Anger Management

ANGER MANAGEMENT

Mr. Burton was not angry enough to hire a hit man to knock off the AD at the University of Connecticut...but he was angry enough that he wanted to punish him even if it hurt the students and the program he is said to have loved.

In a letter sent to the Athletic Director of the University of Connecticut, he wrote, "I believe that you are not qualified to be a Division 1 AD and I would have fired you a long time ago. You do not have the skills to manage and cultivate new donors or the ability to work with coaches. It is our intent to let the correct people know that you did not listen to your number one football donor and you led a flawed process in the search for UConn’s football coach."

"After this slap in the face and embarrassment to my family, we are so upset that we are out of UConn. What that means is that we do not want to deal with people like you and your committee, who we do not trust and cannot count on to make the correct decisions or do anything right with our money."

(http://content.usatoday.com/communities/campusrivalry/post/2011/01/connecticut-donor-robert-burton-letter-/1)

A month or so later the University and the Burton family "made-nice" and now all is well with everyone properly respected and donations back on track.

Obviously, not every emotionally charged situation wherein someone loses it and experiences a meltdown of sorts, results in terrifying outcomes with heads rolling and the exaction of revenge. So, why do some people lose control in an emotional situation and feel entitled to some sort of satisfaction? And why do some people, in similar circumstances, sail smoothly through the same rough seas without capsizing?

(From a sermon by Monty Newton, Anger Management, 8/14/2011)