Zerbisias and Farber's t-shirt

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aka Mycroft
Zerbisias and Farber's t-shirt

A number of pro-CJC types have posted to babble over the past few months trying to reframe the rather embarassing incident involving Bernie Farber and the CJC's trumped up complaint against Antonia Zerbisias following her "Funny, I didn't know he was gay comment". Farber claimed Zerbisias was violating his privacy etc despite the fact that Farber wore a "Nobody Knows I'm Gay" t-shirt at last year's Pride and proudly posted a pic of this on his twitter account. Various CJCers have posted her claiming Zerbisias never actually saw the t-shirt.

Here is what she has to say on the matter in response to a JDL letter defending Farber against Mark Steyn:

Quote:
May I straighten everybody out? (Heh-heh. I said straighten.)

The JDL lies. Its letter is defamatory.

Leaving aside the ''enemies of Israel'' bullshit and all that that implies, let's focus on the facts.

1. I was at the parade, as a VIP. This fact can be verified if anybody cares to bother. I saw both contingents march by. How many others who have jumped into this can say that?

2. I saw the T-shirt and, in the supposedly offensive comment, referred to a photo of Farber in the parade, a photo of him in the T-shirt.

3. I am misquoted. (Let Google be your guide JDL assholes.)
http://thestar.blogs.com/broadsides/2009/07/my-canada-includes-.html?cid...

4. Steyn used me in his battle with Farber. Meanwhile the JDL uses the occasion to defame me.

Two more things.

This certainly has become the battle of the T-shirts, hasn't it?

And Bernie Farber is still not gay.

Not that there's anything wrong with that.

 

aka Mycroft

And this is what Mark Steyn has to say:

Quote:
Last year in Toronto, the head honcho of the Canadian Jewish Congress, Bernie Farber, got into the spirit of things and marched in the Gay Pride Parade wearing a T-shirt emblazoned "NOBODY KNOWS I'M GAY." Also entering into the spirit, the Toronto Star's Antonia Zerbisias wrote tongue-in-cheek of Bernie's little jest: "I didn't know he was gay. Not that there's anything wrong with that."

Whereupon, after consulting with fellow CJC execs, the apparently non-gay Mr. Farber sent a formal letter of complaint objecting to the Toronto Star falsely identifying him as gay, notwithstanding that he himself had been the first to falsely identify himself as gay. Needless to say, the Star's publisher pompously reprimanded Miss Zerbisias for an item that "fell short of the Star's standards of accuracy."

My default position in any dispute between Canada's most zealous supporter of speech censorship laws and the Star's leftie feminist is that of Henry Kissinger on the Iran-Iraq War: "Can't they both lose?" But, in the great Queer Tee for the Straight Jew showdown, I was inclined to side with Miss Zerbisias. It's hardly her job to calibrate the precise degree of Mr. Farber's peculiar combination of opportunism and insecurity.

 

 

 

quantum

Farber looks like a fool here as do the useless Toronto Star publishers.

bagkitty bagkitty's picture

Fascinating I am sure, but what the heck is this doing in the "International News and Politics" forum? Really, this particular internecine feud was initially marginally interesting to watch, but it has a very distressing tendency to spill over and dominate other threads. A generous interpretation would be that it might have found an appropriate home as a spanking new thread in "The Media" forum, but I am not feeling particularly generous - is it really worth launching a new thread on this topic when the previous one (Toronto Star, CJC in homophobic gay panic) is still open (and in the media forum I might add).

Frustrated Mess Frustrated Mess's picture

Why does it not surprise me that the ugly and ignored pimple on the hairy butt of humanity, Mark Steyn, would be familiar with even the most obscure quotes of one of the last century's most prolific mass murderers right up there with Hitler and Stalin?

Michelle

True, bagkitty, but it's nice to see the fanboys corrected so thoroughly.  Their lies and obfuscations in thread after thread were getting so tiresome.

Lard Tunderin Jeezus Lard Tunderin Jeezus's picture

I agree. Thanks for this, aka Mycroft. You didn't just put it to bed, you tucked it in nicely and sang it a lullaby.

Maysie Maysie's picture

Thanks aka Mycroft. But this doesn't belong in international news. Moving to media.

Prophit

Help me here, other than Antonia's claim AFTER the fact can someone point to where she notes the infamous T-shirt. All I can find is her original comment on her blog. While I do not believe it required the public editor's comment either it seems to me that Antonia never referenced the T-0shirt until it was brought to her attention.

