University of Virginia Library

Jefferson Lives

Behold! Mr. Jefferson lives. As
"A Prospectus for the University"
would have us believe, he has risen
again and lurks in our midst as one
Robert Rosen. To the point of
absurdity, Mr. Jefferson incarnate is
preoccupied with change as an end
in itself. Where the old Thomas
Jefferson sought change from the
bonds of an oppressive government
for the liberty of his people, the
new one seeks to disrupt the
functioning of an institution for, at
best, extracurricular activity. What
has happened to the sage Mr.
Jefferson?

The latest of Mr. Rosen's
"causes", is that we the people
suffer from a long train of abuses
and usurpations under a tyrannical
and indifferent Board of Visitors
(which incidentally was established
by the revolutionary, Mr.
Jefferson). Such intolerable abuses
as the restriction of girls in the
dorms, indeed, demands a
Columbia-style rebellion. Such
trivia demeans the name of Thomas
Jefferson.

The fallacy of his contrived
finger pointing lies in Mr. Rosen's
assumption that students acquire
superior rights, above those of U.S.
citizens, to direct institutions to
which they subscribe. Prudent
administrators of an institution
should recognize and appreciate
changes sought be the subscribers.
However, for consistency and
proficiency the system of
responsible trustees directing
institutions must be preserved.

If the policies of an institution
become unbearable to the student,
his recourse becomes abstention or
withdrawal and support of those
institutions which are more to his
liking. As a student at Virginia for
the past five year, I have been quite
satisfied with the actions on the
part of the Board of Visitors, and I
support this institution.

One must wonder, with the
many institutions Mr. Rosen spoke
of as being "progressive" and in the
"mainstream of American
University life", why he chose an
institution he considers so
backward, undemocratic and
conservative. Perhaps he is a
masochist among other things.