"I not only wanted to see if I could fool the panel organizers and get my paper accepted, I also wanted to pull the curtain on the absurd pretentions of some segments of academic life."
He really should have added "...within my sociology department." He has a high opinion of himself if he thinks he can speak for academia in its entirety. Also, obviously this guy takes his academic reputation, job and profession not seriously at all:
No, not obvious at all. If you took the trouble to confront the points he makes instead of hand waving you might have something to contribute to this discussion.
"<<Most>> of their attacks are off-base, but there is a <<grain of truth>> in their claims. Academics who believe in the mission of higher education—teaching, research, and public service—need to defend academic freedom, but <<some>> of our colleagues have to clean up their acts, because it is difficult to defend the indefensible."
He really should have added "...within my sociology department." He has a high opinion of himself if he thinks he can speak for academia in its entirety. Also, obviously this guy takes his academic reputation, job and profession not seriously at all: