Originally posted by Captain Virgil Hilts
Who cares? I do. I have friends and family who fought against those who perpetrated the Holocaust. To deny the Holocaust happened is to deny their efforts and sacrifices as being worthy. I have friends and relatives with strong attachments to Israel, never mind the fact that Israel is an ally of this nation. So I care. He has ZERO right to be on U.S. soil. And most certainly no right to be any where near the remains of the World Trade Center.
Further, there is little doubt he and his nation support and sponsor terrorism. They specifically support the terrorists causing the problems in Iraq. The party he represents sponsors OPENLY groups like Hamas and Hezbollah. As a supporter and sponsor of terrorism, his presence is completely unacceptable. He is no more welcome here than Hitler would be.
By the way, the dean of Columbia, who invited the nutcase of Iran to speak, refused to allow a U.S. citizen to speak on campus on his opposition to illegal immigration. This same dean also refused to allow an ROTC program at Columbia over the objections of the overwhelming majority of students who voted on the issue.
You're missing the point, our foreign policy is failing. It doesn't matter if your friends or your family has strong attachments to Israel. Nor does it matter if a man refused to respect the sacrifices of those who died fighting the holocaust. NO FOREIGN ENTANGLEMENTS. Thomas Jefferson said this hundreds of years ago, are you doubting his intelligence? I think his logic and his thoughts matter more to this nation than your friend's or family's love or support for Israel. They hate us because we support the state of Israel, because we meddle in their affairs. The more we do it the more we feed the fire. It's people that want to instill their will on others and force America to support a nation overseas that they like that is leading this nation down a dangerous path. Every war Israel gets dragged into causes us to get dragged in along with it. Israel is not the United States of America, their affairs are none of our business.
Let's face it, we didn't have as much dissent against our nation (if any) before we started getting involved in foreign entanglements and started policing the world, calling the shots on how the world should be. If you want to see an example of neutrality in action look at Switzerland. What do I know though, I guess it's better if we keep getting dragged into wars that our not any of our business. I guess it doesn't matter if more American boys and girls have to die for other nations.
And lastly, Columbia University is a private institution. They have a right to invite or reject anyone from speaking on their campus. They can't be forced to do so.
[EDIT] Don't think I think Iran's President is some great guy. He has said a lot of out there stuff but just because he has differing opinions from many world leaders doesn't make him a criminal or doesn't justify his assassination or even, god forbid, war against Iran. Many people are using the same logic to say that our President, George W. Bush, should be arrested and is a criminal. It isn't right either way but the bottom line is I respect someone's right to have their own opinion without being oppressed for feeling that way. No one is forcing you to adopt their opinion.
