Frequently Asked Questions

This is a big university - There are plenty of ideas around here.   Why go through all the trouble of creating the Tocqueville Center?

Because in important parts of the University, students don't get to participate in the "marketplace of ideas."   Sometimes they get exposed only to conservative ideas; often they get exposed only to liberal or radical ones.   We even get complaints that moderate and conservative students can't express their opinions in class without getting beat up on by other students, sometimes even by their instructors!

We aim to provide a forum where students can hear all kinds of ideas, especially those other people don't want you to hear.

Aren't you guys just a bunch of conservative whacko's?

We're fanatics about free speech and free expression, especially on university campuses.   We can't stand it when indoctrination replaces education.   We hate it when students get humiliated in class because of their political views; worse still, when they get down-graded.   We loathe and despise it when students, faculty, or administrators are punished for their ideas and opinions.   We're working toward a university in which everybody treats everybody else's ideas with respect, and debates the full range of ideas rationally and vigorously.   If that makes us whacko's, so be it.   If that makes us wacko's, we need more wacko's.  

The fact is that while many of our members lean toward the political right and some lean toward the left, an awful lot of us are annoyed by both the right and the left -- we don't like either political party.   We don't think anybody's got a monopoly on truth.   We want to hear what everybody thinks, and then make our own decisions.

What is the Minnesota Association of Scholars?

The Minnesota Association of Scholars (MAS) in the parent organization of the Tocqueville Center.   MAS is providing the money, the encouragement, and the intellectual support to get the Tocqueville Center up and running.   Eventually we hope to establish Tocqueville Centers in other colleges and universities around the state.  

MAS is the Minnesota Chapter of NAS, the National Association of Scholars.   Both MAS and NAS are dedicated to the principle that the strength of a great university is its intellectual diversity.   That's why we're for the marketplace of ideas and against any and every form of indoctrination and political correctness.  

Can I become a member of the Tocqueville Center?

The Tocqueville Center isn't a membership organization - Everybody's welcome to come to all Tocqueville events.   But you can become a member of the Minnesota Association of Scholars, and we'd love to have you on board.   You can learn more about MAS by clicking here.