Contrary to popular belief, most academics are deeply conservative. Se the following definition of conservatism that, in my opinion, describes it perfectly:
A friend once described conservatives as people who agreed about one important thing—that at some point in the past, something went terribly wrong. After that, conservatives splinter into untold numbers of camps, since they disagree ferociously about the date of the catastrophe.
This is precisely the kind of approach that informs pretty much all of the discussions of academia among academics. Since conservatism is deeply alien to my way of being, this must be the reason why I don’t identify with my colleagues and don’t feel happy around them.
Clarissa's Blog 
The mythology of higher education as it used to be before everything went wrong is one of my favorite things to think about.
LikeLike
This just reminded me of a quote from Stephen Leacock:
“Educations are divided into splendid educations, thorough classical educations, and average educations. All very old men have splendid educations; all men who apparently know nothing else have thorough classical educations;nobody has an average education.”
LikeLike
This is a really great quote.
LikeLike
Conservatives extend this notion to individuals as well. At one point everything was beautiful and perfect, but then disaster came along and my feeling was hurt forever and now I have eight different personality disorders and can’t lift a finger to assist myself.
Or. Original sin overtook me. Now I am corrupted.
Wallowing in extreme helplessness because the perfect order is no more.
LikeLike
Things have gone wrong in Academia. But this has happened “not with a bang, but a whimper” to quote Eliot. I would add the words ‘prolonged and ongoing’ before ‘whimper.’
The two biggest single issues are ever larger classes and more and more administrators. The largest class I ever was in, in all my formal schooling, was a graduate mathematics course with 40 students.
I have never thought of myself as a conservative, even when I was a child.
LikeLike