Faculty should not fear administration

I was just directed to the article in the Oct. 16 issue of the IDS that discusses the petition that calls for the resignation of the board of trustees of Indiana University as well as Myles Brand, Christopher Simpson and Clarence Doninger ("Alumni draft petition"). \nIt was quite sad, and extremely distressing, that chemistry professor Victor Viola observed that many faculty would be afraid to sign the petition because of "their vulnerability." What has the present IU administration done to make its own professors so afraid of it? Is this the same IU administration that sat on its hands as English professor Murray Sperber attacked its incompetence and indecisiveness on sports talk shows all over radio and television the last nine months? \nIn his State of the University address, Myles Brand complained about a "lack of civility." I guess one way to solve that problem is to scare your own faculty to such an extent that they have to worry about their jobs, livelihoods and futures if they speak out. Ah, the intellectual freedom of academia! A wonderful concept, isn't it?\nGojko Kasich\nAttorney suing board of trustees for allegedly violating Indiana open door laws