LEFT, LEFT, LEFT.
Caught the beginning of Any Questions this evening and had a chuckel at the make up of the panel. There was Geoff Hoon (Left), Caroline Lucas (Left), Vince Cable (New to the BBC I think, ahem, but also Left) and David Willets (Soft-centre). So hint of bias there, right? First up was a question on whether “extremism”as evidenced in events on Bombay could be defeated. Caroline Lucas immediately launched into an attack on American foreign policy and then got stuck into Israel’s “occupation” of Palestine as a probable cause of the Islamic terrorist scum attack in Bombay yesterday. Her rant was greeted by generous applause. Vince Cable also helpfully explained that “extremism” needed a political solution. Willets waffled about winning hearts and minds (Not the best advise when a deranged Muslim with an AK47 is hunting you down because you might have a British passport but still..) and amazingly only Hoon sounded even slightly gung ho, which is saying something! I look forward to the day when Any Questions will find the guts to allow an unapologetic spokesman for the war on Islamic terror onto its lousy show – but I’m sure it will never happen since a plurality of views is forbidden in easy consensus BBC land.
Some years ago, at a jumble sale, I bought a paperback called “Any Questions?” In it were transcripts of editions of the show from the 1960s.
It was a monument to British liberal stupidity. If you see the words these “stupid clever people” say in print, they are even more silly than when you hear them over the airwaves.
The most important purpose served by this ancient, clapped-out programme is to provide future historians with evidence of a mindset blindly bent on its own destruction.
Regarding The Greens: get a copy of Jonah Goldberg’s most excellent book, ‘Liberal Fascism’, to understand how akin to Hitler and Mussolini their policies are.
Buy it here:
i just made the big mistake of listening to any questions and then the even bigger mistake of listening to the poeple who phone in afterwards i feel quite ill
the phones phoning in were even more idiotic than caroline lucas.
one deranged moonbat declared that warfare only creates more “extremists”.
yes of course it does dear – why , we have a major problems with kamikaze pilots and Waffen SS today because of our wars of aggression on Germany and Japan.
and of course the citizens of south korea are sooooo grateful that the U.S. did not intervene. i bet they love their Dear Leader and his massive gulag camps.
Off topic re BBC but relating to “stupid clever people” who have been brainwashed by the lefty bleeding heart tripe pumped out by the BBC etc.
On last night’s “I’m a celebrity” (which you, dear readers, will have more taste/of a life than to watch) Lib Dim Paddick refused to peel a load of potatoes because it would spoil them & prevent them being used to feed the world.
Any Answers.
Arrested for doing yer job?
The calls we heard accurately reflect the views of the total number of calls says Dimbleby.
(They reckon we’re a totalitarian state)
Terrorists.
They reckon we must understand their grievances; against Israel (for ‘Gaza,’) and against the West for forcing reluctant soldiers to fight in wars. Give them Israel and stop all nasty fighting so we can live happily ever after.
Dimbleby attempted forcing one caller to admit his words amounted to a justification of terrorism. But he just would not confess.
One caller spoke sense. Dimbleby said “We could have taken a lot more calls on that” “But we won’t.”
My question for Any Questions: How do these people know so much? Or as David Mitchell said “Reckon something.”
I think I might know the answer.
henryflower Just to say that as a long time poster on the abuse of the word terrorism by the BBC I entirely agree with your 1.33 post.
As henryflower so wisely says: “I do agree that the problem is not the language, the language is the symptom and expression of the problem. The problem lies deeper, and counting word-use is the least of our problems.”
I would advise every young reporter, producer and researcher in the BBC to mark those words. There comes a moment in every Beeboid’s career when a senior producer, editor or network controller frowns and, with furrowed brow and poised blue pencil, mutters, “I wouldn’t quite put it like that, old boy”.
When you hear those words, look deeper…
I sat next to someone at school who contended most emphatically and seriously that Saddam’s invasion of Kuwait in 1991 was “all Israel’s fault.” Guess where he works now? Foreign correspondent for the BBC.
Henryflower:
If you are not an author or journalist then you ought to be.
