BBC or Norman Finkelstein: Who is More Despicable?
May 9, 2012 11:08 by Simon PloskerJust the introductory statement for the BBC’s Hardtalk program (available on YouTube) reveals the agenda behind its interview with anti-Israel Professor Norman Finkelstein:
American presidents have long been criticised for being too in thrall to the Jewish lobby. That American Jews influence US foreign policy and that explains America’s unwavering support for Israel.
Note the use of the term “Jewish lobby.” Not the “Israel lobby” as has been used, most notably by Walt and Mearsheimer in their discredited thesis. What does the BBC base its statement on? Such criticism of American presidents has come from a particular anti-Israel strain and is certainly not a universally accepted mantra.
In addition, the BBC appears to work on the assumption that pro-Israel activism in the US is solely a Jewish affair, conveniently forgetting that millions of US Christians support Israel, not to mention high levels of support amongst Americans in general.
In a subtle change of language, the actual phrase used by the BBC interviewer on the program was “The American Jews influence US foreign policy” and not “that,” turning it into a statement of fact rather than conjecture. Could the BBC have changed that one word after realizing the implications?
You might also like: Finkelstein on BDS: A Cult of Dishonesty
As for the choice of Norman Finkelstein as an interviewee on the subject of American Jewish attitudes towards Israel, the issue itself was no doubt prompted by Peter Beinart’s recent commentary. Beinart, however, whether one agrees with him or not, is a credible interview subject. Finkelstein, on the other hand, is avowedly anti-Israel and utterly unrepresentative of American Jewry.
It’s difficult to decide who is more despicable – Norman Finkelstein for his extreme views or the BBC for its deliberately misleading and, some would say, anti-Semitic premise for its program.
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Michael
4:22 pm
May 10, 2012
I don’t know more disgusting swine as Finkelstein-Capo,even worse then Soros!
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nonjewisraelsupporter
4:37 pm
May 10, 2012
Jayson Rex, Yes, you’re right, the BBC’s head of religious programming is a Muslim and a few months ago they broadcast a 3 part series on the life of Mohammed produced, written, directed all by Muslims that was an amazing whitewash, portraying him as a kindly, chaste, Christ-like man. The BBC wouldn’t let any other group get away with such blatant propganda portrayed as real documentary journalism.
The US is no better. The mainstream media in the US rarely mentions any of the daily atrocities being committed by Orthodox Muslims the world over for fear of being branded ‘racists’(as if Islam were a ‘race’) and Islamophobes. Christians and other non-Muslims are being ethnically cleansed on a big scale in Muslim occupied lands from Nigeria (300 slaughtered in one diocese in the past 3 weeks alone) to Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Somalia, Afghanistan, to Indonesia, the supposedly most tolerant Islamic ruled land where 300+ churches have been destroyed. But where’s the outrage? Barely a peep in the MSM and where’s Obama’s? He, under the direction of his Muslim Brotherhood ‘adviser’, refused to meet with Middle Eastern Christian leaders who came to beg him to intervene to stop the cleansing, persecution, church burning, and genocide. But let one dimwit burn one Qur’an and it’s headlines around the world condemning it.
Obama has backed the Muslims Brotherhood (convicted in US courts as a terror funder with their fronts, CAIR, ISNA, ICNA, MSA etc) with its coalition including al Qaeda and the financial backing of oil rich Saudi Arabia and their long dreamed of take over of the countries of the ‘Arab Spring’. Islamist governments have now taken over there promising Sharia law. In Egypt, the Coptic Christians, the original Egyptians before Islam’s invasion and oppressive rule for centuries, are being driven out, beaten, murdered and having their homes, shops and churches destroyed, along with Baha’is. Not a peep from Obama or anyone.
Now Obama, despite the Orthodox Muslim takeover in the other revolutions, and the known Syrian opposition backed by the MB, al Qaeda and the Saudis, along with the pleas from religious minorities in Syria fearing the genocide once/if the Sunni rebels take control, has become the only western leader to support the ‘rebels’. He knows very well what they’re up to.
