NYC: City of A**holes

Back in 1945, we made Germans visit the death camps. American troops would herd whole towns through liberated prisons while bodies were still piled high. It's reasonable to assume that we wanted to teach the civilians a lesson. You might think that you could teach an Islamist fanatic a similar lesson by taking him to Ground Zero, the site of the destroyed World Trade Center. It's not as stark a site as it was a few years ago, but the message should still sink in when the government-appointed tour guide tells our imaginary Islamist, "This is what your hate accomplished."

In 2007, the American people, or at least the opinion makers of New York City, aren't interested in teaching any lessons. They've decided that President Ahmadinejad of Iran is unworthy to look upon the sacred ground. He must repent first, renouncing terrorism (one assumes) before he might be allowed to go, whereas the object of marching Germans through Dachau was to induce repentance. This article sums up the situation while letting you look at the asinine cover of today's Daily News -- and remember, the News is the city's liberal tabloid.

Too many people seem to share the attitude expressed by Senator Clinton, that even getting to visit the U.S. is some sort of reward for good behavior. The Iranian must surrender, in effect, before we negotiate with him, not to mention let him tour New York. Many people are probably also afraid that Ahmadinejad would somehow turn a trip to Ground Zero into some sort of propaganda coup. Such fears suggest that Americans aren't really interested in a real contest in the global marketplace of ideas. Recall how often the Bush Administration urges the media not to publish full texts of bin Laden's lectures. Our establishment doesn't want a debate or a real negotiation on the basis of realistic interests. They simply demand universal acknowledgment of American moral superiority, much as the Islamists insist that everyone recognize theirs as the best of religions.

Sometimes I wonder if our leaders are even interested in persuading people like Ahmadinejad to change their ways. If they were, they would gladly escort him to a stage-managed presentation at Trade Center site where he would have little choice but to hear all about the innocents who died for no good reason, only to slake some men's petty thirst for revenge. But it would be beneath them to persuade people, because their truths, after all, are so "self-evident" that only a depraved or primitive mind could deny them. For a long time, their preference has been for unconditional surrender, and nothing requiring compromise on their part. This is the "arrogance" that Iranians complain about so often, and it has gotten a lot of Americans killed, and may end up getting a lot more Iranians killed. As an Islamist, Ahmadinejad has his own share of arrogance, but New York City had a chance to show him something different, even if it was only a hole in the ground. I should have known better than to expect anything other than what we saw.