Pulling a Hopkins

by Will Wilkinson on January 21, 2005

In honor of intellectually squeamish MIT biologist Nancy Hopkins, I officially propose the following addition to the vernacular:

pull a Hopkins
intr. v.

1. to become faint or nauseated upon hearing a statement contrary to one’s ideology or dogma.
2. to leave the room, usually dramatically, because of such faintness or nausea.
3. to feign such faintness or nausea as part of a ploy to establish or reinforce a social convention about the limits of acceptable discourse.

e.g.: “I pulled a Hopkins when I heard Bob say that, even though it has never worked, communism is ‘a good idea.’”

Historical source:

“I just couldn’t breathe because this kind of bias makes me physically ill. I would’ve either blacked out or thrown up.” – Professor Nancy Hopkins, in response to Harvard President Larry Summer’s conjecture that women are scarce in certain mathematical disciplines because of genetic differences between the sexes.

Will Wilkinson

Certainly!

JasonP

Can anyone “pull a Hopkins” or does one have to have membership in a federally protected demographic group? Can a middle-aged gainfully-employed white guy “pull a Hopkins?”

Paul Zrimsek

Or, "He dowdified me so badly in his fisking that I totally hopkinated and threatened to go all krugman on him unless he apologized."

John Enright

I wonder if instead of "pull a Hopkins" we could go directly to a verb form, like "hopkinate." As in, "His ideas upset me so I hopkinated until he apologized."

Frank McGahon

Monkyboy, word of advice: If you're going to go around accusing people of posting "slurs", it kind of diminishes the effect if you start with the crass formulation "didn't mean to get your Irish up".

Paul Zrimsek

This is the Age of Equality, Wilkinson: slurs may be directed only against men. Get with the program!

Keelay

The Monkyboy character is becoming a bit of a recurring feature around here. Kind of like a greek chorus that confirms Will's motivations by admonishing so poorly. So much so that I am beginning to suspect that Monkyboy is actually an invention of Will's ala Locke in Ender's Game.

But then I consider that Monkyboy may be a real person raised by real parents who has simply taken another path. And I am made very sad to think he looks on me unable to comprehend how I can be so blind to what he sees clear as day.

And I think to myself: What a Horrible World.

Micha Ghertner

Slur?

monkyboy

Woah, sorry Larry. Didn't mean to get your Irish up :)

Just trying to alert young Will to the fact that he has posted slurs against women twice this month...might be a career limiter if he keeps it up.

Larry O'Leary

And how many comments have you made this month, MB? Well, wow, that many dumbfuck comments this month!

monkyboy

Wow, two misogynistic posts this month.

You are making your attempt to advance from Philosopher Pawn to Philosopher King that much harder with posts like these...

Stick to shillin' for the neocons!

Joe Grossberg

But ain't that how our recently-honored Martin Luther King Jr. dealt with racism ... oh wait, no it isn't.

yo

"I just couldn't breathe because this kind of bias makes me physically ill. I would've either blacked out or thrown up." - Professor Nancy Hopkins, in response to Harvard President Larry Summer's conjecture that women are scarce in certain mathematical disciplines because of genetic differences between the sexes.

This Hopkins chick sounds cowardly, but what can you expect from a girl?