unlike yourself persian cat, we, the intelligent learned people of the world do not need precise words to read between the lines. this is why our culture and civilization is hundreds of years ahead of the persians and arabs in general. one doesn't need to have it spelled out for them verbally what one means. we know how to deduct and think with our minds about things that are said and not said and the resons they are not said! at times what is not said is more telling than what is said. so, apart from that, remember that we are not the iranian and arab back home crowd that, due to repressing outside and world news, they eat up everything their regime tells or sells them. the american public is free to judge, think and conclude on its own. AND WE REMAIN UNCONVINCED BY THE LITTLE MAN. the best thing that dr. bollinger did is to invite him into an ivy league institution and proceed to make mince meat out of him. horay to dr. bollinger for finally speaking wjat is on the mind of every american in our country. we are not buying persian cut and we were not fooled. i wonder if the beginning of the session will be shown in iran where their esteemed leader (to only maybe 10% of the population) got a real intellectual dressing down by one of the most brilliant minds in the usa...columbia u.

TV's "Sixty Minutes" who were in Turkish prisons said they were homosexually assaulted by prison guards there as punishment for infractions of rules. That must be where the Iranian homosexuals are since Mr. Ahmadinejad says there are none in Iran. You disagree?

without lestening to Najad speech, I think he is right in most of he said.It is known by all the world that Israel is # 1 threat on earth. I do not want to remind you with the European referandum that showed Israel as a serious threat on the world and NOT Iran.

he also made every Iranian look stupid because of their stupid president.

Persian CAT, your hypocrisy is unbelievabable. Do you actually believe what you say? To accuse "some Americans" of "barbaric behaviour" because they take to task ahmadinejad, who frequently calls for genocide (the new kind, not the old kind that he doesn't believe actually happened) is just incredible. Look at yourself in the mirror, and your Iranian government with honesty, and tell me; who is barbaric?

Hate to say it, but I agree with Persian Cat and whoever else - Bollinger was way out of line. I don't invite people over to insult them. And I don't invite over people I don't like. If he wanted to present Ahmadinejad with counter arguments, he should have let students confront him. I thought that was the whole purpose of this. I would have loved to attend an event like that, seeing an ideological enemy first hand and confronting him. If Bollinger intended to insult him and call him names, he should have just sent an open letter to him and told him not to set foot on the Columbia premises. The way Bollinger acted, I don't understand the idea behind this needless exercise in bad diplomacy and bad manners. Besides that - it's time to move UN HQ to an Arab state, let them criticize Israel from there. I think they will be a lot less inclined to gather if their offices were in Tehran he-he-he...

What Bollinger did was to directly and honestly confront Ahmadinejad. That is what Free Speech is all about. And, he had every right to do so. He, like most Americans, have serious objections to your "President's" hate-based rhetoric and actions. Torturing and killing political dissidents, homosexuals, jailing students, subjugating women, and public hangings for those who disagree with you, or committ adultery, are far from civilized. Threatening to wipe Israel off the map, his obvious refusal not to reccognize Israel (or even say it's name), and his Holocaust denial is also exceptionally offensive, as well as, uncivilized. President Bush has also been, on a number of occasions, confronted by academics, and the media, in similar fashion for his own actions, and rightly so. Ahmadinejad was given the opportunity to address all questions and comments. It was all too obvious that he chose not to answer honestly or directly, and was correctly called on it. He humiliated himself. His ignorance and limited scope demonstrated to all who saw the program, that he was way out of his league. This was a Q & A lecture, not a tea party, or state dinner. If he is an example of an Iranian academic, then there is little wonder why you people are still in the 7th century, and have the mentally defective, and psychotic views that you do.

you are fooling yourself and are dellusional in thinking that this terrorist deserved anything less than what he got. the american people are not the arab or persian street, uneducated and uncivil, barbaric and ignorant of the outside world. it is a thinking crowd. they are not the ugly americans, but the beautiful, civilized educated americans that won't sit in a room and accept the lies of a madman. you are 100% wrong in assuming that most of the highly intelligent and civil students and faculty in that room didn't rejoice and support dr. bollinger apt and truthful description of this imbecilic man called the iranian leader. if i was an iranian, after viewing how this president came across, i'd cringe in embarassment. the truth hurts, doesn't it? however, it must be told by any means possible. i wonder if you think that this iranian vermin's actions towards iranian americans visiting families in iran by imorisoning them for months and requiring bribe bail money for their release without any trial, is respectful and civil behavior. i am sure that the way this idiot welcomed these iranian american intellectuals into his country, imprisoned them on bogus charges, tortured them while in prison and denied them the humanity of a trial, i wonder if that in your "esteemed opinion" is a respectful welcome of americans into iran. well, waiting for your pearls of wisdom.

Bollinger spoke the truth and brought out true facts about Ahmadinejad. An overwhelming majority of Amercians agree and support what Mr. Bollinger said about your uncivlized president.

People over 60 years old should not run a government! Barely a company! Maybe a Moms-and-Pops shop with not very fresh vegetables! On the other hand, kudos to Shimke Peres for out-living all his rivals. We'll see if Ahmadijoon can do that. Saddam didn't...

mr. and honorable peres is a world leader of the first order. a decent wonderful man who has done much for world peace and the prosperity and standing of jews and israel everywhere around the world. for you to pick on a very old man who seems tired during an interview and claim that he is not doing a good job in his post is ludicrous. that interview was taken after the honorable mr. peres came back from abroad and was probably jet lagged. peres is an old man with health issues. do not take your venum on a man that cannot help his age and the consequences that go with it. on the other hand, it is better to sleep in peace and forgo an interview than to constantly use your energy to bomb and maim and hate just like you palestinians do. if you people really go into a blissful sleep like peres, maybe the world will be a much safer place, no?

