America is in knots over the foolishness — or worse — of its campus protesters. But it is adults who are making the biggest dunces of themselves. The role of grown-ups facing student unrest is to keep the peace without sacrificing rights. These include free speech and physical safety. The task requires principled consistency. In practice, adults from all walks — Republicans, Democrats, the media and university administrations — are exhibiting traits of hysteria and dogmatism they deplore in the young. It should come as no surprise that the protests are getting angrier.
美国正为其校园抗议者的愚蠢——甚至更糟糕的行为——而感到困扰。然而，真正表现愚蠢的却是成年人。面对学生的骚乱，成年人的角色应该是在不牺牲权利的前提下保持和平，这些权利包括言论自由和人身安全。这项任务需要坚持原则的一致性。然而在实践中，无论是共和党人、民主党人、媒体还是大学管理层，各行各业的成年人都在表现出他们所痛恨的年轻人的歇斯底里和教条主义特征。因此，抗议活动愈演愈烈也就不足为奇了。