Good Job, Virginia!

Here is a piece well worth reading by Virginia A. Fischer, a Harvard sophomore and math major.

She points out that the goodies being distributed to women on campus in the wake of President Summers' "insensitive" remarks on women in the sciences do very little to remedy the situation that gave rise to the furor, i.e., the status of women in the sciences.

She also notes that the new "women's center" will be a perfect place for women to -- you guessed it -- celebrate their "innate differences." Sharp cookie.

One point of difference: Virginia writes that "Undeniably, there are substantive inequalities between the opportunities available to women and men . . .." In context, it's clear that she means that women are disadvantaged. Hardly. One can only guess that a bright female math major like Virginia will be pursued (if one may use that word) for jobs, fellowships and other sinecures that her male counterparts could only dream about.

Even so, great piece. And good luck to her -- especially if the campus atmosphere in the Ivy League hasn't changed since the late '80's. I remember writing a column for The Daily Princetonian, challenging the use of the moniker "Women's Center" to describe what was, in truth, the Left-Wing Feminist Center. The torrent of abuse was impressive -- which confirmed my sense that I had hit the nail on the head. Ah, those happy college days.