The far Left has this thing about Jews
The Drum today publishes a rant by Jeff Sparrow, another of its stable of Leftist contributors:
Sparrow also makes this truly odd observation:
Even though Sparrow's piece is is utter hogwash – he even manages to mention Republicans – its publishing at The Drum results in its inclusion as a news item by Google News.
[Melanie] Phillips is a notorious Bedlamite, who describes global warming as ‘a scam’ and fears that gay marriage will foster bestiality. In The Oz, however, she rehearsed perhaps her favourite theme: the conspiracy between Muslims and the Left to take over the world.Sparrow bolsters his argument with nary a Phillips quote, however, because he grossly misrepresents the thrust of Phillips' article: she does not allege a Leftists/Islamist conspiracy, rather arguing that since both Leftists and Islamist are anti-western, the Left is naturally inclined to act as useful idiots in supporting Islamist causes.
Sparrow also makes this truly odd observation:
Again, this is a staple trope of classical anti-Semitism, running all the way back to the Protocols of the Elders of Zion. Had Phillips been attacking Jews, her piece would have run quite nicely on Stormfront (no, no link). But because her crackpottery aims at Muslims, it becomes racyist rather than racist, and thus an acceptable, albeit provocative, op ed for a mainstream newspaper.But there's more:
Consider, for instance, the following propositions. The Jews will not integrate. The Jews are more fertile than Christians and that fecundity is fostering their takeover. Either, Europe will soon be Judaised, or there will be a civil war, especially since the Jews will probably resort to violence in their attempts to take over.The problem here is that European Jews are not out-reproducing indigenous Europeans and are not perpetrating conspiratorial religious violence whereas a sizable percentage of Muslims certainly are. Regardless, it is inappropriate for Sparrow to drag Jews – effectively a racial group – into a discussion about Islam, a mere religion.
Unthinkably racist, right?
Yet that’s more-or-less a straight précis of a speech by the visiting American writer Daniel Pipes at a Quadrant dinner here in Australia a few years ago.
Except, of course, he was talking about Muslims, not Jews.
Even though Sparrow's piece is is utter hogwash – he even manages to mention Republicans – its publishing at The Drum results in its inclusion as a news item by Google News.
posted by Anonymous at 5:46 PM |
11 Comments:
"Because her crackpottery aims at Muslims, it becomes racyist rather than racist"
Aaaarrrgggghhh...
Here we go, AGAIN.
Islam is not a race. It is a religion. A series of believes which one can choose to follow, or not.
An Asian can't stop being an Asian. Nor can a Caucasian one day decide to be Black.
Whereas, anyone can convert to Islam in a matter of minutes.
If you say a bunch of untrue things about Jews, then yes, that would be anti-Semitic.
If you say a bunch of correct things about Muslims however?
It's amazing how they obsess over the Jews. Right now, there is the possibility of revolution in the Arab world, and these guys are terrified that they can't blame it all on the Jewish state.
Arabs calling for freedom? Quick! Let's talk about Israel instead.
So we won't see democracy in the Arab countries any time soon, because the freedom loving left, don't actually give a shit.
Another dark age we approach as Yoda might have averred.
If you say a bunch of correct things about Muslims however?
So citing 'correct' things about Muslims - like birth rates, to use Beck's example - justified hatred of and paranoid conspiracy theories about Muslims?
Anti-semitism has nothing whatsoever to do with factual claims. If some empirical evidence turned up that demonstrated that Jews really are as nefarious as their detractors claim, these detractors would be anti-semites nonetheless. The same standard applies to anti-Muslim bigots and cranks.
Right now, there is the possibility of revolution in the Arab world, and these guys are terrified that they can't blame it all on the Jewish state.
Perhaps you don't read the papers, Dan. The Jewish state has clearly and repeatedly expressed its support for Mubarak, against the pro-democracy protesters. To the extent that it has supported a murderous dictatorship in Egypt, Israel's conduct has been appalling. (The same goes for the US, who funded Mubarak's security forces). Whether or not you hate the left, where do you stand on democracy in the Arab world? Are you able to answer without reference to Ant Lowenstein?
Stating cold hard empirical facts about Muslims is not "racist".
Facts. Are. Not. Racist.
