I realize that sometimes the actual news sounds like one of those Plaut spoofs. All the more so when an absurd story comes out close to Halloween.
But this is for real.
The forces of affirmative action in Israel are aghast. The bleeding hearts and caring Leftists are up in arms. It seems that the number of Arabs being accepted to the Hebrew University medical school is down and the reason for that is that they are failing to pass the ethical awareness requirement. Moreover, the Arab spokesmen say that the Arab students have failed to develop ethical awareness because they do not serve in the Israeli army.
OK. So, back up a bit, pilgrim.
First, yes, Israeli universities do have affirmative action preferences in favor of Arabs. Since affirmative action is supposed to compensate victims of historic discrimination, Israeli universities have decided to make up for 1,300 years of brutal discrimination against Jews and in favor of Arabs in the Middle East by instituting programs that discriminate in favor of Arabs and against Jews.
Second, the affirmative action 'axis of evil' inside Israel is not very different from its cousins overseas. It opposes all standards because standards keep out the preferred minorities. That is why the affirmophiles in the US want all science and math requirements to be junked. Such things prevent Blacks and Hispanics from getting into college and also generate a student body with far too many Asians and Jews. A few years back, the Israeli affirmobats tried to junk the college board test ("psychometric") altogether in order to boost the number of Arabs in universities, but after a year or two of mediocre admittees it was restored, resulting in a drop in the number of Arab students; to the chagrin of the Left.
Third, entrance into Israeli medical schools is extremely competitive, because every Jewish mother wants her kid to become a real doctor, not a phony one - like some economists we all know.
As part of the restoration of standards and the insistence that not only Jewish students must be qualified, the number of Arab students getting into Hebrew University's med school dropped over the past thee years. The entrance procedures were altered somewhat this year. They are mainly based on the psychometric exam and school grades. But Haaretz, citing anti-Israel pro-terror Knesset Member Ahmed Tibi, decided that the main reason for this is that the new evaluation procedures are "culturally biased".
The new evaluations involve "character evaluation": they test role playing and responses in interviews, and they include questions about ethical problems and dilemmas. The evaluation procedures used are state of the art, and were developed by experts and professionals in the testing profession.
The Haaretz piece (Hebrew only) cites Arab students who say it is unfair to ask them about ethical dilemmas, because they did not serve in the Israeli army, and so, never spent time pondering ethical problems.
Really.
I guess it is so much easier to cheer suicide bombers and chant "Death to the Jews," as so many Arab students in Israeli universities do. Saves time. No need to contemplate ethical matters.
Hebrew University people say that is nonsense. The Arabs may be at a disadvantage because of their younger age. After all, most did not serve in the army. Of course, no one is stopping them from volunteering to serve in the army, which would help them develop a sense of ethics and maturity, and thus help them get into med school. And nothing stops them from working for three or four years to gain maturity and then applying to med school.
Tibi, who gives Israel the Tibi heebie jeebies, is personally partly responsible for the continuing terror and war that make it necessary for Jewish youths to spend three years in the army gaining maturity and ethical awareness before applying to college. Yet, in the Haaretz piece, he demands that the entrance requirements be changed so that a quota benefiting Arabs be enforced, and to hell with their qualifications.
But this is for real.
The forces of affirmative action in Israel are aghast. The bleeding hearts and caring Leftists are up in arms. It seems that the number of Arabs being accepted to the Hebrew University medical school is down and the reason for that is that they are failing to pass the ethical awareness requirement. Moreover, the Arab spokesmen say that the Arab students have failed to develop ethical awareness because they do not serve in the Israeli army.
OK. So, back up a bit, pilgrim.
First, yes, Israeli universities do have affirmative action preferences in favor of Arabs. Since affirmative action is supposed to compensate victims of historic discrimination, Israeli universities have decided to make up for 1,300 years of brutal discrimination against Jews and in favor of Arabs in the Middle East by instituting programs that discriminate in favor of Arabs and against Jews.
Second, the affirmative action 'axis of evil' inside Israel is not very different from its cousins overseas. It opposes all standards because standards keep out the preferred minorities. That is why the affirmophiles in the US want all science and math requirements to be junked. Such things prevent Blacks and Hispanics from getting into college and also generate a student body with far too many Asians and Jews. A few years back, the Israeli affirmobats tried to junk the college board test ("psychometric") altogether in order to boost the number of Arabs in universities, but after a year or two of mediocre admittees it was restored, resulting in a drop in the number of Arab students; to the chagrin of the Left.
Third, entrance into Israeli medical schools is extremely competitive, because every Jewish mother wants her kid to become a real doctor, not a phony one - like some economists we all know.
As part of the restoration of standards and the insistence that not only Jewish students must be qualified, the number of Arab students getting into Hebrew University's med school dropped over the past thee years. The entrance procedures were altered somewhat this year. They are mainly based on the psychometric exam and school grades. But Haaretz, citing anti-Israel pro-terror Knesset Member Ahmed Tibi, decided that the main reason for this is that the new evaluation procedures are "culturally biased".
The new evaluations involve "character evaluation": they test role playing and responses in interviews, and they include questions about ethical problems and dilemmas. The evaluation procedures used are state of the art, and were developed by experts and professionals in the testing profession.
The Haaretz piece (Hebrew only) cites Arab students who say it is unfair to ask them about ethical dilemmas, because they did not serve in the Israeli army, and so, never spent time pondering ethical problems.
Really.
I guess it is so much easier to cheer suicide bombers and chant "Death to the Jews," as so many Arab students in Israeli universities do. Saves time. No need to contemplate ethical matters.
Hebrew University people say that is nonsense. The Arabs may be at a disadvantage because of their younger age. After all, most did not serve in the army. Of course, no one is stopping them from volunteering to serve in the army, which would help them develop a sense of ethics and maturity, and thus help them get into med school. And nothing stops them from working for three or four years to gain maturity and then applying to med school.
Tibi, who gives Israel the Tibi heebie jeebies, is personally partly responsible for the continuing terror and war that make it necessary for Jewish youths to spend three years in the army gaining maturity and ethical awareness before applying to college. Yet, in the Haaretz piece, he demands that the entrance requirements be changed so that a quota benefiting Arabs be enforced, and to hell with their qualifications.
