Controversial world leaders poisening the mind of our students..., oh no! Options

[Melissa]

So this discussion/debate is stemmed from an extremely controversial event (at my college, at least) when President Ahmadinejad, the president of Iran, was invited to speak at Columbia University. Parents, alumni, prominent leaders, reporters, etc. all had something to say - many of which were very negative - and tons of people pulled funding (listening to alumni bitch at us over the phone was not a pleasant task). I had the chance to listen to him speak and have to admit that he's an incredibly intelligent man (which is scary because I think he's a bit crazy), and while he said many things that might cause some outrage (i.e. "there are no homosexuals in Iran" - look the event up if you're interested, etc), that's not the point of this debate.

I really don't care if you agree/disagree with Pres. Ahmadinejad, I'm wondering if you think that it is a positive or negative thing to have such a controversial figurehead speak at an American university. People opposed to the event have said that there is no good outcome and think he should be banned from even landing on American soil. They say that such a smart man like him would only succeed in poisoning the minds of students.

The other side of the argument is that the only way to understand someone under such scrutiny is to listen to him and hear him out. Chris Colombo, our dean, claimed that if Adolf Hitler was alive, he would invite him to come over and explain himself. Wouldn't it be interesting to hear what he said? Hear him say why he did what he did?

So, what's your side of the argument? Should figureheads such as Saddam Hussein, Ahmadinejad, or Hitler be allowed to speak to at universities? Or should they just be completely ignored?

[Comptine]

I think it's incredibly dangerous and frightening that people with such power/influence have such extremists/hateful views. Especially in a democratic society because it seems VERY contradictory and deconstructive to the establishment. It's is equally scary that a monarch/single ruler would do the same thing.

College students have a very diverse population. Like someone mentioned, if someone can be easily swayed, then it's not a big loss. However, since the population is so diverse, and college kids are starting to take part in voting, the consequences can potentially be detrimental for others. You get enough people whose beliefs get influenced by these figureheads and they go vote or take action... those beliefs could be manifested.

Personally, I would love to speak to some figureheads or at least, get an insight into their heads.