Anyone really think that a decent SLAC should *not* have a physics department? That be the thin end of the wedge, fella-- next thing you know you will be advocatin' the elimination of the classics department.
Classics Departments are on the chopping blocks all over the country - so are communications, writing and linguistics, philosophy, and other departments many of us see as primary to a liberal arts education.
So bizarre, as linguistics is thriving in Europe where it is seen as a practical major. Well, not too bizarre considering Europe is a multilingual region where most people speak a second language to some degree, but still an interesting difference.
