Ahmadinejad in Wonderland

Iranian President Ahmadinejad’s visit to Columbia University was a huge success for Bush—and he didn’t even have to be there!

Columbia President Lee Bollinger led off the debate by verbally attacking his guest even before allowing him to speak. He said that Ahmadinejad was either totally evil or very uneducated. I’m afraid I must be the latter, because I cannot imagine a tactic which could have made Bush look any better.

Bollinger led the attack on Ahmadinejad like the leader of a pack of dogs surrounding a terrified cat. This led, in turn, to the audience following like the rest of the pack, with jeers and laughter. And their victim’s response can only be to hate us even more.

If the Iranian leader had been treated with respect and allowed to get himself into trouble with his remarks, he would have had only himself to blame. But, like Bush, the members of this distinguished intellectual university chose the path of humiliation and designation as an even greater menace to the rest of the world.

Ahmadinejad may be an uneducated fool, but, like Bush, he is an uneducated fool with the tremendous power which only an uneducated fool can possess. And now this forum has handed both men and their followers an even greater power to move in reverse.