Genius Move by the MacArthur Foundation

Once again, the MacArthur Fellowships — aka “genius grants” — were announced. And once again, I didn’t get one.

That’s OK. I consider the 25 years I spent as a tenure-track, then tenured, faculty member even better. The MacArthur Fellows get $125,000 a year for five years, no strings attached. That’s sweet, but does it top complete job security forever, a less-than-taxing course load, regular sabbaticals, excellent benefits, and summers and a long winter break off each year? I think not.

With th...