By Bob Braun/Star-Ledger Columnist
What the combined boards of Rutgers trustees and governors did Wednesday made no sense. Within a space of minutes, it affirmed a “set of principles” to guide their future actions and then announced it would be more than willing to compromise those principles in the face of political interference.
“I was very disappointed,” said Abram Suydam, a long-time trustee whose family dates back 400 years in the area.
As well he should have been. The moment called for an act of courage, a declaration of institutional independence, a blow struck for academic integrity in the face of political interference.
A Rutgers degree isn’t needed to know that a “principle” is a fundamental idea that should not be compromised—otherwise, it’s not a principle. It’s a preference. Pastrami over chicken salad.
What the combined boards of trustees and governors of Rutgers University did Wednesday was deliver an ambiguous, mealy-mouthed “affirmation” of its principles followed within minutes by the appointment of a committee that will meet with legislators controlled by bosses who have big interests in dismembering Rutgers. Meet and negotiate a compromise.
Some principles.
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