Glenn Reynolds — the INSTAPUNDIT — UT Law Professor — and USA Today Columnist and now infamous arch-Conservative is the son of Dr. Charles Reynolds of the UT Dept of Religious Studies
Back in May 2010 I shared a story on Daily Kos about the 40th anniversary of Richard Nixon’s visit to a Billy Graham Crusade held in Neyland Stadium on the UT Campus — 40 YEAR FLASHBACK
That diary linked to my 1970 PROTEST & ACTIVISM at UT — 40 YEARS ON website. In those accounts, one prominent figure is Dr. Charles Reynolds of the UT Religious Studies department. Dr. Reynolds helped to organize the Nixon visit protest in the wake of Kent State and the strikes on campuses across the country.
In the aftermath of the peaceful “THOU SHALT NOT KILL” protest at the crusade that featured every major Republican candidate in Tennessee and excluded Sen Al Gore Sr. who was defeated that November by Bill Brock; Dr. Reynolds and a large number of those who sat in the stands holding “Thou Shalt Not Kill” signs were arrested for “DISRUPTING A RELIGIOUS SERVICE”. Dr. Reynolds fought his case all the way to the Supreme Court — but they declined to hear it.
Today the son of that same Dr. Reynolds is in the news for calling for violence against protesters in North Carolina. Glenn Reynolds, now a UT law professor, USA Today columnist, and author of the rather famous Conservative — INSTAPUNDIT sent a tweet advocating ‘RUN THEM DOWN”
The politically active son of a politically active father is not news — but the diametrical difference in their politics is unusual to say the least. Dr. Reynolds is more or less revered in the liberal community of former UT students who are part of the Protest and Activism Facebook group. To have a son so infamous for his famous Conservative weblog advocating violence against protesters seems very strange.
Garry Wills — Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Lincoln at Gettysburg wrote the most detailed account of the protest in 1970 organized by Dr. Reynolds. HOW NIXON USED THE MEDIA AND BILLY GRAHAM TO RAP TO THE STUDENTS AT TENNESSEE. subtitled Jesus Wept
But back to Glenn:
Conservative USA Today columnist and University of Tennessee law professorGlenn Reynolds caused an uproar on Twitter when he urged motorists to drive over protesters blocking a highway in North Carolina.
“Run them down,” Reynolds, who also produces the Instapundit website, tweeted late Wednesday with an image of the protesters on I-277.
You can read the Huffington Post story on Glenn Reynolds and his tweet here
UPDATE UPDATE
Glenn Reynolds has issued an ‘apology’ of sorts saying he meant that only drivers in fear for their lives while surrounded by protesters should “keep driving” or “don’t stop”. I guess his fingers slipped on the keyboard as he typed “RUN THEM DOWN” instead.
This was published on the USA Today site with a statement: “ I have always supported peaceful protests, speaking out against police militarization and excessive police violence in my USA TODAY columns, on my website and on Twitter itself. I understand why people misunderstood my tweet and regret that I was not clearer.”
Sorry Glenn but you message was quite “clear” — the problem is not clarity it is content.