Fla. Gov. calls for investigation into Student suspension over word Jesus

[g5000]

I hope the kid did threaten violence. The professor deserves it.

 

[tinydancer]

The class was on symbolism.

The entire point of the exercise was that people would object to it - the point of the exercise is that people would hesitate to step on a piece of paper with Jesus written on it - a symbol with no actual religious meaning - because their mind would associate that symbol with what it represents.

It was actually quite a good lesson plan - and if anything, the whole "scandal" about it proved the professor's point.

The student was suspended. The student did not approach anyone over this issue until he received the suspension.

So was this a "lesson" or a "torment" for a devout Christian student?

I say the latter.

And why the suspension?

Mr Rotela said he went to speak with his professor's supervisor two days after, and found himself suspended.



FAU: University instructor told students to write the word 'Jesus' on paper, throw it on floor and stomp on it | Mail Online

"Torment"? The exercise was optional - no one was "forced" to do anything - and I don't know of any rule in Christianity that forbids stepping on Jesus's name.

And we only have the student's side of the story - we don't know why he was actually suspended, only what he claims was the reason.

You guys are insisting on painting this as an anti-Christianity thing, which is really missing the entire point.

Well, first and foremost, Jesus is a huge prophet in Islam so this isn't just anti Christian, this is anti Islam if one wants to really go at this.

Jesus is a biggie. Every time some one wants to slag Jesus, they're slagging Islam too.

Muslims believe that Jesus will return to earth near the Day of Judgment to restore justice and to defeat Masih ad-Dajjal ("the false messiah", also known as the Antichrist)

Jesus in Islam - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia



And it's not the students side of the story for crying out loud. Read the article. The University has apologized and admitted that this was insensitive.

 

[ogibillm]

If the professor REALLY wanted to find a highly charged symbol to desecrate, why not have the kids write "MOHAMMED" on the paper and step on it?

The professor is a chickenshit asshole who only dares to offend those who won't hit back.

Let's see some REAL intercultural communication! Take THAT Mohammed!

would that have bothered you?

it wouldn't have bothered me, because to me 'mohammed' means nothing.

you're assuming the point of the exercise was the desecrate a symbol. i highly doubt that was the case.

The exercise IS a desecration. A deliberate one. That was the point of the exercise, to do something offensive to Christians.

If word got out that an Intercultural Communications professor had students stomp on Mohammed's name, what reaction would you expect would be occurring right now?


Yeah. Exactly.

The professor is a chickenshit, offending people who won't hit back.

again, you're starting from the position that the intent was to desecrate.

as a christian i know that the word jesus on a piece of paper is not holy or sacred. yet i also know i would have difficulty stomping on such a paper.

that being the case it becomes much more clear why someone, like a muslim, who believes some written words to be sacred and holy might have a much stronger reaction to those words being treated without respect.

again, i highly doubt the instructor just wanted to poke christians in the eye. there was a lesson there.

 

[PoliticalChic]

university instructor told students to write the word 'Jesus' on paper, throw it on the floor and stomp on it

What exactly was the professor trying to teach?
Is their apology good enough.... Hell no, someone needs to be fired.
There is absolutely no excuse for this type of behavior from the professor and there is no excuse for the University for backing him up.

The class was on symbolism.

The entire point of the exercise was that people would object to it - the point of the exercise is that people would hesitate to step on a piece of paper with Jesus written on it - a symbol with no actual religious meaning - because their mind would associate that symbol with what it represents.

It was actually quite a good lesson plan - and if anything, the whole "scandal" about it proved the professor's point.

I imagine the 'professor's' second choice would have bee "OBAMA," huh?


Dunce.

 

[theDoctorisIn]

If the professor REALLY wanted to find a highly charged symbol to desecrate, why not have the kids write "MOHAMMED" on the paper and step on it?

The professor is a chickenshit asshole who only dares to offend those who won't hit back.

Let's see some REAL intercultural communication! Take THAT Mohammed!

would that have bothered you?

it wouldn't have bothered me, because to me 'mohammed' means nothing.

you're assuming the point of the exercise was the desecrate a symbol. i highly doubt that was the case.

The exercise IS a desecration. A deliberate one. That was the point of the exercise, to do something offensive to Christians.

No, it wasn't. Seriously, the whole persecution complex thing is getting old.

The class was on Symbolism.

If word got out that an Intercultural Communications professor had students stomp on Mohammed's name, what reaction would you expect would be occurring right now?


Yeah. Exactly.