But then again would your points be so salient if you were.
several hours on , and i’m still dumbstruck with attitudes like those conveyed by caroline lucas.
has she read ANYTHING about global jihad?
that such dangerously idiotic people are allowed to spout monstrous bilge on the airwaves – and then to have callers WHO AGREE WITH HER , is getting us into the realms of utter mental derangement.
its not that i just disagree with Lucas – its that i cant even begin to engage in rational conversation with such people. for how can you engage with a lunatic.
and in that aspect, Lucas and her ilk are curiously similar to the Islamists.
Kill the Beeb/ Henryflower:
I too was struck by HF’s 1:33 pm post – articulate with deadly economical precision. Full marks.
(PS You need to work on the shopping, HF. A half hour in TK Max can be quite fun, and save a fortune. Designer Thinking)
henryflower 1.33pm
Sorry to be a complete bore, but if I could write like that I definitely wouldn’t be in my current job. Cracking observations, eloquently put.
Back to my box…
Archduke 7.34
Often I find myself about to come to the boil listening to R4 before I quickly mouth “calm down it’s only a BBC view” and need to consciously regulate my breathing.
The utter indifference / ignorance to certain rather blatant double standards (as outlined by HF above) on the part of broadcasters is enough to send one crazy. You start to feel paranoid. I do. Really genuinely intelligent people on the left weirdly firmly close their eyes to so many abuses of human rights on the part of Chavez, Castro or similar, preferring instead to shout the hackneyed dross about Bush and neocons – never mind that the alternatives are totalitarian and likely to wane off course into the realms of rather malign dictatorship.
I truly believe the BBC thinks it has it all figured out. The woeful Daily Mail readers, Thatcher, the “American Right” (heard about 3 minutes ago on R4) and conservatives. That’s who the bad guys are. Chavez might behave more like Thatcher than Thatcher but that’s of zero interest to the liberal-minded public of the UK.
The BBC has never been found promulgating right-wing views but it has left-wing ones (anti-Tory Party bias on numerous occasions, EU propaganda on two for a start). The BBC is not honest with people, it’s permanently self-justifying and selective with news and views to advance that justification.
I believe Jeff Randall when he says it’s not a policy. BBC-style Guardian reading personnel truly believe they occupy the moral high ground and I’m cynical about the chances of that state of mind ever changing.
Oops, too many “I believe”s
I’m not Barak Obama I promise.
Caroline Lucas:
“I was elected in 1999 as the Green Party Member of the European Parliament representing the South-East of England. I sit on the Parliament’s Trade, Environment and Climate Change Committees, as well as being Vice President of the Animal Welfare Intergroup. My work • both within the Parliament and in my constituency • includes peace and human rights, international trade and development, transport and planning, health issues and animal welfare.”
I’m from the South East of England and I can’t remember being asked to vote for you. What a complete utter total wanker (and I’ve never said that of a woman before.)
Own up! Who voted for this silly bitch?!
Every time the BBC refuses to acknowledge that pre-planned but indiscriminate mass violence perpetuated on civilian populations anywhere in the world, designed to create a climate of fear for political or religious ends is the work of terrorists, then they are guilty of endorsing their actions.
what i particularly noted in caroline lucas’s response was a complete and utter LACK of empathy with Mumbai citizens, and Indians in general.
utterly beneath contempt.
unfortunately, all of the hostages were killed before the Indian commando raid…
unfortunately it seems that from the rescue of the bloodstained little orphan boy so early on in the piece,that the Jews could have been murdered immediately after they were captured and never held as ‘hostages’.
I wonder how the islamist apologist western media will handle that one if it turns out to be the case.
henryflower
what a great post on why the BBC would never allow REAL JIHADISTS to ever appear and state their case directly on any of their leftist infested program.
what really upset me was not the expected idiocies from lucas but the applause from the audience.
How do they pick such audiences fot G’d sake!!
t
CNN Title from Indian point of view:
Indian official: Terrorists wanted to kill 5000
http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/11/29/india.attacks/index.html
Times online title from Indian point of view:
Indians claim terrorists took orders from Pakistan
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article5258458.ece
But Beeb’s title is of course from the Pakistan point of view:
Indian allegations alarm Pakistan
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/7757031.stm
Sure, poor Pakistan is alarmed for being victimized. How awful of India.
BBC has no shame.
sorry to hear about those jewish missionarys being murdered in mumbai Anat… it goes without saying that our thoughts and prayer are with you folks in Israel right now.
