What do you think of the dialogue? Regarding polifessor, three positions are possible.

    First, a politics-avoider position; Avoiders, agreeing with A, say that involvement in politics is not what professors are supposed to do; some would go further to say that those people are interested in getting political attention and high-profile jobs in the opposition camp. Avoiders may want to be politically neutral and pure, engaging only in their own research fields, refusing to go outside of their expertise. Yet, if there are injustices and you are silent, you can’t be neutral. Being silent is one way of taking a side. Some avoiders may be more than willing to put their signature on a pro-government campaign. Those are politics-avoiders in disguise. They love politics, so far as their activities stick to government guidelines. Those avoiders have, in fact, a high propensity to become a reactionary.

    Second, the righteous position; these people, disagreeing with A, contend that the NIS violated national laws when it leaked the garbled transcript of the Inter-Korea Summit. So, professors as leaders of society should express their views of the NIS’ violation; they should whenever they see injustices in a society. These people tend to be ‘politically purer’ than avoiders. Once they are called upon to engage by the circumstances, they are too pure to resist the call. If avoiders criticize them of being poli-fessors or politically motivated, they are over-simplifying. Because there are a very small number of people gaining politically and almost all of the righteous participate at the risk of losing government-provided benefits.

    Third, a truth-sayer position; truth-sayers disagree to A's view and argue that it is their obligation to speak truth to power. The word ‘professor’ comes from profiteri, “lay claim to, declare openly.” So, it goes “we, as professors, must declare our views openly; we have to express our views to power, especially to arbitrary power.” “Declaring what?” Some skeptics would ask. “Truth!” Skeptics would go further “what truth?” Skeptics have a point, for we live in a world of multiple truths and we can’t be an expert on everything. Yet, skeptics should not prevail. We are in the business of seeking truths and we are not asked to say something about everything. We are only asked to declare our views regarding critical social issues. You must speak to power whatever you have found after long study and deliberation.

    What position are you in? Who are you? Avoider, the righteous or truth-sayer? These are not difficult questions to answer as far as we have the courage to declare our desire.

    To me, a polifessor is one who has great respect to his/her contemporaries and who does not spare time for seeking truth(s) and who is not afraid to speak truth to arbitrary power. Our society needs polifessors; we need a lot of them.