Here is Professor J. Lorand Matory's motion to be voted on at tomorrow's faculty meeting:

2. Professor J. L. Matory will move:

That this Faculty commits itself to fostering civil dialogue in which people with a broad range of perspectives feel safe and are encouraged to express their reasoned and evidence-based ideas.

As much as I'm all for civil dialogue, I have to say that this motion feels, well, silly to me. People should "feel safe" to express their ideas? For God's sake. You are tenured professors at a university. If you do not feel "safe" expressing your ideas at Harvard, then you are too gentle a soul for this world.

What problem is this motion responding to? What grievance would it resolve? What practical impact would it have? (The only symbolic impact, if it were passed, would be to make the Harvard faculty look thin-skinned, out of touch, petulant and spoiled.) What possible enforcement mechanism could there be?

Even the idea of an enforcement mechanism is absurd.....

In fact, Professor Matory, who has never seemed afraid to speak out, nor suffered any visible consequences for doing so, is himself the best argument against this motion.