Speaker Coulter lambastes Left in lecture at UCLA

By Dexter Gauntlett
Daily Bruin Staff

Bruin Republicans showcased Ann Coulter, a conservative
syndicated columnist and author, at Young Hall Wednesday night as
she delivered a speech that criticized and ridiculed all liberalist
viewpoints.

Coulter touched on topics that ranged from how to handle
terrorism by using Christian missionaries to what she called the
naivete of college students in a routine that sparked fits of
laughter and nods of agreement from the audience of about 100.

“Liberals are wrong universally about everything,”
Coulter said after a question from the audience in the discussion
portion of the event.

“As soon as the Left is right on something, I’ll
agree with them. I just haven’t found a single thing they
have been right on,” she said.

Coulter appears frequently on “Politically
Incorrect,” a televised roundtable political and satirical
discussion among celebrities, politicians and host Bill Maher.

She has appeared on “Larry King Live” and the
“Today Show” in addition to publishing the New York
Times bestseller “Crimes and Misdemeanors: the Case Against
Bill Clinton” in 1998.

Not all students agreed with everything Coulter said.

“She comes down way too hard on liberals and refused to
acknowledge that they have anything to say, which makes her lose
credibility,” said Joel Schwartz, president of Bruin
Libertarians.

Coulter began her speech by justifying the war in Afghanistan
and claimed liberals wanted the United States not only to stop, but
to lose.

“We’re fighting because we were attacked on Sept.
11, and we need to protect ourselves against future attacks,”
she said.

Liberals complain of the taping of conversations of terrorist
suspects, the voluntary questioning of illegal immigrants and the
trial of alleged American Taliban fighter John Walker, she
said.

“It’s stunning how political correctness is putting
us all in danger,” Coulter said.

There has been an obvious pattern in the physical
characteristics of those committing terrorist acts in the last 20
years, Coulter said. She described Middle Eastern men as people to
whom airport security should pay attention.

The best way to rebuild Afghanistan on a social level would be
to send in Christian missionaries to teach Afghans to read the
Bible, Coulter said.

She also defended conservative Christian minister Jerry
Falwell’s comment after the Sept. 11 attack which essentially
said the tragedy was due to a turning away from God.

“He was looking for a higher authority. I was stunned by
the overreaction,” Coulter said.

Organizer for the event, third-year political science student
and Daily Bruin Viewpoint columnist Andrew Jones, said there is a
dramatic lack of conservative professors at UCLA. He said he wished
that there had been more students with opposing views at
Wednesday’s event.

“It was like preaching to the choir,” Jones said.
“Sometimes it’s fun to try to speak to the unconverted.
We would have liked to see those who were more
undecided.”

Coulter said she doesn’t write about college students
because it would be like “shooting fish in a
barrel.”

“It’s stunning how gullible students are and how
they don’t appreciate how unique the United States is. Their
professors could tell them that black was white, and they would
believe it,” she said.

Carlene Natam, a third-year political science student, said it
was an honor and a privilege to hear Coulter speak.

“She is extremely passionate. She has strong moral
convictions and speaks what she believes in,” Natam said.