I know a soccer fan who travelled to Qatar for the World Cup qualifying games. He says it’s not great at all. Doha is mostly dead. No alcohol is allowed at the stadium, which makes the games boring. I asked what the food is like (because what else do we expect me to ask?), and he said, “Chinese.”

Well, at least it’s an improvement over when the World Cup was held in Russia while Russia was waging a war on a neighboring country and sending mercenaries to Africa and Venezuela. Qatar is downright cute in comparison.

In the meantime, my university is on the news because it’s getting sued for free speech violations. A program director bullied a graduate student because she didn’t like her political beliefs. The student was banned from communicating with several other graduate students, which in a tiny program creates an impossible burden for a student. Emails were sent to potential employers, maligning this young woman as “oppressive” and “harmful.” Professors and administrators joined in on the bullying.

I hope that the student wins her lawsuit. Maybe somebody will learn something, although I’m not too hopeful. It’s an absolute disgrace that people have let themselves go to the point where they gang up on students and don’t see a problem with such behavior. This isn’t even about the freedom of speech. It’s a complete vacuum of professionalism.