Bill Maher is Wrong About Pope Francis' Take on Charlie Hebdo

Last night, in one 'Real Time' spot during his opening joke segment, Bill Maher saw fit to call out the Pope for his recent remarks that there are limits to free expression. According to Maher, wearing a half-assed smile:

"This is so sad! I was starting to really like this Pope. Oh yeah, fuck the Pope! Well, George Bush said it, 'you're either with us or against us'.  Apparently the Pope is not with us because he came down on the side of the bad guys. 'You cannot provoke, you cannot insult someone's faith, you cannot make fun of the faith of the others'. I guess he doesn't get HBO.  ....And then he mimicked punching someone in the face! He said, if Luigi here made fun of my mother, POWWW!"

SO what, Bill? The Pope is exactly correct on this and I am afraid you and the righteous mob are all wrong. Moral courage, in fact, means not standing with the mob but with moral clarity and moral communication - which is what the Pope's message was all about, see e.g.

http://brane-space.blogspot.com/2015/01/moral-communication-and-free-expression.html

And I provided two links therein, one noting how despicable 'cockroach'  cartoons led to the genocide of the Tutsis in Rwanda, e.g.

http://hutututsi.weebly.com/propaganda.html

and also how the Nazis' portrayal of the Jews dehumanized them and led to their mass slaughter.

http://sefershoah.wordpress.com/nazi-propaganda/

And by the way, any dodo who refers to Obama as a "Nazi" clearly doesn't get it, and has no clue what a Nazi even means, or what it meant. As my late German friend Kurt put it (he had been in the Hitler Youth, under compulsion) it meant: mercilessly beating up socialists, workers union members, Jews and communists and-  if not killing them- making sure they didn't  ever return to the particular village or town.  Obama meets the definition on none of these, nor in fact being a member of the N.S.D.A.P. for Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei . (Again, a right wing fascist party, not a left-socialist party, despite the misleading name)

Back to Maher. He doesn't get the Pope's point at all. Nor is the Pope "on the side of the bad guys", which is the simpleton's take - the same as if some clueless critic said I was "with the bad guys" for writing this blog post.. As I asked in my earliest blog on the Paris Hebdo attack:

Can one condemn the brazen attack on the offices of Charlie Hebdo magazine but also criticize the outrageous satires the medium used, especially to attack Muslims?

The Pope showed one could condemn the murderous attack, but also hold the propagator of the inflammatory cartoons partly responsible. As I noted myself in that January 8th post:

"No one gets to insult whoever and whatever they want without any consequences. Ask any drunk in a bar who after one too many begins hurling epithets at the mothers of the all the other patrons. Think he will last very long before being punched out for his intemperance? Anyone who believes so is an idiot"

The Pope said essentially the same thing:

"If my good friend, Dr. Gasbarri says a curse word against my mother, he can expect a punch."

He referred above to Alberto Gabarri, who organizes papal trips and was standing by Francis side when he made his remarks. (Francis made the comments to reporters en route to the Philippines.)

Francis went on to defend freedom of speech as a fundamental right and even a duty to speak out for the common good. But he said there were limits to free speech, especially when confronting another equally fundamental human right: the freedom of religion. Meanwhile, Hebdo had indiscriminately attacked all religions, including Catholicism, Islam and even Jews (a la the Nazis' cartoon exaggerations).

Francis' points didn't come out of the blue either, but from a long Catholic tradition in its canon that freedom can never be absolute. Points I noted earlier including the three axioms tied to the "paradox of freedom":

The first paradox of freedom is that true freedom is experienced only in relation to what is good and true.

The second paradox of freedom is that, since we are contingent and limited beings, we can only experience freedom within parameters and by limiting our freedom to a certain extent:

The Third paradox of freedom is that my freedom today often exists due to prior constraint."

The point missed by Maher (and the Hebdo satirists and their mob defenders) is that so long as over two billion subscribe to these principles, making gratuitous attacks (under the 'free speech' banner)  on religions or minorities is a fool's errand.   As I asked in my Jan. 8 blog:

How can we ever expect to make the world a better place by tearing others down, whether via films ('Desert Warrior', 'The Interview') or by over the top "satire" which is designed to impale raw nerves and inflame hatreds?

Maher himself has been on an anti-Islamic tear for over two years now, referring to "radical Islam" as if Islam itself is innately radical. But as his guest, author Wes Moore (a former soldier in Iraq) corrected him, one must "distinguish between the radicalization of Islam and Islam itself".   A good point, which again brings up the importance of history - especially of the Middle East- when most Americans don't even know their own.

