I don’t blame Arday at all for following the incentives and taking advantage of the jobs, money and worship that was laid at his feet.
Black people under the white liberal dispensation of upscale academia are treated like holy children, similar to how the Tibetans treat the newest Dalai Lama. Progressivism is rooted in white guilt and saviorism and this provides not only sacred beliefs but morals, etiquette, status and a giant class marker that separates the Good guilty liberal from the Bad bigoted conservative. Progressives so deeply need to perform their public rituals of racial atonement, and are so constantly anxious about always being a proper ally, that they are the easiest of marks, essentially begging to be fleeced as long as it gets them an official dispensation from the Church of Social Justice.
Just think of all the white liberals who this man met on his journey to Cambridge and how they fawned over him, how they’ve been conditioned to exercise zero skepticism toward any claims made by a POC (which codes as gauche and taboo) and how thrilled they felt giving him a job or a promotion. The Academy has essentially politicized and sacralized tokenism, if not totemism, meaning how righteous and holy white liberals feel when they can be seen performing allyship. In this case the fault lies mostly with the marks not the con man, as they’ve created a system that incentivizes fraud and don’t really care or see it as a bad thing—our white saviors want to save their souls first and foremost, and academic standards or honesty only get in the way.
I blame him for being a liar and a fraud. If he was poorly just incompetent, or barely competent, then fine, he was just taking advantage of a system. But lying harms the minorities who were honest, and marginally better than him on merit.
Ketanji Jackson Brown’s senate confirmation hearings were in this similar fashion. The number of times the Democrats intervened during questioning to literally silence her into not answering was something to behold.
This sort of behavior from Chuck Schumer, et al didn’t surprise me. It was her apparent willingness to sit there and allow them to disrespect and undermine her authority that got to me. I didn’t know who I was more disgusted by. The senators who had chosen a person they knew didn’t have the capability to sit for such a powerful position or the person chosen who didn’t speak up for herself and prove she was capable.
We all see how literally stupid she is, every time she speaks and writes. She's a reminder that choosing and elevating people based on race is a stain on society.
I agree that the bigger problems are: 1) institutional rot within Cambridge and other universities, and various media outlets that failed to verify his claims, plus all the incentives that "created" this Arday situation; and 2) the two-tier policing culture in the UK, which is incredibly serious.
BUT, why this rush to *not* blame Arday? Why is everyone downplaying his role and giving him a free pass while blaming others? What is this -- more lowered expectations because of his skin color and claim of autism? Arday is an adult, fully responsible for his actions. What is becoming clear is that Arday is a faker, a liar, and a con artist, a man completely disconnected from any traditional ethical mooring that should be held fully accountable for his actions. Were he white and not putting forth claims of autism, would he not be removed from his position at Cambridge and skewered publicly? Of course he would be. His skin color and claim of autism matter not. His presentation of sincerity matters not. All that matters are the facts.
I love the 30 marathons in 35 days, which running experts have debunked as physically impossible! You’re correct - Arday is a victim of the woke left and all their nonsense.
“No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.”
—Matthew 6:24
The above quote (which is Jewish wisdom carried over into the Christian Bible) warns of the danger when we try to accommodate two different goals, like equity and merit.
Similarly, the problem with abandoning merit as the single criterion for greatness is that *all* work suffers, since new research no longer needs to be better than what is already available, it just needs to be from an author of alternate colour. This creates the unintended consequence of racism derived from low expectations.
The university should have investigated the claim scrupulously and provided a definitive answer: Yes there was plagiarism OR No the allegation is wholly false. Instead, a person asking (what should be a legitimate question) is prevented from asking the question and so its answer is lost. The university has deligitimized the question. The scholar in question has not been cleared! How is that a satisfactory conclusion?
Eli, your take on Arday is one of the best I’ve read. You capture the outrageous and frustrating reality of how a journalist was forced to back off a routine investigation because police said his legitimate questions were threatening Arday’s mental health. So, as has been apparent for some time, police in the UK are really in the business of being a helicopter Mom: “Don’t you dare be mean to my little Billy!” Professionals like Arday ought to be as open to critique and research as any other person who puts themselves on the public stage and says, “Look at me. I’m an expert.” It’s not asking too much to politely say, “Prove it.”
If the charges are demonstrably true, Jason Alday is a liar and his conduct is criminal. He has caused a qualified candidate to lose the position that he obtained by fraud.
Couldn’t agree more with you Eli. It doesn’t do anyone any favours.
Also Cambridge is becoming an absolute sham of an institution. If I had worked hard to obtain my degree from there I would be asking for a refund…. I feel like they are undermining all their students and academic rigour.
As an employer I would be very wary about employing a Cambridge grad. ?are they really smart or were they part of the ‘pity party’ intake?
All Mr. Grove has to do is find the words of other people that he used in his material and expose the plagiarism. The white guilt narrative hurts everyone, regardless of race. Black people will live under the suspicion that they only attained their status because of the color of their skin and not because of merit. Clarence Thomas experienced that type of criticism.
I don’t blame Arday at all for following the incentives and taking advantage of the jobs, money and worship that was laid at his feet.
