I'm curious about the author's academic credentials. It seems hardly imaginable that a law lecturer could be unaware of academic protections at public institutions in other countries. This involves both legal protections on political speech and a general culture that promotes the airing of unpopular views: precisely why academics in the US have failed to implement boycotts against even rightist Israeli academics.

The same kind of people as those who desecrated the main Beth Knessth in my town some years ago ?

1st there is no academic freedom in plagiarism 2nd their is no academic freedom in distortion of facts, or lying (denying the holocaust for instance is not protected under academic freedom in the US, Germany or Israel... and I believe some other countries as well) 3rd academic freedom does not give anyone a pass for racists, call to violence (and in the US call for acting against the Constitution.) 4th academic freedom does not allow Israeli professors to insult or ridicule Islam, God, Christianity 5th academic freedom does not allow a professor to drive drunk, use illegal drugs, watch or engage in child pornography. In other words academic freedom is limited... as it should be to the intellectual (not physical or political) job being studied.

There's an excellent post on this subject at the Zionist Conspiracy blog. Academic freedom my tuchas, these people should be fired, it's a scandal, outrageous, that this should be allowed to continue. And, WE pay for this. I blame our lousy politicians for this state of affairs, they've known about this for years & did absolutely nothing, worse, it's been covered up by the media, Leftists covering up for Leftists, what else is new?

Israel has too many doors open to a third holocaust. How about shutting this one up - forever!

its about time this issue got thelight of day. how can isrel toelrate these professors, if they are actually degreed academics. I gues this situaiton is just more of the foolish jewish belief that no matter how stupid, destructive or insulting some teachers opinion is, we need to put with under thguise of academic freedom. Does that permit a professor to kick a student out of class for wearing an idf uniform its time for accountability for these kinds of acts .. including the zig heil . there is no excuse for that or editorials in thela times calling for boycotts against istrael by israeli professors ...

being fired for trying to destroy the country?

While it is nearly impossible to revoke tenures, there are many things that can be done to limit activity of disgraceful elements within academia. Their funding can be cut, their teaching privileges can be revoked, and they can certainly be passed on for promotions and can be demoted from administrative positions. Likewise, BGU can demote the head of the Political Science department and replace him with a more proper choice, one who will not condone the Nazi salutes.

It is a tiny insignficant percentage of americans who are anti-Israeli... Just like in the UK where they had to either lie about the resolution passed or put the resolution up for a vote on the eve of a Jewish holiday. Got absolutely zero to do with freedom of speech or academic freedom.

Your idea of freedom doesn't sound very free at all. More specifically: 1. Fair enough 2. Lying and denying the holocaust IS protected as free speech in the US. I don't know why you would think differently. 3. Calling to act against the constitution would be inciting to break the law. But I think you're forgetting the right to call for changing the constitution. As Israel doesn't have one, I'm not sure where you're going with this. 4. I just don't know. 5. What is academic about any of these things? This is the only thing that you've mention that is against the law. However, it has nothing to do with anything. In other words, academic freedom is not limited to the political inclinations of anyone. As of now, it is not illegal to study anything in Israel. I hope it stays that way.

These things have to be repeated and repeated... Fed up with the self haters Leftits "pseudo" intelelectuals who would never give the floor to a .. "rightist".

Conspriacy as you suggested. Dr. Leavitt, a professor emeritus, did not have his contract to teach another course on medical ethics renewed. He is the one heard saying that bringing up a child by a same sex couple may have its down sides. The blog includes a statement of the head of BGU's Media Relations Department indicating the contract was not renewed due to very suggestive remarks the professor made in a public forum which made five female students so uneasy as not to allow themselves to attend his classes. That's the official line at any rate. As to Neve Gordon, the university believes it has its hands tied with respect to him due to the rules of tenure and academic freedom. The statement goes on to suggest that BGU is, nonetheless, embarrassed about his stance re boycotting and disapproves of it. Of course, BGU is, itself, responsible for the ilks of Neve Gordon and other establishment characters who share, or almost share, his views. BGU is also responsible for the fact that the social science departments never hire professors with alternative nor opposing points of view. It is, for Israel, a sad situation. Putting pressure on BGU by private donors withholding funding would be one means of changing course. Another would be by the state of Israel withholding funds to those selfsame departments. And, of course, student protests against the status quo would eventually help. isracampus.org.il has articles on the impossibilities of achieving a graduate degree at BGU without toeing its leftist party line; becoming an employed academic at BGU with a rightist perspective is also impossible.

We must change the name of the University. David Ben Gurion would be ashamed that his name is being used as the name of the University.

This column was eye opening. It has long been obvious that leftist "academics" are spreading lies and hatred about Israel worldwide, while collecting generous salaries from Israeli taxpayers. But Nazi salutes from "professors"! It is way past time to end the evil once and for all. Seditious "academics" to trial for treason.

Five percent of the population is leftist. Hire only non-leftists until the faculty is balanced. Send the extremists out to pasture.

The right of expression is basic to democracy; academic freedom and the pursuit of knowledge is essential. But what does this have to do with political indoctrination? The classroom should be a place of inquiry, not propaganda. The politicization of Israeli universities is not "the life of the mind," but the death of the spirit."

In 1945 at Nürnberg Fascism was held to account and the chief criminals were hanged. The sad chapter of Fascism came to an end and no decent human being wants to be associated with Nazi crimes. Bolshevism killed and enslaved probably millions yet not even one murder was even tried and sentenced. Not only that but even mentioning the Red Terror is un-PC because these International thugs control the academia and the mass media almost everywhere. They are free to poison generations to come and to destroy nations from within as they had done not long ago. The modern day "rosa luxemburgs" are too dumb to remember what followed their unbridled reign of economic and spiritual oppression....and their current Islamofascist alliance will not save them from reckoning. The good: the seed of rebellion against the neo-Red thugs are sprouting almost everywhere. There are articles even in the Leftist Israeli papers wanting to smash the Marxist shackle and smell the freedom at last. Even the American "78%"-ers started to notice the fall of their Kenyan demigod and begin to cringe. The anger is growing, Comrades!!!!

always end up the same way: self-immolation for the sake of "the other" who is ALWAYS superior. It is a child's view of the world and of human nature.

you do it as if in israil ---academic freedom is equall to bigoting goverment and israil policy ... i think you are wrong you deluted the academians and diluted the freedom in israil

Ther was enough room in palestine for fthe five million jews of europe and five million arabs by 1939 with one million jews fighting nazism then turning to help the democracies against stalinism communism for democratic human rights democracy.

if they really believed in myths, could have settled in the land of Canaan. No problem ! No problem even if "the whole world in 1917 recognized this" (which actually isn't true). But how about the people having been living in this land for centuries ? The whole world certainly woulnd't have accepted treating them like foreigners in their own land. Even a Professor in Law from Ben Gurion University should be able to see this.

I would agree with the author if he would mention that what the students are doing is supporting countries or non state groups with which Israel is at war.

Please write your email address and I'll send them pictures to you. Prof. I. David, BGU.

for putting these matters in the proper legal context. Objective legal analysts know that our legal rights to this land are grounded in settled International Law. Only distorted political ideology and religious-mandated hatred sustains the project to remove us from this land. The 1922 Partition borders must become the focus of discussion, not the Armistice lines that set the "67 borders". From the River Jordan to the Mediterranean - these are our legal East-West borders.

Close the University!