True - though the sheer number of children's deaths in such a short period in Gaza, and the staggering percentage of all deaths that they make up, do stand out, as does the factor of the Gaza Strip's residents being unable to flee towards safer places as the Syrians and Sudanese have done in huge numbers.

If Stefanik hadn't been talking such bullshit anyway, what with her equating 'intifada' to 'genocide', I would have focused less on the identity of the messenger as it would have felt like an excuse to not deal with the message. As it is, not so much.

Yeah, I know that was your intended point. Obviously I've also seen some of those absurdities that have resulted from them taking valid ideas way too far. I've never seen them as all that big a problem though, for several reasons, including Roland's point about how minuscule a percentage of Americans actually attends these high-profile schools - it always seems like the people who complain the loudest about such incidents are really only too pleased that they happened, so they can use them as an excuse to dismiss all the ideas behind them. Like the concept of intersectionality itself - it's a perfectly valid and sensible notion that a black woman shares certain experiences or problems with white women, others with black men, but still has a position that is different from merely adding up the two. But for you and many others, clearly it has become some kind of dirty word that automatically stops you from taking people seriously when they use it.

Now if you like seeing the leadership of Harvard etc. taken down a few notches, I might agree with that, but not for the same reasons - more because they have acquired this towering reputation (and hence their degrees have acquired a corresponding impact on graduates' future earnings) that is out of all proportion to the real added value of their education, compared to less famous schools.

On a related sidenote, SNL did a parody of the hearing - I haven't seen it, as they apparently only put clips on Youtube some time after the broadcast, but based on the NYT summary, I love how they added the famously non-elite and entirely online University of Phoenix to the hearing:

"Breaking from reality, the “S.N.L.” sketch added Kenan Thompson, who was playing the president of the online University of Phoenix.

Asked if he would condemn antisemitism, Thompson said, “Well, my campus is the internet, so antisemitism is kind of our most popular major. And our mascot is porn.”

But he told Troast that his school would consider offering a course on the subject. “Lady, we’ll offer a course on anything,” he said. “The only mandatory courses we have are how to login to the University of Phoenix online and how to set up autopay.” "

I don't think the motives of Congress, as a whole, are always bad. Stefanik being hot garbage doesn't mean they all are.