Sal was referring to the communications professor i think. ranger nation has never been stronger. lol. but seriously guys, do a little bit of research. this is all a big conspiracy to take the power away from the American people, the one nation on earth where the government is supposed to work for the voice of the people. don't let these guys fool you. this is really happening

As a proud American who believes in the Constitution and the 2nd Amendment.  All you conspiracy people need to see a shrink.  Really……actors…why don't you tell all those grieving parents "hey your kids aren't really dead."

The communications professor. I'm tired of the stupid professors who teach me about there opinion I don't want to pay 500 bucks to hear about your opinion. I do think liberals are trying to change gun laws, that's why I own 2. (one for each hand) I'm always with Alberto. I'm 26 I could teach 18 yrs olds about my opinion. And ranger nation is super strong right now and will only get bigger, stronger, smarter (sponsorship type stuff).

Owl_Ranger said

Glad to hear I'm not the only one. I mean common could the government not make it more obvious? Aurora, the Oregon mall shooting, Newtown and all the other incidents are too close together to really be just a coincidence in my opinion. Furthermore, I recently read an article that linked James Holmes (The Aurora shooter) and Adam Lanza (The Newtown shooter). Apparently, both of their fathers were set to testify in the SAME trial regarding a British Tax evasion case..  Also, Holmes' attorney was also depicted as a grieving parent in the Newtown shooting.. I don't know if these liberals will ever win their war on the 2nd amendment because interest groups, like the NRA, have way too much power and endorse many politicians.

hahahahahaha ok that was hilarious!

Whether it's unfounded or not, some people are calling for this guy's head to save face for the university. However, firing someone for having an incendiary opinion is a public relations debacle that sets a bad precedent of "You'll teach what we want, how we want it, or there's the door" and we have a hard enough time trying to recruit top faculty here as it is.

Since he's teaching a class on Conspiracy anyway and it's right there in the course title, you as a student have to know what you're getting into by signing up for this class. Nobody there can claim something like "I'm not paying $400 to hear crazy conspiracy theories" because yes, you are. And though this may not particularly be the case here, sometimes professors will invoke hostile arguments as a social experiment to get students to react strongly and learn to defend their beliefs.

Owl2Doc said

Whether it's unfounded or not, some people are calling for this guy's head to save face for the university. However, firing someone for having an incendiary opinion is a public relations debacle that sets a bad precedent of "You'll teach what we want, how we want it, or there's the door" and we have a hard enough time trying to recruit top faculty here as it is.

Since he's teaching a class on Conspiracy anyway and it's right there in the course title, you as a student have to know what you're getting into by signing up for this class. Nobody there can claim something like "I'm not paying $400 to hear crazy conspiracy theories" because yes, you are. And though this may not particularly be the case here, sometimes professors will invoke hostile arguments as a social experiment to get students to react strongly and learn to defend their beliefs.

I'm not saying to fire the guy, I'm just saying there is a difference between teachers opinion and the topics of the curriculum. And rate my professor is a great resource, I look for comments like learn a lot, and tough but helpful. The problem is…. if I'm a professor I want to better my students, my opinion doesn't better there knowledge because it's opinion and not facts. It can be argued that why we write papers but for every argument there is a counter. And this professor doesn't like hearing it.

Owl_Ranger2 said

I'm not saying to fire the guy, I'm just saying there is a difference between teachers opinion and the topics of the curriculum.

Right, I just meant that other random people across the internet are saying he should be removed. I understand why they're mad, they have a right to be, but I'm saying it's not that simple.

Owl_Ranger2 said

And rate my professor is a great resource, I look for comments like learn a lot, and tough but helpful. The problem is…. if I'm a professor I want to better my students, my opinion doesn't better there knowledge because it's opinion and not facts. It can be argued that why we write papers but for every argument there is a counter. And this professor doesn't like hearing it.

I never had this professor, I don't know him, and maybe he is a stubborn lunatic, absolutely.

