Thursday, June 30, 2016

Akala About the Two Types at Canary Wharf


Akala, on Frankie Boyle's talk show, notes that colonialism and structural racism, bias, and privilege have a long price that privileged white folks are very quick to forget. Racism is not something historical; it is very real, and it's right there, right in front of us, all the time. We spend a lot of effort not to see it.

2 comments:

Jeff T. said...

All those sincere liberal white folks! Probably paid bank to be berated. Brings a tear to my eye. Interesting though that he never mentions the underlying cause of all our current wars and terrorists and "cockroaches" coming over- it is Unmentionable here in the West. The Why? cannot be discussed- even by someone as cool as this clown. We aren't bombing and killing and starting wars in the Mideast to keep down brown people and steal their resources- no we bomb and kill and start wars to protect and serve Israel and Saudi Arabia.

PBurns said...

I am pro-Palestine, pro-Palestinian autonomy, and anti-zionist. That said, whenever I hear someone in the US spout off as much as you do about Israel I know I am talking to someone who is antisemitic.

There, I said it.

The situation in the Middle East is not caused by Israel, and they hardly need our protection. We have been meddling about in the Middle East for a very long time (my father and mother were first station in Syria, Lebanon, and Iran).

Saddam Hussein and Iran did not fight and kill hundreds of thousands because of Israel, the Kurds are not trying to be free because of Israel, Assad has not imprisoned and tortured his people because of Israel, the Saudis did not remove all the guns from their people because of Israel, the Russians did not invade Afghanistan because of Israel, the Taliban did not rise up in Pakistan and Afghanistan because of Israel, the Egyptians did not vote in the Muslim Brotherhood because of a conflict with Israel, Quadaffi did not privatize his oil field and steal all the money because of Israel.

Your ignorance about this part of the world is willful and deep and the fact that this is your "go to" argument in world politics exposes the anti-semitism which is the cause of the ignorance. Blaming the jews feels comfortable. It's simple. It's traditional.

Your anti-semitism comes out when you deny there IS antisemitism, as well. Really? No anti-semitism? Are you a child? We put 6 million Jews in ovens in the life of people you know, but there is no anti0-semitism? Nixon's tapes show him spouting virulent anti-semitism in my lifetime. You do know that the housing covenants that kept blacks out of the good neighborhoods covered jews as well, right? Use the Google! Just last week the Nazis were marching with swastika in your own home town. Were you there standing on the side and suggesting this was just another love-in for white folks and they really had a point about Israel? Deadly serious.

I imagine you think you are looking smart, but it's exactly the opposite. You are looking white, entitled, smug, and absolutely blind to history and fact. I do not have to go outside your area code or outside this weeks to show glaring examples of how blinkered you are when it comes to race and bigotry.

To be clear, I do not use words lightly. Charges of sexism, racism, and antisemitism are tossed far too lightly in order to leverage position and power, or to mask legitimate differences in policy. That said, when someone in California is obsessed with making Israel a causal agent for the world's ills, and willfully ignores history, economy, and fact, it's more than smoke -- it's a real fire.

I am done.