Obama said he was going to push Islam/Muslims as president and he’s made good. He’s issued orders that the FBI/CIA and all terror training material can’t mention Islam, Muslims, Islamists anymore even though they’ve declared war against the US and West – (read this, a captured Muslim Brotherhood doc declaring their intention to ‘destroy western civilization from within’ so Islam can rule us all: http://www.investigativeproject.org/document/id/20)
Obama and Clinton have promised the OIC (Org of Islamic Countries , the largest voting block in the UN) to help silence criticism of Islam, which the OIC has been trying to push through the UN for years and gaining more success (it’s already illegal in several EU countries, but only for Islam).
A recent report found that school texts in the US are now teaching Islamic propaganda telling kids that Mohammed was this Christ-like man of great compassion and peace and that Islam spread rapidly because of its message of hope, peace and love. All totally false. You have no idea how far gone the US is. It isn’t just Europe. And the MSM isn’t telling you anything about any of this. The Muslim Brotherhood’s agenda against us is working according to plan, and faster than anyone could have imagined and no one dares speak out or they’re branded extremists and hatemongers, just like when Churchill tried to warn about Hitler and the Nazis. The BBC refused to broadcast anything that would offend them too, just like now with Islam.
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Michael Lewis
4:49 pm
May 10, 2012
Finkelstein is a pathetic self-hating miserable bag of shit, who basically is obsessed with bashing Israel and Jews using his pseudo-academic “credentials” as a front. He undoubtedly harbors some deep underlying self-loathing perhaps caused by early family trauma but in any case as a psychiatrist i can tell you that it’s quite clear that Finkelstein is a very disturbed individual.
Recent research about backgrounds of many antiSemites shows a surprising incidence of latent or overt homosexuality possibly accounting for the self-hatred so obvious in people like Finkelstein.
The only question is why ANY “mainstream” media source would give voice to Finkelstein’s ravings, distorted and dishonest as they’ve repeatedly been shown to be. Does make you wonder about the agenda of BBC for example, which itself has a pretty bad-smelling history of promulgating antiIsrael lies.
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yael pedhatzur
4:56 pm
May 10, 2012
i have some questions and a comment.
1. why is it important for this interview with finkelstein to have broad coverage?
2. why should it have links and “likes”? I would bury it in the graveyard of forgotten nonsense.
By circulating it we give it credence, this is my own opinion. please explain.
2. as to who is more despicable? It is like choosing between hitler or stalin, the plague or cancer? BBC is known for being despicable and Finkelstein is a close runner up. I actually watched the interview on TV, but had to switch channels when i was about to vomit all over the place.
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Abe Dumanis
5:00 pm
May 10, 2012
About him, Soros and alike it had been said:
“When the Jew is a smock, he/she is worst then a fascist.”
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jimmy
6:00 pm
May 10, 2012
It seems we are dealing with the lesser of two weevils. Both are despicable vermin. The problem is that Finkelstein isn’t Jewish, except for his accident of birth.
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steve mann
6:18 pm
May 10, 2012
Lets face it Finklestein made the British Boycott mob and himself look like Shmuks at his interview with them.
Now he has to make amends- realising the embarrassment he caused-
I would suggest He asked for the Chat with the BBC-
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martin green
6:30 pm
May 10, 2012
I wonder if legal action can be taken against this fool for slander, it should be interesting to slap this fool with a major action regarding incitment
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LanceThruster
6:40 pm
May 10, 2012
Hidden due to low comment rating. Click here to see.
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Sheldon Tupperman
6:54 pm
May 10, 2012
All I can say is that the likes of Finkelstein and the BBC bosses sucking up to the Muslim satraps will regret it enormously if the western civilization disappears and Europe, the US, Canada, Australia, etc. become emirates or caliphates under Islamic rule. Those idiots will no longer enjoy the freedoms they still take for granted, i.e.: no beer, no whiskey, heavily censored books, films, TV, internet, probably no music and none of the liberties we know in Israel and in western democracies which they surely despise And no matter how hot summers get in their wives and girlfriends will be forced to wear burqas and niqabs lest they will be qualified as harlots…no more bikinis, at the beaches for the ladies, otherwise they would risk to be stoned to death.
And their utter “political correctness’ will lead to nothing: if they won’t convert to their so-called religion, either they’ll have to pay extra taxes or even have their throats slit.
