Go ahead … believe what you want. After all, this is an institution of higher learning:
Meanwhile, faculty member Todd Palmer notified four-year Ph.D. student Bethany Robinson (OSU grade point average 3.89) that he was terminating her thesis work and taking all of her work in progress for himself.
“Science has no prejudices”
No, but scientists do.
Just wondering if all those on the board and these instructors at OSU were out smoking some of that west coast weed instead of attending their business ethics classes?
glacierman, likely they attended ethics class and smoked weed.
On the left there is only one truth: the left wing agenda is supreme. Everything else is a narrative to be spun in support of this agenda. Any lapses on the way are noble if they advance the cause. Anybody that expresses a contrary view is personally/morally evil.
That is ethics as taught and practiced by the left.
Well I realize that research and discoveries made in a university environment are the property of the university, there is something wrong when said work can be passed on to others to take credit for. I’d figure the ethics board would be all over this as any questionable actions could affect future and existing grants and funding. I am not talking only about government grants but lots of major corporations also fund research in the hopes of using the results to further their business. A questionable past does not a good patent make.
CJunk:
With names like Joshua, Bethany, and Matthew, I thought there was probably just a little more to this story than what you stated on your blog. Therefore, I clicked through to the WND site and read the story there.
These incidents may have been more likely because Higley had failed to report to OSU authorities an earlier instance of milder sexual harassment against Bethany, probably because Bethany – a brilliant but very mild-mannered, conservative, homeschooled Christian young lady – does not share Higley’s views.
It certainly is no surprise to me that these are children from a Christian family. I will not go so far as to state that there is an all-out war by the left against any professing Christian at the centres of “higher” learning, but, in the case where there is an actual incident, my first instincts are that the family is a Christian family. Even if the trouble were being done to only an individual instead of an entire family, the probability would be high that the student would be a Christian student, but the fact that this is happenning to all three members of the same family would lead anyone familiar with the tactics of the left to suspect that a Christian family was the intended target. I will not go so far as to say that a Christian family is the only target of the left – only the target that the left feels most passionate about. Therefore, coupled with the strong hint in the names of the children, I was hardly surprised by the sentence I quoted above. That the family is/was a homeschooling Christian family is probably one of the worst kinds of conservatives – from the perspective of those who are doing this type of thing at the University.
I have long felt that a policy of separation of State and money (as does SDA commenter Me No Dhimmi) is an excellent policy. I have also long felt that a policy of separation of State and Education is also a good policy as far as pre-University is concerned. It is only in the last decade that I have become persuaded that a policy of complete separation of State and Education (at all levels) is a worthwhile objective. This story only confirms that view.
Progressive taking the academic work of others, and this isn’t actionable in a civil court why exactly?
Brent Weston says “I will not go so far as to state that there is an all-out war by the left against any professing Christian at the centres of “higher” learning”…”
OK. But I will
I took a class that required an original project. The Prof was well known for applying for grants based on that work. He usually waited until the student’s graduated though so I guess he had some morals.
What’s that smell? Lawsuits and a big obligation from a broke institution.
I’m with Rose. How is this not actionable? How would the university donors (or the state, if it’s truly in the state system) feel about faculty stealing research from students and claiming it as their own? If they’re misappropriating funding that was intended for that research, doesn’t that fall into the realm of criminal fraud?
so imagine if these kids dad was a muslim and they received their elementary education in a jihadi loving school?
These criminal progressives would be falling over backwards to kiss their butts and boost their marks and profiles.
Progressive . . just another word for criminal.
Oregon State…isn’t that where FLOTUS’s brother is the head men’s basketball coach?
Joey @ 11:17
LOL
“…this isn’t actionable in a civil court why exactly? ” Rose
It certainly is actionable, and there should be a public interest lawsuit filed on behalf of the Robinson children. ” Justice for the Robinson’s ” would be a descriptive and concise name for a fund collecting fees to finance the lawsuit.
Peter DeFazio, and, every senior member of the administration, down the chain of command through the nuke engineering, and the other departments where the children are studying should be named as defendants, and deposed, to find out what went on here, and what due process rules of the university were violated, as well as to establish the grounds for the civil ( and/or criminal case ) against Todd Palmer and others.
