Muammar al-Qaddafi's unwanted tent

Why nobody wanted the Libyan leader's tent in their backyard—and why objecting may have been a bad idea.

Libyan leader Muammar al-Qaddafi is "a lunatic who deserves an international cold shoulder," said Andrew Belonsky in Gawker. So it's not surprising that Englewood, N.J., turned him away, then the Pierre Hotel did the same thing, and then the leaders of Bedford, N.Y., made a last ditch attempt to stop the "Libyan dictator" from pitching his air-conditioned, Bedouin-style tent in their town, on the lawn of an estate owned by Donald Trump's company. (watch video footage of Qaddafi's tent) The trouble is, the hubbub is attracting attention to his visit, "and that's exactly what he wants."

If anyone should have turned away Muammar al-Qaddafi, said Mohamed Eljahmi in National Review, it was the United Nations. The U.S., too, has offered Libya undeserved accolades for giving up its weapons of mass destruction program, calling the country a model for other rogue states to follow. Qaddafi has solidified his rule thanks to six years of engagement with the world—and what have we received in return?

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