Posted on 11/10/2004 8:49:24 AM PST by Doomonyou
SRJC teacher found dead
Instructor's 'kill the president' e-mail assignment controversial
Wednesday, November 10, 2004
By PAUL PAYNE
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT
Michael H. Ballou, a Santa Rosa Junior College instructor questioned last year by the Secret Service over a controversial assignment involving President Bush, has died, the Sonoma County coroner said Tuesday.
The 49-year-old political science instructor died Saturday at his Guerneville home where he lived alone, Sheriff's Sgt. Will Wallman said.
The cause of his death is under investigation, but detectives have ruled out homicide, Wallman said. "There's nothing to say he died at the hands of another, but, otherwise, the book is wide open."
He said an autopsy has been conducted and authorities await the results of toxicology and microscopic tissue tests.
A neighbor discovered the body.
Ballou, who also spelled his name Ballow, was a part-time teacher at the junior college's Petaluma campus and had been on the faculty since 1990.
Ballou was born in Ogden, Utah. He had a master's degree from Brigham Young University and a bachelor's degree from Weber State College, an SRJC spokeswoman said.
He became embroiled in controversy in the summer of 2003 when he assigned students to compose an e-mail with the words "kill the president" in the body of the text.
Ballou said he was trying to demonstrate to students' fear of government and the "growing police state."
Although he said students were instructed not to send the message, one e-mailed it to the Washington office of Rep. Mike Thompson, D-St. Helena. Within days, Secret Service agents arrived to question Ballou .
Ballou defended his lesson, saying he meant no harm to the president. In a newspaper column, Ballou said the response proved his point.
Students supported him, saying it was a valuable experience. But faculty, administrators and parents weren't impressed. Robert Agrella, the college president, said he was "ashamed and embarrassed," and fellow teachers wrote letters to the editor, calling the assignment irresponsible. However, administrators stopped short of disciplinary action.
"He was a pretty controversial guy," Agrella said Tuesday.
He was last quoted as saying, "Kerry will win this election, or may God strike me dead!"
Notice how the Sargeant talked around the possibilites here. Ballou may have been upset about the results of the election.
good riddance scumbag
This may have been a political statement on his part, or may not have been.
I guess it doesn't matter anymore.
Pass the popcorn, it sould be entertaining.
And I'm really troubled to think he was a BYU grad. BYU is the center of conservatism in Northern Utah. If you spend too much time in a Kalipornia college, with all those commies, contamination is certain.
To a degree, I can understand that sentiment. In this case, he was a misguided person who happened to be in a position to impress his "views" on impressionable and vulnerable youth. I get no joy from his death, but I am glad he is not teaching kids.
However, I refuse to say I will never be happy at the death of another person. When Saddam Hussain's sons met their maker, I could not help but smile. I don't think Uday was being unfairly "painted" by the propaganda machine of the USA. The death of Abbu Abbas and Abu Nidal brought a smile to my face. Abbu Abbas shot an unarmed man in a wheelchair in the head and had passengers unceremoniously throw him in the ocean. Abu Nidal had people in airports as young as 12 years old shot or blown to bits. EVERY SINGLE SUICIDE BOMEBER WHO HAS HIS BOMB GO OFF PREMATURELY REALLY REALLY MAKES ME HAPPY. So, yeah. I can feel happiness at the death of another human being. I would rather they never existed to begin with. And this happiness is not on the scale of newborn babies and weddings, but it ain't sadness.
This was obviously the work of a Halliburton hit team operating with the approval of Ashcroft and using intel provided by Bush administration CIA lackeys.
No doubt, Probably not the most intelligent means to prove it.
LOL!!! You bad!!!! LOL!!!
He got his wish. I guess he really believes in God now.
Impossible.
All of those black helicopters have cloaking technology now.
Maybe he's only arafatdead, and he'll show up for work tomorrow.
Nor do I! But I think life and death is in God's hands alone. And I think He rejoices at life and is saddened at death. My feelings are entirely inconsequential.
I understand. But if He is the God we think he is, how can he rejoice at the life of a man who feeds people into chipper-shredders?
Your point is taken, though.
Ya gotta be kidding ~ everytime an Islamofascist terrorist bites the dust, it pleases me beyond belief!
Death To all Islamofascist terrorists ~ Bump!
Searching for a comment in slightly poor taste, but which won't draw the attention of the AM.
Weird, too.
Nonsense. His instructions were that no one send the message. His stated intention was to show the kids that their world is under a wide lens scope. That is true and something that I tell my own kids.
______________________________
"Also, you cannot advocate the "overthrough" of the US government it is against the law."
Sometimes you can't even spell the overthrough of the US government. But, that aside, where does it say that he did this? If it doesn't then your comment is 100% without revelence.
Ill advised but ultimately harmless? There is a reason that the Secret Service showed up...some people are serious when they make threats against the President and they all have to be investigated. What did this idiot think was going to happen? So let's see, this teacher was trying to teach students that if you threaten someone with death, the police show up...doesn't seem like a very useful lesson to me.
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