Thus, as Shamus Cooke (on smirkingchimp) has observed, "Islamic fundamentalism was virtually extinguished from 1950-1980, with Saudi Arabia and later Qatar being the last bastion and protective base of fundamentalists "  

But in the 1980s, as I also pointed out in the last chapter ('From November 22, 1963 to September 11, 2001')  of  my recent book, 'The JFK Assassination: The Final Analysis', the U.S. - under Reagan - had to interfere in Middle East geopolitics by propping up Saddam Hussein's Iraq against Iran. It did this by supplying him with arms, including poison gas (later used on the Kurds) and also set the stage for later jihadi assaults by herding radical Islamists into Afghanistan to fight the Russians.

A good summary from Shamus Cooke:

"The U.S.-backed Afghan jihad was the birth of the modern Islamic fundamentalist movement. The jihad attracted and helped organize fundamentalists across the region, as U.S. allies in the Gulf state dictatorships used the state religion to promote it. Fighters who traveled to fight in Afghanistan returned to their home countries with weapon training and hero status that inspired others to join the movement.

The U.S. later aided the fundamentalists by invading Afghanistan and Iraq, destroying Libya and waging a ruthless proxy war in Syria. Fundamentalists used these invasions and the consequent destruction of these once-proud nations to show that the West was at war with Islam."

So basically, the U.S. created the 'Frankenstein' monster of "radical Islam"  itself - by its interference for purposes of hegemony only, in the Middle East. Now, having created that monster, we stand and gape at the dozens of attacks launched by these mutants - after WE created them in the first place!

There is such a thing as taking responsibility but evidently we have none. We'd rather have people believe that these Islamic radicals simply sprang out of the blue.  No remote clue the original RPGs, IEDs etc. were given to them by the U.S., as well as many other arms.

Meanwhile, let's return to the matter of "free speech" and where it should really matter in true freedom of the press. To most intelligent people and those educated in history and the march of globalism, it means inveighing against the powerful - not picking on minorities or religions. To the extent the Hebdo cartoonists didn't  consistently attack the Neoliberal World Order - and took time instead to jab religions and minorities, they weren't doing their jobs.

This is the background that Maher would do well to learn, as well as many others in this country, before they launch into their anti-Islamic jeremiads again.

But am I hopeful they will? Hardly! Not when PR and propaganda dominates exchanges and most people have the historical memory of a gnat.

See also:

http://powerofnarrative.blogspot.co.uk/2015/01/these-crimes-will-never-be-purged-away.html

and:

http://www.smirkingchimp.com/thread/margaret-kimberley/60483/charlie-hebdo-je-suis-white-people

Excerpt:

"One look at Charlie Hebdo cartoons shows that the word satire is being used very loosely. The depictions of cabinet minister Christiane Taubira as a monkey, and the kidnapped Nigerian school girls as pregnant welfare recipients make a mockery of the world satirical. Regardless of how many French politicians are skewered in its pages, it must be pointed out that Charlie Hebdo indulges in racist hate speech."

U.S. Warship Buzzed By Russian Jet: So What's the Problem?

The U.S. Neocons and their warmonger rabble never fail to mystify as well as enrage me.  They've merrily pushed their aggression to the Russian border - with the Ukraine- and yet brand Russia as the "aggressor". They invade the Black Sea (a U.S. Destroyer) which is directly within Russia's sphere of influence and then get all perturbed when a Russian SU-24 buzzes their asses, flying within 1000 feet.

Now, my friends, as per my usual approach, kindly mirror the situation and then laugh with me. IF - I say IF - a Russian Destroyer or other warship was sitting some fifty miles off of Key West, Florida, just what the hell do you think the Mighty U.S. (behind its "Monroe Doctrine") would do?  If you can't fathom the answer I will give you a clue:  they'd have every F-22 Raptor and Stealth fighter from MacDill AFB in the air and buzzing the Russians non-stop. As would be their right because the Russian warship would be within the U.S. sphere of influence.

But extend that to the Russians, if WE are intruding in THEIR sphere of influence, under some bogus pretext? Oh no!  The Russkies are only a "second class, regional power" (according to Obama) so they merit no sphere of influence. The Amerikkan sphere governs the whole damned planet, including the Black Sea bordering Russia  And so we behold the Pentagon whining, at least its parrot....errrrr spokesman....one Col. Steve Warren:

"This provocative and unprofessional Russian action is inconsistent with their national protocols and previous agreements on the professional interaction between our militaries,......I have difficulty believing that two Russian pilots on their own would choose to take such an action." "


Well, uh no, you dumb pudsucker!  Obviously the command came from higher up, and why wouldn't it? You invade their space, their sphere of influence and you think they wouldn't do a thing - especially with CIA planted thugs - taking a break from their torture routines - now trying to instigate an entry for NATO forces in eastern Ukraine.   The truth is that it was the U.S.S. Taylor in February and March that  already violated the protocol with the Russians which calls for all NON-Black Sea states to have their war craft depart after 21 days. The Taylor stayed a full ten days past its due exit date.

As Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has noted, in reference to the Montreux Convention:

"US warships have extended their deployment beyond the set terms a couple of times lately.”


