Absolutely disgusting. And adding insult to this - aren’t these institutions funded with our money???

Your article echoes my sentiment exaclty. It is really unfortunate that free speech is going the way of the dinosaur in Canada and is the product of too many years of Liberal government in Ottawa in particular. Universities in general have become hotbeds of ultra left wing socialist rhetoric. Hopefully with the continued efforts of the NCC the pendulum will start swinging back the other way.

Really a sign of the times…

It’s one of the reasons why, as a hiring manager, I tend to shy away from applicants of general arts programs from Canadian universities. I know exactly what the political bent of these people will be, and frankly, I can do a lot better when it comes to advancing the cause of my company and the sector it is involved in. And I am not alone.

We in Canada worhip at the altar of “diversity.” But the only think we won’t tolerate it seems is “diversity of opinion.” And that’s not the Canada my father fought for, or my uncle died for. I am just glad that neither lived to see what has become of their country.

The violence and hate only came to Ottawa when the protesters overran the asylum. Ann has done nothing wrong here. I certainly want to listen to her opinions but its looks like the trouble makers won the battle-stifling free speech. Its all about hypocrisy and thats how the left holds their power.

They spin realities into some twisted fact and somehow it makes sense to the general public. But try digging down and take in everything Ann says and you know what, she does have something to say.

So the true haters came out last night but to some folks it may look they did the right thing. But think again. Its a University and should allow open and free debate in this learning centre. What are the leftists afraid of?

No surprises there, a few years ago Bernie Goldberg published a book titled “110 People who are screwing up America”. Shortly thereafter I believe it was the Western Standard that published an article in the same vein. Only this time it was tilted something like “The 100 University Professors screwing up Canadain Universities.”

Guess things havent changed much.

When my daughter graduated from U.Vic. she suffered from what I like to call University Syndrome, now that she has been in the hospital system for several years she now has regained her sanity (conservatism)

What am absolute disgrace! I am so glad that I’m not currently enrolled in any of these so-called “institutes of higher learning”. This is just further proof how insulated universities are from the real world. They are hermetically sealed “utopias” where only liberal and left-wing ideas are tolerated. The idea that universities are places of free and open discussion is nonsense - as we’ve clearly seen in this case, all ideas are equal, but some are “more equal” than others.

Message to Anne Coulter - Never stop! Never change! Never give up!

Most of our educational institutions think liberally and socialisticly. This is just an example much Canadian thinking. Future productivity is very limited in this environment.

I feel that our media- mostly liberal- is responsible for the seeming lack of freedom of speech in this country. As has been pointed out by others, we did not hear Prof. Houle speaking up when his students were condemning Israel for defending itself against rocket attacks. Seems to me we have too many people from other countries who can twist the media to their point of view.

How sad that a UNIVERSITY, a supposed institute of high learning, of free speach, of novel ideas freely discussed, is bending down and can not make sure that a speaker is not denied to express her ideas. What comes next?

Believe Houle’s e-mail to Coulter was appropriate - he was just warning her about our stupid Human Rights Commissions - but cancelling the speech was inexcusable.

I find the actions of the students in Ottawa very scarry. Does this mean we Canadians know what is “right” and do not want anyone to confuse us with the “facts”. We should not even discuss another opinion?

I am beginning to wonder if it is only Eastern Canada that does not want “free speech”. We will soon know - after we find out what “Calgary” does.
I would like to see a referendum on this. (and “Free Speech”).

I realize I am speaking to the converted on this blog. However, any sane, thinking person would have to agree with all of the sentiments expressed here. Beyond just venting, I plan to take my anger over this situation a step further. In any future recruitment endeavour I am involved in, whether it be for my own company, or a non-profit I volunteer for, University of Ottawa graduates will not be considered, regardless of the merits their resumes may display. I have no interest in associating professionally with people who have graduated from an institution that attempts to shape thought rather than encouraging free discourse, debate, and original thinking. I need people who can think. Apparently “thinking” is not on the curriculum at the University of Ottawa.