I am sure that that “academic” and self-hating renegade and those vicious antisemitic BBC cannot name even ONE SINGLE democratic Islamic country, not in the Middle East, nor anywhere else in the world.
That they don’t give a damn about the plight of the Coptic Christians in Egypt and the slaughtered Christians in Nigeria, as well as the beheaded catholic girls in the Philippines by Muslim extremist and their “understanding” for the terrorists’ actions in Mumbai, Bali and other places where sleeping Jewish toddlers and babies have been stabbed alongside with their parents should be evidence enough of their viciousness and lower than the lowest of moral standards.
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LanceThruster
6:57 pm
May 10, 2012
Hidden due to low comment rating. Click here to see.
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Mike Dennison
11:52 pm
May 10, 2012
Sheldon is of course correct in his observations; however if we all wait until the Muslims have shown their true intent, it will be too late!
All of us who care about Israel (I’m not Jewish BTW) need to GET ACTIVE–call, send emails and letters to outfits like BBC who seem to feel that blatant antiIsrael bias and lies are perfectly OK.
I’ve just sent them a letter, 2 emails, and called leaving a blistering message for the Editor of BBC News!
I strongly suggest you do the same.
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OyVaGoy
7:34 pm
May 10, 2012
nonjewisraelsup: “… the BBC’s head of religious programming is a Muslim…”
What is wrong with that?
Would you like Muslims banned from that position? If so, how many other jobs would you like Muslims banned from, and how would this ban be enforced?
Hot debate. What do you think?
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steve mann
7:03 pm
May 11, 2012
But can you see a Muslim , especially in regard to Israel being impartial?
And I would suspect that she is of Pakistan extraction. Other than going to the Haj- probably has never been any where else in the M>E
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Eli C
7:47 pm
May 10, 2012
I watched this ‘interview’ and was amused by the lack of journalistic skill by the BBC interviewer. Yet this was mild compared to the hatchet job performed by a reporter on CNN International that very same day that embarrassed both the Palestinian and Israeli representatives she was questioning. One of the worst ‘journalists’ I’ve ever seen whose only qualification for the job was a pretty face. It seems obvious to me that the real problem here is not Finkelstein who can have his airtime if he wants, but the lack of skill, knowledge, and integrity of the BBC (and CNN) which does not know how to ask hard questions when they have a jerk like Finkelstein in the spotlight. The BBC is obviously biased. I do not know whether this is due to inborn stupidity or anti-semitism, but the BBC continually drops it’s ‘professionalism’ and any journalistic skill when it comes to reporting about Israel. So which is more despicable, Finkelstein or the BBC? Only one answer – the BBC.
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Mark Reilly
11:48 pm
May 10, 2012
Eli:
Obviously you’re right. Finkelstein is just 1 probably crazy guy with very limited influence @ this point (except apparently with the BBC!).
BBC on the other hand is a widely watched and listened to network which obviously transmits its biases across a wide swath. For this reason i also agree with those who recommend we don’t just complain to each other but message the BBC and its higher-ups–which i’ve just done.
I for 1 am sick and tired of all this “acceptable” Israel-bashing providing a cover to those who obviously have a thinly disguised underlying antiSemitism–there’s simply no other credible explanation given how relentless, one-sided, and divorced from reality much of it is.
I think that those who try to pass off these lies as “news” like this BBC piece or the “60 minutes” pile of crap about Christians in the Mideast put together by another obviously self-loathing Jew, Robert Simon, should be promptly publicly and widely called out and made to defend their outrageous and defamatory accusations.
I don’t think that passive acceptance of this type of slander has historically worked well for Jews and those who support them.
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Lynette
9:04 pm
May 10, 2012
It is vitali for people to complain directly to the BBC,. The BBC’s Charter means that it is obliged by law to answer all written complaints by those who have a British TV license and if unsatisfied with the response it is important to write again and if necessary eventually appeal to the BBC Trust. People think it doesnot make a difference but every letter requires someone to answer it and this can add up to be costly enough for the BBC to think again before slandering the Jewish people.
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Jim Donovan
11:40 pm
May 10, 2012
Very good suggestion about writing the BBC!
