROTC program down 10-2. Do they pay tuition (which is reduced by scholarships from ROTC)? Do they agree with the fight for Iraqi freedom? Most likely not. This is the precise reason a program is so desperately needed, without at least some remnants of a military program, students and professors are entirely out of touch. These tenured professors and out of touch faculty need to be threatened with the $16.3 million of lost funding, it is about the only thing they will understand considering they are rejecting the programs that protect the very freedom they are abusing.
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Let’s presume that the Chancellor is a legitimate decision-making authority (so as to focus on the merits of his decision, and to set aside the issue of whether someone else should be able to overrule him). In his opinion, the costs of bringing Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, Don’t Pursue to UW-Stout outweigh the benefits of having students enroll in ROTC. While you’ve articulated some perceived benefits of having a small number of students on campus participate in ROTC, you haven’t mounted a defense of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, Don’t Pursue. Until you do so, your cost-benefit analysis is incomplete.
As an active duty Naval Aviator and MU NROTC graduate this does not surprise me. The sad thing is that the Don’t Ask Don’t Tell regulation is being used as a convenient excuse by the liberal, academic elite to express their distain for the Military. The don‚Äôt ask policy is a law forced on the military by the left (Clinton), now the left are using it as an excuse to attack the military and isolate the academic environment from any competing influence. Like I said, it is sad.
Jim,
DADT was the result of a compromise between Clinton wishing to allow gays to serve without restriction and conservatives wanting to prohibit their participation entirely. Your explanation is a bit misleading; “the left” is criticizing the failure of the compromise, not the failure of their contribution to it.
The problem is the chancellor didn’t say “we can’t afford this program”. I don’t think thats even his issue. What isn’t known to the rest of you is that there is a group called “Red Cedar Peace Initiative”. They stand in front of UW-Stout every friday at noon wearing black and holding signs in protests to the war and to the military’s mission overseas. Some members from that group are in the CAC which is the Chancellors advisement board. Draw some conclusions… the “don’t ask don’t tell policy”statement is mostly likely just a mask for being anti-military. Another point to consider, the chancellor waited to deny ROTC the same week of exams… just when all the students are looking to go home! The whole thing is just rotten. I hope the Board of Regents and President Reiley take some action.
The Marshfield paper ran yet another story on this topic. It features one of the recruiters for the ROTC program that came to Stout back in February.
We have an update! Sorenson reversed it today.
http://www.wispolitics.com/index.iml?Article=37827