This is not good for the school at all.

[DesotoCountyDawg]

Playing musical presidents isn't good for school in the public eye. The flack he was getting for what he had done was way overboard.

 

[DesotoCountyDawg]

Playing musical presidents isn't good for school in the public eye. The flack he was getting for what he had done was way overboard.

 

[Optimus Prime 4]

and letting the other side win, which doesn't go along with what I've seen from him so far.

 

[patdog]

I'm guessing the "resignation" wasn't entirely voluntary.

 

[NutherT]

This is purely Doc resigning. The fact of the matter is he doesn't care about Mississippi State. He wanted to come here and play in his band, fly his bi-plane, spout off a bunch of military one-liners, and have a bunch of ignorant alumni worship his macho persona.

Now that he has faced the least bit of resistance from the IHL, he's going to say: Screw you ignorant bastards. I'm too good for you, and I'm going to show you. He's hoping there will be a public outcry in support of him to heal his ego. There will be those here and there who blame the faculty or the IHL, but at the end of the day those are parts of the job that Doc simply didn't have the ability to handle. He experienced a little bit of failure, and now he's cutting and running like a coward with an 'I'll show them' attitude. His ego was his biggest attribute and his biggest fault. He's never experienced adversity, and it hit him square in the face.

I agree with our posters that this is a major setback for our University and renders the past couple of years a colossal waste of time. That's why hiring the right person the first time was so critical, and why we have to get it right this time. There's no place for this type of selfishness at a university that prides itself on humility, service, and selflessness.

 

[dawgstudent]

He increased enrollment and fired LT. Those are two pluses in my book.

 

[Stormrider81]

I'd argue that those that tried to get him fired, and apparently succeeded, didn't care about MSU. They cared more about getting to do things the way they always had and getting back at the man who treated them in an abrasive manner than about the university. This hurts MSU. Doc raised enrollment, put an emphasis on athletic success, put an emphasis on the appearance of the school, and wanted to grow MSU on every front into the dominant school by far in this state. He made some mistakes along the way, but he did a lot for MSU and is being thrown under the bus to satisfy bruised egos and the way things have always been. Now we have to search all over again and will likely end up with a president like our previous two, either one who wants to shrink MSU or one who doesn't do anything. I'm sure that will make the faculty, staff, and powers that be happy, but it will not help MSU in the long run.

Doc wasn't a perfect president, but this wasn't the right move for MSU.

 

[NutherT]

Agreed, but now we are left to pick up the pieces and start all over. All of Doc's initiatives, both the good and bad, will be modified or scrapped. Someone else will have to come in here and clean up the mess and and set his/her own priorities. No matter how you slice it, having a President who only sticks around for a couple of years is not a good thing for stability and progress.

Hopefully, we have learned some lessons and can hang on to the good things Doc brought to MSU: pride and discipline.

 

[NutherT]

Storm, I certainly appreciate your take, but this was Doc's decision pure and simple. No one has tried or come close to getting him fired.

If you don't believe me, look at how long the Thames saga lasted at USM. Years and years. And he was far less popular than Doc. The IHL, the faculty, and alumni simply cannot develop the collective will to can someone in this short a time period.

This was Doc's selfish, cowardly decision. No one else's, no matter how you slice it.

 

[bulldogcountry1]

significant contributions than Dr. DroopLee.

 

[jamdawg96]

It's great. Some of you here are a being a little too narrow-minded. There's no reason State can't hire another guy as driven as Doc, they just gotta make sure he can work with the faculty and staff in a more professional, ethical manner. That's not asking a lot. You act like Doc was a god or something. If they make a good hire, the public image won't be damaged at all. If anything, the faculty will get more respect from our next president, and our university will benefit from that. We have good teachers, good minds, and good hearts at Mississippi State. We will take care of ourselves. I for one, hope the rumors are true. Whether he is helping Obama or folding to pressure really doesn't matter to me. The University learned an important lesson for our next hire: Get someone who can do **** the RIGHT way.

 

[vandaldawg]

Should the headline be "Retired General Intimidated by Intimidating Academicians; Tucks and Runs"?

 

[patdog]

If for no other reasons than the two you mention, Dawgstudent. Those may be the most positive things an MSU president has done in a decade.

 

[jackbaddawg]

He quit his job as mayor of Columbus to climb on board with Doc .And the thunder rolls!!!! Sing it Garth

 

[olemissbydamn]

his massive ego for pissing off the landscaping/horticulture & architecture departments, I knew trouble was brewing.

