Columbia President Lee Bollinger, in announcing Ahmadinejad's upcoming appearance, described the event as part of "Columbia's long-standing tradition of serving as a major forum for robust debate." He said the Iranian president had agreed to answer questions on Israel and the Holocaust.On the other coast, Stanford University:
Some 2,100 professors, staff members, students and alumni have signed an online petition protesting Mr. Rumsfeld’s appointment, which will involve advising a task force on ideology and terrorism. Faculty members say he should not have been offered the post because of his role in the Bush administration’s prosecution of the Iraq war.Is it part of the ethical values of truthfulness to now question their patriotism?
“We view the appointment as fundamentally incompatible with the ethical values of truthfulness, tolerance, disinterested enquiry, respect for national and international laws and care for the opinions, property and lives of others to which Stanford is inalienably committed,” the petition reads.
MORE 9/21/07
Forgot about this:
What didn't the University of California regents hear at their dinner Wednesday night? Former Harvard University President Lawrence Summers - whose invitation was rescinded last week after pressure by female faculty and staff - was going to tackle the subject of UC competitiveness.And there's this.
I'm not saying all universities are the same or that Columbia = Stanford. What I am saying is that all too often the it seems the welcome mat of tolerance, diversity and understanding is laid out for people who've shown themselves to be against every tenet of what universities are supposed to be about while it's often rolled up in protest of those who would fight to the death to protect their right to invite any damn guest they desire.
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