Salient. An Organ of Student Opinion at Victoria College, Wellington, N.Z. Vol. 14, No. 11. September 6, 1951
Stinks Among the People
Stinks Among the People
That may seem a hard accusation. It is true. Irresponsible idealism and extravagant behaviour has cut us off from the people. We are not willing to involve ourselves in anything costly and this we call: academic objectivity.
This is a fraud. Academic objectivity is, in reality, an acceptance of the status quo, a refusal to examine the issues, to face up to them and decide. It is in fact Intellectual cowardice.
The fact that religion is regarded as an extra can be blamed on this attitude. The university in New Zealand is not neutral in the matter of religion but atheistic and this atheism being more Insidious is a worse evil than militant atheism. University neutrality provokes no one, offends no one, sets up no standards and assumes no responsibility.
To make this criticism is not to suggest that religion should be imposed on the university but it should be there so that right and wrong at least get a showing.
At the moment we have no unity, nothing to build our university on, and in the common rooms of staff and students no one seems to care, or if they do the lights are hidden under bushels while the chaos, intellectual and spiritual, continues to be criticised by a minority.