S.W.I.N.E.

An Acronym for Our Time

   The acronym is S.W.I.N.E. and the initials stand for Students Wildly Indignant About Nearly Everything. It was coined over fifty years ago by Al Capp. I can't recall how I came across it, but I am surprised that it has not been resurrected and applied to the heated campus climates found today, even here in the near north. 

   I gather that Capp became rather crotchety and more conservative in his old age and that his cartoons were cancelled by many newspapers in which they had been syndicated.  While I am certainly old and crotchety, I have not become more conservative and don't think I ever was. In fact, I am a radical, in that I believe in free speech. Although many in the herd of SWINE now protest about things that I find ludicrous and which take time away from more important matters, they should be allowed to protest. They should not be allowed, however, to block those who protest against them. Having said that, I guess I can be labelled as 'conservative', given that I feel that college-age students should be mature enough not to have their feelings easily hurt and that words are different from weapons. 

   Although the provincial government mandated back in 2019 that free speech policies be established on Ontario campuses, you may wonder about the degree of oral freedom at the colleges and universities. Here are two websites where attempts are made to monitor the free speech policies and practices at universities in both Canada and the United States.

   In Canada see the Campus Freedom Index, which measures the "State of Free Speech at Canadian Public Universities." Here is a sample table from this site:

I am skeptical and think it highly likely that most universities are flunking when it comes to actual practices. Here is what it takes to get an "F".

To get an F - (University Practices)

F | A university earns the grade of F by doing one or more of the following:

*the university has denied equal access to rooms, facilities or other spaces on campus, based on the controversial or offensive content of the expression of a group or individual;

*the university has charged students or other people with offences (e.g. non-academic misconduct; trespassing) solely because of the content of their peaceful expression, in the absence of any violations of university rules or policies;

*the university has imposed security fees or other restrictions on groups or individuals because the content of their speech is controversial or offensive;

*the university has condoned the obstruction, blocking, disruption or interruption of peaceful events on campus (e.g. speakers; debates; displays, etc.) by failing to provide adequate and effective security;

*the university has failed to discipline students who engage in the obstruction, blocking or interruption of peaceful events or displays on campus;

   For the United States, F.I.R.E. is another useful acronym and it stands for Foundation for Individual Rights in Education. Check out their Spotlight Database which rates policies that regulate student expression at over 475 colleges and universities. Public institutions bound by the First Amendment and private schools that promise free speech rights are rated as “green light,” “yellow light,” or “red light” institutions based on the extent to which they restrict free speech. “Warning” schools are private institutions that clearly prioritize other values above free speech. Our “Using FIRE’s Spotlight Database” page provides further information about each rating.

Sources: 

  There is a good Wikipedia entry for Al Capp and a website for Li'l Abner. 

For an obituary for Capp see: "Al Capp, Creator of Li'l Abner, is Dead at 70," Israel Shenker, New York Times, Nov. 6, 1979. If you are really interested:
"Just How Bitter, Petty, and Tragic Was Comic-Strip Genius Al Capp?", Steven Heller, Atlantic Magazine, Feb. 28, 2013. 

The Bonus:

   When he was 12, Capp lost most of his right leg in a streetcar accident, perhaps a reason for his crotchetiness.

   Those of you who disagree with all of this SWINE stuff should go at least to the Wikipedia entry for Capp, where you will learn that Capp could be a PIG.  When he did show up on college campuses (this was back when such speakers were allowed a platform) he apparently acted very inappropriately with some coeds, and was once found guilty of adultery (back when it was still a crime.)

   I have posted before about this subject. See, for example, "Dawkins Not Talking."