The following is true, despite fitting all too easily into my pessimistic view of contemporary academia. Students at my university occasionally complain about their grades, which is of course fair enough. The grounds for complaint, however, are often rather revealing. A Professor reports the following exchange:
Student: “I don’t understand why I haven’t got an A”
Professor: “Well [I paraphrase] your work wasn’t A grade standard.”
Student: “but I really need to get a good grade for this course.”
Professor: “And is that a good reason?”
Student: “I suppose not.”
Professor: “So why Should I give you an A?”
Student: “Well, at the end of the day, my parents pay your wages.”
Yes, money talks. And it talks utter gibberish.