Move over Janet Napolitano. Your Department of Homeland Security
is not the only public institution that claims military veterans
pose a threat to public safety.
Napolitano has been under fire from veterans groups and others
for a DHS document warning counterterrorism and law enforcement
authorities of an alleged threat to the U.S. posed by "domestic
rightwing terrorists." Included in the group of potential
rightwing terrorists are individuals who are pro-life, support
the Second Amendment and oppose the flood of illegal
aliens.
The DHS
pamphlet ("Rightwing Extremism: Current Economic and
Political Climate Fueling Resurgence in Radicalization and
Recruitment") also singled out veterans who "were disgruntled,
disillusioned, or suffering from the psychological effects of
war" for possible recruitment into domestic terrorist
cells.
Pennsylvania State University has joined the Napolitano school of
thought in warning against the dangers presented by military
veterans. The university's Division of Student Affairs produced a
series of vignettes under the category of "Worrisome Student
Behavior." According to the Penn State website,
the "vignettes demonstrate common situations where faculty or
staff are attempting to help students."
One of the vignettes featured an Iraq war veteran who displayed
aggressive behavior toward his instructor. In an office meeting
with her department chair, the instructor characterized the
veteran as dimwitted, poorly-educated, inattentive to
instruction, argumentative and threatening.
Instructor: I'm still having problems with that student I
mentioned.
Department Chair: The veteran?
Instructor: Yeah. He's having problems with his papers still.
His grammar is really poor and he veers off-subject and he's
just not really seeming to understand the assignments.…I just
feel kind of nervous talking to him. He's very, his tone is
very confrontational and I feel like he's always on the verge
of losing his temper."
In the video, the veteran threatens the instructor after
receiving a C+ on his assignment.
Veteran: I just want the grade I deserve. You know what? You'll
see. You'll be sorry. I'm going to get you fired.
The university removed the video from the Student Affairs website
after receiving student criticism. It may be viewed here:
What is truly worrisome is how Penn State's Division of Student
Affairs, presumably the office that advocates on behalf of
students, portrays military veterans as academically-challenged,
belligerent and potentially violent. This is an incredibly
ignorant tone emanating from academia considering it was the
tremendous influx of World War II veterans who helped fuel the
enrollment and growth of hundreds of colleges and universities
immediately following the war.
Even Penn State has benefited handsomely from
veterans-turned-students. The school has been closely associated
with military training since passage of the Morrill Land Grant
Act of 1862. Present-day on-campus military training programs
include Army, Navy and Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps
programs. The university credits veterans with contributing to
the expansion of its 19 extension campuses around the state.
In 2001, Penn State President Graham Spanier announced the
school's 5-year, $453 million contract with the Department of the
Army to provide distance learning to an estimated 15,000 soldiers
worldwide. The school's "World Campus" program continues today.
The school's anti-veteran bias appears to violate the
university's own personnel policies. Policy AD29 State of
Intolerance prohibits
"discriminatory bias against or hatred toward other individuals
or groups based on characteristics such as…veteran status."
Imagine the public outcry if PSU had instead identified the
student exhibiting "worrisome behavior" as black, Hispanic, a
homosexual or a Jew? Race, religion, ethnicity and employment
history are immaterial if an individual behaves inappropriately.
Bad behavior is bad behavior. Yet, Penn State authorities felt
compelled to identify the aggressive student portrayed in the
video titled "I Deserve A Better Grade…Or Else" as an Iraq war
veteran.
A representative in the office of President Spanier referred all
inquiries to a university public affairs official. A phone call
to that individual requesting comment was not returned.
