tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8446351548038522890.post4429069175482154293..comments2024-03-28T16:15:19.319-04:00Comments on Saideman's Semi-Spew: Pondering Oversight and BeerSteve Saidemanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09881915512311951902noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8446351548038522890.post-9829741384391347202011-04-10T09:40:24.263-04:002011-04-10T09:40:24.263-04:00The latter. Each Texas undergrad had to take two ...The latter. Each Texas undergrad had to take two poli sci courses. We split the sequence: am/tex pol institutions and am/tex public policy. I did the latter and stacked the first part of the class with conceptual stuff that I knew (agenda-setting, implementation, etc).Steve Saidemanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09881915512311951902noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8446351548038522890.post-12899046142291100582011-04-07T10:00:53.458-04:002011-04-07T10:00:53.458-04:00So, did you have to teach these American courses c...So, did you have to teach these American courses cuz you are a foreigner in Canada? Or because the Texas legislature made you (and all your colleagues) do it?Mike Tierneyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00424312611358406895noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8446351548038522890.post-77997252941808843912011-04-06T16:59:08.367-04:002011-04-06T16:59:08.367-04:00Good questions, Mike.
As far as I can tell, my ...Good questions, Mike. <br /><br />As far as I can tell, my power was (a) to break ties; (b) manage the clock. The instructions really did not tell me what I should do if I saw a conspiracy. <br /><br />Because these defenses are open to the public, a pro-dean is not really needed to make sure there is not something afoot. If someone was suspicious, they could attend and then fire off emails to the various admin types. Just like the media is the fire alarm for most domestic political things, right? This is what I get for dodging all American politics courses in my life, except for the ones I have had to teach.Steve Saidemanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09881915512311951902noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8446351548038522890.post-9318692276795769182011-04-06T09:16:29.937-04:002011-04-06T09:16:29.937-04:00Steve,
I have two problems with this.
First, I c...Steve,<br /><br />I have two problems with this.<br /><br />First, I claim false advertising. I fully expected to be reading about a real beer adventure, not this nonsense about plant biology.<br /><br />Second, what would fire alarm oversight look like in this context? The conditions under which fire alarm oversight works best is when 3rd parties have some incentive to report inappropriate behavior or lousy outcomes. (Think about environmental groups who blow the whistle on the EPA bureaucrats when they are not doing their jobs the way liberal majorities in Congress intended). What is the analogue at McGill? I am pretty sure people like you would never pull the alarm. Not only are you not competent to know what bad work is in plant biology, but you also don't care (unlike the tree huggers in my example).<br /><br />Out of curiosity, what are the procedures that you are supposed to follow if you decide that the person is doing bad plant biology? Do you have unit veto, or does the committee vote on whether the student gets a PhD? In your capacity as police patrol agent, what is your capacity?Mike Tierneyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00424312611358406895noreply@blogger.com