A couple weeks ago, during my son's visit, he expressed his view that it was because the President didn't engage in a dialogue with the Tea Party that they were in such an uproar and that the only way these folks will calm down is when Obama brings them into the process.
When I was a grad student and the Kent State shootings happened, our campus pretty much erupted (Michigan State) in sympathy but a few "leaders" wanted to take to the streets and smash windows, etc. The President of the University said "enough is enough" and, he had some of them over for a meeting. Clifton Wharton was black and that was rare enough for a college professor let alone the president of a major university so part of the the fringes arguments were taken off the table right there. Wharton said "no - not for discussion" to all the demands presented in what was a very short meeting and told the radicals that if they persisted he would close the University and send everyone home - thus depriving these "leaders" of their base. We were close to exam week anyway so this was going to be really something. They backed down and pretty much folded like a cheap suitcase. What Wharton didn't do - to his ever lasting credit - is engage this part of the student body. He refused to give them credibility. He just told them no - get lost.
How can you give these folks who wrote this letter a seat at any table?
When I was a grad student and the Kent State shootings happened, our campus pretty much erupted (Michigan State) in sympathy but a few "leaders" wanted to take to the streets and smash windows, etc. The President of the University said "enough is enough" and, he had some of them over for a meeting. Clifton Wharton was black and that was rare enough for a college professor let alone the president of a major university so part of the the fringes arguments were taken off the table right there. Wharton said "no - not for discussion" to all the demands presented in what was a very short meeting and told the radicals that if they persisted he would close the University and send everyone home - thus depriving these "leaders" of their base. We were close to exam week anyway so this was going to be really something. They backed down and pretty much folded like a cheap suitcase. What Wharton didn't do - to his ever lasting credit - is engage this part of the student body. He refused to give them credibility. He just told them no - get lost.