Official Statement

MIZZOU NATION'S* OFFICIAL STATEMENT REGARDING BRENDON HUDSON:

 *not official statement from the University of Missouri

Apparently, some think that we Mizzou faithful are overreacting to Brendon Hudson's tweet. In today's age, all posts that are put out via the internet that could be taken as a viable and credible threat should be taken seriously. Virginia Tech University, Columbine High School, even the University of Texas have had school shootings that could have (and probably should have) been prevented. Our condolences continue to go out to the victims, families, and friends of those heinous acts.

That being said, even if Brendon was "joking" (as he last tweeted before his account was removed for whatever reason), why would someone joke about a school shooting? As a Mizzou fans, of course we're going to be upset over that tweet, but he is a grown person who should know better. It's not that we went "creeping" on the internet to find it, it's called searching for the word "Mizzou" on Twitter and seeing what people are saying. It happens all the time here on Facebook with their new "Ticker". If someone from Mizzou were to make a "joke" like that toward kU, it would be "blown out of proportion" by the jayhawk faithful as well.

There were comparisons made that the notion of Mizzou fraternities wearing a shirt that says "NMT" (No Mom Tom, poking fun at Thomas Robinson's dead mother and grandparents) is worse than a "joke" about a school shooting. Not only was NMT a false rumor started by a kU fan, it also didn't condone violence. Even if you think that Mizzou fans and this page blew Brendon's "joke" out of proportion, kU did just the same with the NMT shirts, and they would do the same if a Mizzou fan made that same "joke" tweet about kansas. Was it our intention to probably ruin his college XC career? No. I was personally unaware of his involvement in the kU athletic department until early this morning. Was it our intention to ruin his life on social media? No, but again, common sense would dictate that if you're going to say something for millions to see, you should probably show some class and use some tact. As stated above, ALL statements that could be considered a credible threat on another human life should be taken seriously.

Would someone joke about hijacking a plane? Probably not.

With all this being said, I'm hopeful that, in the future, Brendon will show some consideration as to what he's posting. Consideration for the events that preceded his tweet. The events stated above. Nobody should ever condone, nor downplay, a shooting at any American institution, whether it be a FedEx office in Los Angeles or a university in Virginia.