Short Conversation

I recently overheard a curious conversation on the street between a couple on a date (presumably).

She was trying to describe last Saturday's SNL digital short, "I Ran," which takes off on Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's claim there are no homosexuals in his country. (Of all the things he said at Columbia, this is the one that really got to people.)

He (the guy on the date) kept trying to interrupt, and turn the conversation into a condemnation of the Bush administration, but she wasn't having it. She kept returning to the short, which for some reason, she found confusing. (If you haven't seen it yet, trust me, it is not confusing).

But of all the things he said (such as condemning Hillary Clinton for being too opposed to Iran), the weirdest was his belief that Ahmadinejad's speech was a missed opportunity. He felt instead of Columbia President Lee Bollinger insulting him in his introduction, here was a great chance to actually have a serious discussion about what's going on in Iran.

What a dreamer. No matter what you think of Columbia's invitation, or Bollinger's introduction, Ahmadinejad is a politician (as well as a villain) and you simply are not going to get a serious back-and-forth with him on any significant issue.