Witnesses say Stoneman Douglas teacher called pro-gun student Kyle Kashuv a ‘proto-Hitler’, demanded something be done about him

Apparently the direct impetus for this was a tweet from Kashuv about going to the gun range, but you know there’s more to it than that. Kashuv has been the anti-Hogg ever since the shooting – not getting nearly as much media attention but nevertheless being noticed in conservative circles for his determined pro-gun stance in the midst of the usual gun control cries from the usual suspects.

Kashuv is no more deserving than Hogg of being treated like some sort of authority. They’re both high school kids whose understanding of the issues goes only so far. But it’s also true that whenever someone offers even the mildest criticism of Hogg, it’s treated like an assault against all that’s good and decent. Seems like that should work both ways, yes? Yeah. No:

So… I just got a call from a friend of mine from @GregPittman1957‘s class and he apparently compared me to Hitler in class and said I am a piece of crap. The rant was about 10-minutes during class time and how he was right and I was wrong with my comments… — Kyle Kashuv (@KyleKashuv) April 25, 2018 Just a reminder, @GregPittman1957 made sure to inform me that he has 2 guns and now he’s saying “something needs to be done with me.” I assume @browardsheriff will be ALL over this! pic.twitter.com/yX90IqU0uw — Kyle Kashuv (@KyleKashuv) April 26, 2018

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I’m sure Pittman will deny ever saying this, so we’ll go ahead and note his inevitable denial. But there are two students who say they heard him say it, as well as referencing a directive from the school administration not to respond to Kashuv’s tweets. Big picture: It’s an absolute travesty that this whole thing turned into a political mud-wrestling match. Seventeen people were murdered, and that’s an occasion that calls for sober and serious treatment, with an emphasis on restraint and compassion rather than sensationalism and agenda-mongering. Instead, the adults involved in this process – as well as many other adults who had nothing legitimate to do with it – decided to use the shooting to advance an agenda, and hid behind a few handpicked students who were willing to serve as their mouthpieces. That should never have happened, but because the incident was turned immediately into a political battle, you’ve got teachers on one side running down students on the other side. I mostly blame the gun control activists in the Democratic Party and in the media for being so irresponsible in their approach to this story. They saw it as nothing more than an opportunity to push their agenda, and they’ve done so shamelessly, without even the slightest thought for what really happened here and who might be getting hurt as a result of it. Kyle Kashuv doesn’t deserve to be a media star any more than David Hogg. They’re both just high school students. But neither does he deserve to be trashed by a teacher. Stop this now.