What if the tables were turned

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/I/IRAN_US?SITE=WIMIL&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

So the Iranian president is coming to the US and he's going to get a forum to speak at Columbia University.

I don't have a problem with it. I'm all for giving crazies a forum to continue to prove in person that they are crazy. But all the fuss over wether he should or shouldn't be allowed to speak... To me, the most start contrast between 'us and them' is consider if President Bush wanted to go speak in Iran? One, from a security standpoint there is NO WAY that would even be consionable, but even if they could guarentee his safety, a country like Iran would never ALLOW him to speak.

I wonder if any of the "U.S. Haters" over there, which surely there are plenty of, consider that despite what they think if us, their leader can come here and not just be safe to do so, but also a country that allows someone to speak his piece. Something our president couldn't even think of doing there.

Which I think is the biggest reason to let him speak here. Because it proves how much different we are from "them". Our citizens (as a whole) are more civilized and our government still respects at least some of our constitutional freedoms.