I was working with a landscape arch from Hattiesburg at the time and was getting info about all the people that were pissed at him.

You can like him all you want, because you perceive him to be "tough". However, being tough is what hurt him.

The architecture & landscape/horticulture departments at MSU comprise a large section of the student body and alumni. You can't go pissing off huge groups like this and not expect backlash. For such a tough guy, he sure rolled over and played dead after challenging these people.

It was just a stupid move to challenge both these programs and others at the same time.

 

[KurtRambis4]

responses are unreal..but par for the course

 

[fishwater99]

You can't go pissing off huge groups like this and not expect backlash.

It is like he was always picking a fight with someone.
Students, faculty, horticulturists, architects. etc...
The kitchen got hot and he just left, *****...

At least LT is gone, or will they bring him back?

 

[MSUCE99]

The kitchen got hot and he just left, *****...

I guess we should have hired a Marine general instead.

 

[Eureka Dog]

Hold on, boys. It's gonna be wild ride.</p>

 

[bethn135]

Yeah he really pissed off the dean of Architecture when he called him at home around 9:30 P.M. and asked why all the lights were on in the architecture building. Doc then preceded to tell him to get to campus and get them turned off. Wouldn't want a university president to care about saving $$$$$. I have a cousin who teaches in the architecture dept. and they witnessed one encounter when the Dean told Doc he was NOT going to do things Doc's way no matter what DOC said and he was told he could always find a job somewhere else. Yeah we need a President like Dr. Lee who let the faculty tell HIM what to do. The faculty will only be happy with someone who takes orders well and covers their collective asses with big wet juicy kisses.

 

[War Machine Dawg]

Byrne's promotion is safe regardless. Of course, consider the source, but I'm hoping he's correct on this one.

 

[RebelBruiser]

nm

 

[Maroon Eagle]

[No message]

 

[Stansfield]

Most COs only are in command for two years, so his tenure was up.

 

[thatsbaseball]

nm

 

[NutherT]

He's a fraud through and through.

 

[SnakePlissken]

He's a fraud through and through.

Exactly WHEN did HE claim to be piloting the plane?
</p>

 

[MSUCE99]

There went my sole complaint against Doc...

 

[NutherT]

you got me.

 

[8dog]

http://www.msstate.edu/web/media/detail.php?id=3637

 

[Stormrider81]

but when your boss tells you to do something, unless it causes a moral issue with you then you should do it.

 

[bethn135]

Exactly. Part of the problem is the Doc's military background. They are taught particularly at the Command and Staff College to listen to all facts and opinions first, then the final authority is yours. Once a decision is made it is made you can not go back and change your mind. Lives are lost and you and you alone as the commanding officer will be held responsible. I have been married to a Air Force officer for 22 years. He tries this crap at home and like I tell him when Uncle Sam cuts me a paycheck he can tell me what to do. Otherwise it aint happening. He has met and dealt with Doc on several occasions and said that would be Doc's biggest problem, learning to deal with people who have never existed in this type of environment.

 

[dawgoneyall]

was not a waste of time. LT is gone and maybe the next President will continue to push the lazy *** professors/staff. It is past time for some of those lazy, sorry farts to go. I feel those sorry bastards and bitches will feel empowered to continue to resist accountability.

LT has to be one of the most useless bastards to ever live. A large part of all this crap is points directly at LT and his band of FM's.

Just sayin'

 

[SnakePlissken]

Thanks for the link. You do realize that you can fly a Stearman from the front seat don't you? The pilot usually sits in the back seat but the front seat can fly it exactly the same - it has the same controls and fewer instruments. In fact, Doc may not have actually taken off or landed it but once in the air he very well could have taken control of the aircraft. Therefore, he actually flew the aircraft. He is a licensed pilot after all.

 

[8dog]

any of that.

All I know is that you asked this: "Exactly WHEN did HE claim to be piloting the plane?"

And I gave you the answer.

 

[JimHalpert.nafoom]

I don't think a university president could be ousted this fast and this quietly. I know it's possible, but as another poster said- look at Thames from USM. Everybody at that school hated him for years and they got into accreditation issues, and it still took a long time for him to be fired.

Another example is Khayat. The man got rid of Dixie AND Colonel Reb and is still here. If Khayat can weather the shitstorm that those incidents caused and still be considered one of, if not the, greatest chancellors we've had, I think Doc can make it through these few months of flowers and pissed off architecture students. He just chooses not to do so.