I was not surprised when I saw his on the news.The types we have teaching these days install socialism in our students.The socialists movement believe in Freedom of speech for them and they will not listen or even debate anyone who opposes them.So Freedom for them and no one else.This should make any free minded tax paying person in Canada very angry.We should start getting tough on demonstrators who are able to stop us from hearing the other side of any issue.I am ashamed of this happening in Canada and wonder how many of the demonstrators are Canadian Citizens.?? Barry McDonald

I’m absolutely disgusted at the orchestrated actions of these left wing idiots and am incensed at the comments of the reproter from Now magaizine who was interviewed on Fox News. Truly embaressing

It’s a symptom of a general malaise at Universities. Freedom of speech is not popular among university administrators even on issues internal to the university. The student’s behaviour is also very disturbing in this case. Where is the open mind they are supposed to have by attending university which is to expose them to the world?

Do the people at the University of Ottawa, students, profs and administrators not realize the weakness of their own positions when their only means of defense is to prevent the advocate of competing positions from speaking. Surely, there must be some rational left wingers at U of O who oppose these radical elements. The sad thing is that they do not have the courage to stand up to them. It is even sadder that the university administration did not have the courage to stand up to them and took the easy way out of cancelling in the name of public or Ann Coulter’s safety.

The leftists are always afraid of opposing ideas because they would be exposed for what they are. If one has truth on their side they are never afraid of opposition because truth stands on it’s own. Only those who are afraid of the light stay in the dark. Guess where that leaves the University of Ottawa?

It is unfortunate that we are controlled by the powerful money group, which in turn dictates our elected government officials to abide by their hidden dictatorial rules similar to nacism, cleverly camouflaged making us believe we live in a free democratic society.
Our so called conservative government officials interrogated Amy Goodman (when she was invited to Vancouver)for 3 hours before allowing her to proceed. I wondered why? She has been a free speeck advocate for years.
When the president of the Hungarian National Youth organization was invited by the Toronto Hungarian Association to give a speech, he was stopped by government officials at the airport and sent back, merely because an individual reported him as undesirable.(What power such individual must have!)
What are we afraid of? Are we only allowed to speak if it fits the approval of certain individuals? Or is there a desperate effort to cover up the truth and let us stay ignorant? The beutiful country of Canada is no longer “True and Free”.

If a University cannot be open minded then it is dead and should not exist.
My tax money should not be directed toward such institutions nor support
individuals who are against my right of opion, free speech etc.

Those actions, the letter, the student threats, and the action to cancel her appearance are abominable. Why didn’t they go after the protesters and arrrest anyone who started violence? We should be going en masse to hear her for just those reasons. The protesters were threatening violence which was the excuse to cancel the engagement. What cowardice! What injustice! My head is bowed in shame for Canada and what passes for higher education in this country. Roberta McDonald, Calgary, AB

This can be the canary in the coalmine. It is an insidious creep happening in Canada of slowly losing our liberty and freedom. Freedom of Speech is the stalwart of a free society. Obviously the University of Ottawa where our Parliament resides seems not to have intellectuals attending more like conformists. Not students with individual thinking. I am not condemning all of the studenst attending that University but whoever is at the top sets an example. I cannot believe that someone from the University representing a high position sent a warning letter to Anne Coulter on what she can say and what she can’t. Whoever that is is setting the tone for the University and shuld be fired or sent to a country where they get killed for free thinking. Unbelievable.

Close the University of Ottawa for good.

It is time for all Canadian public funding to be suspended to Yorrk Unioversity. University of Ottawa, and any others that abuse oyr Constitutional right of freedom of speech.

Unfortunately the vast majority of Canadians are peaceful and quiet, however, most of this silent majority would agree with your views. I agree totally with your views. Most of us reading the NCC Blog agree with your views. Now how do we get the rest of Canada to express themselves and finally shout back at the left wing, voiciferous radicals that continually push their agenda and compromise our way of life? It will eventually come to a boiling point where Canadians will have had enough and start to fight back. My concern is that it will be too late! Pierre Trudeau’s strategy was to keep Europeans out of Canada and bring in the 3rd world as an assured way of always remaining in power. We are now living with that legacy and unless we are clear in this country with what direction we want to follow, it will continue to degrade. Loss of freedom of speach is now evident and we should start pushing back hard!

