[jnet]

"Of course the liberal arts faculty want you to keep buying into the failed state that is their department"

I think you hit the nail on the head here. I distinctly remember almost every intro class I took the professor would try to sell me on the fact that it would be the greatest degree ever. Unfortunately, while some areas of study may be interesting, they are not always a good ROI and I think that is what alot of college kids don't understand.

[tsotha]

To be fair to the professors, they wouldn't be teaching intro to whatever if they weren't genuinely enthusiastic about the subject.

Also, while the ROI on some majors is terribly negative over a large population, that choice has likely worked out very well for the professors teaching the class. A tenured position at a major university is the closest you're ever going to get in life to a sure thing.