Here’s an article on the recent Medieval Conference in Kalamazoo that features my friend and erstwhile professor Susan Morrison. It’s written by one Charlotte Allen, apparently the same woman who penned the recent “How Dumb Can We [women] Get” article in the Washington Post that created a stir.
The response to this Weekly Standard bilge has been no less heated among blogging medievalists; read responses here and here.
Allen’s response to the criticism re women are dumb article was that it was meant to be a satire. Clearly, she knows nothing about satire. And she just proved how ignorant she is in some other areas as well.
it’s almost hard for me to believe it’s the same person, but it seems unlikely there are two women with the same name writing for the weekly standard. she is actually doing medieval studies somewhere — heaven help her eventual students.
as for the post article being satire: it’s possible that, as her editors assert, the idea started out as a humorous dig at “obamaniacs” or whatever. but if so, it’s at best simply not very good satire and at worst extremely ill-advised.