So why should they not also be suspicious of the U.S.S. Donald Cook which entered Black Sea waters on April 11?

Again, it's because the U.S. miscreants, neocons and warmongers never want to see things from the other nation's perspective. It's always 'our way' the way WE see it, and devil take the hindmost. If this doesn't get under the skin of every REAL American, I don't know what the fuck would!  Because if it doesn't it means we're a nation of nationalist zombies prepared to grant our War state an endorsement for endless war. (Anyone raise your hand if you know another nation of zombots that did that: Clue one, it was in the 1930s. Clue Two: Third Reich. Clue Three: Nuremberg War Crimes Trials.)

Interesting side point: As Bill Maher observed on 'Real Time' last Friday, the less Americans knew of where Ukraine was located geographically,  the more they wanted some military action. As Maher put it: "Ignorance goes with the desire for aggression." (Maher displayed a map from a survey that showed at least a dozen idiot Americans placed the Ukraine inside the U.S. while another two dozen dummies put it in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean!)

Already the saber rattling, and clarion calls are being heard, from the usual neocon assholes like John McCain ('For God's sakes we gotta bomb 'em this time!') to the entrenched neocons at State, to the budding little warmonger (U.S. Ambassador to the UN)  Samantha Power.  Power actually got on her high horse and claimed that it was "obvious" Russia was instigating a new crisis by fomenting separatist discord in eastern Ukraine. Has she got her brain on backwards or what? It was Russia that called for an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council last night! Oh wait, wait....we are zomboids for believing that because it's all a put-on to justify invasion later! Or so the Neoliberal press and their hangers on would have you believe!

You see, the Neoliberal media and the Neoliberal Political class of poltroons wants you to remain deaf, dumb, blind and stupid so they can manipulate the planet to their own ends - including establishing a permanent global plutocracy. They want to do it via the use of leveraging debt  - say through the IMF and the banking system- or through the force of arms. They also want to intimidate any and all nations that might stand in their way, including Russia.

This is what the Ukraine crisis is all about and if you don't get that, you're not paying attention. It is indeed the last stand to be made for a bipolar world, as opposed to the unipolar one now on offer with the U.S. warmongers and "super power" ruling the roost, and driving all players into a debt -leveraged "free" market system which is anything but.

Recall here the words of author William Greider  ('Who Will Tell The People-The Betrayal of American Democracy', Touchstone, 1991), p. 401:

"It does not require great political imagination to see that the world system is heading toward a further dispersion of governing power so the closet dictator of the marketplace can command things more efficiently, from everywhere and nowhere.....

What is emerging now is a power system that more nearly resembles a kind of global feudalism- a system in which the private economic enterprises function like rival dukes and barons, warring for territories across the world and oblivious to local interests.......In that event, vast throngs of citizens are reduced to a political position resembling that of  the serfs....who followed church or nobility in the feudal system."

Serfs in a feudal system! This is the future the Neoliberal World Order has on offer for most of us  except the one percent.

Even as I write this the U.S. war mongers are pushing their luck and aggression to the hilt. Reuters actually reports US State Department Counselor Thomas Shannon — a senior diplomat and member of Kerry’s inner circle- talking about the possibility of supplying arms to the Ukraine government. Reuters actually quoted Shannon as saying:

"Obviously we are looking at that as an option ... but at this point I can't anticipate whether or not we are going to do that,”

This moron also had the nerve to say, with a straight face:

"From our point of view what we are seeing in a series of cities mimics what we saw in Crimea both in terms of the tactics and in terms of the people involved"

Despite the fact up to 25,000 Russian troops of whatever type, "identified" by uniform or not, were allowed according to a 1997 Treaty. See e.g.http://www.latimes.com/world/worldnow/la-fg-wn-us-intelligence-russia-ukraine-20140303,0,4657644.story#axzz2uy8lfu8m

So these dingbats at State can't even get their facts straight.

Not to be outdone, we had perpetual clueless parrot and puppet Jay Carney bloviating this afternoon:

"We're not actively considering lethal aid but we are reviewing the kinds of assistance we can provide,"

Let's hope this jerk's take is correct, and there is no "lethal" force or supply of arms being considered. We may all live to regret that! Let's also hope the inbred jerks at the State Dept. don't push their hands beyond what they have, lest the Russians call them on it!

See also:

http://www.smirkingchimp.com/thread/walter-c-uhler/55436/dear-nato-are-you-lying-about-russia-or-simply-incompetent

http://www.smirkingchimp.com/thread/mike-whitney/55375/the-obama-game-is-putin-being-lured-into-a-trap

http://www.smirkingchimp.com/thread/eric-margolis/55348/patriotism-is-the-first-platform-of-fools

And:


http://www.salon.com/2014/04/03/someone_teach_john_kerry_about_history/