Professor pushing politics. Report or leave it alone?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:In an MBA program, and as you likely know, businesspeople skew conservative. Fine. I’m taking an economics class, and my professor uses every opportunity to denigrate economic controls, government regulations, etc. He’s described Bernie Sanders as sympathetic to assassins and dismissed the Green New Deal as absurd (which it may be), and of AOC he questions the “wisdom and foresight” of a “29-year-old whose previous work experience was bartending.”

I think it’s one thing to foster healthy, fair debate on issues, but he’s so anti-liberal and frankly anti-government it’s becoming difficult to focus on the lessons. Should I talk to him? Talk to administration? Or just leave it alone?

I'm sure you've seen your fair share of liberal/leftist professors. What did you do in that case?

Believe it or not, the vast majority of liberal-leaning professors don't make blatantly partisan political statements, don't denigrate individual politicians, and don't push radical views about government. It's not germane to the material.

In my experience, most conservatives get triggered by liberal-leaning professors when the class begins the economic or historical analysis of economic and political decisions made by leaders/parties. But, at that point, you're examining historical records and the record is very poor for conservative leaders. Sad.

HAHAHAHAHAHA. As a libertarian, I wholeheartedly disagree with you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:In an MBA program, and as you likely know, businesspeople skew conservative. Fine. I’m taking an economics class, and my professor uses every opportunity to denigrate economic controls, government regulations, etc. He’s described Bernie Sanders as sympathetic to assassins and dismissed the Green New Deal as absurd (which it may be), and of AOC he questions the “wisdom and foresight” of a “29-year-old whose previous work experience was bartending.”

I think it’s one thing to foster healthy, fair debate on issues, but he’s so anti-liberal and frankly anti-government it’s becoming difficult to focus on the lessons. Should I talk to him? Talk to administration? Or just leave it alone?

Can you, at the end of the semester, send a letter to the department chair, saying that his emphasis on politics detracted from the subject matter he was supposed to teach? You're taking an economics class, after all, not a political science class. And your comment would apply just as much to a professor who was supposed to be teaching economics but instead spent all of his time talking about how Bernie Sanders's emphasis on economic factors over everything else in 2016 was correct and how AOC should be the next speaker of the House tomorrow.

OMG don't do this. The department chair will laugh at this over a beer with his colleague. Just FYI, Department Chairs in universities are typically rotational positions among tenured faculty. The Department chair is not this professor's superior. If you want to go this route, send it to the Dean of Academics or some other such person (though that won't matter either, honestly.)

The best thing to do if you want to effect change here is to speak directly to the professor on the evaluation. Explain that you enjoyed learning from him but found his unnecessary injections of partisan political opinions distracting from the core content. If he cares about that, he'll adjust. If he doesn't, he won't. But at least you've said it.

[Anonymous]

Give me a break. For every one professor pushing conservative views, there are probably hundreds of leftists pushing theirs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are you at George Mason?

That entire department is funded by the Koch Brothers. They are paid to repeat that drivel ad nauseam.

Totally false. Go and see. Besides, OP said she was in an MBA program, not econ. Here's the MBA faculty at George Mason. BTW, all students should be exposed to all sides of the argument in all fields. Most universities fail at this. You won't succeed in the job market if you don't understand all sides of an issue. http://business.gmu.edu/mba-programs/faculty/

Perhaps not the economics department, but they have outsize influence at that university. And as a funder demanded approval over some faculty hires -- something that is highly unusual. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/01/us/koch-george-mason-university.html

The Mercatus Center, in particular, has drawn support from politically active conservatives.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:In an MBA program, and as you likely know, businesspeople skew conservative. Fine. I’m taking an economics class, and my professor uses every opportunity to denigrate economic controls, government regulations, etc. He’s described Bernie Sanders as sympathetic to assassins and dismissed the Green New Deal as absurd (which it may be), and of AOC he questions the “wisdom and foresight” of a “29-year-old whose previous work experience was bartending.”

