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The Spectacle Blog
Over at NRO, Charles C.W. Cooke drew my attention to an article which appeared in The Telegraph concerning a meeting involving the mandarins at the BBC. Their discussion centered around how to describe Abu Qatada, the imprisoned al Qaeda terrorist who a British immigration tribunal ordered released on bail earlier this month.
Although Qatada is wanted on terrorism charges in the United States, Belgium, Spain, France, Germany, Italy as well as his native Jordan, the BBC told its staff in no uncertain terms, “Do not call him an extremist - we must call him a radical. Extremist implies a value judgment.” Its scribes were also told not to use images which might show him to be overweight. Well, I guess even jihadists have body image issues.
Cooke notes:
In response to the BBC’s decision, Conservative MP James Clappison remarked, “It makes you wonder what you have to do for the BBC to call you an extremist.” Given that a man such as Abu Quatada has fallen short of the mark, one can only hope that nobody ever finds out.
Well, how about being a Jew living in Israel? Consider some of the BBC’s recent headlines:
Israel bars 12 “extremist” settlers from West Bank
Israelis rally against ultra-Orthodox extremism
Shimon Peres urges Israelis to rally against extremism
So while the BBC declares it is beyond the pale to impart a value judgment where it concerns a Muslim jihadist, it expresses no such hesitation when it comes to Israeli Jews. This, my friends, is nothing more than anti-Semitism.
UPDATE: Cooke acknowledged this post yesterday afternoon.
View all comments (14) | Leave a comment
More Blog Posts by Aaron Goldstein
http://spectator.org/blog/2012/02/08/who-the-bbc-calls-extremist
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Occam's Tool| 2.8.12 @ 5:59PM
The Beeb, and the British intelligentsia, is well known for its antisemitism; now, it is increasingly becoming known for dhimmitude.
Floyd Looney| 2.8.12 @ 6:36PM
lol. The BBC has driven over the PC cliff at full speed.
RJ| 2.9.12 @ 1:07AM
The hypocrisy is disgusting, but at least they make it easy to know where they stand. Put them down in the "not friends; can't count on em" list.
squalis| 2.9.12 @ 9:38AM
Why do my Jewish bretheren continue to vote so overwhelmingly for libs, I keep asking?!
KennesawJack| 2.9.12 @ 10:25AM
One of my very best friends is a Jewish attorney and he still thinks Obamarx hung the moon and ALWAYS votes for libs. What the hell are he and so many other Jews thinking? The BBC is inconsequential in this day and age and is nothing more than a high visibility example of why Britain has lost its soul. No point in getting to vexed abut anything they say. Rather, get very vexed about the blantant anti-Israel and, by extension, anti-Semitic attitude of Obamarx and his administration. If Israel has group more hostile to it than this administration, I fail to see who it is. Hell, at least Iran, Hamas, and Hezbollah are honest enough to declare their intentions toward Israel.
brooklynthinker | 2.9.12 @ 1:06PM
Religiously observant Jews are largely politically Conservative. They prefer to support Christian candidates who believe in God. Secular Jews (the group of which reform, "conservative", and unassimiliated Jews all belong to) are overwhelmingly more liberal than the rest of the country. Why? I dunno. It just doesn't make sense. Perhaps because they are more "educated" in liberal Academia? It is a sorry state of affairs that Jews survived the Soviet Union/Communism and National Socialism (Nazis) and feel it is better to be PC/Liberal than not.
NYC Parent| 2.9.12 @ 2:10PM
As a Jew from Upstate NY, longtime resident of NYC now, who has and continues to vote Republican/conservative, please let me share my perspective.
To answer the question why "so many Jews" vote for the Democratic party, its my perspective that many of my Jewish brethren vote D habitually, in part, due to their having grown up in and around the major metro areas that tend to be overwhelmingly D, among all groups.
In addition, I do think that part of the skewing to Democratic voting among Jews stems from experiences going back a few generations (with children tending to identify as the household they grew up in, etc.) that are no longer applicable.
In particular, many Jews did historically identify with the FDR Admin for many reasons, and against what many Jews perceived as potentially threatening "parochial" or more rural groups.
The irony, of course, is that in terms of values, I think I have more in common with most Evangelical Christians than lifetime urbanites from the Northeast: Jew or Gentile. I don't feel "threatened" as a Jew in the US in any general sense --but incredibly fortunate that my forbears were allowed to come here and to be raising my family here (which is truly how most Jews see it). But the difference between my own experience, and some I know who grew up in and around NYC, is that I have more distrust of the anti semitic Left (of all religions) than of conservatives, non-urbanites and religious Christians (who I see as making up much of the healthy backbone of this country)
So, the reasons are complicated, but I think that some aspects of Jews tending to vote D are mis-stated, as reflecting in some degree a geographic skewing of urban voters, shared among many ethnic and religious groups.
And, I think things are balancing out more recently. Recent polls show far more Jews voting R than previously. So, more and more Jews are, in fact, stepping off our own version of the Democratic Plantation.
And one final thing that often arises in this context. Don't blame "Jewish Democratic voters" for Obama. Jews are a tiny % of the electorate (about 4% I think). And yes, while Jews are over represented (by virtue of individual, American success stories) in the elite media, and in wealth, 53% of all American voted for the guy. So a few % points of "over representation" by Democratic Lutherans or Hispanics, or women voters in general, would as a practical matter, far outweigh any degree of skewing of the Jewish vote.
ritrow| 2.9.12 @ 1:54PM
I followed the Qatada deportation circus in the UK press, but this is the first time I read that he is wanted in 6 other countries. Why doesn't one of them extradite him for trial? Is it the same reason UK doesn't put him on trial, because he was a paid informant and knows too many secrets?
Cannibal Rabbi| 2.9.12 @ 3:12PM
"Don't blame "Jewish Democratic voters" for Obama. Jews are a tiny % of the electorate (about 4% I think)."
Hahaha
Can't fault you for backing yer tribe.
Unfortunately, reality is at odds with your argument.
http://incogman.net/
http://whatdoyoubelieve.blog.fc2.com/
The Bruce| 2.9.12 @ 5:54PM
The irony here is that the BBC is literally State-run media.
Curious how the Brits never saw that as extreme.
minecomment| 2.10.12 @ 1:40PM
They can call Jews extremists because they won't blow you up like Muslims will. Think about it.
minecomment| 2.10.12 @ 1:42PM
They can call Jews extremists because they won't blow you up like Muslims will. Think about it.
Geld lenen zonder bkr toetsing | 2.10.12 @ 2:12PM
The BBC is acting lame here. Haha
Fuck Kikes| 3.14.12 @ 2:05AM
Who gives a fuck what lying Kike Christ-Killers think, or say they think?