The American Spectator

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The Leave Us Alone Condition

9.27.07 @ 12:01AM

(Page 2 of 4)

The British used to say that their wars were won on the playing fields of Eton. I strongly suspect that future generations will say that Americans lost theirs in the lecture halls of Columbia.
-- Christopher Holland
Canberra, Australia

Two incidents in New York in the past two days have highlighted just how horrendously arrogant, impolite and unconstructive people of influence in the United States can be. Lee C. Bollinger, the President of Columbia University, one of the United States' premier centres of intellect, adopted a disgraceful demeaning and insulting stance towards Mr. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the President of Iran, which flew in the face of scholarship by any definition.

Worse still, Mr. Ahmadinejad was an invited, distinguished, guest. How utterly base to invite a foreign head of state to your country, under the pretext of a scholarly discussion, so that you can publicly humiliate him. Worse still was the hypocritical address of U.S. President George W. Bush, who not only had the audacity to try to promote human rights in spite of being one of the leading perpetrators of human rights violations today; but also adopted an insulting, accusing and bullying tone towards several nations, as well as his host, the United Nations itself. In an age where engagement and reconciliation are emerging as the only avenues through which we can solve the massive political, economic and environmental problems we are presently confronted with, I think it is now patently clear that the United States is not fit to lead, in any capacity, in our world today. I have just one question for the American people: are you not terribly ashamed at the atrocious example set by your leadership?
-- Rory E. Morty
Giessen, Germany

I wonder if Ahmadinejad's claim that the Islamic Republic is free of homosexuals lost something in translation, as in we-don't-have-them-because-we-eliminated-them, or reprogrammed them, or whatever holy warriors do in the presence of diversity. And though he says some zany things, should they ever be taken lightly?

The most dangerous thing about this guy is not his sick yen for attention, but his absolute belief in his own sanctity. In the swamp where his mind should be he is fuehrer of the world's first suicide-bomber nation, a holy-warrior seeking to make the world safe for anarchy. He is the very worst of news.

But he is also such stuff as dreams are made of. If the CIA were still the enterprise founded by Wild Bill Donovan, then the maximum leader of Iran would some evening brush his teeth with a substance that would open his mind, expand his horizons, and make him give peace a chance. He would disappear for six weeks, be spotted panhandling in San Francisco and selling roses on the sidewalks of Seattle, then surface in Tulsa, Oklahoma, married to an Indonesian weight lifter named Murray, his windbreaker forsaken for a Nehru jacket and granny glasses. He'd swap camel potpie recipes with Hillary Clinton and Hugo Chavez. What happened in Tehran would stay in Tehran.
-- Edmund Dantes
Coshocton, Ohio

Mr. Homnick didn't quite hear what Mr. Ahmadinejad said: We don't have homosexuals like you have in America. And that's true. Iranian homosexuals are anything but loud, proud, in-your-face, rainbow-flag waving, parade-marching, San Fran-owning like they are in America. Instead, they're whipped, beaten, and executed. Come on, you write for TAS. Don't you recognize Clintonian parsing when you see it?
-- Andrew Macfadyen
Omaha, Nebraska

HIP, HIP, OVERPAY
Re: Lisa Fabrizio's The Old College Try:

Yes, mom and dad scrim, save, and go in hock to send the kiddies to college. But is it worth it? Oh, I suppose it is, in that colleges have turned into trade schools where a degree is the admission ticket into various fields -- nursing, accounting, banking, education, etc.

But what about learning to be good citizens, knowing civics and American history 101?

Here's a way to check this latter concern. In a recent column by the nationally syndicated Cal Thomas, he cited a basic test in American history where college students did poorly, especially those from "prestigious" schools. The test would have been considered rather simple by the standards of my Essex Catholic High School back in the day.

Anyway, you may what to have your kids take the test. You can find in here.It consists of 60 multiple choice questions.

And better yet. If you have the courage to see the results, have your local public school history teacher take the test.
-- Peter Skurkiss
Stow, Ohio

BOIL ON LOW
Re: Gustavo Coronel's Will the Frog Jump?:

This is the most concise and accurate article I've yet to come across which describes the ongoing Venezuelan dilemma. All the information provided by Mr. Coronel is widely available in other publications, but the author has provided a yeoman's effort for our benefit.

Letter to the Editor

topics:
Education, Trade, Hillary Clinton, Islam, Environment, Constitution, Law, Founding Fathers, Military, Iran, United Nations, Africa, Socialism, Fascism, Oil