EZRA LEVANT ｜ What’s going on at Columbia University？ Ezra tries to find out.
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Summary
Ezra LeVant visits the anti-semitrist, anti-Jew campus of Columbia University and tries to understand what the heck is going on at the campus of the most anti-Semitic university in America that was built with Jewish donations.
Transcript
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Tonight what the heck's going on at Columbia University it's April 24th and
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this is the Ezra LeVant show oh hi everybody as you can tell I am in New York City you can tell
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because it's a mix of good and bad the extremes of the world wealth and poverty sickness and
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health it's also a Jewish city it has the largest Jewish population of any city in the world with
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the exception of Tel Aviv in Israel itself and that's reflected in many of the institutions for
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example here at Columbia University you just happen upon a major building called Alfred Lerner Hall who
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was Alfred Lerner I have no idea I googled him he was a Jewish businessman who became a philanthropist
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so many of the things in many of the universities in New York are sponsored by Jewish donors recently
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there have been other donors to American universities including the dictatorship of Qatar which has helped
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pave the way for some of the woke studies but the reason I mentioned Alfred Lerner Hall is because I
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wonder what Alfred Lerner would think if he were alive today to see the incredible anti-semitic well I
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think pogrom is the closest word I mean there there haven't been mass beatings but there have
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been some assaults you basically have well I would say brown shirt marches but instead of brown shirts
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they're wearing Hamas masks they're they're using some of the same chants they don't say death to
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the Jews they're slightly more sophisticated they talk about the Zionists of course Zionism is a central
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tenet of Judaism that Mount Zion that Israel is the Jewish holy land I just arrived here moments ago I
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haven't even gone in but I wanted to stop and talk about the fact that we are going to what is perhaps
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the most anti-semitic university in America that also happened to be built with Jewish donations I find
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that endlessly paradoxical I want to point out one last thing before we enter sort of the compound of
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of Columbia the Columbia climate school I shouldn't laugh that's a real thing millions of dollars and I
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remarked sardonically but perhaps I perhaps I mean it maybe if the destruction of American universities
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is heralded by this open anti-semitism and and these near riots maybe it's not quite the loss it would have
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been 30 years ago or 50 years ago maybe the world can do without graduates of the Columbia climate
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school I checked the tuition for this place on my way over it's about 70,000 US dollars or about a
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hundred thousand Canadian dollars per year to get a degree in climatology or sociology or really grievance
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studies these are my thoughts before I enter I just had to stop and give you my opening thoughts
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when I saw what I I know is commonplace in this university Jewish donors let's see what was done
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with the fruits of their donation we're gonna go in and see what we see it's daytime New York is a
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lively place I don't expect there'll be any problems or any violence it'll be interesting to see if police
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allow us into the core like I say I'm learning along with you I literally just got here let's go inside
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I'm standing at the gates of Columbia again I've just walked the block in from where I said hello
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to you there's a big lock on the gates now there appear to be students in there I spoke to a security
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guard who says yeah these are the students who are actually attending class it's not the entire
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university that's in a Marxist Islamist protest but just to stop outside interlopers for coming they
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locked it up right across the street if we turn the camera around there's 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 almost 20
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cops they don't seem to be particularly active I think they're just here as a deterrent effect I
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understand that the encampment which is not in the heart of the university I learned has been given until
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Friday night to disperse we're gonna keep wandering around that's all I'm doing here I've not actually gone
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any further than a block in from when I first said hello we're just trying to see what's going on on the
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ground I'm wandering around learning as I go telling you what I see another gate locked down
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to stop the ingress and egress of protesters those apparently are students there I see that the
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police are they're not just standing there they're getting ready look at these NYPD you can see the
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markings there these are barriers I understand that the protesters came here yesterday and the police
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were not ready so they're being ready this time but let me show you a juxtaposition of what I
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mentioned at the very beginning you see on the flagpole here it says we find a way Mount Sinai now
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Mount Sinai of course is a reference to the Jewish Bible that's if my theology is right where Moses got
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the Ten Commandments it's also been the name for various Jewish hospitals in North America I don't know if
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you know this but almost a hundred years ago in North America there was a quota to keep Jews out of
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medical school and other professional schools sort of like Asian kids now have to have a higher SAT score
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back then they only had a limited number of Jews who were allowed into school and that was in Canada
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to McGill had what they called the numerous clauses they they they limited the number of Jews there so
