- Then former (and now current) PM Benjamin Netanyahu at Concordia;
- Ambassador Michael Oren at University of California (Irvine);
- Dr. Yossi Olmert at UCI and St. Thomas University (I witnessed this last debacle myself);
- Former PM Ehud Olmert at University of Chicago (this was recorded by electronicintifada - hardly a friend of Israel;
- Foreign Minister Ayalon at Cambridge University;
- Benny Morris at Cambridge University; and
- the mere presence of Israel Apartheid Week on university campuses.
I have learned that freedom of speech often really means that (a) people are only free to speak if the audience wants to hear what they have to say (rarely applies to pro-Israel speakers) or (b) audiences are free to listen to the most vicious anti-Israel hatred.
To be clear, I would not want to listen to a lot of the things that the pro-Palestinian camp has to say, but the choices open to me are either to (a) attend the event and allow them to say what they have to say and then try to ask contrary questions afterward, or (b) not attend. I can also assure you that the pro-Palestinian events I have attended are very tightly scripted and controlled - it is extremely difficult to even be allowed to ask a question if you are not known to the organizers - and even if you do, you are heckled, your picture is taken and so on.
I am unfamiliar with instances where pro-Israel advocates have behaved as have the perpetrators of the above incidents.
2. So Much For Free Speech Redux - Pajamas Media » We Need South Park — and We Need to Remember Theo Van Gogh
4. 45,000 Rockets? Why are they afraid? - Israel Opinion, Ynetnews I guess this explains things - Hizballah MP fires back at Gates: "Our choice was and remains to secure all the arms of resistance that we can" - Jihad Watch
6. The Latest "Outrage" - Pajamas Media » General Jones’ Apology Not Nearly Good Enough - there are all kinds of opinions out there on this one - just read the comments to the article - my take is that it takes an idiot to be in that position before that audience and tell that type of joke - I'm not going to leap to the conclusion that he is antisemite based on that one example. That said, I'll bet he would not have recited a similar joke about Muslims, blacks, gays, Catholics, Episcopalians, Polish people, environmentalists, dogs, or cats.
7. Happy Birthday - May 2 marks the 150th anniversary of the birth of Theodore Herzl - JPost.com BlogCentral Center Field WWHD: What would Herzl do?.
9. After All - I'm The Obaminator - Report: Obama promised Abbas a Palestinian state within two years - Haaretz - Israel News
12. The Habs - Did I mention that Montreal beat Washington? They now get the dubious reward of playing Pittsburgh, the defending Stanley Cup champions led by Nova Scotia native Sidney Crosby. So let's enjoy what the Habs have already achieved before worrying about the Pens.
also check out this great video:
I shudder every time I look at the Concordia confrontation. This was where I completed my undergraduate degree and this is where I lived. The Concordia I once knew was a liberating experience but now with the influx of "hostiles" the trend has become to defend what is preceived to be the underdog when in fact this is an orchestrated team of indefensible trouble makers. Turned out that most of the anti Netanyahu, Anti_Israel protestors were not even Concordia students and yet they achieved their goal which was to get publicity, to wreak havoc and to intimidate the public with their violence. What is even a greater travesty and even more indefensible is the CJC and Bernie Farber who defended their right to freedom of speech. Read Mark Steyne's column in MacLean's magazine. This is even more unforgiveable. A. S.
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