This poem is based in part on a late night radio discussion related to the SOKAL AFFAIR…a literary hoax perpetrated in 1996, by Alan Sokal, a physics professor at New York University and University College London.  He essentially produced a “scholarly” paper, submitted and accepted by a peer review professional journal…that was essentially a total farce, with big words and phrases meaning nothing and saying nothing—and nobody caught it or the joke!—Information via WIKIPEDIA.

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The program on late night radio was on the Buck Sexton Radio program, heard on WTAG, 580 AM AND 94.9 FM..(I-HEART Radio).  or at http://bucksexton.com/  Two other men tried a similar stunt…which was similarly unquestioningly received…even by a certain very recent former President.

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Anyway…my opinion of these scholarly attempts to wake people up:

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THE SOKAL EFFECT–WHO WAS FOOLISH?

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Two academics decided,

The SOKAL AFFAIR, to retry it…

They thought the echelon

Would soon catch on,

To the foolish words and not buy it.

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Alas, they were amazed,

When the stupid thing was praised…

No one claimed to see

Its tomfoolery,

And no objections were raised!

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Alas, poor academia,

Write crap–you think it love–

“Goobledegook”

As truth they took,

On which none suspected of…!

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The authors, on Buck Sexton’s show,

Said academia scored very low…

Feeding such junk

To students who sunk

Under such high=priced foolishness—low!

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It troubles me that they tried,

With hopes of opening eyes…

Weren’t they aware

That complicity there,

Had already stagnified?

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Embarrassing people is the same

As a liberal calling bad names…

Same vocabulary–

What eye opening–

Wasting time on trite little games?

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Truth must come by force,

Changing hearts, not playing horse…

Christ had to die

Be sin crucified,

To change a human soul’s course!

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If you sound just like their friend,

Why expect foolishness’ end…

Look act like one

You’re shot before begun,

No matter what you’d intend.

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A dirty joke it was,

A lot of people “buzzed”…

Doesn’t help squat

If the whole lot,

Misses the point of the cause!

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–Jonathan Caswell,

M.S.E.–Biology, 1983

(for whatever good this is!)