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the Jews set up their own hospitals because they couldn't get into med school and then they couldn't get
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into the hospital so the Jews set up Mount Sinai and to this day obviously Jews can go to med school
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anywhere now and you don't just have to be Jewish to go to Mount Sinai you never had to be but that
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Mount Sinai Hospital the name Mount Sinai is a symbol of discrimination in the past that the Jews overcame in
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North America and give back to the community Mount Sinai Hospital but look behind it there's a there's a
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Palestinian flag flying from a standard I'm not sure what building that is isn't that the transition
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here the Jews brought scholarship and philanthropy and a medical school and hospitals and so far the
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contribution from the Palestinians on Colombia seems to be a lot of protests a lot of violence and a lot of
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anti-semitism I'm open to learning more and we will as we continue our journey
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we still actually haven't been to the protest area we're just spelunking we're exploring but you can
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see that the police are setting up for what they anticipate will be a protest they handle all these
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barriers and they're putting them up as we speak I'm not sure if that's just a precaution or if they have
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any particular intel but there are a lot of police they're very looking alert and lively and we'll be
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here to cover it I'm I'm I'm from Canada how you doing who are you with rebel news oh we're not
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interested what's that just not interested chatting with the verbal news okay fight for Worldwide Intifada
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communist USA.org only a revolution can end imperialism we are America's communist generation
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it's very capitalist of you it's very capitalist can I ask why you don't want to even engage with me even
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your own point of view like why don't you want to tell me what you stand for you can ask I'm not
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going to tell you okay well what do you stand for like can I ask what why you're here the thing is
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with the media outlets like rebel news is I'll say something if it doesn't make me look like an idiot
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it won't be published you decide what goes on to that television so I'll give you my promise I'll give you
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my promise I give you my promise as a man that I will air uncut what you what you tell me we're good
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we're good thank you I don't trust the promise of a journalist you know what you're on to something
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there lady um well can I ask you one last question are you guys students here no we're not
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appreciate the candor listen I'm not here to bug you I mean you may think I am but I'm actually just
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trying to learn what your point of view is and why you're here and what you're trying to do
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you guys do man it's it's cool all right well you know what I think you'll if you tune in and I
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don't know if you will you'll see that I air this unredacted why why would I cut any of this it's been
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actually interesting and you're even though you're a little prickly you're actually sort of friendly
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underneath I can tell oh I'm very friendly but not to people like you so yeah people like me well what
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does it people like me mean hey look at my way work the way better I'm not talking to this guy
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yeah all right well I think you're the one who's being mean you're the one who's being
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mean you're the one who said people like me and I don't want to
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all right I'll let you continue to sell your newspaper bye guys cheers thanks
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in a fata until victory socialist revolution I think you know I'm I'm flattered that the name
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rebel news precedes me I think one of the fellows actually recognized me I would be interested to
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understand the inter intersection between Marxism and intifada I don't quite understand it I guess
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both are revolutionary movements designed to upend the United States and Western hegemony that would
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be my guess but I'll just have to leave it at a guess there's a sign here Columbia University ID required
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for entry and of course you can see the gate is locked obviously when we're in quote peace time all the gates are open
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to students and frankly visitors but it looks like they're trying to keep out the outside activists and
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and troublemakers you saw that I spoke briefly with those communists there that's what they call themselves
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I think they recognized me because they didn't they impressed me on who I was and I was honest with them
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I think it's an interesting mix some of the people who are in the sort of antifadas in intifadas inside some of them are
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students there's no denying it but it's clear that these protests at NYU at Columbia at Yale and other universities
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MIT are being aggravated and agitated by outside organizers in that case by communists by their own self description
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and in other cases I would put it to you by even foreign interests we know in Canada that the Islamic Republic of Iran
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has 700 agents in our small country it wouldn't surprise me if they were ten times that many in the United States
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and of course when they would see these conflagrations they would dive in and spread kerosene all over them
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that's why they're keeping out the non-students just before I go any further you can see enter campus
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on one 17th street gate so normally you could enter on any of these gates but they're all locked
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looks like they're just having one high security entry point we're just making our way let's keep going
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these are the first other sort of serious journalists I've seen by serious I mean they have some expensive
