PALO ALTO, Calif., Aug. 4 (UPI) -- A Stanford University expert on the Middle East has filed a lawsuit against a U.S. conservative who put his photograph on the cover of a booklet on terrorism.
Joel Beinin told the San Francisco Chronicle he believes David Horowitz has libeled him. But his suit is over copyright infringement.
Horowitz, a member of the left in the 1960s, subsequently became an extreme conservative. Beinin, a Jew who speaks both Hebrew and Arabic, is a critic of Bush administration policy in the Middle East.
Each accuses the other of trying to muzzle free speech.
"If you don't fight back and allow the Horowitzes to do and say what they want, it pollutes the political environment to the point where you can't have intelligent discussions about what we do in the world," Beinin said.
"It's an abuse of the courts to chill my free speech," Horowitz said. "If he wants a debate, I will come to Stanford and debate him."
