http://garyfouse.blogspot.com/2012/02/is-california-state-university-system.html
In response to a letter to CSU Chancellor Charles Reed, a letter has been issued in defense of the appearances by the presidents of California State University campuses at San Luis Obispo, Fresno and Northridge.
Below is an e-mail response to AMCHA Initiative from John Welty, President of CSU, Fresno followed by the aforementioned letter signed by three CSU campus presidents.
"At California State University, Fresno, non-state funds were used to provide support for the program. Sponsors are: Middle East Studies Program, Women's International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF), Reedley Peace Group and Fresno Center for Nonviolence."
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Here is my take. As the AMCHA Initiative has pointed out, they do not take issue with the right of Mr Pappe to come and spout his opinion of the issue at the three campuses. What they object to is the use of state funding by the universities to sponsor his appearances. The above letter sanctimoniously talks of free speech. That is well and good, but hardly the issue.
Mr Welty, in his email, says that non-state funds are being used and lists four organizations who are sponsoring the Pappe talks. Yet one of them is the Middle East Studies Program at CSU-Fresno. Perhaps, I am misinformed, but it seems to me that a Middle East Studies program at any university is state/tax-payer funded.
Or should I say that it is funded by Saudi Arabia?
At any rate, the above letter, sanctimonious as it is, talks about how universities are charged with providing the free exchange of opposing ideas and all that stuff, yet what they really do is provide the pro-Palestinian point of view.
With all due respect to the three university presidents, all your talk of "teaching students to think for themselves", "hearing all points of view", "tolerating a wide range of views", etc, is a bunch of BS. You and your colleagues at other CSU universities are engaged in a one-sided narrative that favors the Palestinian narrative and demonizes the Jewish state.
The fact is that the Ilan Pappes of the world are free to come to American university campuses and say what they want-as it should be. Does that same right and courtesy extend to those who speak in favor of Israel, such as the Israeli ambassador to the United States, Michael Oren, when he came to speak at the University of California at Irvine?
4 comments:
Where there is a will, there is a way. If you want to do it, you can always find a justification someplace.
OK, time to expose these Marxist loving slim. Interesting that the "Women's International League for Peace and Freedom" (WILPF) is nothing more than a far-left, Marxist group tied to the Palestian Islamic Jihad, Code Pink, ANSWER, and the United for Peace and Justice group. In fact, they are tied to groups that supported Al-Arian, the funder of Hamas through the Holy Land foundation. Al-Arian is in jail for his dastardly deeds, supporting terrorism against Israel. I wonder how the Chancellor Charles Reed responds to support of groups that promote Marxism and terrorism. I wonder if he would be as smug in a reply to these facts. As an Alumni of CSUN, I have told the CSUN fund raiser staff that they will not get my donations and suggested to other Alumni that they should follow my lead. Here is the LINK to the information found in this comment: http://www.notinourname.net/index.html
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