United Nations Council on Human Relations: Did you know there is such a thing? Probably not. In theory, this council exists to "promote universal respect for the protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms for all, without distinction of any kind and in a fair and equal manner." But that is not what it has been doing. Clearly there are human rights abuses all around the world. The tragedies in Darfur and most recently Burma are well known. But there are also clearly issues in many other countries like Cuba, China, and Uzbekistan amongst others. But this council in its first year of existence has chosen to condemn only one country for abuses - Israel. And it has condemned them multiple times while choosing to ignore or not act on all others. It clearly has become just a front to cover the abuses of some of the council's members which include Cuba, China, Algeria, Pakistan, Russia, and Saudi Arabia.
So, I, along with Howard Berman (D-CA), introduced HRes 557 in which the Congress condemns this council and calls on the United Nations to reform it so that we can call out the real human rights abusers around the world. I am pleased to report that this resolution passed the House floor last week by a vote of 416-2. OK, I'm sure you want to know who the "two" were. Interestingly, both are presidential candidates - Ron Paul (R-TX) and Dennis Kucinich (D-OH).
The Face of Evil: I flew back to Washington last week on JetBlue and therefore was able to watch all of Iranian President Ahmadinejad's speech at Columbia University Monday. I really believe that I was watching evil akin to that of Stalin or Hitler. I was fascinated to learn that Iran is the country on earth in which women have the most freedom. I'm sure that the Holocaust needs more study to "prove" that it never happened or that it was somehow justified. And isn't it particularly interesting that they "have no homosexuals in Iran." Hitler hid the Holocaust from world view. I'm sure his point would have been that there never were any Jews in Germany or Poland to begin with. Stalin had no political opposition in 1938. That's because he killed them all during the great "purge." We now know that he not only killed them, but he tried to literally erase all trace of these people ever having existed, including killing all family members and cutting them out of any photographs. Are gay people meeting the same fate in Iran? Undoubtedly.Columbia University and the UC System: I understand Columbia University's argument about asking Ahmadinejad to speak under the guise of allowing free speech. You hear this a lot when colleges give forums to terrorists, communists and murderers. But unfortunately, that argument rings hollow when you see that they do, in fact, censure who can speak on college campuses. Columbia, for example, does not allow ROTC or military recruiting on campus. I guess sponsors of international terrorism are OK but the military that is protecting us from those terrorists are not. Columbia also recently revoked an invitation to the founder of the Minutemen, and my former political opponent, Jim Gilchrist. Obviously, Mr. Gilchrist and I are not on the same page on a number of things, but why is his invitation revoked if free speech is so important?
Similarly, the UC Board of Regents recently rescinded a speaking invitation to Larry Summers, former ClintonTreasury Secretary and President of Harvard College. Summers is a noted academician and economist who was recently left Harvard College after making controversial remarks about differences between men and women in science and math disciplines. The regents revoked his speaking invitation after faculty at UC Davis protested his being allowed to speak on campus. The petition signed by the faculty said in part "inviting a keynote speaker who has come to symbolize gender and racial prejudice in academia conveys the wrong message to the university community and to the people of California." Hmmmm. I thought such academic institutions welcomed differing views? So a former Clinton cabinet officer and university president sends the wrong message but a terrorist dictator whose regime kills Americans every week is somehow OK?
No my friends, there is not free speech on many college campuses across America today. They are rampant with censures of voices with whom they disagree. It is the greatest intellectual dishonesty that they don't admit it.
Until then, I remain respectfully,
Congressman John Campbell
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