Okay, Robert Shibley of FIRE argues that a statue is like a speech. Thus, those Wellesley feminists (as it turns out, I must be one of them) who don’t want the sleepwalking man in his underwear on campus are against free speech.

I agree with Robert most of the time. And, certainly, the petition’s claims that the statue is the source of “undue stress” are silly, but can’t we talk about good taste?

Wellesley has a beautiful and serene campus. I think the women on Wellesley have a right to keep their campus beautiful. There’s plenty of room for exhibitionist art, ideological debate, and modern trendiness inside the ivy-covered walls. And for men.