contradictions of an academic left?

["Dr. George Snedeker" <snedeker@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Louis,   you were invited to review Jim Blaut's book along with everyone else on
the list.  no one on the list cared enough about their friend, Jim Blaut to
write the review.    you are right that mostly professors write for and read
Socialism and Democracy. I view this as a problem. it is a kind of professional
trap. however, we do other things beside writing and reading.    you got the
history of Socialism and Democracy a little twisted. the journal was founded by 
Frank Rosengarten and Mike Brown  in 1985, long before the alan Sokal affair at
Social Text. Randy Martin and I joined soon after the journal was founded.  What
about the Brecht Forum? It  is an alternative school for socialist education. 
most of the classes and lectures are given by professors. admittedly, most of
the students are workers. Socialism and Democracy has a close working
relationship with Brecht.   I don't think your representation of Frank
Rosengarten was quite fair. you probably know Capital better than he does. he
probably knows Gramsci better than you do. who is the better man for his reading
habits?   I would be interested in any suggestions you or anyone else on the
list can make to improve Socialism and Democracy. submit something to me. send
some jokes if you like...   the original goal of the Research Group on Socialism
and Democracy, which publishes S. and D., was to promote a reasonable discussion
about socialist societies. it is true that our original audience was made up of
professors and graduate students. you have to start somewhere. we were trying to
oppose anticommunists within the academy.     George