In order to understand how we got to the point where a person’s speach makes him a criminal and the practice is endorsed by the majority, we examine the core problem. Namely, the state whether federal or provincial is responsable for educating and policing individuals. Simply put, it will always educate the young to behave obediently and COLLECTIVELY and will always judge in its own favour, no matter what the outcry.
The loss of free speach is one of the many ways that our government controls us and most people don’t notice until what they have to say (or think) goes against the state’s views. In what way is this different from any other totalitarian regime?

What a disgrace. But on the other hand, good to see this exposure in the news. It has highlighted for us all, once again, the deplorable state of free speech in this country. Along with that, is the embarrassing trend in this country towards avoiding, at all cost, any topic that might bring the slightest discomfort. While most other countries are dealng with real issues, our hyper-sensitivities have lead us to the point where “hurt feelings” are now a “crime against humanity”. What a disgrace from where we have come, and the price that was paid for our freedom.

I trust the NCC will make it their top priority to fight for our basic freedoms. The bullying against freedom of speech in this country, namely from our “Human Rights Commissions” (modern day Gestapo), needs to be exposed. We need more visits from An Coulter and people like her. Lets get organized and get Glenn Beck and Bill O’Reilly out for a speeking tour. While we’re at it, we need to get a real Canadian news channel that openly debates real issues. What a refeshing change it would be to the lame, empty,and shallow news broadcasts that we have that help numb us into our extreme sensitivities.

I managed to survive a life threatening wound fighting for freedom in the battle of Normandy following “D” day. Many of my wonderful brave Canadian comrads who were less fortunate are burried there after a brutal fight for freedom which includes freedom of speach. We must allway continue to struggle to preserve our hard won freedoms. Like it or not, we must give people have the right to say what they believe and put up with nothing less.

Whether I believe in what Anne Coulter has to say is beside the point. It should be my choice to listen to her or not and whether to believe what she espouses or not. It is also everyone else’s right to do the same. It is not the right of any small group with their own agenda to deny the majority of people the right to choose.

Don C

There is a whiff of mob rule in the air; this is a very sad day for all those who cherish open dialogue and diversity of opinion. really, quite pathetic coming from a group who bill themselves as “Canada’s University”.

Earlier that evening I caught the piece on the CBC news about defining the Canadian Indentity. The university students interviewed stated that “friendly” and “tolerant” best described Canada. Welcome to Canada, Ann.
One consolation is that this incident is back-firing on the leftists. They are giving Ann the best publicity money can buy and she will have a much larger audience now for her message.

I do not know if the thinking on free speech at the Univervity of Ottawa has anything to do with left or right. Cancelling the speech that Ann Coulter was scheduled to present is all to do with the money and political pressures applied. I believe the act of cancelling Ann Coulter goes to the class of University. The buck stops there.

“Insanity is making the same mistake over and over again” Albert Einstein

He was right. History is repeating itself. I think we are smarter than the conspirators (our gov. G20, IMF, UN, WHO), in short, Rothschild, give us credit for.

My family, too, fought in the war.
Vote out all incumbents and only vote for independents from now on. It’s the only way 6to get real representation. The established government is completely corrupt. Sold out. Traitorous. etc. etc. Corporatism. Rothschildism. blah blah blah. Let’s change it please. Sincerely, Mark.

It would be intresting to know who the ring leaders were who initiated the demonstration and what was their true motive. Terrorism can appear in many forms. I am also reminded of a suspected conspiracy advocating the dumbing down of our education system. I hope that the majority of the Ottawa University students did not agree nor participate in the disgusting and ignorant protest.

Some element within U of O (students or faculty or administration?)invited Anne Coulter to speak at U of O. She did not invite herself.

