How about the thousands who sufferred as a result of terrorism on Sept.
11th? Do you have any feelings for them?  Please read my response to Fuad.
When the tiger attacks you, do you deal with it in "civil tone and reasoned
argument?  All I was concerned was about stopping terrorism against the
United States of America.  Please interpret my concern properly. Goodluck
to you!

At 11:10 AM 8/30/03 -0400, Robert Duffy wrote:
>I would like to associate myself with Professors Moughrabi's and
>Ahmadi's critiques of Professor Geevarghese's recent comments on
>Raven. I especially admire their civil tone and reasoned argument. If
>we are to be worthy of the the mission of a university, we must
>engage in vigorous, reasoned, passionate and at times provocative
>debate of controversial matters. Basic civility must be the very
>minimal standard of this engagement.
>
>In a time before institutions like ours embraced the ethic of the
>corporate world that dictates faster and more efficient delivery of
>product, universities allowed for more deliberate and contemplative
>examination of the complexity of our existence.  This was  part of
>what made us a distinct and prized asset to our communities.
>Productivity, competition and efficiency have their place, but if
>universities are to maintain their unique role in society, we must
>demand of ourselves and of the institution the time, discipline and
>resources necessary for thoughtful inquiry and civil discourse.
>
>While e-mail may be my favorite technological development of the last
>half century, it does not seem conducive to meaningful debate and may
>be prone to the disfunction characteristic of much of our modern
>media.  I cannot tell if Prof. Geevargese's comments are the product
>of unfortunate e-mail rhetorical excess or bigotry unworthy of this
>forum. I hope and trust it is not the latter.  But, if we adopt (even
>here on Raven) the tactics that prevail in what passes for debate on
>talk-radio and cable TV, we will have joined a slum of the mind from
>which we will find it difficulty to escape.
>
>Robert Duffy
>UC Foundation Professor and Head
>Department of Theatre and Speech
>319 Fine Arts Center #1401
>University of Tennessee, Chattanooga
>615 McCallie Avenue
>Chattanooga, TN 37403
>Phone:  423-425-4297
>Fax:  423-425-4295
>Email: [log in to unmask]
>
>