The Media Market

Yes, social studies and humanities all over the world have fostered a relationship to intellectual studies that is far from intelligent. They have become the nursery for posturing, liberal dogma, or sentimental appeals to evidence of things not seen.
Larry Summers (see my earlier post), the economist-turned-president of Harvard University, started a clean-up mission and met his adverseries among faculty and students at the prestigious university who are more interested in keeping up the appearances. (Read Alex Tabarrok's analysis of the criticism from Robinson's and other politically correct commentators. And while you're at it - see also Gary Becker's argument in the case as well as Posner's post.)

Summers get well-deserved back-up from The Economist which points out that the debate on Summers role at Harvard predates his speech on women: "Reading the transcript…one begins to wonder what kind of examination of female scientists would not offend some people. "

Stephen Metcalf has a great post on Slate where he also points out the virtue of economists:

"[...] economists detest consensus. Consensus is boring. Economists live to
congratulate themselves on their own brusque candor, by which everyone else's
cherished assumptions are revealed to be total bunk. They are bulls in search of
fine bone china."