Pipes speaks

Measured by attendance and by heat generated, the appearance of Daniel Pipes at Yale must be judged a success. According to the accounts of the Yale Daily News and of the Hartford Courant (registration required), however, fully one-third of the audience came dressed in black with gags around their mouths to protest his appearance, and the protest effectively became the story of his appearance.
Unfortunately, the protesters took the gags off during the question-and-answer period. Their protest and their comments fill the news stories, although the Courant gives Little Trunk the last word: “I don’t care if these peace protesters hate me. Controversy is a natural outgrowth of championing what I believe is right.”