Commentary
When Pink Floyd’s song “Another Brick in the Wall” was popular, I did not like it. The grammatical construction of the lyrics was aggressively wrong, and the whole thing struck me as a dangerous paean to ignorance. I never liked those kids who were “too cool for school.” In general, the song came across to me as a sign of cultural rot.
These days, I have a different view. The song was written in reference to primary school but these days, it is a suitable anthem for college students.
In the Northeast of the United States, most elite colleges and universities have reimposed a mask mandate on all kids and teachers. True, compliance is spotty but that has become an occasion for controversy. The presumption is that if you are not wearing your mask, you might be a dangerous political dissident or maybe even a dreaded anti-vaxxer, even a Trump supporter!…