Yale president Dr. Richard Levin isn’t going to be the next
Lawrence Summers. Summers, memorably run out of hyperliberal
Harvard for speaking his mind on ladies’ affinity for the sciences,
is obviously on Levin’s mind as the gathering storm of controversy
regarding Yale’s admittance of former Taliban ambassador
Rahmatullah Hashemi grows from ripple to tsunami. Levin is
terrified of actually uttering a word to justify Yale’s admittance
of the unrepentant Hashemi, so he has refused all requests for
interviews. (Levin, like Dick Cheney on 9-11, is hiding in an
undisclosed location.) Instead, like the real man he is, as you’d
expect of anyone whose life is dedicated to the advancement of
diversity, Levin sent a girl out to fight this battle for him.
Subbing for Hugh Hewitt last week, the Yale-Hashemi scandal much
on my mind, I invited Dr. Levin to come on and make his case. I
wanted to find out how Yale justifies admitting Hashemi and — as
the Yale Herald reported last week — giving him a
discount of 35 or 40% on his tuition, money that could be going to
students who haven’t been in the pay of a terrorist government.
Levin refused to come on the air, of course. But Hugh’s producer,
Duane Patterson, got the following e-mail from Yale’s equivalent of
Xena the Warrior Princess: Levin’s flack, Mizz Helaine
Klasky.
President Levin is out of town and further, we are not
doing interviews. Here is a statement. You can quote me or say it
is from Yale, whatever you prefer.
Rahmatullah Hashemi was approved by the U.S. government for a
visa to study in this country. Yale has allowed Mr. Hashemi to take
courses for college credit in a part-time program that does not
award Yale degrees. Contrary to what has been reported by some in
the media, he has not been admitted as an undergraduate to Yale
College or to any of the other schools at Yale.
We hope that his courses help him understand the broader context
for the conflicts around the world. We acknowledge that some are
criticizing Yale for allowing Mr. Hashemi to take courses here, but
we hope that critics will also acknowledge that universities are
places that must strive to increase understanding, especially of
the most difficult issues that face the nation and the world.
Also, there is a lot of mis-information out there namely that
(1) Rahmatullah is a freshman. He is not, he is a non-degree
student and (2) that Yale does not have any ROTC program, we do.
Here are the facts, in case you are interested, in that latter
point:
While Yale does not host an ROTC program, the University does
support those who wish to make such a commitment and we believe
that the leadership these students provide is vital to our
military. Each year we have a group of ROTC students at Yale, and
they complete their training alongside other students from colleges
and universities across the state at the University of Connecticut.
Yale facilitates participation in ROTC training by providing the
students with transportation to their ROTC classes. Recently a Yale
ROTC graduate was honored nationally while a Yale senior as the Air
Force Cadet of the Year.
Wow. It’s apparent that Yale’s Colonial Office is convinced that we
wogs are completely dependent on its tolerance, sensitivity and
leadership. Kneel, you knaves, tug your forelocks and say thank God
for the liberals of Yale such as Ms. Klasky who labor mightily that
we might be more understanding, tolerant and sensitive. Not the
Taliban, mind you: us.
Ms. Klasky is a product of the from-conception-to-career liberal
incubator of which she is now a part. Old Komsomol grads from the
former Soviet Union would be jealous of how widespread and
effective our equivalent is. Klasky is a Berserkely grad and before
coming to Yale, she worked for Sen. Teddy and, inevitably, flakked
for the Clinton regime (in the Treasury Department). Her deputy,
Tom Conroy, was chief spokesman for Mario Cuomo. So it is natural
that she would say, in behalf of Yale, that “We acknowledge that
some are criticizing Yale for allowing Mr. Hashemi to take courses
here, but we hope that critics will also acknowledge that
universities are places that must strive to increase understanding,
especially of the most difficult issues that face the nation and
the world.”
In that one sentence, Klasky managed to speak condescendingly to
both audiences. If Yale is striving to “increase understanding” of
difficult issues such as terrorism and radical Islam, how is that
accomplished by admitting Hashemi? Only if his admission is a crude
joke by the Yale Colonial Office. Maybe Yale plans to display
Hashemi in a cage, a sign hung on it saying, “Please pet our tame
Taliban, but don’t feed him.” In the opposite direction, Klasky
seems to be saying that Yale students can increase their
understanding of radical Islam and terrorism by talking to Hashemi.
But why shy away from the real thing? Having Hashemi at Yale is
mere academic dilettantism. I’d venture the guess that most Yale
faculty, and many Yale students, want us to close Gitmo and release
all its inmates. If they were as serious as they pretend, why not
close Gitmo and put its inmates in a Yale dorm? Hashemi is a
committed radical Islamist, but may not have blood on his hands. If
Yale really wants to understand him and what he stands for, why not
get the real thing? Or, better yet, why not get some of those folks
who have fought the Taliban to talk about them? Oh. I forgot. This
is Yale, and the military isn’t welcome.
The best part of Klasky’s e-mail is the outright lie it tells
about ROTC. Yale doesn’t have an ROTC program, despite what the
first part of her message says. It loftily permits some of its
students to ride the bus about 70 miles to UConn to attend ROTC
classes and drills. I love this part of Klasky’s message: “While
Yale does not host an ROTC program, the University does support
those who wish to make such a commitment and we believe that the
leadership these students provide is vital to our military.”
OK, gents, listen up. Find a Yalie (if you can) and kiss his
ring. Beg him to mentor you as he was mentored at Yale. Look, you
poor slobs with commissions coming out of West Point, Annapolis and
Colorado Springs, you desperately need the guidance of Yale’s Band
of Brothers. And for those graduating from The Citadel, VMI, Texas
A&M and such there’s just no hope for you. Unless you find
yourself serving under a product of the Yale Colonial Office.
You’re no better than what a Brit pal said of the Irish: “They make
fine troops if they’re properly trained and led by white
officers.”
TAS contributing editor Jed Babbin is the author
of Inside the Asylum: Why the UN and Old Europe Are
Worse Than You Think (Regnery, 2004).