Then, just a few days before the event, the U of O Provost, Francois Houle, in essence created a whirlpool of dissent and Left/Right confrontation by his written, condescending and presumptuous admonition (threat?) to Ms Coulter effectively saying she better not break Canadian hate speech laws or (implicitly) there would be repercussions.

This act by M. Houle, was taken by the Loony Left as its signal to create a demonstration sufficiently aggressive to seem, to U of O authorities, potentially violent. Because there was deemed to be insufficient police protection (shades of Caledonia) at the University on the evening of the scheduled presentation, U of O “invited” the guest speaker to cancel her presentation so as not to rile up the leftist demonstrators to an uncontrollable and dangerous mob.

Outcome: The Canadian Left was seen as it truly exists, uncontrolled by a sympathetic government bureaucracy, chattering class and educators.

Pathetic. Hick town; Hick University with a Hick mentality: Hick reaction by a Hick bureaucracy:
Very embarrassing to Canadians.

I hope Ms Coulter follows through with her notion to engage the Canadian (or Ontario) Human Rights Commission on her behalf. Then we will see, through its reaction, whether it is an intellectually honest organization or just another hypocritical bureaucratic tool of the Loony Left in Canada.

U of Ottawa has its head up its proverbial you know what.

Withdraw all Federal funding - I don’t want my tax dollars funding this kind of crap.

Shouldn’t the individuals who deny the existence of nazi concentration camps also be allowed to say they don’t believe?

It may be abhorrent to hear their views, but it often results in criminal charges for these individuals, and more often, gives them more publicity than they deserve.

Cameron, the movie producer of Titanic and Avatar, can openly say that he would like to see climate change “deniers” rounded up and shot. Is that not very provocative and liable to foment attacks on them? Is he denied speaking priveliges in Canada? No! Typical double standard as applied by hate filled lefties.

It seems that our places of learning (universities and colleges) are becoming hot beds of political correctness (if not already). Political correctness is the antithesis of free speech. The issue is: What can we do about it?

The insidious infiltration of the left into our cherished heritage that tens of thouands of Canadians died for continues unabated and is enhanced by the superior wisdom of the academics in their little university towers that we fund.These people are lost and ignorant fools.
Let’s concentrate on the still sane high school kids and describe to every one of them what happened when the Nazis started to burn the books and cut peoples tongues out. Most Germans said it could not happen. I appeal to all sane Canadians - DON’T LET IT HAPPEN HERE!

I am so dissapointed that we here in Eastern Canada will have to wait to hear what Anne Coulter has to say while in Calgary. I hope she talks on the value of free speach for one and all.

Yes, Rim Dodko, those people should be allowed to say what they want. To haul them before the courts gives some legitimacy to their comments, but c’mon. Let’s give the general public some credit for intelligence here. If these whackos are ingonered, they will go away, as they should. If we deny someone free speech, it is only a matter of time before we ourselves will be denied our voice.

I liked what Anne said afterwards. She said something along the lines of there being a one to one relationship between their IQ and the number of their teeth. That pretty much sums up what appear to be the entrance requirements for the University of Ottawa.

I remember one student saying Coulter was “racist” in her views about Islam. Islam is an ideology. It’s not a race. Confusing race with ideology tells me that student has no business being in university to start with.

Coulter doesn’t like Islamic ideology. I don’t either. There is nothing about it to like.

I hope she keeps talking.

Although I don’t agree with everything she says, I do agree with most. The contraversy over her comments is one thing but more troubling is the letter from the U of Ottawa brass threating her. There has never been a better example of how much freedom we have lost to political correctness in this country. The arogance of these professors that feel they have the right to tell us how we can speak and what to think. It’s no wonder that our universities are producing socialist thought police.It is amusing however to see these same students 5 years later in the work force when real life bites them in the ass and they decide that socalisim is not all their profs taught them that it was.

A lifetime ago, my dad told me this:

When you are young and not socialistic, you have no heart;
When you are thirty and still socialistic, you have no brain.

My dad was smart.
Jan.

