"At Columbia we are open-minded and very smart, even genocide has two sides and we welcome the dialog."
Posted on 09/24/2007 6:10:02 AM PDT by 3AngelaD
Barry Rosen, executive director of public and external affairs at Borough of Manhattan Community College, was a hostage in Iran from 1979 to 1981. He studied Iranian culture at Columbia University.
I wonder what the Founding Fathers would think of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's speech at Columbia University tomorrow.
They instilled the belief in all of us: Everyone has the right of free speech. But I believe they'd be in a quandary about this one. I'd certainly like to talk to James Madison, who drafted our Bill of Rights, and ask him whether Ahmadinejad deserves that right.
Ahmadinejad is a reprehensible leader who violates free speech in his own country and cracks down on those Iranians who attempt to open up his repressive regime. He uses speech to spread age-old anti-Semitic stereotypes in the Middle East, denying the existence of Israel, and denies that the Holocaust ever happened.
Ahmadinejad was one of those outrageous Iranians who took me and more than 50 other Americans hostage for 444 days, violating international law and making us suffer indescribable moments of terror. There is simply no reason to give him a platform to spew his venom.
No matter how hard-hitting Columbia's president questions Ahmadinejad, the Iranian leader is a winner. Every word he utters is meant for his radical constituents at home and legitimizes his standing among other dictators...
It's only when Ahmadinejad permits his own people to march and speak freely, that I believe Columbia President Lee Bollinger would be justified in giving the Iranian president an open forum. Not before then.
(Excerpt) Read more at nypost.com ...
There is one, rare voice of sanity and adulthood at Columbia. Power Line reprints a statement from Columbia U’s business school dean, Glenn Hubbard. His bottom line:
"Some would argue that a University should be a place of intellectual freedom and open debate, but others including me argue that Mr. Ahmadinejad, who is responsible for the death of American soldiers, denies the Holocaust, and calls for the destruction of Israel, has proven himself incapable of engaging in a true and honest academic discussion."
bump
Give the UN Haiti - let them run the place and show us how they’d run the world if they got their way (oh, and without robbing the US taxpayer).
Of course, the HQ would HAVE to move there as well. We’d probably even agree to foot that bill, just to get them out.
Barry Rosen is a CONFUSED SAD person. Whack Job has NO right to come to out country and have his PROPAGANDA HEARD!!
Sure, there's a reason - because he HATES BUSH GET BUSH STOP BUSH IMPEACH BUSH BUSH BUSH BUSH BUSH BUSH BUSH BUSH BUSH BUSH !
Columbia apparently functions on the premise of "The enemy of my enemy is my friend".
"At Columbia we are open-minded and very smart, even genocide has two sides and we welcome the dialog."
Unfortunately, this educated moron(Barry Rosen) does’nt even recognize that he can’t really hear what that dialog might be saying, nor can he recall a little event called the Holocaust...which, given his obvious ethnic heritage, he might want to read up about.....
“We’d probably even agree to foot that bill, just to get them out.”
I share your sentiment, but having the (well-bugged building) and UN-associated folks from foreign countries floating around and observable.......having the UN here is great for HUMINT and SIGINT purposes
Your comment makes no sense. Did you even read what Rosen said?
They welcome dialog on genocide, but physically assault the Minuteman founder.
Works for me. Although I tend to favor inflicting them on Paris...
What makes me really mad is Columbia and other major colleges & universities are kicking ROTC programs and recruiters off campus only to invite despots and dictators with open arms.
What are you talking about? You have Rosen’s views backwards.
Barry Rosen is saying that Ahmadinejad should NOT speak at Columbia because it is nothing but propaganda.
Is this Barry Rosen?
You seem to the one who is confused. Rosen said THIS:
"Ahmadinejad is a reprehensible leader who violates free speech in his own country and cracks down on those Iranians who attempt to open up his repressive regime.
He uses speech to spread age-old anti-Semitic stereotypes in the Middle East, denying the existence of Israel, and denies that the Holocaust ever happened.
Ahmadinejad was one of those outrageous Iranians who took me and more than 50 other Americans hostage for 444 days, violating international law and making us suffer indescribable moments of terror.
There is simply no reason to give him a platform to spew his venom."
******
Rosen's photo is at the article link.
Bump!
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