A Thoughtful, Insightful, and (Painfully) Timely Discourse

As a member of the Class of 1974 (I took a leave of absence and graduated with the Class of '76), I remember well the hoopla that arose from the fact that our incoming class had the highest number of Black and Latino students admitted into the freshman class, as well as being the first class to admit women as part of the incoming class. I remember reading about the misguided efforts of some alumni to "make Princeton great again," but what I remember more are the efforts of various faculty and administration members to ensure that we were successful, both academically and socially. Those of us who were there know the names well and remember them fondly. But I have no doubt that on the other side of the circle, there were those that were less enlightened and forward-thinking that wanted to see this "experiment" fail.

The integration of the internet and the associated electronic social media into our daily lives is undeniably a double-edged sword. Along with all the wondrous possibilities, the advent of so-called "fake news" is troublesome and threatens to tear at the fabric of society on a global scale. While there were once "guardians at the gates" (or, at least, we believed there were -- think Walter Cronkite) to prevent widespread dissemination of patently false and otherwise misleading propaganda (aka lies), the lid is off Pandora's box and every vile, ridiculous, vicious, outlandish utterance presently has a global platform.

By reviewing some of Princeton's history, this insightful article sheds some much-needed light on how views held by a few can morph into accepted fact by many, and the need for proper analysis of so-called facts independent of whether or not they support one's thinking (which, admittedly, can be difficult to do). I am left with the words of George Clinton of Parliament-Funkadelic fame ringing in my ears ..."Think! It ain't illegal (yet)!"