The pro-Palestine mob and free speech at the University of Ireland

My good colleague Alan Johnson (@shachtman) went to speak in a debate about Israel in Galway and this is what happened:

I’m afraid similar things are happening in various campuses at the moment, thanks to the BDS campaign (sanctions against Israel) and a resurgence of the far left.

Now, this is not (obviously) to say that Palestinians should not try to secure British and Irish supporters for their perfectly legitimate, and even noble, cause of self-determination.

I don’t agree with everything that Israel does, as I have noted here before. But if you as a reasonable person were choosing between the two sides, which one would you choose? The reasoning debater or the bully?

Yet again, we are forced to conclude that the principal barrier to a sensible debate on Palestine is the terrible quality of its often-thuggish advocates (you may also remember this delightful video of one of this gentleman’s fellow thugs: Carole Swords, Chair of Tower Hamlets Respect Party).

And as for universities such as NUI Galway, shame on you for letting this happen on your campus. I know I’m old fashioned, but shouldn’t you perhaps be trying to protect free speech and encourage debate amongst young, impressionable minds?

6 comments

  1. The nature of this movements objectives which is essentially genocide reflects its harmony with the kind of people who are its protagonists, fascists who would destroy liberty and democracy. The silence they evoke from authorities in Ireland parallels in its lack of courage to defend its own institutions that occurred in Europe with the rise of Naziism and Bolshevik communism. Shame!

    Max

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