I think it’s one thing to foster healthy, fair debate on issues, but he’s so anti-liberal and frankly anti-government it’s becoming difficult to focus on the lessons. Should I talk to him? Talk to administration? Or just leave it alone?

I'm sure you've seen your fair share of liberal/leftist professors. What did you do in that case?

I have never experienced partisanship on this level - openly broadcast and discussed - by a professor while in class.

The fact of the matter is that partisan political views are NOT germane to 99% of material discussed in economics, political science, philosophy, or history classes. It simply doesn't have a place because it has zero relevance.

In an econ class, you are studying various economical models and the proof-of-work behind each model.

AOC's New Green Deal has zero relevance. And neither does Trump's stance on various issues. I'd be disappointed by a professor who injected any partisan views into a lecture, regardless of party allegiance. Anyone who does so is a small person relishing in the smidge of authority they have over their captive audience of students. Lame.

Zero relevance? Or maybe he's using them as examples.

Agree 100%. Claiming that AOC's Green New Deal has zero relevance to economics sounds like something AOC would claim! LOL She doesn't want the economics of such a plan to be considered relevant, but it IS. It's entirely relevant. Because such a plan is, on it's face, laughable and ridiculous without considering the economic impact of implementation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What are you going to report? He's arguing in favor of capitalism and against regulation, which history has proven works??? You will look like an idiot. Stop judging from a snowflake perspective and you might actually learn something

Doesn't sound like it. He's saying flip, unsubstantiated comments about individual politicians it sounds like. Doesn't sound very mature or professional. Maybe that's easier though then doing an academic lecture on the virtues of trickle down, since there aren't any.

OP give specific examples on the evals. Also I would feel free to check his personal political comments. He might get tired of making them if he knows he will be checked.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:In an MBA program, and as you likely know, businesspeople skew conservative. Fine. I’m taking an economics class, and my professor uses every opportunity to denigrate economic controls, government regulations, etc. He’s described Bernie Sanders as sympathetic to assassins and dismissed the Green New Deal as absurd (which it may be), and of AOC he questions the “wisdom and foresight” of a “29-year-old whose previous work experience was bartending.”

I think it’s one thing to foster healthy, fair debate on issues, but he’s so anti-liberal and frankly anti-government it’s becoming difficult to focus on the lessons. Should I talk to him? Talk to administration? Or just leave it alone?

I'm sure you've seen your fair share of liberal/leftist professors. What did you do in that case?

I have never experienced partisanship on this level - openly broadcast and discussed - by a professor while in class.

The fact of the matter is that partisan political views are NOT germane to 99% of material discussed in economics, political science, philosophy, or history classes. It simply doesn't have a place because it has zero relevance.

In an econ class, you are studying various economical models and the proof-of-work behind each model.

AOC's New Green Deal has zero relevance. And neither does Trump's stance on various issues. I'd be disappointed by a professor who injected any partisan views into a lecture, regardless of party allegiance. Anyone who does so is a small person relishing in the smidge of authority they have over their captive audience of students. Lame.

Zero relevance? Or maybe he's using them as examples.

Agree 100%. Claiming that AOC's Green New Deal has zero relevance to economics sounds like something AOC would claim! LOL She doesn't want the economics of such a plan to be considered relevant, but it IS. It's entirely relevant. Because such a plan is, on it's face, laughable and ridiculous without considering the economic impact of implementation.

And the economic impact of not implementing the best parts of the plan.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:In an MBA program, and as you likely know, businesspeople skew conservative. Fine. I’m taking an economics class, and my professor uses every opportunity to denigrate economic controls, government regulations, etc. He’s described Bernie Sanders as sympathetic to assassins and dismissed the Green New Deal as absurd (which it may be), and of AOC he questions the “wisdom and foresight” of a “29-year-old whose previous work experience was bartending.”

