A Student Remembers a Great Teacher

Chowk Staff and board readers,

My apologies for this digression. Please be assured that it is my last correspondence with this interactor.

PM,

Begged, cajoled, demanded and basically whipped yourself up into a hysterical froth worthy of a Julia Childean mousse. Heres your post:

``...Funny how some ppl can find endless time and bandwidth to `defend honor`, but not a word when confronted with evidence that challenges their notion of `truth` in some controversial area-- especially if the evidence should somehow put their own agenda and discourse in an unfavorable light...``

and now I am waiting for you to deny that you are not in your convoluted way trying to point out that adult relationships are a kind of oppressive hegemony.

For the record PM, and you`d best keep this post under your pillow because this is the last bone I throw to you, I UNDERSTAND that adults have initiated children into relationships the moment anyone could coin the phrase ``power imbalance`` and I still dont agree with it. Nor am I in any mood to argue with you about it. If I am part of the oppressive hegemony and their binaries in this particular case, so be it. I`m with those dreaded gays and lesbians who are capable of having relationships with adults and do so.

If you dont like it, tough shite. Now move the freak on.

SmainaTL,
I think you`ve amply demostrated your shamlessness and hypocrisy for all to see. So I won`t bother trying to eke some honourable action out of you anymore. (Unless I have another day with absolutely nothing to do again) and I will leave you to continue hiding your emptiness behind your kaka discourses, which of course, don`t mean a thing without a modicum of intellectual honesty to back them up.

Chowkstaff: How is a completely diversionary discourse on the intersections of literature and literary theory with topics being studied in the poli sci, psych, sociology, comp science, composition and history courses any more relevant to this board than the subject of paedophilia?

Or do TAhmed, WilderFlower and I have to word our discourse in grotesque verbalism like ``single disciplinariness`` (whatever was wrong with `one perspective`??) that essentially say nothing new, to have our posts sound erudite enough to have them posted here? Maybe ``Paedophila in a multi-discplinary, cross-cultural and eclectic psychological pespective`` might be more amenable to print here??

Fuzair, are you gonna fall for it??
...as we wait with bated breath....

Chowkstaff: How is a completely diversionary discourse on the intersections of literature and literary theory with topics being studied in the poli sci, psych, sociology, comp science, composition and history courses any more relevant to this board than the subject of paedophilia?

Or do TAhmed, WilderFlower and I have to word our discourse in grotesque verbalism like ``single disciplinariness`` (whatever was wrong with `one perspective`??) that essentially say nothing new, to have our posts sound erudite enough to have them posted here? Maybe ``Paedophila in a multi-discplinary, cross-cultural and eclectic psychological pespective`` might be more amenable to print here??

SmainaTL,
I think you`ve amply demostrated your shamlessness and hypocrisy for all to see. So I won`t bother trying to eke some honourable action out of you anymore. (Unless I have another day with absolutely nothing to do again) and I will leave you to continue hiding your emptiness behind your kaka discourses, which of course, don`t mean a thing without a modicum of intellectual honesty to back them up.

Fuzair, are you gonna fall for it??
...as we wait with bated breath....

Fuzair,

You need to be a little clearer here. On one hand you admit that there are certain theories that you agree with, having been exposed to Derrida, Foucault, etc-, and on the other you claim that the social/liberal sciences take things too far. Can you give a specific example of this?

The reason I ask is that I am having precisely the opposite experience in the program I`m teaching in. This program is at a CUNY school that serves many working class, immigrant and adult students. I teach in two blocks-one is an honors section and the other is a remedial skills section. The first block consists of a contemporary Poli Sci course on Russia, General Psych, a Literary Genres course (mine), an American history course, a writing course (Composition Theory) and a study seminar. The second block consists of a (Composition Theory) writing course, a Sociology course on contemporary American issues, a Computer Science course and a Literary Genres course.

I have been working with the profs of these two blocks and we have found many intersections in which literature and literary theory has intersected with topics being studied in the poli sci, psych, sociology, comp science, composition and history courses. The program itself is challenging the idea of singular disciplinariness-and has been acknowledged as one of the best in the country. The idea of interdisciplinariness is one that is at the crux of post modern theory, and people like Said were instrumental in its beggining practice. Any comments?

re. Fuzair:
This is precious... you write a fantastic 3,000 word exposition in #158, and >SaminaTL comes back with #163!!!
Ah the joys of beholding Intellectual Integrity from such proximity!
To SmainaTL, you write: ``I haven`t seen you say that these are the factual errors Ibn Warraq (or any other Said critic) has made. Therefore, his criticism of Said is invalid. Please do get back to me on the NYT obituary.
Twenty bucks says she won`t get back to you on that one. (Which, to prove a point, she of course, will, now) ;-)
rgds,
PM
P.S. Good to see there are still scholars like you around who can explain a subject without being so ambiguous or lost-in-their-own-discourses so as to (deliberately?) confuse the reader as much as they themselves have been confused!

re. Chowkstaff objection.