Secondly, I recall that the Jewish LGBTQ group (sorry can't recall its name off-hand) wrote a full explanation on the t-shirt. If someone can find that letter again it might be helpful.

And finally, anyone who sides with the boor and right wing fringe loony, Steyn, should really have their head examined.

skdadl

Prophit, I was watching the comments section of that particular blogpost of Antonia's develop in real time, and as I recall, it went like this: Antonia hadn't actually gone after Farber in her original post, and discussion had been fairly restrained for a while. Time passed (days?). Then suddenly someone resurrected the thread, at a point when most people would have assumed it was stale (on a media blog, days means stale). That new comment was an attempt to provoke Antonia, and she gave it the back of her hand by making her sly joke about Farber.

 

I'm not going back to find who that provocative commenter was, but anyone who's really interested in the detective work could start there. It sure read like a set-up to me, and so it turned out to be with Farber's humourless response, followed by the Star's public editor's ham-handed attempt to adjudicate. (One snarky blog comment? Some people have too much time on their hands.)

 

I agree with you about Steyn, although at least he got the joke. I hope that you will agree with me that Meir Weinstein, whose defamatory attack on Antonia was the occasion of her recent explanation quoted above, is a problem of a much more serious kind. The FBI certainly do (agree with me, ie).

 

 

Prophit

Skdadl, your version of the history is probably correct. It sustains my understanding that Antonia did not mention the T-shirt at first instance.

We can agree to disagree on the efficacy, even in jest, of anyone trying to publicly proclain another person's aexual proclivity. And the fact that Steyn "got the joke" offers as much solace to me as saying that that Pat Buchanan or any other bigot gets a joke. Who cares? I will not engage in any way of raising his credibility.

For me (and I know we substantially disagree), Farber may not ge in sync here on Israel, but he remains an anti-racist and commited to human rights. Steyn is an Islamaphobe, and bigot who cuts no quarter with me.

Unionist

skdadl wrote:
I hope that you will agree with me that Meir Weinstein, whose defamatory attack on Antonia was the occasion of her recent explanation quoted above, is a problem of a much more serious kind.

Didn't hear back from Prophit on that. After all, the fascist Weinstein has taken to defending Farber. Can't be all bad now, can he?

 

skdadl

Prophit wrote:
Skdadl, your version of the history is probably correct. It sustains my understanding that Antonia did not mention the T-shirt at first instance.

 

Just so's we don't misinterpret what I wrote: Antonia was not writing about Farber "in the first instance," leastways as I recall. She restrained herself from doing that until provoked.

 

Her version of what happened irl remains correct. That has not much to do with what she blogged. She didn't comment about her real-life observations until someone pushed her to do that. She's a nice person, eh? All the delay means is that she held back until somebody else was very rude.

 

And, oh, yes -- about Meir Weinstein?

Prophit

Skdadl, yes we are clear and to add even more clarification, is it not correct that when Antonia finally did blog on the Pride parade and Farber making the now provocative comment, she DID NOT make any mention of his t-shirt? If I am wrong I stand to be corrected but no one seems willing to prove that I am wrong.

As for Weinstein, I will resist in responding that at least he recognizes Steyn for his errant and disrespectful ways but I will not since it's too close to "at least he got the joke". But I would also agree with you on Weinstein with one caveat, I have been online and cannot find where the Canadian government has listed him or JDL as terrorist.

aka Mycroft

Prophit, Antonia clearly says she was on the reviewing stand and saw Farber and his t-shirt in all their full glory. If you're accusing her of lying why don't you just say so? Otherwise I think it's time you drop that thin loin cloth you've been using to hide Farber's shame, it's quite tattered and we can all see through it now.

As for Weinstein - he was the North American spokesman for Kach/Kahane Chai both of which are currently on Canada's list of banned terrorist groups. Hence he's a terrorist apologist. I've said this in public a number of times. If Weinstein wants to sue me for libel I'll gladly give him the address of my lawyer so he can sue me for libel.

skdadl

Profit, as I think a number of us have said before: No, neither the U.S. nor Canada has listed the JDL as a terrorist "entity" (as we are pleased to call them in Canada). But as I said above (and always do say, very carefully), the FBI have repeatedly, in congressional testimony both before and after 9/11, described JDL "activities" as "terrorist." That fact is easily googled.