“Terrorist at Chabad House deliberately targeted jews”
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1227702365053&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull
i mean – this is 100 per cent pure Nazi stuff – and there is Caroline Lucas making excuses for it.
makes my blood boil.
Thanks, archduke.
Much appreciated.
henry flower wrote: The only thing that is going to shift the impacted BBC sh*t from the ears of the BBC audience sheep, is if they actually hear clearly and loudly, from the mouths of the jihadis, exactly what they are fighting for, and what their justifications are.
So deluded are the BBC, that even if the invited Jihadis pulled out AK47s and sprayed the BBCwallahs, as well as the audience, the survivors will maintain that the Muslims are merely protesting against oppresion, economic hardship, racism, Kashmir, Iraq, Gitmo etc etc etc.
The fact that the Jihadis know the Koran well enough to sacrifice their lives to follow its commands, will never ever be mentioned. It doesnt compute.
David
So what you seem to be indicating is that our political establishment collectively got us into this mess, but do not seem to have the slightest idea or inclination to get us out of it, one way or another, any time soon if ever.
Some might conclude that this is because perpetual international and/or national terrorism is exactly what our political establishment want or need.
Which clearly given our rapidly returning economic chickens taking roost just about everywhere they can find. While increasing NAZI repression hides impatiently behind every corner. They need very much right now.
You either believe the world is run by simple minded idiots, armed with nukes and destructive power never seen before. That have absolutely no idea what the bugger they are doing, like yourself seems to.
Or you believe it is run by very rich highly intelligent Nazis, armed with evil occult knowledge, infinite amounts of OUR cash, and a very old plan to rule the entire world.
As you know, I believe the second. As I clearly have a higher estimation of the intelligence of mankind then you do yourself.
If the world was like you have been conditioned to believe, it would have destroyed itself at least 50 years ago IMO. It has not because the Cold War was a con job, and so is this so called war against terrorism. It is a con job however thought up the plan. Which was clearly not George Bush or Tony Blair. SO WHO WAS IT, Donald Duck , Micky Mouse, or the unseen hand of secret government?
As far as I am concerned, and certainly before I see any real evidence indicating otherwise. Muslim terrorists are trained and/or brainwashed, directly or indirectly by our own establishment.
Therefore why on earth would the same establishment be making any serious effort to stop their own operatives from murdering people?
As there is no reason why they should want to. This gos a very long way of logically explaining why they ARE NOT, doing even seriously trying to do anything of the kind. At least not right now, this situation may however change, when our own home grown terrorists come properly on tap. At this point you may no longer be reading any more of my comments, for obvious reasons.
You may recall the same situation existed up to recently regarding IRA terrorism for many decades. Just like today the BBC was seen as have semi republican sympathies, but had no problem also showing all the blood and guts and frightening the British public half to death. While the secret services knew the names and addresses of every murderous terrorist organizer in the province, yet simply let them get on with it.
If it did not create terrorists and therefore terrorism directly, the establishment would get someone else to do the job for them. Preferably a mega rich Islamic head of state. As it has before several times in the past.
You cant teach an old dog new tricks. Which is just as well for the British Empire, as the establishment has basically not come up with a truly original idea for over one thousand years, possibly much longer.
Hey folks – just wanted to say that there are many fine analyses here on B-BBC and I learn much from everyone’s comments, so it’s very gratifying indeed to get a positive response here. Thanks for the kind comments.
Contrary to one suggestion, however, not only would my careless typos and sometimes cavalier spelling make me an appalling journalist, but I would also miss my current profession, which involves the stress of posing and painting nude or semi-clothed females and other beautiful things, for sale to jaded aesthetes and repressed perverts. I write about the collapse of the Western world purely for post-painting relaxation.
(Naturally, every other professional artist I know is vehement and irrational in their resentment of the West, of Israel, of the US, of the gas CO2, and tabloid newspapers. I recently lost one friend, a fellow artist who invited me to a “charity gig”. I asked her what the charity was, and she replied “It’s for the Palestinians, for the peace process.” I commented that those were not quite the same things, that I failed to see how a “gig” in Shoreditch might prevent Hamas from launching rockets at civilian towns in southern Israel, and asked her if she knew of any “gigs” raising money for the victims of Palestinian terrorism. Haven’t heard from her since. Which is fine.)