If she was a leftist (with all their radical ideas), they would happily let her speak. Though I am not surprised as many Canadian educators (which influence these students)are left-leaning.

It bodes ill for our future generation, more noisy liberals=don’t think for yourself, let us do the thinking.

Nobody needs to bad-mouth others. This woman is able to make a living
from bad-mouthing others. It is common curtesy not to publicly mouth off.

Same old. Same old ! During election campaign debates the ‘right’ audience politely listen to all speeches. When non socialist speakers take the floor the Socialists hoot and holler to drown out the talk.

If we allow the Bloc leader to speak in the House of Parliament when that party is not a federal party
why clamp down on a US speaker? Colter does speak her mind, sometimes objectively and sometimes out of sync. She has good points and not so good points - but, she isn’t mealy mouthed and believes what she says. Should all politicians be so frank. As far as University students - they are primarily left wing BUT, in Canada, we still have the right of free speech and she should not be denied. This country has gone so far to the left it is impossible to believe that once our forefathers conservatively worked hard to make it the country it once was. As is PM Harper. We need to take a good look at what we stand for and what this country stands for. IMHO>

“Free Speech” is a sophisticated concept requiring “rules of the game” to be known, understood and mutually observed by those with ” irreconciliable differences” to be expressed. While the university is the proper place for such passionate discussion to be aired without the intervention of “Authority”, the appropriate venue is the “debating Chamber” format before an audience who have the last word by way of a “vote on the Motion”!

Ann Coulter has more common sense in her pinky than the whole politically correct crowd of left-wing-nuts has in the empty space between their ears.

Bob Wood says:

Cameron, the movie producer of Titanic and Avatar, can openly say that he would like to see climate change “deniers” rounded up and shot.

Bob, I didn’t realize he said this. Perfect example of a double standard for sure. And I bet this guy has polluted the planet 100 times more than I have.

Hypocrites are first on my list to go down. They are the ones who use this their hypocrisy and BS to maintain control.

My first contact with Ann’s writing occurred while browsing in a Maryland bookstore while on vacation. I saw the title “The Church of Liberalism” and had an immediate reaction. A quick glance prompted me to spend $60 and scurry home to read it. She was right on in most points, maybe 90%, but the other 10% had me saying “no way” Ann. This lady lets it all hang out and it is refreshing to see.

A wise man once said “you stand for something, or you fall for anything.”
Ann isn’t being suckered in by liberal, left-wing propaganda.

To say that our educators are left leaning would be an understatement.

Just what were these students so afraid of? That Ann Coulter would make sense and they might actually have to think for themselves.

A commentator at Radio 610 CKTB called the University of Ottawa “lower than bush league”. I agree.
It chills my heart to consider that this lamentable excuse for a learning institution is situated in the capital of our nation. Likely many of the students come from families of federal bureaucrats. I fear for our nation’s future if leftist mob rule stifles free speech and democracy in Canada.

University of Ottawa President Allan Rock defended his institution and said that free expression is a core value of the school that bills itself as Canada’s university. Allan Rock and “free” do not belong in the same sentence ~ in my opinion.

I fully endorse all the comments made above, but have these people only recently realized that our freedoms are fast disappearing? The great PET propagandized into left wing organizations the CBC, CRTC, Canada Film Board and almost all cultural grants with our tax dollars. Almost all museums, art galleries,etc, are state owned and controlled. Hell, there is only one monolithic book store in all of Canada, privately owned, but entirely lib-left in its approach. Finding anything expressed in a conservative way,in any form of media in this country, is as rare as hen’s teeth. There is no obverse side to the “looney”.

I fear that we are coming to a point of not only having free speech curtailed and censored but to a point of not having freedom to believe what we choose even if there is no harm done to others. If I could be censored or even prosecuted for expressing a belief; if there is no freedom to discuss my beliefs, then we have ceased to be a free society. Most people with a passionate viewpoint believe themselves to be right but history has proven over and over that passion does not necessarily produce truth.

Canada has become a nation of double standard!

What? Camadas new motto__” Canadians fighting till death to stop you from saying it.” What a disgrace for thr nation.

