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Bolton to address Syracuse University
Former United Nations Ambassador John Bolton will discuss the United States' priorities in the UN on Feb. 2 at 10:15 a.m. at Maxwell Auditorium. The event is open to the Syracuse University community on a first-come, first-serve basis. After obtaining permission from Mitch Wallerstein, dean of the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, it was Professor Catherine Bertini who arranged for the ambassador to visit SU. She said she and her colleagues had been discussing possible guest speakers when someone suggested Bolton. "I met him over 30 years ago when I was working at the Republican National Committee," she said. She asked Bolton if he ever did campus speeches, to which he replied, "yes." Bolton is an attorney who studied international areas for a long time, Bertini said. His political career involves work in both the Reagan and Bush administrations. "On campus, we should have a whole range of issues," she said. During his career in politics, Bolton has proved to be a controversial figure and is considered to have conservative viewpoints. He is against arms control and was critical of the UN refusal to support the U.S. war in Iraq, said Professor of Practice Goodwin Cooke. "Bolton is one of those Americans who feels the United Nations is a rat race that we should not concern ourselves with," Cooke said. During Bolton's tenure, the UN has been dealing with issues of reform - more specifically budgeting, payment, personnel and management. Bolton has been insisting very strongly on some of the details of these reforms, which has upset a few of his colleagues, Cooke said. "Even though there will be many people there who are unhappy about it - I'm unhappy about it - I think it's a fine idea to have him come and talk to us," Cooke said. Despite opposing viewpoints, there are still students and faculty interested in hearing the ambassador speak. "It's a good opportunity," said Joanna Rivera, a freshman accounting major. "People have different opinions in politics, and it's good to hear all of them." Greg Henderson, a freshman information technology major, agreed. "It's definitely good," he said. "I'm just not sure many people care." Anyone who is unable to attend Bolton's speech will have the ability to watch it live on the Internet at maxwell.syr.edu. Posted by: ryuge 2007-02-01 |
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