Dartblog

Some of the best guest lectures at Dartmouth are those least known about. One generally encounters bearded men and bald women holding forth monotonously on the orthodoxies of the day whenever one attends a formally ballyhooed event. This makes one suspicious of anything seeming to bear the imprimatur of some suzerain in Parkhurst Hall. Actually, it makes one bored of anything bearing that stamp of approval.

The good stuff glides more quietly. To wit, Kent Dahlberg informs me that “this Sunday evening, March 30th at 7 o’clock, author and social scientist David Blankenhorn will be speaking in a public forum in 105 Dartmouth Hall on the question of same-sex marriage. His title is “Does Traditional Marriage Matter?” David will argue from social science research for the affirmative — that retaining marriage as an exclusively male-female relationship is of vital interest for children (who embody our future), for our broader society, and for the health of marriage as an institution. A panel of respondents representing a range of perspectives on the question of legally recognizing same-sex (or “genderless”) marriage will be seated on the dais. Each will make a few brief follow-up remarks on the topic, then interact with David and one another. David and the panel will conclude the evening by fielding questions from the campus and community audience.”

Do go.