Belinda Hinckley, '10 | Staff writer |

 Editor’s Note: On Monday, Sept. 24, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad visited Columbia University to speak about his views and beliefs, answering questions about controversial topics ranging from homosexuality to the Holocaust. Before Ahmadinejad took the stand, Columbia University President Lee Bollinger defended the event itself before going on to exercise his own free-speech rights and views where President Ahmadinejad was concerned. A full transcript of Bollinger’s remarks and Ahmadinejad’s speech itself can be found at the following website: http://www.azstarnet.com/sn/hourlyupdate/202820.php

The following is a conversation between Kasey Brooks (SPLIFFZ; top picture) and Belinda Hinckley (H3ll; bottom picture) held on AOL Instant Messenger. Full screen names have been edited for the speakers’ privacy.

SPLIFFZ (2:05:02 PM): Wow...this guy was named the TIME Person of the Year in 2006

H3LL (2:05:13 PM): woah

SPLIFFZ (2:05:52 PM): I don't know, do you think it's right that he's honored like that?

H3LL (2:08:05 PM): no, I don’t think so. a man that malicious should never be honored

H3LL (2:09:15 PM): but then again, people have a right to free speech

SPLIFFZ (2:12:43 PM): That was the stance that Columbia University had, was that just because you disagree with an idea doesn't mean you should just ignore it

H3LL (2:15:11 PM): yes that makes sense. I mean, if it were up to me I wouldn’t honor the man, but it’s interesting to read about other people’s opinions on ahmadinejad, and those who see him as a human being.  

SPLIFFZ (2:15:21 PM): You don't, then?

H3LL (2:16:02 PM): well, I think that people have a right to, but I wouldn’t

SPLIFFZ (2:16:40 PM): What of the things he's said has been most offensive in your eyes?

H3LL (2:18:06 PM): mostly what he's said about the holocaust never happening

H3LL (2:19:04 PM): and the derogatory things he's said about gay people

SPLIFFZ (2:21:19 PM): His comments have made a lot of people upset. Some of them think he shouldn't have been allowed to speak there.

SPLIFFZ (2:24:25 PM): Do you think it would matter where he spoke? Like maybe if he'd spoken at a very liberal school or at a more conservative school?

H3LL (2:29:20 PM): it doesn’t  matter where he speaks. either way people are going to get shaken up

SPLIFFZ (2:30:17 PM): But would it have been more offensive if there were more gay people or Jewish people in the audience? Or would it have been more acceptable if the college was less diverse?

H3LL (2:32:57 PM): it would  be  more offensive. I know as a Jewish person it hit close to home. It’s such a stab in the back when someone says something like that. family members of mine had to escape their homes in order to stay alive, apparently that’s not enough reassurance for him.

H3LL (2:35:32 PM): it probably would be less offensive if it were more diverse. However, there's still people like me who feel compassion for other people and would probably speak against him

SPLIFFZ (2:35:52 PM): Even if it's a disgusting thing to say, he does have a right to say it, just like those KKK members had the right to march peaceably

SPLIFFZ (2:36:02 PM): But that also means that you have the right to speak out against what he says too

H3LL (2:40:03 PM): yes that is true. awful people like the KKK members have a right to march or speak how they feel, but there's always someone, even if it’s just one, person that would speak against them. they have just as much right to speak against them as the other person has a right to deal out derogatory and racial statements about Jews and gay people

H3LL (2:42:26 PM): let me rephrase that. someone will always speak against those who are wrong, in America we have the freedom to disagree.

SPLIFFZ (2:42:58 PM): Do you think it was appropriate for Lee Bollinger to speak against Ahmadenijad before his speech began?

H3LL (2:43:20 PM): of course

H3LL (2:44:14 PM): I think anyone has a right to state their opinions even if they're controversial

SPLIFFZ (2:45:06 PM): What do you think of Ahmadenijad's retort when he says that in Iran a speaker is regarded highly and that they wait until the speaker's finished to disagree with his or her views?

H3LL (2:50:10 PM): he's just doing the same thing that ahmadinejad is doing and that is expressing his opinion. it doesn’t matter when it was said, its what was said that is most important

H3LL (2:50:57 PM): and it’s just a pathetic attempt to bash the U.S. and say that we are all rude people and Iran is superior etc

SPLIFFZ (2:52:27 PM): I think he definitely used it to his advantage, but I think if it's argued that he shouldn't have said what he said, it should also be taken into consideration that Bollinger sort of goaded him a little.

SPLIFFZ: Okay I found this on the New York Times site:

SPLIFFZ:” We can imagine no better way to give hope to opponents of Iran’s repressive state than by showcasing America’s democracy and commitment to free speech. And we can imagine no better way to lay bare the bankruptcy of Mr. Ahmadinejad’s views than to have him speak, and be questioned, at a university forum.”

H3LL: well that seems reasonable. we should always listen to what people have to say and know their stance on an issue before we jump the gun and take sides

SPLIFFZ: Right, and nobody's going to do a better job of painting a negative picture of him than himself, you know?

H3LL: of course. he's the reason why I disagree with him. no one else helped me formulate my opinion about him. I heard what he had to say about Americans, gay people and Jews and I came to the conclusion that I don’t like this man

SPLIFFZ: Which is understandable, because even though he does have the right to say this stuff, what he says hurts a lot of people.

SPLIFFZ (12:21:53 AM): Here, this is what a gay activist from Tehran said about Ahmadinejad

SPLIFFZ (12:21:57 AM): “I wish our president could learn to respect gays instead of denying us.”

H3LL (12:23:09 AM): he's not even disrespecting them, he's denying their existence

SPLIFFZ (12:24:37 AM): Just like he denies the Holocaust even happened

H3LL (12:24:55 AM): yes because he's being ignorant

SPLIFFZ (12:26:04 AM): But under the Constitution, he has the right to be ignorant, even though I'm not sure if the Constitution counts for all that much now

H3LL (12:27:02 AM): he has the right to but it doesn’t mean he shouldn’t be informed about important issues like the holocaust and gay rights etc

SPLIFFZ (12:27:20 AM): I'm sure he thinks he's very informed about those issues

H3LL (12:27:42 AM): he needs to know that the holocaust happened because history can repeat itself. hence rwanda

H3LL (12:28:26 AM): and I wouldn’t be surprised if it did by the way he's running his country

SPLIFFZ (12:28:35 AM): Here's one from the LA Times:

SPLIFFZ (12:28:39 AM): Democratic candidate Barack Obama made the rather contradictory statement that he wouldn't have invited Ahmadinejad to speak if he were president of Columbia, even though he has said he would personally meet with the man if elected president of the United States.

H3LL (12:29:38 AM): well I think the people had a right to hear what he had to say

SPLIFFZ (12:32:22 AM): Yeah I don't know though, I think Obama's concern might have been for impressionable people who believe this guy

SPLIFFZ (12:34:04 AM): Do you think that's valid, or should everyone have a right to all the information that's out there?

H3LL (12:34:54 AM): i think that people have a right to know what’s going on in the world. everything is not always sunshine and rainbows. we need to be informed.