If the professor had the kids burn a flag, there'd be vets crawling all over that campus and the professor's house.



The professor is a chickenshit, offending people who won't hit back.

You are the one choosing to be offended.

 

[g5000]

would that have bothered you?

it wouldn't have bothered me, because to me 'mohammed' means nothing.

you're assuming the point of the exercise was the desecrate a symbol. i highly doubt that was the case.

The exercise IS a desecration. A deliberate one. That was the point of the exercise, to do something offensive to Christians.

If word got out that an Intercultural Communications professor had students stomp on Mohammed's name, what reaction would you expect would be occurring right now?


Yeah. Exactly.

The professor is a chickenshit, offending people who won't hit back.

again, you're starting from the position that the intent was to desecrate.

as a christian i know that the word jesus on a piece of paper is not holy or sacred. yet i also know i would have difficulty stomping on such a paper.

that being the case it becomes much more clear why someone, like a muslim, who believes some written words to be sacred and holy might have a much stronger reaction to those words being treated without respect.

again, i highly doubt the instructor just wanted to poke christians in the eye. there was a lesson there.

Let's hope the professor learned that lesson from the Mormon kid. Don't fuck with Jesus.

 

[Mustang]

You know what upsets me about this story? It seems like an unnecessary waste of paper. Other than that, I can't get excited about it one way or the other.

 

[theDoctorisIn]

university instructor told students to write the word 'Jesus' on paper, throw it on the floor and stomp on it

What exactly was the professor trying to teach?
Is their apology good enough.... Hell no, someone needs to be fired.
There is absolutely no excuse for this type of behavior from the professor and there is no excuse for the University for backing him up.

The class was on symbolism.

The entire point of the exercise was that people would object to it - the point of the exercise is that people would hesitate to step on a piece of paper with Jesus written on it - a symbol with no actual religious meaning - because their mind would associate that symbol with what it represents.

It was actually quite a good lesson plan - and if anything, the whole "scandal" about it proved the professor's point.

I imagine the 'professor's' second choice would have bee "OBAMA," huh?


Dunce.

Would you be "offended" if she had used Obama's name?

I know I wouldn't.

 

[g5000]

university instructor told students to write the word 'Jesus' on paper, throw it on the floor and stomp on it

What exactly was the professor trying to teach?
Is their apology good enough.... Hell no, someone needs to be fired.
There is absolutely no excuse for this type of behavior from the professor and there is no excuse for the University for backing him up.

The class was on symbolism.

The entire point of the exercise was that people would object to it - the point of the exercise is that people would hesitate to step on a piece of paper with Jesus written on it - a symbol with no actual religious meaning - because their mind would associate that symbol with what it represents.

It was actually quite a good lesson plan - and if anything, the whole "scandal" about it proved the professor's point.

I imagine the 'professor's' second choice would have bee "OBAMA," huh?


Dunce.

If the professor had chosen "OBAMA", Jon Stewart would be slamming the shit out of the professor, the school, Florida, and the right wing.

But, hey, DoctorisIn says OBAMA on a piece of paper isn't a sacred symbol...

 

[Desperado]

The professor is a "she", by the way.

That is one ugly she than,

The assignment instructed in Dr. Deandre Poole's intercultural communication class was meant to demonstrate the power of words and symbols, according to the exercise.

Deandre J. Poole
Instructor

Email: [email protected]
PhD, Howard University
Areas of Specialization: Intercultural Communication, Leadership and Communication, Political Communication

Deandre Poole teaches courses in intercultural communication, ethnicity and communication, leadership and communication, and organizational communication. His research focuses on the role mediated messages play in shaping individual attitudes and beliefs concerning issues of justice and inequality, and examines how leaders, organizations, and other influential authorities dominate and oppress marginalized groups of people. Currently, he is authoring the book, Obamamania: The Rise of a Mythical Hero, to be published by the Edwin Mellen Press. In addition to his academic pursuits, Dr. Poole is actively engaged in various community service projects throughout Palm Beach County.

http://www.fau.edu/scms/poole.php

 

[Book of Jeremiah]

The class was on symbolism.

The entire point of the exercise was that people would object to it - the point of the exercise is that people would hesitate to step on a piece of paper with Jesus written on it - a symbol with no actual religious meaning - because their mind would associate that symbol with what it represents.

It was actually quite a good lesson plan - and if anything, the whole "scandal" about it proved the professor's point.

Except for the fact he kicked out a student. That means the intent was not to cause consternation at all.

We don't know what went on in that classroom, or why the student was suspended. We only have the student's side of the story.

