Speak out, President Wright
By Patrick Mattimore, San Francisco
Published on Monday, November 12, 2007
Several weeks ago, along with about 200 alumni, I attended a briefing in the San Francisco Bay Area about affairs related to the expansion of the Board of Trustees. That was one of a number of informational sessions conducted by trustees over a period of a couple of days around the country to try and keep alumni informed about "goings-on" in Hanover.
The San Francisco exchange was generally polite, though charged. If it was not clear where majority alumni sympathies lay (or even if those sympathies were cemented in place), there was no mistaking the participants' passions. Recent exchanges in The Dartmouth underscore those passions. Ultimately, it would be hoped that the discourse will prove fruitful for the College.
It would be nearly inconceivable that College President James Wright would not have a valuable contribution to make to the overall discussion taking place. Therefore, I respectfully disagree with the opinion in "A Message to President Wright" (Oct. 23), which suggested that President Wright should remain mute. The suggestion that our president cannot weigh in on the controversy because it somehow involves a conflict of interest strikes me as the type of prior restraint on speech we should all abhor.