I think it’s one thing to foster healthy, fair debate on issues, but he’s so anti-liberal and frankly anti-government it’s becoming difficult to focus on the lessons. Should I talk to him? Talk to administration? Or just leave it alone?

I'm sure you've seen your fair share of liberal/leftist professors. What did you do in that case?

Believe it or not, the vast majority of liberal-leaning professors don't make blatantly partisan political statements, don't denigrate individual politicians, and don't push radical views about government. It's not germane to the material.

In my experience, most conservatives get triggered by liberal-leaning professors when the class begins the economic or historical analysis of economic and political decisions made by leaders/parties. But, at that point, you're examining historical records and the record is very poor for conservative leaders. Sad.

HAHAHAHAHAHA. As a libertarian, I wholeheartedly disagree with you.

I have never heard a professor bash a sitting politician in the middle of their lecture. And I studied political science at NYU. I have heard professors express their personal views while enjoying an end-of-semester beer. But that is personal time and not the same as forcing students to listen to political rants.

The fact of the matter is that no serious professor does this sort of garbage, liberal or conservative. It's un-professional and distracts from the content of the course. Similarly, I don't rant about partisan politics in my office; it's not professional.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:In an MBA program, and as you likely know, businesspeople skew conservative. Fine. I’m taking an economics class, and my professor uses every opportunity to denigrate economic controls, government regulations, etc. He’s described Bernie Sanders as sympathetic to assassins and dismissed the Green New Deal as absurd (which it may be), and of AOC he questions the “wisdom and foresight” of a “29-year-old whose previous work experience was bartending.”

I think it’s one thing to foster healthy, fair debate on issues, but he’s so anti-liberal and frankly anti-government it’s becoming difficult to focus on the lessons. Should I talk to him? Talk to administration? Or just leave it alone?

I'm sure you've seen your fair share of liberal/leftist professors. What did you do in that case?

I have never experienced partisanship on this level - openly broadcast and discussed - by a professor while in class.

The fact of the matter is that partisan political views are NOT germane to 99% of material discussed in economics, political science, philosophy, or history classes. It simply doesn't have a place because it has zero relevance.

In an econ class, you are studying various economical models and the proof-of-work behind each model.

AOC's New Green Deal has zero relevance. And neither does Trump's stance on various issues. I'd be disappointed by a professor who injected any partisan views into a lecture, regardless of party allegiance. Anyone who does so is a small person relishing in the smidge of authority they have over their captive audience of students. Lame.

Zero relevance? Or maybe he's using them as examples.

Agree 100%. Claiming that AOC's Green New Deal has zero relevance to economics sounds like something AOC would claim! LOL She doesn't want the economics of such a plan to be considered relevant, but it IS. It's entirely relevant. Because such a plan is, on it's face, laughable and ridiculous without considering the economic impact of implementation.

If you're studying the GDP model (GDP = C + G + I + NX), then you can generally use (1) increases in government spending or (2) tax cuts to model out changes to GDP. Every intro macroeconomic class does this. There's no need to bring up partisan political issues or even mention individual politicians.

An economic class should give students insight on how policy choices can affect economies, along with all the usual caveats about the unknowns and second-order effects of choices. But no econ professor should be indoctrinating students with partisan views. That's just grossly unprofessional.

The right way to approach this if you're a professor: "The recent Green New Deal supported by some politicians is expected to cost $XXX. Can anyone tell me what effects this may have on GDP in the short term? What are possible long term effects, including 2nd order implications? What does the academic literature show when it comes to large infrastructure spending?"

The goal of a professor is to lead students to an evidence-based answer that they discover for themselves. This professor is bad because he's dictating an answer instead of inspiring rational inquiry.

[Anonymous]

^^^ this is what a good professor will do.

Just took economics and looked at the positive and negative affects on tariffs.

We discussed the debt ceiling and why the fed was not moving the interest rate.

Nobody was saying one way was right or wrong just how each move affects the bottom line and who benefits and who doesn’t benefit.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are you at George Mason?

