As if we needed any more evidence that our institutes of higher learning have become fetid wastelands brimming with ideologues and doctrinaires… Nonetheless, along came Professor David Guth of the University of Kansas who, last Monday in the aftermath of the Navy Yard shootings, tweeted that he hopes the children of NRA members are among the dead at the hands of the next deranged shooter. Not content with that, he expounded upon his inane logic on his blog. And, when contacted by several media outlets, he asserted that he will take none of it back, and that he has nothing for which to apologize. Such are the mentalities inhabiting many of our colleges and universities. If there was ever a better argument against the idea of tenure…
The University of Kansas, in jaw-dropping predictability, took the usual course of inaction. On Wednesday, it simply asserted Guth’s first amendment right to free speech, and hoped the furor would subside. When hundreds (including me) on Thursday expressed their disdain, and the media caught on, the university asserted Guth’s first amendment right again, but added that Guth’s views were not the university’s views. On Friday, when even more (including me) complained that the university was not going far enough, and after a few more unapologetic interviews from Guth, the university chancellor finally put a gag on him and announced Friday that he was on indefinite leave pending an investigation. Over the weekend, the leave turned into an “early sabbatical.”
For those who aren’t acquainted with academic-speak, allow me to translate. Professor Guth is now on an early paid vacation, lasting typically a year, while his colleagues will be forced to take up his teaching load. Oh, that we all could be punished thus for our transgressions. Guth, for his part, is loath to part with his 15 minutes of infamy, and is now blaming the NRA for his misfortune and referring to unspecified “thinly-veiled death threats” against him. As I said, jaw-dropping predictability.
The incident hits close to home, though. I happen to be a proud NRA member, and I not only have a child attending the University of Kansas, but he is a member of the NRA also. I wondered over the weekend if Guth would wish my son dead twice for this double infraction. This morning, I decided to ask him. Armed only with my intellect, I made the 40 minute drive to Lawrence, and I had little trouble locating Guth’s office, curious to see if the professor was capable of engaging in reasoned discourse. Alas, his office was closed, but undeterred I found a seating area and decided to wait. (I had noticed from the media photos that Guth is a rather robust-looking fellow, so I thought maybe he was simply out for an early lunch.) I amused myself with the latest issue of American Hunter, and thought fondly of the first pheasant hunt of the year. After some time, I tried Guth’s door again, but no luck. As I turned away, a professor emerged from his office and gaped at me like I was a ghost. You’d think maybe he’d never seen an NRA cap before. Then again, given that I was in the midst of a vacuum of independent thinking, maybe he hadn’t.
I guess we’ll have to keep a close eye on the university and see if the promised investigation ever takes place, or if they’re hoping time will make us forget. I won’t. By the way, before I left, I noticed two courses that Journalism Professor Guth had been teaching this semester were posted on his door. Strategic Communication Campaigns, and Ethics and the Media. You can’t make this stuff up!
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