U of Iowa President In Some Hot Water For Saying Unprepared Professors Should Be Shot

Chronicle- The president of the University of Iowa, J. Bruce Harreld, has apologized to a campus librarian — and vocal critic of his hiring — for suggesting that professors unprepared to teach be shot. The Associated Press reports Mr. Harreld told Lisa Gardinier that he was sorry for an “unfortunate off-the-cuff remark” he made during a meeting of the Staff Council last week. “Frankly, I have used the comment in many, many forums, and this is the first time anyone has objected to it,” Mr. Harreld wrote to Ms. Gardinier. “I apologize and appreciate your calling my attention to it.” In their correspondence, which Ms. Gardinier shared with the AP, she told Mr. Harreld she appreciated his apology, although she described as “horrifying and unacceptable” the notion that a university president could make such a comment, even if intended flippantly, at a time when a series of mass shootings has heightened fears of campus violence. Many faculty members have strongly criticized the hiring of Mr. Harreld for its lack of transparency — and the fact that Mr. Harreld does not have a primarily academic background.

Oooooooookay.  Now before everybody gets out their torches and pitchforks and burns Iowa’s president at the stake, think back.  Think back if you’ve ever said the phrase, “(blank person) deserves to be shot for (blank reason).” You’ve said it.  I guarantee it. It’s something you say when you don’t like the way someone is acting so you say they should be shot. You don’t mean it. You don’t want people to get shot over minor things. That’s what’s going on here with the U of I’s president. Of course it could be argued that in the current time period and the current trend of mass shootings happening every 2 hours or so a president of a major university shouldn’t say such things.  Fine. Fair enough. But the fact of the matter is he didn’t mean it maliciously. It’s something people say. For instance, I often say to my friends,” my neighbors who live above me should be shot because they have this weird habit of rearranging furniture between the hours of 2 and 4am.”  Do I really want my neighbors to be shot?  Yes. Yes I do.  So that’s a bad example. Your boy needs his sleep and it’s hard when those dumb fucks upstairs are moving couches around at 3:30 in the morning*. But the bottom line is this is once again people being outraged simply to flex their outrage muscles. It’s stupid that he was even forced to apologize. Case closed.

*”Trent, why don’t you just walk upstairs and tell your neighbors to shut up? Problem solved.”  Such a great idea.  And when I stop being a happy-go-lucky guy Midwesterner who hates confrontation I’ll be sure to do that.