The professor is a "she", by the way.

It's staggeringly unlikely that the kid was suspended because he fulfilled the point of the lesson. It's much more likely that the student reacted in a way that resulted in his suspension.

There's a rumor going around that he threatened the teacher - supposedly coming from other students in the class. I'm not saying those rumors are true - just that there's more to the story than what you guys are publicizing.

Wrong. You have a classroom full of students as witnesses. I'd go for his job & sue.

 

[theDoctorisIn]

The student was suspended. The student did not approach anyone over this issue until he received the suspension.

So was this a "lesson" or a "torment" for a devout Christian student?

I say the latter.

And why the suspension?

Mr Rotela said he went to speak with his professor's supervisor two days after, and found himself suspended.



FAU: University instructor told students to write the word 'Jesus' on paper, throw it on floor and stomp on it | Mail Online

"Torment"? The exercise was optional - no one was "forced" to do anything - and I don't know of any rule in Christianity that forbids stepping on Jesus's name.

And we only have the student's side of the story - we don't know why he was actually suspended, only what he claims was the reason.

You guys are insisting on painting this as an anti-Christianity thing, which is really missing the entire point.

Well, first and foremost, Jesus is a huge prophet in Islam so this isn't just anti Christian, this is anti Islam if one wants to really go at this.

Jesus is a biggie. Every time some one wants to slag Jesus, they're slagging Islam too.

Muslims believe that Jesus will return to earth near the Day of Judgment to restore justice and to defeat Masih ad-Dajjal ("the false messiah", also known as the Antichrist)

Jesus in Islam - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia



And it's not the students side of the story for crying out loud. Read the article. The University has apologized and admitted that this was insensitive.

First of all, my point was that the lesson wasn't "anti-religious", in any way. It was a lesson in the power of symbols, and how our brain reacts to them. This thread is a perfect example of what I'm talking about.

Does writing Jesus's name on a piece of paper, then stepping on it somehow "hurt" Jesus? Does the piece of paper somehow gain some religious value when Jesus's name is written on it, becoming more than just a piece of paper?

As for the University "apologizing" - I'm going to go out on a limb and say that it's a lot more likely that they're "apologizing" for PR reasons than because they actually think anything was wrong.

We only have the student's side of the story in terms of exactly why he was suspended.

 

[bodecea]

They should take the Professor's paycheck, throw it on the ground and stomp on it. Then give her directions to the unemployment office. She can join the ranks of Obama supporters and get on welfare.

Hmmm...some Christians are sounding more and more muslimish.......

 

[Lonestar_logic]

university instructor told students to write the word 'Jesus' on paper, throw it on the floor and stomp on it

What exactly was the professor trying to teach?
Is their apology good enough.... Hell no, someone needs to be fired.
There is absolutely no excuse for this type of behavior from the professor and there is no excuse for the University for backing him up.

The class was on symbolism.

The entire point of the exercise was that people would object to it - the point of the exercise is that people would hesitate to step on a piece of paper with Jesus written on it - a symbol with no actual religious meaning - because their mind would associate that symbol with what it represents.

It was actually quite a good lesson plan - and if anything, the whole "scandal" about it proved the professor's point.

And if you object you get tossed out of class.

Great teacher!

 

[theDoctorisIn]

The professor is a "she", by the way.

That is one ugly she than,

The assignment instructed in Dr. Deandre Poole's intercultural communication class was meant to demonstrate the power of words and symbols, according to the exercise.

Deandre J. Poole
Instructor

Email: [email protected]
PhD, Howard University
Areas of Specialization: Intercultural Communication, Leadership and Communication, Political Communication

Deandre Poole teaches courses in intercultural communication, ethnicity and communication, leadership and communication, and organizational communication. His research focuses on the role mediated messages play in shaping individual attitudes and beliefs concerning issues of justice and inequality, and examines how leaders, organizations, and other influential authorities dominate and oppress marginalized groups of people. Currently, he is authoring the book, Obamamania: The Rise of a Mythical Hero, to be published by the Edwin Mellen Press. In addition to his academic pursuits, Dr. Poole is actively engaged in various community service projects throughout Palm Beach County.

School of Communication & Multimedia Studies

Whoops. You're right.

Apologies.

 

[Oldstyle]

university instructor told students to write the word 'Jesus' on paper, throw it on the floor and stomp on it

What exactly was the professor trying to teach?
Is their apology good enough.... Hell no, someone needs to be fired.
There is absolutely no excuse for this type of behavior from the professor and there is no excuse for the University for backing him up.

