by Sara Russo

A tenured professor of history at St. Xavier University has been forced to resign his classes for the current semester and face other disciplinary action after he responded to a polite e-mail from an Air Force Academy cadet with an angry tirade, calling the student a "disgrace to this country" and denouncing the United States Air Force as "worse than the snipers."

The incident began in late October, when Fourth Class Academy Cadet Robert Kurpiel e-mailed St. Xavier Professor Peter Kirstein to ask him for his advice planning the Air Force's annual Academy Assembly, which is a conference to promote discussion of current political and international affairs. "Dear Sir or Ma'am," the e-mail began. "The Air Force Academy is going to be having our annual Academy Assembly. This is a forum for mainly but not only Political Science majors discussing very important issues dealing with politics. Right now we are in the planning stage for advertising and would appreciate your help…Do you know of or have methods or ways for interschool advertising and communications? What would be the best way for us to advertise at your school…We would appreciate your input and the cost of what you recommend."

"Thank you for your time and consideration," concluded the e-mail, which was signed, "Very Respectfully, Cadet Robert Kurpiel."

In response to this polite request for assistance, Kirstein lashed out, "You are a disgrace to this country and I am furious you would even think I would support you and your aggressive baby killing tactics of collateral damage. Help you recruit. Who, top guns to reign death and destruction upon nonwhite peoples throughout the world? Are you serious sir? Resign your commission and serve your country with honour."

After personally vilifying the cadet, Kirstein proceeded to deliver an invective against the Air Force, deriding its military tactics as cowardly. "No war, no air force cowards who bomb countries without AAA, without possibility of retaliation," wrote the professor. "You are worse than the snipers. You are imperialists who are turning the whole damn world against us. September 11 can be blamed in part for what you and your cohorts have done to the Palestinians, the VC, the Serbs, [and] a retreating army at Basra."

"You are unworthy of my support," concluded Kirstein, who signed his name and title to the e-mail.

Within the span of several days, Kirstein's vindictive rant was disseminated across the nation, sparking an intense furor among patriotic citizens and past graduates of St. Xavier and the Air Force Academy. Correspondence received by the two schools numbered in the thousands and Prof. Kirstein reported that in the first couple days after the incident, he had personally received several hundred messages.

Realizing the magnitude of his transgression, Kirstein quickly drafted several letters of apology, to Cadet Kurpiel, to the Air Force Academy, and to the community at large.

"I have expressed to Cadet Kurpiel my regrets over what I communicated to him in my e-mail," Kirstein wrote to Captain Jim Borders, director of the Air Force Academy Assembly and a political science instructor at the school. "I did not mean to impugn his character. I am sure he is of the highest character. I should have written him in a more thoughtful and contemplative manner. As one who believes in non-violence and the avoidance of conflict, I could have been more circumspect and creative in my communication with him."

Kirstein also noted that the cadet had "expressed 'apologies' for the unwarranted national distribution of a private e-mail correspondence," and had sent him "several generous, thoughtful and impressive e-mails."

A specialist in recent US history, national security policy, and the "political economy of globalization," Kirstein has frequently supported left-wing causes over the years. "I don't think my involvement ever ended," Kirstein told the Chicago Tribune, in a 1995 article about aging left-wing radicals. The professor also expressed dismay about the direction of political change since the sixties. "The traditional notion is that liberals are for change and conservatives stand for the status quo," he said. "But today we are seeing an extremely activist, even radical, Republican Party."

Kirstein was the winner of the Teaching Excellence Award in 1997, and he proudly spells out his eleven-part teaching philosophy on his website. The first principle to remember when instructing students, claims Kirstein, is that "Teaching is a moral act." Other principles on his list include, "Teach peace, freedom, diversity, multiculturalism, and challenge American unilateralism," and "Encourage student debate and discussion. Let them know you like to be challenged and that your ideas and values are not a form of proselytizing or domination but a honest effort at conversation."

"I recognize individuals who serve in the military deserve respect both for their service and their viewpoints," Kirstein stated in a second letter of apology to the public-at-large. "It is wrong for me or anyone to blame an individual serving in the military when the debate is over national policy. I know as a member of the academic profession that one should be respectful and not disparage a person without careful examination of fact. I have paid a great price for my lapses and I have learned from my errors."

Though he admited his error in his treatment of the cadet, Kirstein also noted that his views on the military have not changed. "I am opposed to war and the use of violence in resolving international conflicts, while understanding many believe it is appropriate as a last resort," he commented. "I believe that pacifism is a noble calling and should be part of the national dialogue concerning war, peace and justice."

Administrators at St. Xavier, where Kirstein has tenure, responded quickly and firmly to the incident by relieving him of his teaching duties for the current term and placing an administrative reprimand in his file. The professor has also volunteered to face a peer evaluation during the spring semester of 2003, when he is scheduled to be on sabbatical leave, which is earlier than the review would normally have been conducted. Furthermore, any future faculty contracts offered to Kirstein will include a "binding addendum specifically requiring him to adhere both to institutional policies and to the norms of the American Association of University Professors in matters relating to the proper exercise of academic freedom and extramural activities."

"Professor Kirstein and the University community deeply regret the incident that began this chain of events," St. Xavier President Richard Yanikoski stated in a press release. Yanikoski also noted that the University had sent an official apology to the Air Force Academy's Superintendent and that a delegation from Saint Xavier would attend the Air Force's Academy Assembly.

According to Yanikoski, the issue at stake in disciplining Kirstein was one of conduct, not freedom of speech. "Prof Kirstein is free to hold views critical of the military if he wishes to do so, but he is not free to issue demeaning, degrading statements as a professor in or outside the classroom," he said in a statement, adding that Kirstein's response to the cadet was "tasteless, unprovoked, rude, unprofessional, and indefensible."

While many have applauded the University's decisive action, others argue that Kirstein's remarks, while abhorrent, did not merit such harsh punishment.

"The subsequent suspension and official reprimand of Professor Kirstein are not how freedom works," wrote Alan Charles Kors, president of the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE), which defends freedom of speech on college campuses, in a letter to St. Xavier President Yanikoski. "Written to an individual who was not his student, and who was not even a potential student at St. Xavier University, Professor Kirstein's words-however ill chosen-were protected expression….we must respond to speech that we abhor with further speech, with moral witness, and with disapprobation-not with coercion or with official sanction," he added.

Kirstein refused Campus Report's request for an interview, though he did forward a statement summing up his stance on the controversy. "I oppose war to settle international conflict. Pacifism is a noble calling concerning peace and justice," he stated. "Yet it is wrong for me to blame a military person when others create national policy. I know I must be respectful." He has not contested the University's disciplinary action.

Officials at the Air Force Academy have graciously accepted Kirstein's apology. "I am pleased to say that a 'cyber-episode' that started poorly has evolved into a more professional and academic discussion," replied AFA Assembly Director Borders. "We in the military, as servants of the public, must carefully guard and cherish our relationship with the civilian community," he added. "We must always remain open and responsive to legitimate criticism that is presented in a spirit of willingness to improve the forces that guard our country and make them an institution that all Americans can take pride in. I am pleased to say that this discussion…has moved towards that high plain."