Prof calls Zero Dark Thirty ‘propaganda film’ for positive depiction of waterboarding

By Oliver Darcy

A law professor dismissed Zero Dark Thirty as propaganda in an op-ed on Friday, saying the film portrayed waterboarding in a favorable light by depicting it as a crucial tool in the hunt for Osama bin Laden.

A law professor skewered Zero Dark Thirty for allegedly portraying the use of enhanced interrogation techniques in a positive light.

Marjorie Cohn, a professor of law at the Thomas Jefferson School of Law argued in a Huffington Post editorial on Friday that the controversial technique of waterboarding, which some consider torture, had not in fact lead to the death of Bin Laden.

“After showing footage of the 9/11 attacks, it [the movie] moves into a graphic and lengthy depiction of torture,” she wrote, apparently referring to waterboarding. “Responding to the torture, he divulges the name of the courier who ultimately leads the CIA to Bin Laden’s location and assassination.”

“It may be good theater, but it is inaccurate and misleading,” she concluded.

Cohn’s view of the role of…

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Source: Campus Reform

University’s ‘large-scale terrorist’ drill features simulated grenades, gunfire and explosions

Campus police at North Carolina Central University (NCCU) hosted a massive “terrorist training exercise” on Thursday which included simulated explosions, gunfire, and actors playing shooting victims.

This photo, posted by a user on Twitter, shows part of a massive "terrorist training exercise" staged by over 20 law enforcement agencies.

More than 200 law enforcement officials reportedly participated in the drill, dubbed by university police as "Operation Eagle Swoop.”

A statement released by the school on Wednesday described the drill as a “full scale terrorist training exercise” which would include  “a large volume of emergency vehicles.”

Regardless, students turned to the Internet on Thursday to express confusion over events on campus.

“What’s going on at #nccu,” tweeted a…

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Source: Campus Reform

College presidents send letter demanding stricter gun-control laws

By Oliver Darcy

More than 300 college and university presidents have signed an online letter demanding stricter nationwide gun control laws both on and off campus.

The letter, signed by the heads of both private and public institutions, demands legislators quickly reinstate a ban on semi-automatic assault weapons, oppose legislation allowing guns on college campuses, and require additional safety standards for guns.

“As educators and parents, we come together to ask our elected representatives to act collectively on behalf of our children by enacting rational gun safety measures,” the letter reads.

The effort is being lead by Oglethorpe University President Lawrence Schall and Agnes Scott College President Elizabeth Kiss who have formed an organization called College Presidents for Gun Safety.

That organization did not provide…

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Source: Campus Reform

Public university hires pornographic poet as English prof

By Oliver Darcy

The University of North Carolina-Wilmington has hired an English literature professor whose pornographic poetry verse include fantasies of sexual relations with freshmen female students, an education watchdog reported this week.

In Prof. Alessandro Porco’s poem “Hot Girl-Girl Action University” the fictional university president Jill Kelly offers a welcome to the freshman class.

“Who would say No to a g*ng-b*ng?

Who would say No to Prof. P**n-Tang?

Who would say No to my scholarly toungin’?

Thank you fathers for your daughters.”

That poem is part The Jill Kelly Poems, ranked 3,963,932 on Amazon, which chronicles the life of a porn star through poetry.

In an interview on PopMatters.com, Porco describes it as…

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Source: Campus Reform