Wonder if they’re also required to respond to emails?
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Lynette
9:34 am
May 11, 2012
They say they do but why not make them work harder by sending them a letter! Make sure you give them all the references. If you’d like a practical guide learnt through years of experiance on writing letters to the BBC please email ordmanma@yahoo.co uk
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Lynette
9:44 am
May 11, 2012
They say they do but why not make them work harder by sending them a letter!. Be sure to include all references and it is important to make your letter as brief and to the point as possible..
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yuval Brandstetter MD
10:12 pm
May 10, 2012
Norman Finkelstein does not lie. Its plain 80 percent of american Jews are liberal, according to the Obama preferrence, and Liberal jews are uncomfortable with republican Jews, that is Jews who uphold the right of Jews to use force if necessary to protect their own life. Liberal Jews expect the American state to safeguard their lives, and see no reason to do it themselves. Which essentially means they dont live in the Middle East, where America protects no one, and actually betrays its friends and aids her enemies. As for the BBC being anti-semitic, that’s old hat. Its time to send Britain all those Arabs who wish for freedom to practice their beliefs, thus giving credence to British Arab preferrence.
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Mrs. Rene O'Riordan
11:13 pm
May 10, 2012
I have a little theory on Finkelstein – I once heard him mention that his mom was a holocaust survivor and that she spoke of nothing else when he was growing up – I figure he got sick of hearing about it and one day he decided to “rebel” against his mother’s opinions and from then on decided to deny the suffering of the Jewish people!! In fact I think he has a psychosis – well that’s what I think anyway – Rene
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elzeide
1:26 am
May 11, 2012
To Mrs. Rene O’Riordan (May-10).
I don’t have copy of where I read that his own mother said: “I’ve raised a monster” or something quite similar. Can anyone help me (or actually all of us) find what she said please?
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Brent Pudsey
3:51 am
May 11, 2012
Finkelstien needs more integrity in his journalism. He needs to be respectful of the Jews and of the Palestinians. He provokes hatred and jealousy by spouting off without thinking about what he is saying. There are pro and anti Jewish and Palestinian groups around the world. It is an attitude of tolerance and in particular tolerance for Israel which is needed.
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Larry
4:26 am
May 11, 2012
Norm Finkelstein is no professor. He is a mentally ill retard that makes his living bashing Israel and the Jews. He finds it more profitable doing this then trying to make an honest living which it seems he is unable to do. Only an anti-semitic media company like BBC would give him the time and space to spread his diatribe.
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charles13850
5:21 am
May 11, 2012
Finkelstein is a pathetic, neurotic, discredited “Academic” and self-hating Jew without credentials.
BBC, on the other hand is not anti-Israel let alone anti-Semetic. Critical but balanced compared to US media, re: their interview with Finkelstein, the BBC interviewer took him apart and he floundered. Exposing him belies the charge that the BBC is anti-Israel.
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Chaim
6:16 am
May 11, 2012
Why not descriptive metaphors for our enemies?ie.the Murderous Moslem Mob; the 3 Ms the lousy limies(fill in the rest)
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Jeffrey
7:58 am
May 11, 2012
As much as I know Finkelstein wrote a lot about the so called “Holocaust industry” blaming Jews of extorting money from Germany for crimes Germany supposedly had never committed.
As if not the mass robberies, destruction, confiscations and murders were a real state supported industry but the Jewish demand for justice and compensation for at least a miserable part of their losses.
His judgement makes the German government a bunch of pure idiots who agree to waste money for nothing.
For this kind of finkelsteins the Nuremberg trial is nothing but a Jewish conspiracy and thousands of pages of documents (including those that witness crimes against other groups of humans) are just bath tissue.
He was obviously born after the WWII so how does that stinky degenerate, that nullity know what happened during the war?
There is just one way to clean his brain (if any) is to put him at least for a few months -no, not in a Nazi-like concentration camp- just in an ordinary Ghetto like the Ghetto I was in.
In other words I wish him to lose in a moment all his real estate, the wast majority of his possessions, to be barred from appearing in any food store and to be forced to flee unarmed from a madman armed with a most sophisticated weapon.
That is my sincere wish for that vilaine
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