This week’s episode opens with a one-on-one interview with Michael S. Roth, president of Wesleyan University and author of The Student: A Short History.
Bill Maher got mogged (so hard!), and President Roth ate, as the kids would say. Roth came across as young-at-heart, humble, and curious, while Maher could barely restrain himself from just shouting “get off my lawn” like he usually does. I broke my embargo of Maher to watch that interview and I’m glad I did.
People, a gentle reminder that this thread is not meant to discuss the merits of any of the beliefs - political or otherwise - of the celebrities taking part in the program. Just the fact that the president of a small, largely unknown LAC was the lead-off guest
When Bill Maher whined about college audiences being too uptight and PC for a gonzo comic like himself (lol), Roth genially reminded him that back in the old days when they were attending college, students weren’t lining up to see Rodney Dangerfield and Don Rickles either.
Just for that absolute chef’s kiss of a rebuttal, I will give him a pass on anything else he said
I wonder what university president wouldn’t. He is, in fact, an ivory tower intellectual.
That said, I think Roth’s views about political issues are a lot more nuanced and diverse in view than people assume given Wesleyan’s reputation as a home for strident left-wing politics. Rather than beat the drum (any drum), I find that Roth seeks to find solutions to problems and is surprisingly tolerant of opposing political views.
He’s not everybody’s cup of tea, and while, yes, he is a left-leaning NY liberal, he’s not a litmus test liberal of the sort that sets up nicely for Mahr’s punch-line rhetoric.
Well, he did say “convince”. Beyond that, I appreciate the optimism.
