Gaza and the BBC, from David Lilienfeld
No one has ever accused the BBC of being balanced, or even honest, especially when it comes to Israel. British anti-semitism in full show, or just plain stupidity? A great example.
Mick Tierney writes:
It's kind of surprising how many on the left see the BBC for exactly what it is, but insist that NPR is the epitome of even-handedness. Ann Coulter (certainly no friend of the left) pretty much nailed it when she suggested that NPR stood for "National Palestinian Radio."
David Lilienfeld adds:
From the "You can't make this stuff up" file:
I turned on the radio about 30 minutes ago thinking I was catching the morning business news. Unfortunately, it was the end of the BBC report on our local NPR station. I thought the show was finishing, but it turned out it wasn't. An Israeli commentary was being questioned by the show's host, and the following was heard:
Host: Isn't it true that Israel has killed many, many Palestinians in this 6 day war?
Israeli: Yes, that's true. Also true is that Hamas fired hundreds of rockets at Israel.
H: But wasn't Israel's response out of proportion to those rockets? I mean, those rockets didn't have much ability to kill anyone. Some didn't even have any bombs onboard.
I: No, it wasn't out of proportion. Would your country have tolerated such an attack as well as Israel has?
H: My country didn't kill a leader of a government.
I: A terrorist organization. And he was killed after the rockets starting firing. They have been firing for a long time.
H: But isn't it true that Israel left Hamas with no choice but to do something militarily to break the blockade Israel imposed? Israel says it wants to see a Palestinian state form, but how can one form if it has no chance of trade?
I: Hamas is a terror organization. It kills Israelis. It has been doing so and it will continue to do so if Israel doesn't do such things.
H: No matter. Secretary of State Hilary Clinton is going to the region to try and broker a cease-fire.
I: Yes. Prime Minister Netanyahu has said all along that diplomacy is always better than military action.
H: I'm hearing from lots of our listeners that while they sympathize with Israel needing to do something about the rocket fire, they think the last six days has been an over-reaction. Andy in Lagos, thank you for that observation. Perhaps Israel should have tried diplomacy before sending in its military.
I: Israel took the matter to the UN and the UN had no interest in dealing with the problem.
H: Maybe Israel should have tried harder. Lots of Palestinians would still be alive if it had given the UN more time.
At that point, I turned the radio off. The business news can wait; better to get my blood pressure back to normal.