Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. day (today)

Who is Roget.

 

Good one, Ike.

 

He wrote a book...

Used by millions.

 

Re: He wrote a book...

Roget's Thesaurus? If that's what you mean, yes, I use it too.

Ike

 

I don't and didn't agree with MLK's politics but what you are saying of him is absurd. The racial situation in the U.S. was untenable and not sustainable. MLK did much to change that situation without the insurrection many expected.

If not him then who? Would you have maintained things as they were? If not then what would your plan have been to change things?

 

Re: Re: He wrote a book...

Yes, even if one does not agree with you; your delightful use of the full panoply of the English language makes your posts about MLK interesting and educational.

 

Re: Re: Re: MLK is a mere mortal like all of us but ....

Hi Ike - My only comment here is to point out that if you were to make the above statements you could not be considered to be unpatriotic. It is the height of patriotism to criticize the government. It is one of the founding principles of our country.
Similarly, MLK, Jr fought for the truth. All that is being said here is that his plagiarism is a fact, it is the truth. I personally believe that had he been alive when this truth was revealed, he would have been a big enough man to admit the truth, take the hit, and continue on. He doesn't require this defense you're making. His other works speak loudly enough in that effort.
Jack

 

Jack,
As for MLK: agreed. As for George W. : I reckon I would take "C"s from Yale or Harvard. As for the ability to speak my piece: God bless America....

 

I'll sidestep the hyperbole and innuendo that suggests I'm a racist. As I said before, if I'm labeled a racist then I've won the argument by default, since that means my opposition has nothing else to offer.

All I have to say is.....Martin Luther King, Jr. plagiarized roughly 1/3 of his doctoral dissertation at Boston University. That is a major league violation of any school's regulations.

I have stated that any member of this board who did the same thing would have had their degree revoked almost instantly. No one yet has disagreed with me.

As I have stated before, Martin Luther King, Jr. was an academic fraud. There is no arguing that. Does that diminish his other accomplishments? That's up to each of you to decide.

 

Of course, the last resort of the honorary doc has been mentioned earlier (to what end?).

It is unusual for live politicians to be called doctor so-and-so. Dr Howard "Eeeeeyaaahah" Dean is sometimes so mentioned, but one rarely hears of Dr Newt Gingrich, Dr Phil Gramm, or Dr Gary Hart being referred to as such.

The flamboyant and ill-grounded use of titles is, of course, a well-worn booster seat in Americana lore, so no one should begrudge Rev. King his, uh, doctorate. One thinks of

Sister Aimee
Major Bowes
Father Divine
Prophet Jones
Judge Rutherford
Colonel Sanders
General Sarnoff

It is perhaps a rickety pantheon, but serviceable for the republic.

 

I despise Howard Dean, but I will vote for him in the primary election in MA. I'm "unenrolled", which means I can take any ballot. Howard is my man!!!

 

and ...

"Uncle" Janko

 

No, that’s not my dictum. For the record, I never said that you are a racist. I have stated inter alia that you are perhaps neither a racist nor a wolf masquerading in sheep’s attire. The remarks that you referred to were intended for millions of racial supremacists (wherever they are), and yes, they abound in all colors. Deriding people is not in my character. I abhor acquiescing to unwarranted name-calling when I disagree with somebody. It’s absolutely improper to judge the character of people that you have never met. I only meet you in cyberspace and to call you a racist will be the height of whimsicality. Arguments are sometimes shaped by emotions rather than logic and perhaps that’s what I currently find myself doing. It’s proper sometimes to argue from our hearts. I also think that it is proper to criticize known character flaws of MLK and I don’t believe for a moment that this action approximates to racism, especially when it’s devoid of slurs. It’s wrong to pirate or copy someone’s work. MLK possibly may have plagiarized someone’s dissertation but his overall achievement for humanity clearly swallowed this extraneous blemish on his name. As an unapologetic admirer of MLK’s ideals and beliefs, and as an archetypical benefactor of his civil rights struggles, I will eternally hold his name in reverence, no matter what the world thinks about him.

Despite our disagreement on this issue, we appear to be in concurrence on at least two things: fighting and “outing” degree mills.

Ike Okonkwo, PhD

 

Re: Re: Re: Re: MLK is a mere mortal like all of us but ....

True, but unfortunately, the man is dead. I concur with your points.

Ike

 

I do not have more steam left in me to continue this argument. I am glad that most of us are enemies of degree mills. Let’s fight them instead.

Ike Okonkwo, PhD

 

I don't agree with this statement - There are plenty that I don't have to meet and know their character. Most people have not met political leaders, Mother Teresa, The Unibomber, but could make a fair assessment of their character... by their actions.

 

Yes, oxpecker, but I am not a luminary, merely a dim bulb--who hasn't yet plagiarized a dissertation, or mattered historically.

 

My statement may come across as a cockeyed hyperbole if public figures and renowned men and women are not excluded. We have to keep in mind that unwavering biographies and articles that dissect the lives and characters of these people abound. We can cull stories about these people from several sources (TV, Internet, radio, books, etc). Bruce lacks the level of publicity that these people command.

Do I have to meet Unibomber before I could judge his character? Nay:

 

Agreed.

 

Ike wrote:

> Was MLK entitled to the due process? Yes. Did MLK have the
> opportunity to exercise his rights of the due process? The
> answer is no because MLK is no longer alive and we will never
> hear his side of the story. [...] If MLK were to be alive today, I
> am sure that the committee will like to hear what he has to say
> before revoking the degree.

My thoughts exactly! Dead people's degrees should not be revoked, period. (That wasn't the basis for the committee's decision, but it should have been.)

Bruce wrote:

> I have stated that any member of this board who did the
> same thing would have had their degree revoked almost
> instantly. No one yet has disagreed with me.

I'll disagree. If MLK hadn't become famous, no one would have looked up his dusty old thesis, and the plagiarism would not have been discovered.

As universities get around to making dusty old theses computer-searchable, a lot more plagiarized theses will emerge. Should universities convene committees to revoke each and every one of those degrees, or do they have better ways to spend their time?