Posted on 10/24/2007 9:20:46 AM PDT by Fiji Hill
Listeners must discern among the riffraff
From the editors
Issue date: 10/24/07 Section: Opinion
Known for her mudslinging and immature name calling - she once called Al Gore a "total fag," like a bitter bully in the schoolyard - Ann Coulter comes to campus today as part of Islamo-Fascism Awareness Week, billed by its organizers as "the biggest conservative campus protest ever."
The controversial pundit, whose fame derives almost solely from appearances on cable news networks and a handful of inane, weightless books - is - if not a welcome speaker on our campus, at least a reflection of our willingness to let nearly any political viewpoint speak its case. By bringing such a polarizing figure as Coulter to our campus to voice her opinions, we reaffirm the freedom of expression that rests at the heart of our values. We must allow extreme or discomfiting views to be voiced in order to protect the core of our public discourse, and by extension the nation's covenant - the First Amendment of the Constitution. ,p>
But discourse does not necessarily mean one must stand by passively as a speaker like Coulter attempts to spread her virulent strain of hatred by grabbing sound bites on the evening news or headlines in the next day's paper. Discourse also means engaging opposition viewpoints through intelligent, in-depth questioning or even protest.
We ask students who attend Coulter's speech, which will be followed by a 30-minute Q-and-A, to challenge her to defend her views without resorting to cheap insults. Asking questions filled with a depth of understanding and nuance will show our university to be the place of higher learning we purport it to be. Intelligence can combat the ignorance with which pundits like Coulter fill our collective culture in ways no insult or personal attack ever can. Coulter's opponents could even carry signs expressing their distaste for her views, allowing her to speak - and in the process supporting the free expression we hold so dear - while proving her hateful message echoes only to the edge of the room.
Such steps allow students, as active, engaged citizens, to participate in the discourse on which our democracy is founded. But such a free flow of words permits extreme views alongside those more moderate, and we, as listeners, must fight hateful or hurtful messages by employing a discerning ear.
I musta missed the article when they excoriated Dick Durban for calling our troops Nazis, etc.
Gotta love the liberal meltdown whenever Ann speaks...LOL
“Annenberg Auditorium iat USC”
I spoke there once.
Fight On.
Pfffft, good luck with that. I don't see it happening. I for one purport USC to be a hotbed of liberal ignorance and name-calling.
We ask Ann's opponents to defend their views without cheap stunts like screaming and throwing pies!
GUFFAW!
Somehow I think the questions will have not so much "depth of understanding" as this blowhard hopes.
Don’t tase me bro.
Or, failing that, throw a pie in her face.
Owl_Eagle
If what I just wrote made you sad or angry,
it was probably just a joke.
LMAO! Like that has ever happened before. LMAO!
Their head must be spinning around like crazy.
This is hardly the first time a campus newspaper offered up such advice for questions to Ann Coulter.
She will do what she always does, display a keen political mind and a sharp wit.
I bet they don’t get this worked up when liberal mudslingers visit their campus. Hypocrites!
My first reaction was that this editorial must be a Scrappleface piece, surely not a college student newspaper editorial. It remains to be seen whether this sound advice will have nay effect.
I see that the “editor” didn’t have guts to sign this “article.”
The filtered down version of the article.
1) We don’t call people names like they do.
2) Ann Coulter is ignorant.
Sincerely,
Anonymous
I hope the conservative students who show up to hear her are prepared to deal with the hijinks that liberal nutballs will have planned. It always seems like they are caught flatfooted when hippies infiltrate the audience or storm the stage.
Here’s the direct link to the article. Comments may be posted.
What a bunch of whimps the “editors” of the Trojan must be.
Duh, cut and paste.
This comes after a series of cheap insults. I guess it's better late than never.
That is cool, but don’t you think with all the fires, another day might be more effective. I would think that since the school is pretty close to the fires, the school would be closed. Maybe I am mistaken and the school is very far from the fires but I think it is pretty close to LA at least.
I smell a ‘DON’T TASE ME BRO’ moment coming!
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