ACADEMIA’S DECLINE: The Wreckage of Endowed Chairs. “By skillfully isolating themselves from the despised capitalist system that created the wealth they enjoy, these professors find themselves free to ignore the great issues of the age and to dwell instead on voguish topics of the moment. . . . Well-meaning donors have facilitated the race to pomposity and triviality. Do they want this outcome? If not, will they wake to their errors?”