I am disgusted when I see this kind of behavior from university students, most of whom have not yet learned the value of work and have someone else paying their way. For my money, if they were foreign students they would be on their way out of the country. At a Texas university, the Israeli ambassador to the US was invited to speak, but every time he tried to say more than 10 words a muslim heckler would jump up waving his fist and shout the ambassador down to the cheers of approximately 1/3 of the crowd. Most of the 1/3 were obviously arab descent and after repeated requests by the university president to be civil, they all got up and walked out. The ambassador’s response was that he wished they would stay because they were the group he really wanted to speak to.
These Ottawa students are just a reflection of our government which by instituting “hate laws” is shutting down free speech and honest opinion. History shows that is the path that the Nazi’s wnt down to get control of the German opinion.

It seems clear that the unwritten rule regarding speech on Canadian campuses:

Criticism of Israel is free speech.
Criticism of Muslims is hate speech.

Its time the world woke up.

I am also in the camp of “I may not agree with all you say but I will defend your right to say it as long as no harm comes from what you say”. There has not been proven connection that what she says leads to anyone hating anyone else. Those UofO student organizers just wanted to exercise their power and they won. Too bad that they used the threat of physical violence to accomplish that. The end justifies the mean for them and puts themselves into a category of hatemongers that they didn’t recognize as themselves: terrorists, people who use violence or threat of violence to accomplish their agenda. In Muslim countries they can say what they want and persecute Christians. In this country the speech police enforce any bad-mouthing against anyone even when they are professional rabble rousers. The UofO students fell for it and look like whiners and fools.

Usually just the Left has free speech, especially at universities.

Interesting letter to the Editor from 1979

From files captured in Germany labeled “Communist Rules for Revolution”

 Corrupt the young: get them away from religion; get them interested in sex; make them superficial; destroy their ruggedness.

 Get control of all means of publicity and thereby get peoples minds off their government by focusing their attention on athletics, sexy books, plays and other trivialities.

 Divide the people into hostile groups by constantly harping on controversial matters of no importance.

 Always preach true democracy, but seize power as ruthlessly as possible.

 By encouraging government extravagance, destroy its credit; produce fear of inflation, rising prices and discontent.

 Format strikes in vital industries, encourage civil disorders and foster a lenient and soft attitude towards these disorders.

 By specious argument cause a breakdown of the moral virtues; honesty, sobriety, continence, faith in the pledged word, ruggedness.

 Cause the registration of all firearms with the view of confiscation of them and leave the population helpless.

Interesting indeed and something everyone should be aware of!

What a treat reading a blog that isn’t filled with leftist hate and bile, just the truth and common sense.

Freedom of expression (free speech) Is still alive in Canada. It’s just that those charged with protecting this right can’t make the effort to start arresting and prosecuting the anarchists who try to shut us up with street thug intimidation and violence.

The villain in this story were the cops who were too lame to take action when the public peace was breeched (and Coulter’s safety threatened). In a safer more peaceful Canadian era instigators of the threatened violence would be cooling their heels in an Ottawa jail cell. It seems that all over the province of Ontario 2 tier policing and dual standards of enforcement is policy.

Ann Coulter and Ezra Levant were not denied the right to speak in Ottawa. The protest against their views were non-violent and legal(no arrests were made) It was Coulter who decided not to speak - either out of cowardice or simply wishing to dramatise the evening. Neither the Ottawa police nor the University’s security staff saw any threat nor did they advise her not to speak. What Levant and Coulter appear to want is not free speech but freedom from criticism and to have all dissent against their views crushed -not going to happen is Canada.

The right to free speech was truly violated when the Government of Canada denied British MP George Galloway entry to Canada and when the USA refused Farley Mowat entry to their country. Ann Coulter was allowed to enter Canada and was allowed to speak. She was even provided security by the University of Ottawa and the Ottawa Police. She refused to face her detractors and speak! If she wants a pacified and uncritical audience guaranteed to her, she can go speak in Alabama!