If OSU seeks a settlement of such a lawsuit, the plaintiff attorney should include a provision that a full history of the incident should be provided to any further PhD candidates who choose to apply to OSU for graduate studies, and to the parents of all present students at OSU, and Palmer, Higley, et al should be assigned probation officers from the university, whose responsibility would be to ensure absolutely scrupulous adherence to all relevant Federal and state laws and regulations of OSU in any dealings they have with students under their supervision. If it turns out that somehow Higley, and Palmer did not violate school regulations through their conduct, the consent agreement must require that OSU put in place regulations to assure the civil rights of future students are not similarly violated.
” Nice ” little police state they run there, at OSU. Wonder if the voters are aware of it; wonder if the parents of present students are aware of it.
Guys, guys guys. Chill.
This whole story is clearly a hoax. Absolutely not believable. Why, the giveaway’s in the second paragraph:
“…militant feminist and chairman of the nuclear engineering department…”
Seriously, what institute of higher learning would put a militant feminist in charge of a nuclear reactor?
/sarc, for those who need it
This sort of thing has been going on for at least thirty years, because it is exactly the reason that I couldn’t get the least bit interested in chasing additional degrees, even in a relatively conservative institution. The system itself is based on too many people in open competition for any perceived advantage they might imagine. So naive students commit years of their lives on projects that never had a chance of any success whatsoever just so a “sponsoring professor” can pad up his/her resume.
An interesting article on Art Robinson, the father of the Robinson children can be found at Gateway Pundit.
Apparently Mr. Robinson just is not down for DeFazio’s vision of a ” just society “.
Following are the first few lines of the article:
” Art Robinson had the gall to run for Congress in Oregon against far-left Democrat Peter DeFazio, co-founder of the House Progressive Caucus. Now the Oregon progressives are targeting his children….”
You can read more about DeFazio’s thuggish tactics at Gateway Pundit, if you have a strong stomach:
http://gatewaypundit.rightnetwork.com/2011/03/disgusting-leftists-move-to-have-prominent-republicans-children-expelled-from-state-university/
I came across the story a couple of days ago, and was struck by it as well. Still, I would be cautious about accepting only one side of the story here. It’s painted in such an egregiously extreme manner that it can’t be wholly exactly as described.
The American legal system gives anyone and their uncle a chance to sue anyone, and based on contingency fees there will always be a lawyer to take the case.
If this situation is as painted, there will be a legal case. If there is no legal case,then the situation is not as described.
I’m of your opinion old Lori.
Maybe the University Of Waterloo could call Todd Palmer, and find a way to stop paying hundreds of thousands of tax dollars to this guy.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HBNzIW3cnng
(Noogies be upon them, if he can’t)
I sincerely hope that the Robinson family makes the lives of every relevant person a hellish nightmare of lawsuits.
Still, I would be cautious about accepting only one side of the story here. It’s painted in such an egregiously extreme manner that it can’t be wholly exactly as described.
Posted by: old Lori at March 8, 2011 12:33 PM
Of course, this is always good policy.
However, though I have an extremely vivid imagination, for the life of me I can’t imagine “on the other hand” mitigating circumstances which would result in all three high-performing children being run out of their post-graduate courses.
Recall that Duke University La Crosse (sp?) team — white guys charged with rape by the black hooker. All (?) or a very large fraction of the faculty found them guilty — in full page ads — before their trials. The prosecutor Nifong (sp?) was disbarred. There wasn’t an iota of truth in the charges.
SO, I would be cautious about taking a cautious stance here!
old lori –
From the Eugene, OR Register Guard newspaper:
” Robinson further alleges that Jack Higginbotham, a nuclear engineering professor and OSU Faculty Senate president, warned the family that OSU was targeting the three students. ”
old lori, isn’t there cause for an investigation, here? I think you may have read an incomplete description of the details, here. Where did you get your information from?
You don’t seem to be at all concerned that the 3 Robinson children, all of whom suddenly face immediate expulsion from OSU, should have any advocate inside the system, and must instead rely on an attorney they must pay to hire?
It is easy to see why DeFazio may want this to become a court case in time for his next run against their father, but the children deserve justice, and an impartial review of their situation. Maybe you are right, and OSU did nothing wrong. But the 3 students should not have to bear this burden alone.
