Contumacy Associate Editor a 'Pseudointellectual Dumbass'

When in "Postmodern Paradise" Jeremy Beer attacked the Plan II Honors program, he revealed that not only is he an immature journalist who didn't do his research, but he is also a hypocritical, psuedointellectual dumbass who resorts to the cliched P.C. leftist rhetoric that he claims to hate so much.

First, Plan II is not full of "rich white kids". (I'm surprised Mr. Beer didn't extend his ridiculous assumptions to claiming we are all straight men who vote Republican.) Of course there are some "rich white kids", just as there are in every department on campus, but Plan II is a very diverse group with plenty of women, minorities, and other "acceptable" people ( by P.C. standards). I personally would not be in Plan II were it not for the scholarship money I'm receiving.

Second, it is sad that I have to bring up the race and class statistics when Contumacy's entire political ideology places emphasis on merit over these things. Plan II is an Honors program, meaning those of us in the program are there by merit of our high school scholastic achievements, not by any meaningless secondary classification such as the color of our skins when we were born. It is absurd that Mr. Beer can assert his nonesense without even an obligatory nod toward his own ironic self-negating, schizophrenic and opposing beliefs.

Third, since presumably Mr. Beer's article is attempting to extol the virtues of a classical liberal arts education, its is pathetic and fatally harmful to his argument that he attacks Plan II at all. Plan II is a major based entirely on this beloved ideal of the core curriculum. With classes like World Literature (lots of DWEMs) and classical logic as requirements for a degree, Plan II should appeal to Mr. Beer and his entire ideology, as it does mine.

In his poorly thought out and self-negating article, Jeremy Beer has stuck his foot in his mouth so far, the reader can only hope that he chokes. Here are two pointers for Mr. Beer if he attempts to write anything even remotely convincing in the future: first, don't cripple your argument by asserting opposite premeses and thus losing all cogency, and second, do a little research into the facts before shamelessly publishing your erroneous opinions.

Rosalyn Mandola, Plan II student

Jeremy Beer replies: It may well be true that I am a "pseudointellectual dumbass." Nonetheless, the section of my article to which Ms. Mandola refers was an attempt at satire (as was the entire piece); either I did not make that clear or Plan II really is going to hell.