Throughout the whole Columbia/Ahmadinejad debacle there had been something bothering me, some elusive but relevant factoid fluttering around the edges of my mind, but remaining just out of reach. And then it hit me.
Remember an incident where a certain radical professor wished for something to befall the United States which he referred to as “a million Mogadishus?” It’s pretty hard to forget such an evocatively alliterative turn of phrase, especially when it comes from an American citizen wishing death upon the soldiers of his own country. It was expressed by Nicholas De Genova, an assistant professor of anthropology and Latino studies, at an anti-Iraq War teach-in and was meant to refer to losses suffered by U.S. troops in Somalia in 1993.
The good professor went on to declare that “the only true heroes are those who find ways that help defeat the U.S. military.” And to top it all off, he accused patriotic citizens of being white supremacists.
Did I happen to mention that the campus from which this professor peddled his twisted longings was none other than Columbia University? He still teaches there today, ensconced in all its ivied splendor.
But wait a minute, don’t get the wrong idea and think that such hate speech got a free pass at Columbia. De Genova was taken to task for those remarks by none other than now famous Columbia President Lee Bollinger, who was “saddened” by the professor’s crossing of “the line” and who stipulated that the professor’s “statement does not in any way represent the views of Columbia University.”
On the other hand, I was treated more harshly back in grammar school for popping my gum in class. And in the meantime, ROTC still isn’t allowed on campus at Columbia, but one of the world’s most despicable despots and an enemy of the United States is.
Again, thanks a lot, Columbia, for your unceasing contributions to higher education and the American experience.
Greg Strange provides conservative commentary with plenty of acerbic wit on the people, politics, events and absurdities of our time. See more at his website: http://www.greg-strange.com/. Also, check out his “Religion of Peace” World News Round-up for all the latest Islamic absurdities and tidbits.
