Reply #37: Here's what Rockymountainnews said about it, though:

[daleo]

"The third is by Fay Cohen of Dalhousie University in Nova Scotia. In an e-mail Thursday, she declined to comment on LaVelle's allegations."

To tell you the truth, I haven't followed the story much. I gather he is a controversial figure who has made some enemies, on the right particularly. Breaking the taboo against commenting critically (i.e from both sides) about 911 seems to have landed him trouble, and a lot of conservative elements want to make an example out of him.

He may not be that terrific a scholar, but I am inclined to think that there is a movement afoot to stifle left of center academic opinion (especially what would be called radical, I suppose). I don't necessarily agree with these lines of thought (the more radical ones), but I think a range of opinion is needed in a pluralistic society.

As for the allegations of plagiarism, I think a lot of scholars would be guilty of technical infractions if their work is really closely scrutinized. I checked the Dalhousie website, but didn't see anything on this issue. That is too bad, as an unvarnished account would be worthwhile. It is also unfortunate that Ms. Cohen didn't supply a quote for the article you linked to; she may be concerned that this is being blown out of proportion, though, and doesn't want to become ammunition for a right wing attack on academic freedom.