The class was on symbolism.

The entire point of the exercise was that people would object to it - the point of the exercise is that people would hesitate to step on a piece of paper with Jesus written on it - a symbol with no actual religious meaning - because their mind would associate that symbol with what it represents.

It was actually quite a good lesson plan - and if anything, the whole "scandal" about it proved the professor's point.

Gotta be honest with you, Doc...as an atheist I'm looking at what happened and shaking my head. Jesus...whether represented by a picture or a book or even a word...is a sacred thing for many people with HUGE religious meaning. I wouldn't even think of trying to prove a point about "symbolism" by asking my students to desecrate the symbol of someone else. Surely there must be some other way of getting your point across than this? Sadly I think the Professor was going for cheap "shock value" with this exercise without putting much thought into the feelings of people who ARE very religious. If "I" can see this than why couldn't she?

 

[theDoctorisIn]

Except for the fact he kicked out a student. That means the intent was not to cause consternation at all.

We don't know what went on in that classroom, or why the student was suspended. We only have the student's side of the story.

The professor is a "she", by the way.

It's staggeringly unlikely that the kid was suspended because he fulfilled the point of the lesson. It's much more likely that the student reacted in a way that resulted in his suspension.

There's a rumor going around that he threatened the teacher - supposedly coming from other students in the class. I'm not saying those rumors are true - just that there's more to the story than what you guys are publicizing.

Wrong. You have a classroom full of students as witnesses. I'd go for his job & sue.

Yeah, and it's pretty telling than none of them have come forward to back up the accuser.

 

[theDoctorisIn]

university instructor told students to write the word 'Jesus' on paper, throw it on the floor and stomp on it

What exactly was the professor trying to teach?
Is their apology good enough.... Hell no, someone needs to be fired.
There is absolutely no excuse for this type of behavior from the professor and there is no excuse for the University for backing him up.

The class was on symbolism.

The entire point of the exercise was that people would object to it - the point of the exercise is that people would hesitate to step on a piece of paper with Jesus written on it - a symbol with no actual religious meaning - because their mind would associate that symbol with what it represents.

It was actually quite a good lesson plan - and if anything, the whole "scandal" about it proved the professor's point.

Gotta be honest with you, Doc...as an atheist I'm looking at what happened and shaking my head. Jesus...whether represented by a picture or a book or even a word...is a sacred thing for many people with HUGE religious meaning. I wouldn't even think of trying to prove a point about "symbolism" by asking my students to desecrate the symbol of someone else. Surely there must be some other way of getting your point across than this? Sadly I think the Professor was going for cheap "shock value" with this exercise without putting much thought into the feelings of people who ARE very religious. If "I" can see this than why couldn't she?

Does writing the word "Jesus" on something really make it a sacred religious symbol?

 

[theDoctorisIn]

university instructor told students to write the word 'Jesus' on paper, throw it on the floor and stomp on it

What exactly was the professor trying to teach?
Is their apology good enough.... Hell no, someone needs to be fired.
There is absolutely no excuse for this type of behavior from the professor and there is no excuse for the University for backing him up.

The class was on symbolism.

The entire point of the exercise was that people would object to it - the point of the exercise is that people would hesitate to step on a piece of paper with Jesus written on it - a symbol with no actual religious meaning - because their mind would associate that symbol with what it represents.

It was actually quite a good lesson plan - and if anything, the whole "scandal" about it proved the professor's point.

And if you object you get tossed out of class.

Great teacher!

He wasn't "tossed out of class".

He was suspended a few days later, for unspecified reasons.

 

[PoliticalChic]

The class was on symbolism.

The entire point of the exercise was that people would object to it - the point of the exercise is that people would hesitate to step on a piece of paper with Jesus written on it - a symbol with no actual religious meaning - because their mind would associate that symbol with what it represents.

It was actually quite a good lesson plan - and if anything, the whole "scandal" about it proved the professor's point.

I imagine the 'professor's' second choice would have bee "OBAMA," huh?


Dunce.

Would you be "offended" if she had used Obama's name?

I know I wouldn't.

"He," not she.


Are you having trouble seeing the forest for the trees?


Universities' raison d'être is to kill any belief in traditional religion.

This can be seen in Woodrow Wilson’s speech as president of Princeton:
“Our problem is not merely to help students to adjust to themselves to world life…[but] to make them as unlike their fathers as we can.”
Michael McGerr, “A Fierce Discontent: The Rise and Fall of the Progressive Movement in America, 1870-1920,” p. 111