US professor in trouble over tweet about shooting

KANSAS: A U.S. university has placed a professor on leave because of a tweet he published after this week's mass shooting in Washington.

David W. Guth tweeted ``blood is on the hands of the (hash)NRA. Next time, let it be YOUR sons and daughters.''

The NRA is the National Rifle Association, the country's top gun lobby. It has fought restrictions on the constitutional right to bear firearms.

Monday's shooting at a Navy base left 13 dead, including the gunman. The University of Kansas says Guth, an associate professor of journalism, has been placed on indefinite administrative leave pending a review.

Chancellor Bernadette Gray-Little says the action was taken to prevent disruptions in the learning environment.

Guth told The Associated Press in a phone interview that his tweet ``got a conversation going _ that was exactly what I wanted to do.''

He agreed Friday that the university's action was appropriate, considering the email threats he and others at the university had received.

NRA spokesman Andrew Arulanandam said Friday: ``This is hate speech. It is disgusting and deplorable. It has no place in our society.'

Guth said gun rights advocates had orchestrated a social media campaign against him. ``Frankly, my plan is to be the calm in the center of the storm,'' Guth said.