I’ve seen this Art Robinson fellow interviewed on TV prior to the the November elections, and he is clearly not a politician and didn’t really come across that effectively.
Still, I believe the article he has written, for if it weren’t true, would he not open himself up for a lawsuit? Also, in his article, he didn’t ask for money to help launch a lawsuit against OSU. Rather he was looking for support for his children and on a supporting OSU professor’s behalf.
The guy has five kids, and all either have their PhD or are PhD candidates (all science-based disciplines from vet med, to chemistry to nuclear engineering)…there is some brain power in that family).
Art Robinson created a successful home schooling curriculum (as proved by his children) which is a threat to progressive ideals.
Non-brainwashed free thinkers have no place in their new world order.
Theft by any other name….
Small c conservative, I’m not saying there isn’t fire behind this smoke.
I’m just saying that when things sound this extremely unfair, alleging a conspiracy that spans an entire University’s leadership, I always get a bit wary.
I also have some familiarity with universities and their running, and there are layers upon layers of bureaucrats and rules and tribunals that address this type of issue.
The lawyers will have to sort this out, and as this case has had prominent publicity, I doubt the Robinsons will have a hard time getting well motivated legal representation.
I am no fan of lefty group think social engineering minded university do-nothing types.
My understanding is that at least in Canada copyright is created with the creation of a document; so the Robinsons probably have a case.
As old Lori says, most universities are very sensitive about intellectual property issues;
and intellectual property rights are likely to prevail, even in a far-left institution.
One hopes.
What suprises me is that this is happening in an Engineering department. They usually can’t be bothered with politics. Granted that three sibling students are being rammed out at the same time does smack of the polictal ham handedness that Engineers are well known for.
I mean, it’s beyond obvious. One student being sent out, definately happens. Two students starts to get a bit suspicious. But all three? They might as well post a notice letting all students with the last name Robinson know that they’re being sent away.
As for the reclamation of the work done by the students. That’s par for the course. In an academic setting, your research isn’t yours. You get to put your name on it (typically below your sponser’s name), but it “belongs” to the University. So don’t design patentable things while in school. Test your ideas there, but save your final product for when you’re out of there. Granted that’s harder when you’re doing nuclear work as the DHS frowns on home made reactors.
I’m an Oregon State Alum (Chemical and Civil/Environmental Engineering), and this story really gets my hackles up. While the withholding of credit for grad-student research is distasteful, it goes on all the time. The actions to, in effect, destroy the academic careers of three high-performing students and one tenured professor are completely over-the-top.
I have advised the OSU alumni association that this political vendetta will have a negative impact on on my future donations to the school, and I have also contacted other alumni to let them know of this outrageous behavior going on withing the faculty and administration.
IF things are as stated, then the Robinsons will very likely be the recipients of a rather lucrative settlement, either in or out of court.
This type of thing is the reason we have courts, after all.
If things are as stated, some people need to get fired, tenure or no tenure.
“…some people need to get fired, tenure or no tenure.”
The getting fired part is redundant if the university gets bankrupted by the settlement. Or even severely strained.
I’m an anonymous coward for the same reason incidentally. You can’t find a bigger bunch of brain-fried liberals than the medical biz in Ontario. NDP to the bone, baby.
Just a note on the Robinson family. Mrs. Robinson died of an acute hemorrhagic pancreatitis back in 1888 at the age of 43 when their youngest child was 17 months old or so. He chose to homeschool the children and wrote a heavy math-science curriculum from scratch, in spite of his wife having already written one from grades one through twelve.
Do you think this might be a little payback for having poked the public school system in the eye by having his children reach these levels of education? Mr. Robinson bucked the system and now the system is bucking back.
I believe OSU has just sown into a hurricane and they are about to have their house blown to kindling. This should be fun to watch!!!
oops! 1888 should be 1988!
I commented to Oregon State U, and was directed to their official response… In a nutshell, it said something like… “nothing to see here folks, just move along”
While there is surely more than one side to this story, its time for the lawyers to sort it out. Either the Robinson family has been egregiously punished, or Robinson has engaged in egregious libel.
Considering the allegations that have been made, anything other than a full, public backdown by Robinson (or a verdict of libel with serious damages attached) will mean that the Nuclear Engineering Department has been behaving very, very badly.
Leftists are looters, not producers. It’s that simple.