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equipment and some gear with them and I said who are you with and they said TRT World now that's a fairly
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obscure channel but I know who they are in fact I've actually been on their show once or twice TRT World is the state
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broadcaster for the Turkish authoritarian ruler Recep Erdogan
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so isn't that interesting who is interested in New York City college politics
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well Turkey is because they love the Islamist upheaval TRT on the scene very interesting
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we've talked a few more feet and we've discovered the first protest they're not actually on the campus
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as we showed you before the gates are locked you need ID these folks presumably don't have it
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I was walking by the Miller theater and I thought Miller could be a gentile name could be a Jewish name
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I googled it and it was founded by a Jewish philanthropist about a hundred years ago
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and I only mention that to show that things change just because New York City has for a century been a city of
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Jewish life and culture and philanthropy doesn't mean that its next century will be that way
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a hundred years ago Detroit Michigan was the leading industrial city in America with the highest average wage
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it was the richest city in terms of industrial wage was Michigan now it's a terrible rundown broken city
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politics is the reason New York City for a century has been a pearl of culture and learning and philanthropy
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and Jews I don't know if it'll be true a hundred years from now I wonder what the donors behind the Miller theater would say
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I've been standing here on the side of Broadway and that's Columbia University over there we're on the street outside
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because we're not students so we don't have student ID and apparently neither do these protesters
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we've been listening to them chant for about 10 minutes straight I get the feeling they've been here for hours
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just chanting the mantra free free Palestine now they're on long lens the intifada they have about three or four of these mantras
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it's it's it's mesmerizing it's hypnotizing which is sort of a trait of many cults and I don't think they would talk to me
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I might try but I don't think their knowledge is deep I don't think any of them are actually Palestinian
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omnibus radicals who are attracted to any uprising like the communists we met earlier
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I think these folks know that to be anti-israel and anti-american is part of the same ideological battle
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and that's why they're here they would be here for a climate rally they would be here for a anti-Trump rally
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they would be basically the foot soldiers and the gang members of the left wouldn't surprise me if some of them are anti-fa
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there's just a hypnotic nature to it and I think that's to replace some of the depth that you see in other protests
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for example I covered and Rebel News covered some of the trucker protests
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if you would go up to a trucker protester and say why are you here they talk your ear off for an hour
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and they would have great detail they wouldn't do what those communists say and say I'm not talking to you
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and they wouldn't do what these folks are saying which is just a mindless chant
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but still the effect is the same they're paralyzing the place they're making Jews uncomfortable
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they're creating a spectacle and chaos so whether they know what they're doing or they're part of a cult
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I suppose in some ways it doesn't matter let's keep looking
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Hillary I just saw you a moment ago with that Israeli flag in your bag there
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can I ask who you are and why you're wearing that what motivated you to bring an Israeli flag down to Columbia today
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I just felt like the kids and not just the Jewish students but kids who actually support America needed somebody to support them
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I usually have an American flag but I think I lost it along the way walking up here
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you're wearing a NASCAR jacket that's pretty American how would you describe yourself politically
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are you a Democrat are you Republican and are you freedom oriented or are you sort of apolitical
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I've become more political now but really what I am for right now I'm supporting all the American kids
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students who want freedom and not hate I believe that people should protest but not when they're calling for death of other people
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and wearing that flag it's not very large but it's still identifiable from 30 feet have you received any reactions to it or did you just arrive
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well I've been coming up here every day just to support students whether it's here or NYU or Michigan
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wherever I could be helpful because I feel like a lot of people are a big talker Betty Crocker's
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and are really not going out and supporting people they're shying away from actually going out and supporting people
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because they're really intimidated by this very negative hateful energy and I think it's very dangerous
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it is somewhat intimidating and and I'm you know a regular-sized I'm a plus-sized guy you're more diminutive
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so have you felt physically threatened or have you been verbally threatened in any way over the weeks you've been coming to these things
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I just wonder what it's like for you to walk through this gauntlet
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I 100% have been physically like I'm not attacked but physically like yeah and people have walked after me but I'm not going to stop
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Well I would call myself an American first because that's what I am
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and that's what I identify as an American but am I Jewish? Yes
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Are there other people who are non-Jewish Americans who are coming out to stand with you against these Hamas types?
