LAWRENCE, Kan., Dec. 2 (UPI) -- A University of Kansas religious studies professor has decided against teaching intelligent design as mythology two weeks after proposing it.
"I thought about it long and hard this week," Paul Mirecki told the Lawrence Journal-World, which said his comments on a listserv for KU's Society of Open-Minded Atheists and Agnostics were what ended it.
Mirecki said the continuing controversy over his e-mails pressed him to withdraw the course.
KU Chancellor Robert Hemenway said in a statement: "I want to be clear that I personally find Professor Mirecki's e-mail comments repugnant and vile. They do not represent my views nor the views of this university."
The elective course had 25 students enrolled when it was canceled. Provost David Shulenburger says the course may be offered in the future, though not by Mirecki, the newspaper reported.
On the listserv, Mirecki reportedly referred to himself as "Evil Dr. P" and called fundamentalists "fundies."
Critics have questioned the use of tax dollars on the course. A Republican legislator called on Mirecki and Hemenway to appear before lawmakers to answer questions about the course.