“While the secret services knew the names and addresses of every murderous terrorist organizer in the province, yet simply let them get on with it.”
because the british services were infiltrated by IRA agents.
note how things changed when no-nonsense Thatcher came to power.
people forget just how serious she was with fighting the IRA – such as gunning them down in the streets of Gibralter with the SAS…
no “human rights” bollocks for her.
what i am trying to point out is that it takes a lot of guts to confront terrorism. and look what happened to thatcher – hounded out of office…
so your general point may very well stand – it wasnt in the “establishments” interests to stop the war in N.I. – good training for the british army and MI5. there were certainly a lot of folks in the british establishment that rather liked the never ending war with the IRA. toughened up the army before deployment elsewhere for starters.
but thatcher was the loose cannon and was having none of it.
PS
When Muslims speak of “oppression”, they understand it differently to what we assume. For Muslims, “oppression” is that state when Muslims are not ruling over an Infidel dhimmi population. Thus, Muslims in Britain are “oppressed”, and it is the rightful duty of a Muslim to fight this oppression with all means. This is koranically mandated.
This Jihadi/terrorism problem in Britain will increase as the Muslim population in Britain increases – which it is doing by leaps and bounds.
pardon me whilst i make a racist joke – but it WAS doing the rounds of the newspapers this week.. in a “racism” story.
that 118 118 service had sent out text message “jokes” one of which was
Whats the difference between E.T. and an Asian?
E.T. got the message and went home.
(by asian – read muslim…)
of course, the muslims that received it are going to court and are getting tons of human rights lawyers at no charge…
this country really is fucked – its just a fucking joke.
DP111 | 30.11.08 – 12:56 am
if you want to see the future, have a look at that “children of men” film..
specifically the final scenes with the gun battles in a ghetto on the south coast of england.
of course, the film focuses on something else – and never explores exactly WHY would Hamas jihadists be in britain fighting british troops with AK 47s and RPGs…
but the scenes are believable… even if the director intended for something else.
rent it out and have a look…
‘When Muslims speak of “oppression”, they understand it differently to what we assume. For Muslims, “oppression” is that state when Muslims are not ruling over an Infidel dhimmi population. Thus, Muslims in Britain are “oppressed”, and it is the rightful duty of a Muslim to fight this oppression with all means. This is koranically mandated.’
DP111 | 30.11.08 – 12:56 am |
DP111, you got it absolutely right.
This is also the sense of the ‘Palestinians’ being ‘oppressed’. They are not allowed to subjugate the Jews.
the palestians already have a country to go to – its called Jordan.
one of the biggest lies promoted by the likes of the bbc is that the argument over gaza is about the pallywooders not having a “homeland”
well, pre israel – the entire british controlled area in that region included israel AND jordan. the pallywooders could have so easily just said goodbye to israel and moved to jordan.
nah – we have none of that – instead we get 60 years of jew hating terrorist nazism.
well, fuck them. thats all i can say.
sorry to hear about those jewish missionarys being murdered in mumbai Anat…
archduke | 30.11.08 – 12:16 am
Just on a point of accuracy. None of the people in the Chabad House were missionaries.
Chabad provided a service to Jewish (many of them Israelis) tourists and to a lesser extent the local Mumbai Jewish population. It makes no attempt to convert non-Jews.
Among the dead were at least two local Indian employees as were most of the dead and injured in Mubai. All deserve our sympathy.
Henryflower – once again you make a thoughtful point about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The number of times good friends of mine exhibit the undercurrents of antisemitism in their knee-jerk views about Israel is getting pretty creepy. I’ve been there on a pilgrimage and it’s a sea of decency, calm and diversity compared to Pakistan, Saudi Arabia or Syria. The Western Left demonises Israel and when they talk about a “peace process” it just means supporting one side only – the Palestinians. They hate Jewish nationalism (Zionism) but hypocritically wax poetic about Palestinian nationalism. If they were really serious about peace in that region, they would understand the principles of conflict resolution and how all sides are hurting. Peace will not come by demonising one side and sanctifying the other. That’s why I am a strong supporter of Children of Peace – one of the few charities that works with Israeli and Palestinians (and is one of the few respected by both sides) to protect all of the children – Christian, Druze, Jewish & Muslim – and gets the people actively working together for peace. This charity refuses to take sides like some other well known charities out there and it’s British! Check out http://www.childrenofpeace.org.uk and support them like many moderate and open minded Christians, Jews, Muslims, Hindus and secular people worldwide….. they represent everything the divisive, selective and sinister BBC cannot understand or will admit to….