1. Israel does not exist only because of the holocaust; the history of the Zionist movement dates back to the middle of the 19 century. 2. More over, the connection of the Jewish people to the land dates back more then 3000 years. 3. Israel must wake up and face the ‘tomorrow’: that is that as things are now that Iran will be a superpower in the region, Israel must make peace treaties, adopt the Saudi initiative and by that push Iran off the political map of the middle east; sitting and waiting for the world or the US to flight them is not a policy, the truth is that no one will attack Iran because everyone is afraid of them and no one wants war that will end with a nuclear detonation on their soil, by the “proud” (ego fragile, respect obsessed ) nation of Iran. Israel wake up and think of tomorrow

He did a great job in moving the public from the dream of the isolationists to the reality of the surival of civilization

Remember the movie Planet of the Apes, well, this is their current stage of evolution, unable to face or deal with straight forward issues or questions, and to his claimed of rights the answer Bush will give is: By the powers infested in me I now declare you obsolete…

this man is evil, and speaks in 2 languages. in Arabic he tells you how he will get rid if the Jewish state, and in English he talks about world peace. he sounds like Hitler in the 30's. if the world feeds him appeasment we will all pay the price. from Jo'burg to Paris, from Jerusalem to Tokyo, we will all suffer from this mad man

.....With an "Empty brain president"...

Instead of addressing the issue directly, you avoid it and conveniently change the subject. Just like Ahmadinejad. Just like most Arabs leaders.

In the debate it seems whatever issues there were (besides gays in Iran) got lost because of how the University President was speaking and also issue of how a host treats a guest (he inivited him). So basically just a big hassle.

Iran only allows free speech to the beheaded!

Ahmadinejad says that he wants the world to respect Iran Well I for one respect and love Iran But I hate this evil regime. There are things TOO NUMEROUS TOMENTION ABOUT THE FAILINGS OF THAT MISERABLE REGIME ASK AHMADINEJAD WHY IT IS POLITICALLY CORRECT TO PROMOTE INSTITUTIONALLY THE WALKING ON US, BRITISH AND ISRAELI FLAGS? In the US, UK and Israel no one would stoop so low. But if there was widespread stamping on the national flag of Iran what would that worm Ahmadinejad say? And his claims that he wants to research the holocaust are utterly crass. This is not serious history research but simply vindictive politics of the gutter because remember that not so long ago it was Ahamdinejad who PROMOTED CARTOONS of the holocaust FOR PEOPLE TO BE AMUSED?. Almost the entire world suffered from WW11. So what next with Ahmadinejads version of WW11 - 20m Russians did not die, millions of Poles, British, Canadians, French, Germans etc etc etc ? Thats why the world wants to ensure the truth of the war is never distorted by people like him so the the same mistakes are never repeated. Thats why Ahmadinejad is such an affront to the human race

Haverim The sad thing is that Columbia Univrsity gave this Super dangerous man a Super Platform and the occasion for him to show his hate for the US and for Israel. Now i ask you dear friends ??? Did we learn something new from the Clown, I wonder. My question to the University, is who is the Next Idiot that they will invite. Shalom from Texas Alberto

I had forgotten that she was an alumna of Columbia. BTW, why didn't Ynet report that protestors WERE NOT ALLOWED ON THE CAMPUS from outside? Freech speech my arse. http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1189411476562&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull

In response to the grossly ill-informed, Turkish prisons are not like what they are depicted to be in movies such as "Midnight Express", inter alia. In fact Oliver Stone himself has confirmed that it was all a fabrication. I also do not see any nexus between Iran and the state of Turkish Prisons, nor can I comprehend your motives!

mike u are just another welfare clowm

It would be different for Bush to go to Iran. There would be a REAL threat to his life. MymoodI'minaJihad had no real threat in New York. Plus Bush would probably be recieving scripted questions from "students". Not a real exchange as happened in New York. I would suggest a debate between Bush and the Iranian prsident. Bush is often portrayed as a hayseed by his critics. So going against the Iranian puppet president may just seem fair.

"arabs and persians are not too astute and are not very educated simply because their media and government opposes free debate and contact with the outside world" so are you saying that having freedom of speech makes wrong things right? so if that is the case then by openly talking about Guantanamo Bay, Cuba will make it right - killings in Palestine will be right, starting a civil war in Iraq will be right?????? If i walk in your house having told your neighbors that you are a threat to oneself and used that as a reason to kill you and you decide to fight back will it make you a terrorist or an insurgent or a freedom fighter? To a larger part of world if they want to gain access to clean nuclear power as per their claim why is USA bothered - have they destroyed their own weapons? Have they gone out to developing nations offering peaceful nuclear equipment? All they did recently was to sign up a massive deal on nuclear power for peace covering access to nuclear weapons to India so that later India can be a threat to China. If there can be a process to ensure that India is not gaining access then same can imply to Iran but hey there is no such process and India will gain access so why not Iran? if desire to own nuclear power for peace makes them criminal to gain access to a bomb later - then HUMANS retaining 88 million fire arms should be a threat as well and should be banned equally. For now dealing with Iran is going to be a top ranking question in Presidential campaign and I can see this whole thing is adding a lot of fuel to it World has enough problems on its own and Iran is still not on that list. …. while people continue to die in Dafur, Sudan & all there is to discuss around UN is how to deface Iran. “—my own opinion”