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I have a lot more friends now starting to come up because they're realizing that it's an American problem
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and at the end of the day if people don't start paying attention to that that's going to be a problem
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Now how would you describe the police reaction to some astonishing things the whole world has seen
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I mean the NYPD is pretty good they're I think one of the world's leading counter-terrorism police forces
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I'm not sure if I would quite describe what was going on inside there's terrorism but it's certainly pro-terrorism
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How have the cops been and how has the city been?
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I think the city is I think they're approaching it how they're being directed to approach it
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Well you know the president is very contradictive here you know it's private property so they can do what they want in there
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University but in terms of what's happening here it's really not a problem through the city it's really just at the university
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Got it so when you said the president I thought you meant Joe Biden for a second
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You mean the university president and what has she done or what should she do because they're still in there
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I understand and you know we've been following Shai I don't know if you know who
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Denied access whereas Joseph Mossad is still in there spewing hatred and hatred and hatred
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Whereas the other professor has had his car taken away
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You know I just wish as smart as I don't even think these are students out here
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No if they were they would be inside because they would have ID
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But the problem is I'm all up for protesting you know I went to Berkeley I'm all into it
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The problem is there's a difference between saying let's have peace in Gaza let's help our people
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But they're saying they're saying hate let's destroy
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And that's the problem with this conversation here because it's not a conversation
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Last question and thanks by the way for talking talking with me I've seen a number of
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Liberal Jews including liberal Jewish rabbis say the Democrats have taken us for granted this is insane
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I'm voting for Trump in fact there being some sort of liberal celebrities who have had a total 180 degree conversion
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Problems with Trump or this issue or that issue they feel like this is a
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Moral disaster and there's no one with a backbone
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How are you going to vote in November on the presidential ballot and is it motivated by what you see here?
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That's a really tough question I mean I think there's a lot more
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Between I think there's a lot more to say in between this I think
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A lot it depends what's going to happen over the next couple months
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You know what I I mean I'm not an American I'm a Canadian we came down here
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It seems to me that if if you are who you say you are and if you care about the things you say you do and I believe you do
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That that's got to be your number one issue in November and whether you have a different opinion on God
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You have a different opinion on gun control or abortion or you know his Twitter tweets
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It would seem that that this is sort of a single issue
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You know I have a lot of issues but I'm gonna I'm gonna see what happens
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All right great to talk with you thanks for your time
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Apparently in five minutes the gates are going to be opened to the press
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And journalists will be able to go inside and hobnob with the who's who of the Gaza protest
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I think it's very interesting and that's how it is in a first amendment jurisdiction isn't it?
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These people are patiently waiting for it I guess they don't find the
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Cult like strumming and drumming to be newsworthy I guess they're probably right on that
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I might get in line because I don't want to miss out but I get the feeling the line will clear pretty quick
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So there's an enormous number of reporters here in fact I don't know how many protesters are inside
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But I I'd say we're we're almost at a one-to-one ratio
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I mean like seriously it's a garden this manicured pedicured place gorgeous
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You wouldn't even know you're in downtown Manhattan a moment ago
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We were on busy litter strewn streets now we're in an oasis
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This is an Ivy League experience in the heart of Manhattan
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Could you imagine coming here your parents marshaling almost a hundred thousand dollars Canadian a year
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He's the alter ego of our old friend Gavin McInnes
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It's Gavin's brother Myles McInnes and we might do a little social experiment too today
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I'm good I'm not comfortable in the the epitome of fascism
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They are they endorse apartheid and these students are being abused
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My friend Gavin McInnes in his alter ego Myles McInnes has wandered off into some argument with some folks that are unlike him
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We have an idea of bringing him here in character and we'll talk more about that later
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But I do want to have a very serious broadcast because it is very serious
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And it's interesting to be here in the heart of the university and you know I'm nostalgic for a post-secondary educational opportunity that I never had
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Imagine going to this amazing Pearl in the middle of Manhattan who wouldn't want to come here
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And their parents mustered almost a hundred grand a year Canadian to get them here
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And then for those people to turn it into a anti-semitic protest in a shanty town
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Is stunning to me and I think the fact that literally hundreds of reporters waited in line to get in here suggests it's of great public interest
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Universities have always been places of protest and upheaval of rebellion and challenge
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But I fear that what we've encountered here may be more like the cult-like chants outside rather than a deep philosophical opposition
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I am going to go in and talk to some folks here and we are going to see if we can find a way to operate with our friend Myles