I get the idea that Sparrow, along with many other modern Jew-hating Leftists, spends a lot of time on sites such as Stormfront ("no, no link" - cute. And him with his handy desktop shortcut and everything).
Some peoples' unreasoning unthinking unjustified hatred of Jews has obviously driven them around the bend.
I consider myself a moderate rational atheist and normally have no time for any religion or inter-religion squabbles. I also think Melanie Philips is a right-wing vaccine-denying over the top ideologue and have not much time for her either. But the way the rhetoric against Jews and Christians - and the killings too - have ramped up, I know I will at some point have to choose sides.
The Judeo-Christian tradition allows me to live my life in a free democratic country unmolested by extremist religious beliefs and terror. The Muslim tradition would wreck the society which offers me as a gay atheist such freedom and protection.
The Left, which used to be the natural home of rational progressives, has completely backed the wrong horse in this race.
When (and not "if" but "when") the time comes, count on me to stand with the Christians and Jews against the Muslims. I don't want to see the West thrown back into another Dark ages.
Perhaps you don't read the papers, Dan. The Jewish state has clearly and repeatedly expressed its support for Mubarak, against the pro-democracy protesters.
Talk to some Israelis, as I have. They all said the same thing - there are other Arab states which need a revolution, before Egypt did.
Iran comes to mind. As does Syria and Lebanon.
Whilst democracies generally don't go to war with each other, it's not Israel's job to impose democracy and freedom on the Arabs. They have to want it first.
If Mubarak maintained peace as far as Israel was concerned, then there is no reason why Israel, in their own interests, would seek to change that. It's called pragmatism.
The biggest problem with 'Arab Democracy' is that they believe the popular majority has the elected mandate to oppress and crush the minority. That's not actually how democracy works, and it's too bad that clueless idiots in the West believe a fair election process constitutes democratic change. This is the environment which suits Islamists, as they have the numbers.
Of course if I called them totalitarian barbarians, I'd probably be called "racist'.
The biggest problem with 'Arab Democracy' is that they believe the popular majority has the elected mandate to oppress and crush the minority. That's not actually how democracy works, and it's too bad that clueless idiots in the West believe a fair election process constitutes democratic change. This is the environment which suits Islamists, as they have the numbers.
Of course if I called them totalitarian barbarians, I'd probably be called "racist'
You'd be justifiably called 'racist'. The popular majority have conducted a grassroots campaign that puts the Israeli settler movement to shame in terms of ethical and non-violent conduct. I'm glad though, that you didn't try to spin Israeli support for Mubarak.
…."The Jewish state has clearly and repeatedly expressed its support for Mubarak, against the pro-democracy protesters.”
Actually Israel has to look after it’s own interests which is a stable Egypt. But since the Left have turned a blind eye to oppression in the whole ME for decades and focussed almost solely on Israel as the main perpetrator of human rights abuses in the world it is a bit rich for all those who were silent for years to now blame Israel for supporting Mubarak. If they had stopped singling out Israel and saw what was happening in Egypt, those poor oppressed Egyptians might have had a voice many years earlier.
Let’s hope now that the secular Egyptians will now have a voice now that the Islamists are taking over.
That's just dopey, Anita. The secular left in Egypt have for years been risking their lives against Mubarak, and their efforts have been given moral support by the Left in the West. No Western lefty supports the regimes in Saudi Arabia, Iran or Bahrain.
1. Where is the evidence of this 'secular left' in Egypt? The traditional space claimed by the left in the West is where the MB locates itself in the Arab world.
2. "No Western lefty supports the regimes in Saudi Arabia, Iran or Bahrain." Except to take their money and spend; something was needed to replace the lost funds from the KGB 'fellow traveller' program.
Cheers
Where is the evidence of this 'secular left' in Egypt? The traditional space claimed by the left in the West is where the MB locates itself in the Arab world.
For starters, there were trade unions who shut down Egypt's economy by way of a general strike during the protest.
Also, MB take the space of the far-right in the West, not the left.
Your second point makes no sense.
"The secular left in Egypt have for years been risking their lives against Mubarak, and their efforts have been given moral support by the Left in the West.”
I wasn’t talking about the Left in Egypt. I don’t remember mass demonstrations against Egypt in the streets of Western cities. In comparison, every single Lefty protest in the West, regardless of the actual cause has an anti-Israel contingent (and usually with anti-Semitic undertones).
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