That entire department is funded by the Koch Brothers. They are paid to repeat that drivel ad nauseam.

Totally false. Go and see. Besides, OP said she was in an MBA program, not econ. Here's the MBA faculty at George Mason. BTW, all students should be exposed to all sides of the argument in all fields. Most universities fail at this. You won't succeed in the job market if you don't understand all sides of an issue. http://business.gmu.edu/mba-programs/faculty/

Perhaps not the economics department, but they have outsize influence at that university. And as a funder demanded approval over some faculty hires -- something that is highly unusual. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/01/us/koch-george-mason-university.html

The Mercatus Center, in particular, has drawn support from politically active conservatives.

Like James M Buchanan?

[Anonymous]

I wouldn't go to the administration, but I would comment on his evaluation-which is usually seen by the head of the department (whether they care is another matter). When I was teaching at the college level, I got some feedback that some students found me overly partisan. I did work to balance my approach after than-not altering my personal analysis of the material, but 1) making sure I represented a number of key perspectives, and 2) being very clear with students that grades were not connected to holding a certain political viewpoint.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Give me a break. For every one professor pushing conservative views, there are probably hundreds of leftists pushing theirs.

Academic and department chair here. I'd be concerned if the materials being taught showed some form of partisan bias -- if, for example, the guy was assigning Breitbart or something in place of peer-reviewed academic journals, reputable textbooks, and books from academic presses. THis is the only thing that might conceivably be addressed by a higher up. But the general sort of remarks? Frankly, if you're in an MBA program, I"d be asking you why YOU're not raising your hand and disagreeing with the professor if you disagree with him. I'd expect you to do that with a professor on the left or on the right. That's what grad students do. You're an adult. It sounds a bit strange that you're concerned about "the teacher" and that you're looking for a principal or someone to report this too. Are you sure you're actually the grad student and not the student's mother? This sounds like someone who helicoptered through their child's high school and college and now wants to helicopter through grad school with Junior.

[Anonymous]

Now you know what it's like to be a conservative in a liberal world. We have to listen to that kind of shit all the time. It's incessant. Learn to ignore it. That's what we do!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:In an MBA program, and as you likely know, businesspeople skew conservative. Fine. I’m taking an economics class, and my professor uses every opportunity to denigrate economic controls, government regulations, etc. He’s described Bernie Sanders as sympathetic to assassins and dismissed the Green New Deal as absurd (which it may be), and of AOC he questions the “wisdom and foresight” of a “29-year-old whose previous work experience was bartending.”

I think it’s one thing to foster healthy, fair debate on issues, but he’s so anti-liberal and frankly anti-government it’s becoming difficult to focus on the lessons. Should I talk to him? Talk to administration? Or just leave it alone?

I'm sure you've seen your fair share of liberal/leftist professors. What did you do in that case?

Believe it or not, the vast majority of liberal-leaning professors don't make blatantly partisan political statements, don't denigrate individual politicians, and don't push radical views about government. It's not germane to the material.

In my experience, most conservatives get triggered by liberal-leaning professors when the class begins the economic or historical analysis of economic and political decisions made by leaders/parties. But, at that point, you're examining historical records and the record is very poor for conservative leaders. Sad.

HAHAHAHAHAHA. As a libertarian, I wholeheartedly disagree with you.

I have never heard a professor bash a sitting politician in the middle of their lecture. And I studied political science at NYU. I have heard professors express their personal views while enjoying an end-of-semester beer. But that is personal time and not the same as forcing students to listen to political rants.

The fact of the matter is that no serious professor does this sort of garbage, liberal or conservative. It's un-professional and distracts from the content of the course. Similarly, I don't rant about partisan politics in my office; it's not professional.

LOL, you're totally full of shit. I did undergrad and six years of grad school, and I heard professors, during lecture, bash sitting politicians many, many times. Mostly liberals hating on Republicans, for the obvious reason that most professors are Democrats.