Black people under the white liberal dispensation of upscale academia are treated like holy children, similar to how the Tibetans treat the newest Dalai Lama. Progressivism is rooted in white guilt and saviorism and this provides not only sacred beliefs but morals, etiquette, status and a giant class marker that separates the Good guilty liberal from the Bad bigoted conservative. Progressives so deeply need to perform their public rituals of racial atonement, and are so constantly anxious about always being a proper ally, that they are the easiest of marks, essentially begging to be fleeced as long as it gets them an official dispensation from the Church of Social Justice.
Just think of all the white liberals who this man met on his journey to Cambridge and how they fawned over him, how they’ve been conditioned to exercise zero skepticism toward any claims made by a POC (which codes as gauche and taboo) and how thrilled they felt giving him a job or a promotion. The Academy has essentially politicized and sacralized tokenism, if not totemism, meaning how righteous and holy white liberals feel when they can be seen performing allyship. In this case the fault lies mostly with the marks not the con man, as they’ve created a system that incentivizes fraud and don’t really care or see it as a bad thing—our white saviors want to save their souls first and foremost, and academic standards or honesty only get in the way.
I blame him for being a liar and a fraud. If he was poorly just incompetent, or barely competent, then fine, he was just taking advantage of a system. But lying harms the minorities who were honest, and marginally better than him on merit.
And if course, the truly capable ones, who lose face because if the presumption of mediocrity.
yes yes
Ketanji Jackson Brown’s senate confirmation hearings were in this similar fashion. The number of times the Democrats intervened during questioning to literally silence her into not answering was something to behold.
This sort of behavior from Chuck Schumer, et al didn’t surprise me. It was her apparent willingness to sit there and allow them to disrespect and undermine her authority that got to me. I didn’t know who I was more disgusted by. The senators who had chosen a person they knew didn’t have the capability to sit for such a powerful position or the person chosen who didn’t speak up for herself and prove she was capable.
We all see how literally stupid she is, every time she speaks and writes. She's a reminder that choosing and elevating people based on race is a stain on society.
I agree that the bigger problems are: 1) institutional rot within Cambridge and other universities, and various media outlets that failed to verify his claims, plus all the incentives that "created" this Arday situation; and 2) the two-tier policing culture in the UK, which is incredibly serious.
BUT, why this rush to *not* blame Arday? Why is everyone downplaying his role and giving him a free pass while blaming others? What is this -- more lowered expectations because of his skin color and claim of autism? Arday is an adult, fully responsible for his actions. What is becoming clear is that Arday is a faker, a liar, and a con artist, a man completely disconnected from any traditional ethical mooring that should be held fully accountable for his actions. Were he white and not putting forth claims of autism, would he not be removed from his position at Cambridge and skewered publicly? Of course he would be. His skin color and claim of autism matter not. His presentation of sincerity matters not. All that matters are the facts.
I love the 30 marathons in 35 days, which running experts have debunked as physically impossible! You’re correct - Arday is a victim of the woke left and all their nonsense.
“No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.”
—Matthew 6:24
The above quote (which is Jewish wisdom carried over into the Christian Bible) warns of the danger when we try to accommodate two different goals, like equity and merit.
Similarly, the problem with abandoning merit as the single criterion for greatness is that *all* work suffers, since new research no longer needs to be better than what is already available, it just needs to be from an author of alternate colour. This creates the unintended consequence of racism derived from low expectations.
The university should have investigated the claim scrupulously and provided a definitive answer: Yes there was plagiarism OR No the allegation is wholly false. Instead, a person asking (what should be a legitimate question) is prevented from asking the question and so its answer is lost. The university has deligitimized the question. The scholar in question has not been cleared! How is that a satisfactory conclusion?
Eli, your take on Arday is one of the best I’ve read. You capture the outrageous and frustrating reality of how a journalist was forced to back off a routine investigation because police said his legitimate questions were threatening Arday’s mental health. So, as has been apparent for some time, police in the UK are really in the business of being a helicopter Mom: “Don’t you dare be mean to my little Billy!” Professionals like Arday ought to be as open to critique and research as any other person who puts themselves on the public stage and says, “Look at me. I’m an expert.” It’s not asking too much to politely say, “Prove it.”
I don't even believe his claim to be autistic, and I wonder whether he has ever made a single claim about himself that was honest.
Apparently he has just resigned, if the post I saw is not a hoax. Too bad, if true. This was a very entertaining and illuminating saga.
If the charges are demonstrably true, Jason Alday is a liar and his conduct is criminal. He has caused a qualified candidate to lose the position that he obtained by fraud.
He deserves no quarter.
Academic Grifter, plain and simple.
Couldn’t agree more with you Eli. It doesn’t do anyone any favours.
Also Cambridge is becoming an absolute sham of an institution. If I had worked hard to obtain my degree from there I would be asking for a refund…. I feel like they are undermining all their students and academic rigour.
As an employer I would be very wary about employing a Cambridge grad. ?are they really smart or were they part of the ‘pity party’ intake?
All Mr. Grove has to do is find the words of other people that he used in his material and expose the plagiarism. The white guilt narrative hurts everyone, regardless of race. Black people will live under the suspicion that they only attained their status because of the color of their skin and not because of merit. Clarence Thomas experienced that type of criticism.