But there are no shortage of controversial opinions in college, just as there are no shortage of controversial opinions in the world. Professors are people, not encyclopedias, and everybody injects their opinion into the subject matter whether they mean to or not. You're even showing your bias as a teacher by choosing what material to teach and what material to omit. For instance, all through middle school and high school I was told that Shakespeare was this genius playwright who laid out all the world's possible conflicts in stories. Later on in college I learn that he would actually get local playwrights drunk and steal their stories. Why wasn't I told that earlier? Or maybe in history you learn about some obscure battle that Americans won, how whomever we fought was clearly a soulless groupthink entity and nobody tells you that, by the way, we were just there protecting profits or trying to force our Western ideals on them and they were trying to preserve their culture. How teachers feel about the material they present comes out all the time and it can be difficult to distance yourself from your opinions because, again, you're not just an encyclopedia spooling off bullet points. For better or worse, college is as much about dialogue as it is about fact.

In my opinion.

Owl_Ranger2 said

I'm not saying to fire the guy, I'm just saying there is a difference between teachers opinion and the topics of the curriculum. And rate my professor is a great resource, I look for comments like learn a lot, and tough but helpful. The problem is…. if I'm a professor I want to better my students, my opinion doesn't better there knowledge because it's opinion and not facts. It can be argued that why we write papers but for every argument there is a counter. And this professor doesn't like hearing it.

Looks like he has a 1.6/5 ranking on the "Easy" scale from 27 ratings on Rate My Professor.  I found this quoted a few times: "I learned A LOT"

James Tracy - Florida Atlantic University - RateMyProfessors.com

I do feel there are many cases where the government certainly has agendas.  Heck, look at the Chinese government's statement about the need to immediately DISARM ALL AMERICANS:

ERROR: A link was posted here (url) but it appears to be a broken link.

Communist Chinese Government Calls For No Delay For U.S. Gun Control | Market Daily News

Watch "Loose Change 9/11" to see another big conspiracy theory about 9/11 being at least "allowed" by the government to further a war to gain oil and control over Iraq as well as grow opium in Afghanistan back to the levels allowed before Al-Quaeda burned all the fields (Opium production in Afghanistan - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia).


I feel it takes some level of intelligence to disseminate what actually happens across the world and not always take what the media presents at face value.  I do believe the school had real victims and lives lost just as I believe 9/11 had real victims and lives lost.  In no way do I feel we should downplay these events but I also believe that the national and worldwide grieving process may help to shadow our collective abilities to investigate where the media takes these stories and what may be the true causes behind them.  Remember, Hitler burned down his own Reichstag Parliament building in 1933 to declare martial law and increased surveillance of all citizens… only in 2001 did the world uncover definitive proof that the government itself was behind it.  (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/germany/1310995/Historians-find-proof-that-Nazis-burnt-Reichstag.html)

Keep your eyes open  :o

I have taken Professor Tracy for two classes in my time at FAU and had the opportunity to take his Culture of Conspiracy class last semester.

I will say this - he is arguably the most effective instructor I have had while in college.

This article may make him sound crazy, but he is simply providing facts and his own opinion on the events. I'm troubled that this article was published and making the news.

In both classes I took with Professor Tracy (Public Opinion and Modernity, Culture of Conspiracy) he never once based his curriculum on his own opinion. Rather he gave you the tools to formulate your own thoughts and find the answers.  The article makes it seems like he teaches a class that dives into the panic of conspiracies, but it is actually quit the opposite. His Culture of Conspiracy class is based on why there are conspiracies and what drives them. He never once stood in front of the class and told us that 9/11 was a conspiracy or the government killed JFK - actually he refused to do so. I can remember two or three sessions in which the class begged him, but he refused.

I hope that FAU doesn't part ways with Professor Tracy, as I think he is a great teacher and a vital part of the university. His teaching techniques are the most effective I have seen.

I just ask that everyone take a look into the other side of things.