Quite right! Sorry.

Now, if Samina could only actually stick to topics she brings up here, instead of dishonourably running with her tail behind her legs, none of this would`ve happened.

So let`s hear it now... where is Bruce any more of a bigot, than, say, Said himself, for claiming that ``a substantial number of Moslems`` are given to the not so firendly stuff he mentions?

Any takers?? Manto?

This is the second article this week in which discussions have digressed from the article subject matter. This is misuse of the interact space and we will be rejecting further replies of such nature.

If you wish to have off-subject discussions please take them to the off-the-wall unplugged forum.

Chowk Staff

TAhmed. ref. 169:
Ahmed, my claim that you overreacted has nothing to do with what actually PM does or
does not do. PM may be a real child molestor for all we know, or someone who has no erotic interest whatsover in children but is just out to create a hullabulloo here on chowk.
The point is, going strictly with what PM wrote, which is after all all we can go on, it is incredible that you take the 15-second episode he mentions (which now even you agree *could* have been initiated by the boy) as proof that he is an unrepentent child molestor, and causing ``physical`` harm to his students.
This has nothing to do with whether you agree with the U.S statuotory rape laws or not. Even the most zealous prosecutor would not be able to get a conviction based on the ``evidence`` provided.
Your repeated unwarranted reamarks about US law (Did any this happen in the US???) is another matter altogether. Perhaps it is one you might discuss with someone in a closer relationship to yourself.

re. #170 by tahmed32
PM #162 I have no further comments.
That`s cool. We`re all entitled to our views and positions.
I just wonder, why do you keep brinigng up the US laws? Are they the be all and end all of Jurisprudence? Like I said, it`s silly, `cause I could just as easily bring up European laws. And what do we prove?? Nothing. Nada! Except, maybe that laws, andthe ideas on which they are based, are viewed differently in different parts of the world.
I wonder if you would be so apt to cite US laws if tomorrow there was a rap on the door from Homeland Security thugs.
Yeah, yeah, i know.. This is not 1942, and you`re not Japanese-American.. but food for thought, no?

PM, re. boycott:
Can`t say I`m the most honorable person around, but anyway, Aye, aye!

Yaar how has this discussion on Edward Said turned into one on PM and paedophilia? TAhmed why don`t you write an article on PM`s alleged paedophilia and take your fight there...ajeeb log haiN

wildeflower #164 You are entitled to your views when you write ``but it would certainly seem that PM was seduced by the boy``. As I wrote to PM, this would nevertheless be considered pedophiliac behavior and statutory rape on his part by US courts.

I happen to believe that US law is correct in holding the adult, not the child, responsible in such cases. If you think this is an overreaction, then that is your view and I have no further comments.

PM #162 I have no further comments.

WidlerFlower:
you write: ``as PM eloquently writes, ``a monster in every man`s penis``. ``
Actually, i was quoting a much more gifted author than myself there...Shandana Minhas. You shouldread some ofher older articles. She has a section here. Find it on the main page... ``Jinn and Tonic``.
And thanks... Glad someone here can see through Miss Intellectual Integrity Herself`s dishonourable evasionary tactics. T othink that this broad might be lecturing to students on intellectual integrity!!! Damn!!
And yes, the law interests me, but I`m happy in my little coccoon as sixth-grade teacher.

Could I request all honourable chowkies to consider a boycott of Samina until she address the matter in #166?
Well, just give a think, will ya? this is not quite asking for chowk to install blockers, after all.
rgds,
PM

re. Saminasha #159:
Terming my requests that you justify your statements as a game I`m playing may be a convenient, if futile, way to save some face.
However, in case you`re actually suffering from PoMo-induced amnesia, let me clue you in, honey:
You wrote, in #98: ``PM used the board to promote his child love agenda, as usual, although no one was asking.``
Now, hon, prior to that post, I had post all of fourposts on this board. So, it really shouldn`t be too dfficult to point out where I did what you claim I did.
Failing a reply or an apology (and there still remains the matter of Bruce`s passage, btw), I will henceforth refer to you as SaminaTheLiarWhoStillHasTheGalltoSpeakofHonorandIntellectualIntegrity.
heck no, that`s too long. Samina the Lair woud work juat fine.
Oh, and rest assured, the moniker wil be followed by a hotlink to this very post each time.
Gee I do love vacation time!!!