Well, here's an interesting push-pull reaction.
I often write about philanthropy, and a few weeks ago, I almost wrote a piece about a $50 million gift to Yale University to create a global affairs institute. As if we need another one, I thought. What a waste.
Then on Wednesday I was reading an entry on Stanley Katz's blog (he is the director of the Center for Arts and Cultural Policy Studies at Princeton). It talked about his recent trip to Miami University, Ohio, where he gave the keynote speech at the opening of a new Humanities Center. Hurrah, I thought.
On second thought, however, I wondered why I reacted so differently to the two developments. Surely, nowadays, global affairs are on everyone's mind. The humanities are decidedly not. MORE >>