The chancellor of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill has replaced the adviser of the campus chapter of a conservative student group, Youth for Western Civilization, for responding to an attack in an anonymous flier by boasting of his gunslinging skills. When informed that his home address, picture, and telephone number had been listed in a flier accusing him of supporting white supremacy by advising the group, Elliot Cramer, a retired psychology professor, sent an e-mail response saying, “I have a Colt .45 and I know how to use it.” Mr. Cramer characterized the comment as a joke, but the chancellor, H. Holden Thorp, who received a copy, called it “highly inappropropriate,” told Mr. Cramer to step down, and briefly suspended the campus group until naming a team of three new advisers for it.
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7 Responses to Student Group’s Adviser at Chapel Hill Is Ousted for Boast of Quick Trigger Finger
geoz32 - September 22, 2009 at 3:33 pm
What to say that is constructive. I’m lost.
22259152 - September 22, 2009 at 4:17 pm
Let me see if I have this right. Cramer is intimidated by someone or some group by placing his name, address and telephone number on a flier becasue he is advising the Youth for Western Civilzation group. He responds by saying he can protect himself. Chancellor Thorp reacts by making Cramer stand down and assigning 3 advisors to the group. Yep, that’s what happened. Would someone at UNC please post Thorp’s address and telephone number and accuse him of being a left wing reactionary. Maybe he will be honorable and step down. I wonder if his police department is armed and proficient in the weapon’s use? Maybe they should also step down. Let’s not stop there. We can go on and on. One good reactionary deserves another.
11216278 - September 23, 2009 at 6:27 am
This may be a little more complicated, though not much. The president is a wuss, and Chapel Hill likes to fancy itself among the East Coast Elite, and after all, having guns is sooo vulgar.
tvmillington - September 23, 2009 at 10:48 am
It seems to me that the advisor was making a threat. He should have known better, since as an advisor he is supposed to exemplify mature and adult behavior. But both sides reacted badly here. Instead of taking the easy way out, by issuing anonymous threats (why did the group distributing the flyers not identify itself?)a call should have been made to have a debate. But then again so few people like to debate these days…
swish - September 23, 2009 at 11:21 am
Suppose Professor Emeritus X advises a pro-choice student group. An anonymous pro-life group lists his information on their flyer, and Prof. X gives the same response as Cramer. I’d say his response, while understandable, is just as inappropriate and scary as it was coming from Cramer. If I were the university head, I’d certainly consider banning him from that position.
leontrout - September 23, 2009 at 3:01 pm
The adviser was a real numskull in his choice of words, but no academic–no matter her or his political stripe–ought to dismiss a threat that includes a home address and photos. That’s the kind of stuff that put Dr. George Tiller in Scott Roeder’s sights. It’s the tactic a particularly awful student used a few years back at the University of South Carolina when he targetted a gay professor in his “newspaper.”
leontrout - September 23, 2009 at 10:48 pm
Why has this story disappeared from the front page? I had to google the topic to find out if there was any further discussion.