Still MORE leftist attacks on free speech?

Michael McIntyre mmcintyr at wppost.depaul.edu
Thu Mar 8 12:44:02 PST 2001


My thoughts, too. Same thing happened to me in 1981 when Westmoreland came to talk at Washington University. Long debate the night before about whether to disrupt, we decided to let him speak, one RCPer got up and shouted for less than a minute before we hustled him out. Guess what led on the evening news? AIA is notoriously full of liars, so I wouldn't be surprised to learn that this Berkeley incident is similar.

That being said, there is an interesting question: when SHOULD we deny these overpaid sob's a privileged forum? Why should they expect a degree of civility that would never be afforded to, say, a Hyde Park soapbox orator? I'll agree that disruption is usually a very dumb tactic, but at what point does tactical civility become a matter of free speech as principle?

Michael McIntyre


>>> jkschw at hotmail.com 03/08/01 02:19PM >>>
You can't believe the conservatives' version of events. I once particiapted in an anti-Jean Kirkpatrick demo at Michigan in 1988, where she was to receive an honorary degree. After much discussion, we decided NOT to be disruptive, but to politely show up at a talk sponsored by the department of poli sci with signs, let her talk, and ask tough questions in a civil way during the question session. (Very wimpy, I know.) She showed up, goggled, and fled. She didn't even give her talk. In the American Spectator, the National Review, and George F. Will's column, we learned that we had censored her with loud disruption, shouted her down, etc. It was not true; we hadn't. They lied. --jks


>From: Chuck0 <chuck at tao.ca>
>Reply-To: lbo-talk at lists.panix.com
>To: lbo-talk at lists.panix.com
>Subject: Re: Still MORE leftist attacks on free speech?
>Date: Thu, 08 Mar 2001 15:00:45 -0500
>
>kelley wrote:
> >
> > this was posted elsewhere. curious about what really went down. kelley
> >
> > <forwarded>
> > http://frontpagemag.com/archives/racerelations/flynn03-07-01
> > .htm~Berzerk at Berkeley
>
>I still don't understand why Left students continue to shoot themselves
>in the foot with these practices. It's always used against them in this
>viscious way. It also doesn't make sense tactically since the
>conservative movement is out of gas and burning fumes.
>
>Chuck0

_________________________________________________________________ Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com



More information about the lbo-talk mailing list