Entre Nous / Musings of a former Belgian

DJ Journalism part II

And speaking of ham-handed DJ journalism, let's not forget the treatment the Abu-Ghraib prisoner abuse incident has gotten in the foreign press.

Not for one thing or another, but I doubt that anyone who's ever undergone a hazing by one of the more notorious student fraternities in Belgium, or has been on the wrong side of its old federal police (the "Rijkswacht"), would have seen anything very innovative at Abu Ghraib. To call this "worse than Saddam" would be hilarious if the whole thing weren't so sad.

Which does not imply that anythjing other than vigorous disciplinary measures are in order. But the good news is that not the yellow media but the Army's own disciplinary apparatus uncovered the whole thing. And Bush's "I am appalled and the perpetrators will be punished" reaction, devoid of groveling apology, appears to be received surprisingly well by Arab media. No great surprise to me --- what Westerners think of as meekness is often perceived as weakness in this part of the world.

DJ Lethal, bring it on!

I have argued before that, when it comes to the Middle East or the USA, European "journalists" are so predictable that one could replace them by DJs. This article (in Dutch, registration required) is another fine case in point.

It discusses the findings by the Israeli State Comptroller that some government funds were used for wildcat settlements (a most worrisome finding indeed) --- then of course repeats the old canard that the "occupation" of 1967 is "the main cause" for the present terrorist violence. As if there wasn't plenty of it before 1967, or for that matter before 1948 (anybody remember the 1929 Hevron massacre?); as if the Ham-Assholes don't consider every Israeli town to be a "settlement"; and as if Intifada II didn't break out after the Barak Plan and the Clinton Parameters offered back essentially all of the West Bank (with Yasser Archbandit not even bothering to make a counteroffer).

If some dope who can't play an instrument starts scratching gramophone records instead (and gets to play "solos" instead of a guitar player whose ability is limited to playing riffs in drop-C# tuning) calls himself "DJ Lethal" to sound more menacing, it's just pathetically funny (even if he gets to laugh all the way to the bank). His counterparts in the press don't even have that redeeming quality.

While I doubt that the monsters who are capable of this need any encouragement for their abominations, the DJ Lethals of the EUranian press encourage useful idiots to aid and abet them, and governments to justify their lack of enthusiasm for confronting Islamofascist terrorism and its enablers, in the name of "occupation", "moral equivalence", or whatever is the broken record du jour. "DJ Lethal, bring it on!" suddenly acquires a new meaning.

UPDATE: here is an brief overview of Palestinian terrorism before 1967.

Critical mass achieved

Erin O'Connor, English professor and publisher of the weblog Critical Mass, has decided to "stop trying to fight City Hall" ("proberen tegen de bierkaai te vechten") and is leaving academia to teach at a small boarding school. This is an unusual decision for a tenured professor, and she explains it at great length on her weblog. I wish her all the best.

A thousand layers of feces

The English-language Brussels magazine The Sprout published a special issue dedicated to disturbing indications that pedophile/child murderer Dutroux was not an isolated psychopath, but part of a network that has some senior Belgian establishment figures by the "kl*ten/c***llons/Eier/beitzim/b*lls". Only the editorial is online, but scanned pages of the hardcopy magazine are making their way around the net.

One Belgian politician is quoted anonymously as saying: “Belgium is a thousand layers of sh*t... You cannot hope to understand Belgian politics until you understand blackmail.”

Creationism hits EUranus?

BioMedCentral reports on plans to water down the teaching of evolutionary theory in Italian schools and "make room" for "alternative" theories. Following a petition sponsored by the country's leading scientists, the Italian gov't appears to be backtracking.

Considering how much of a field day smug Europeans have with similar attempts at introducing creationism in the schools of some US states, this ought to sober them up some.

Think tanks in Israel

The weekend edition of the Jerusalem Post has a long feature article on the increasing prominence of US-style "think tanks" in Israel. Capsule articles discuss the Hudson institute (website) --- successor to the legendary RAND of yore --- and US think tanks specializing in Middle East issues.

Israeli think tanks span the political spectrum, but most of them have no partisan ("partijpolitieke") affiliation. Weblinks for some of the more prominent ones: Israel Democracy Institute; Shalem Center; Van Leer Institute; Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs.

UN "Human Rights" Commission hits bottom, digs

Guess who just got reappointed to the UN Human Rights Commission: one of the last countries on Earth to practice slavery, Sudan. The US representative walked out in protest.

What's next, an anti-pedophilia task force with representatives of NAMBLA, and chaired by Belgian child murderer Dutroux?

Useful idiots or paid shills?

In recent days groups of Arabist former diplomats in both the US and the UK have sent out missives deploring the pro-Israel stand of their POTUS and PM, respectively, and suggesting a pro-Palestinian course. Now Instapundit unearths info suggesting that key British signatories have financial interests in the matter, and that the US signatories are an even less savory lot. Roger Simon weighs in as well. LGF readers are following the money and unearthing some "interesting" facts.

UPDATE: Today's (May 6) Jerusalem Post editorial lays out the association of the American signatories with pro-Arab lobby groups and (in the case of the Islamic Association for Palestine) an outright front for the Hamas terrorist organization.

Update:

From the Haaretz ticker:

23:52

PM Sharon: I am sorry for the results of the Likud referendum but I will respect them

23:44
Qureia: I hope poll defeat will be incentive to go back to right path to ensure establishment of Palestinian state

Puke, puke, vomit, vomit.

The hideous face of Amalek

Meanwhile, the "brave" "Palestinian" "freedom fighters", after weeks of trying, finally "scored" a "victory". The best they could do was what the Arab media coyly called "eliminating five settlers", that is, shooting a social worker in her 8th month of pregnancy and her four children. Note that this was not a "drive-by shooting": after wounding the woman, they deliberately went up to her car and killed her and her children with a "cold-bloodedness" that an Einsatzkommando would have been proud of. Every time I come to the conclusion these [expletives deleted] can sink no lower, they manage to prove me wrong. But truly, "Nothing is new under the sun" (Eccl. 1:9) since 3,500 years ago. I recalled this quote on 9/11/01, and I am recalling it now:

Remember what Amalek did to you, on your way out of Egypt; how he lay in ambush, and killed those who walked behind you [i.e. women and children], all those who were enfeebled in your rear, while you were weary and exhausted --- and he feared not G-d. Therefore, it will be that, when THE ETERNAL your G-d will have given you rest from your enemies all around, in the land which [He] has given you for an inheritance, that you shall utterly blot out the remembrance of Amalek from under Heaven --- you shall not forget. (Deut. 25:17-19)

UPDATE: the terrorists were killed by IDF forces in the immediate vicinity. A million times better than what they deserve. Being eaten alive by wild boars would be more like it.

UPDATE 2: I didn't know half of it. The "shahidin" apparently recorded their "heroic" acts on video, presumably for use as recruiting material and death pr0n. (Video tapes of the decapitation of journalist Daniel Pearl hy"d, and similar material, are apparently wildly popular in some quarters.) I am sure these creatures prayed to some entity five times a day. But a person judging the tree from its fruit could be forgiven for wondering whether it's the Guy Upstairs (in whatever warped conception) or His rival downstairs...