Prophit

Skdadl you are dissembling. All I have said is that when Antonia wrote her first blog about Farber she made no mention of the t-shirt.it was almost ONE year later that she finally lays claim to seeing Farber and the shirt. You know that is the truth.

As for Weinstein, let me reiterate I do not support the JDL or Kach. But again the truth here is that Canada has not designated the JDL a terrorist group. I have no idea whether Meir is involved today with Kach and either do you. And I suppose unlike you I will not engage in potential slanders since I do not have the money to fund a law suit especially for something as tenuous as this.

By the way I read a rather supportive statement by Warren Kinsella on Meir Weinstein. Again we may diagree but like Farber he too is a longstanding anti-racist whom I do respect.

Cueball Cueball's picture

How was your vacation?

aka Mycroft

Prophit, as you know JDL leader Irv Rubin, Weinstein's then leader and friend, plotted with his deputy to blow up a mosque and assassinate a Congressman. In your estimation are those the acts of a terrorist?

As for Antonia, you are equivocating. Are you saying she's lying? Yes or no?

al-Qa'bong

Quote:

. All I have said is that when Antonia wrote her first blog about Farber she made no mention of the t-shirt.it was almost ONE year later that she finally lays claim to seeing Farber and the shirt. You know that is the truth.

Does this matter?

aka Mycroft

Prophit wrote:
I have no idea whether Meir is involved today with Kach and either do you.

But you and I both know that after Baruch Goldstein's massacre Weinstein spoke to the press as Kach's Noth American spokesman and acted as an apologist for JDL/Kach member Goldstein's actions. Hence he is a terrorist apologist by definition and I can say that with the full confidence that Weinstein will never sue me for libel because truth is the ultimate defence.

Further, Weinstein also defends his friend Irv Rubin who is undeniably a terrorist.

skdadl

Prophit wrote:
Skdadl you are dissembling. All I have said is that when Antonia wrote her first blog about Farber she made no mention of the t-shirt.it was almost ONE year later that she finally lays claim to seeing Farber and the shirt. You know that is the truth. As for Weinstein, let me reiterate I do not support the JDL or Kach. But again the truth here is that Canada has not designated the JDL a terrorist group. I have no idea whether Meir is involved today with Kach and either do you. And I suppose unlike you I will not engage in potential slanders since I do not have the money to fund a law suit especially for something as tenuous as this. By the way I read a rather supportive statement by Warren Kinsella on Meir Weinstein. Again we may diagree but like Farber he too is a longstanding anti-racist whom I do respect.

 

Um -- that simply does not accord with my memory, Prophit.

 

First, I do not remember Antonia writing a blogpost about Farber. To tell you the truth, I can't actually remember what the general topic of the main post was. Maybe you could look that up and get back to us?

 

In any event, the famous snark was written as a comment on that very thread days later, specifically in response to someone else's poke, as I've described above. Since that time, Antonia has occasionally in my reading of her (at BnR, on Facebook, etc -- I mean, she's not obsessive about it, as you seem to be) said that she saw Farber in the parade wearing that T-shirt. I don't know where you're getting the ONE year later shout, but as far as I'm concerned, that's just you not paying attention, eh?

 

Two things remaining: First, you try accusing me of dissembling one more time, which I certainly was not doing, and I can and will at least talk to a moderator here.

 

Second, you read Kinsella's frat-boy smart-mouthery at BCL's place, blog central for frat-boy smart-mouthery. That's where Antonia intervened, as quoted above. So you're keen not only on Weinstein but on Kinsella? lol. Man, you gotta do something about falling for the wrong guys, y'know? Kinsella, overaged teen terror of the Liberal party (well, part of it, anyway) -- not exactly my cup of tea, y'know?

 

I didn't say anything about Kach; I quoted the FBI, and I quoted them precisely. I doubt that lands me in difficult legal territory. I note, however, that you're keen enough on exempting Weinstein from criticism to throw out bright shiny objects as diversions from some hard truths about the JDL.

aka Mycroft

al-Qa'bong wrote:

Quote:

. All I have said is that when Antonia wrote her first blog about Farber she made no mention of the t-shirt.it was almost ONE year later that she finally lays claim to seeing Farber and the shirt. You know that is the truth.

Does this matter?

It does to Prophit because it's all she has but it's so flimsy that she refuses to say if she thinks Antonia lied. Prophit is happy to insinuate it but won't actually say it because she knows the facts don't actually allow her to lay that charge.