Caroline Lucas is not only an anti-Semitic moron, but an ill-informed one. Israel does not occupy Gaza. They pulled out in August 2005.
There is a deep, psychological and historical antipathy towards Jews in British Christianity, but to even suggest that Israel is in any way responsible for Mumbai, stretches the belief of even Jew-hating Britain.
Henryflower
Snap. (We’re fellow artists)
Me an’ me ‘usband share your view of the political leanings of others in the trade. They think they’re cool, enlightened and free, but they’re really exactly the opposite. What’s more, donating work to a charity auction is not a selfless act. It’s more of a publicity stunt.
***
Ricky Martin.
Snap. (Ex good friends.)
***
I know! Eureka! I must ring up Any Answers to impart my liberal minded proposal for dealing with terrorism. I’ve learned about politics by listening to the world’s most trusted broadcaster and now I’m a bit of an expert.
“Well Jonathan, we must understand their grievances and return their stolen land. Then we’ll live happily ever after. Peace be upon us.”
***
It’s high time the BBC changed its tune. We might as well forget trying to cover BBC bias, and just report the occasional case of unbias.
***
How exasperating are Nulab’s speech mannerisms? Particularly the silent ‘T’ in all words ending with ‘T’
Ge’ i’?
It’s the right thing to do. It’s the right thing to do. It’s the right thing to do.
And Marcus Brigstock was on last night defending the BBC saying paying our licence fee was like a buying a bus ticket – you cant tell the bus driver where to go! Yes but the bus only goes one way (to Islington)!
pmjk | 29.11.08 – 10:50 am |
didn’t anyone correct him and tell him it was like buying a bus ticket (to islington) even if you choose to walk, cycle, stay at home, or take another bus to another destination?
ok, perhaps not stay at home (i e, no travel [= telly] at all)
“Noteing that Binnie Boy was still hacked about something that happened 500 years ago might make him appear a trifle nutso”
Not it isn’t unusual. For Muslims, land that is conquered by Islam is Islamic forever and must be retaken.
Indian intelligence points to the fact that 7 of the 10 terrorists at the Mumbai massacre were Pakistanis of British descent. From Bradford, Hartlepool (Mandelson country) and Leeds. Two similar thugs blew up Maxis Bar in Tel Aviv four years ago. If true, another triumph for NudeLabour! We are now officially a Rogue State – a plus exporter of international terrorism. The Blair-Brown axis of evil?”
The establishment doesn’t plan on doing anything about Islam because they believe in it. The establishment–The EU, the Liblabcon coalition– are using Islam as a weapon against us; they want to eradicate every last trace of Europe’s Christian nation’s in the naive belief that a New-Age of tolerance, hope, and freedom will dawn.
The BBC is alot like buses in this country; overpriced, unreliable, and run with a barely concealed contempt for its customers.
Brigstocke was right to compare the Beeb to our public transport, which he should surely know (as anyone who uses it does) is one of the worst in the world.
I am in Los Angeles for a few days. Virtually all the reports on Mumbai I have seen here have used the words terrorism and terrorist – including, for example, the leftie LA Times which had the T word in its main headline.
There is just one channel that avoids the T word.
You’ve got it – the BBC American channel.
I once waited half an hour for a circle line.
it only takes an hour or so to go around so how many trains did they have running?
This was the middle of the day in a city of 10 million people.
Buses used to be awful. They are vastly improved on how they used to be. Underground isnt.
Public transport sucks, mostly
DV: “I look forward to the day when Any Questions will find the guts to allow an unapologetic spokesman for the war on Islamic terror onto its lousy show – but I’m sure it will never happen since a plurality of views is forbidden in easy consensus BBC land.”
Melanie Phillips? Although of course, once in a while is not impartiality. It is still a grossly overloaded ‘debate’.