Prophit, it's time you drop the smear. You're only discrediting yourself further at this point.

skdadl

I know that many people reading this ongoing discussion are tempted to dismiss it as silly, and of course on the surface it is -- it's absurd.

 

But that's the way that McCarthyism works. Watching the concerted campaigns that have been aimed at just a few writers like Antonia over the last few years has convinced me that there are, well, concerted campaigns afoot. They take off from the most trivial bases and suddenly they are major media conflagrations.

 

It's probably a sign of social health that most people sit around scratching their heads and wondering ftw? how did that happen? why?

 

I can't answer those questions m'self. Other people's motives are usually a mystery to me; I have a hard enough time understanding my own. But sometimes it seems to me impossible to avoid recognizing that some people are being targeted, and I guess that's my answer to those questions. If anyone is being targeted, then we all are, and at that point, I digz in my heelz.

jrootham

I for one would not like to be the person skdadal digz her heelz in.

 

Jaku

Wow this T-shirt has become legendary. Skdadl its funny how our memories work. I have, unlike prophit seen Zerbisias mention that she saw Farber wearing the T-shirt but really really so what.

The whole issue of Farber at the Pride parade was that he was there in support of the Jewish LGBTQ group called Kulanu who were marching in support of Israel and as a counter to QuAIA. In fact Kulanu was handing out condoms that had the inscription "Israel still a safe place to come". Gotta love it!

This is what started some here and other places looking for reasons to rag on Farber. Zerbisias for sure made her first comment on Farber with no mention of the T-shirt and despite whatever you say I suggest she never mentioned the T-shirt until many days later when some enterprising anti-Zionist found a picture of Farber at the parade with the tshirt. In other words Skdadl, Zerbisias' unecessary quip about Farber's sexuality was made at the time and no one knew Zerbisias was aware of the Tshirt he was wearing.

Now follow along with me here for a sec, Here is exactly what Zerbisias wrote:

 

"Yes Susan, imagine my surprise when I saw Bernie Farber identifying himself as queer by joining a pro-Israel gay rights group (my emphasis) in the parade. Funny, because I had never seen him in the march before.

"Funny because I didn't know he was gay. Not that there's anything wrong with that."

 

No mention of a tshirt. In fact she suggests he identified himself as queer by "joining" Kulanu not by wearing the now famous T-shirt. Its all in the language and its obvious as noses on our face.

skdadl

Now, this is interesting, Jaku. You have actually looked up the original post. Have you got a link to that post? Could you give it to us? You seem to be saying that Farber was Antonia's original post-topic, although that's not what I remember, so I'd really appreciate the refresher.

 

As for your reading of Antonia's snark in comments, I'm not sure what point you're making. She's obviously joking, and I think that would be even more obvious if people could see the provocative comment from "Susan" to which she is responding. Darnit, but I can't remember whether "Susan" mentioned the T-shirt or not. I think we'd need to see the thread. But I can't see what difference it makes when Antonia "mentioned" the bricklefritzin' T-shirt, and when she mentioned it says precisely nothing about when she saw it.

 

Forgive me, but I think it's up to the prosecution to do the serious search for that post and thread. I'm srsly busy with Khadr stuff at the moment, and besides I never was good at medieval scholastic stuff.

aka Mycroft

Jaku wrote:

In fact Kulanu was handing out condoms that had the inscription "Israel still a safe place to come". Gotta love it!

I'm sure Rabbi Bulka was thrilled.

skdadl

Shit. Sorry, guys -- I don't often swear, but I'm finally reading through all the comments on that vile thread at BCL's place, and Meir Weinstein himself (or someone calling himself that) just showed up. I need a break.

 

Just before I go, though, I leave you with a comment from Antonia that accords with (1) my memory and (2) my sense of reality/humour:

 

Quote:
Anybody else notice an undercurrent of homophobia here?

If any of you were actually at Pride, you could have gone along Church street where Kulanu was selling the shirts.

They were also on the Kulanu website, which I was following since Bnai Brith put out its vile ''homosexual agenda'' news release.

If any of you actually knew anything about gay culture, you would also know that ''Nobody knows I'm gay'' is an old jokey slogan among gays.

All this is pretty damn sickening considering that, until very recently, CJC had a co-president who believes LGBTs can be "cured.''

And anybody who seriously thinks I was trying to ''out'' Farber must think there is something very very wrong with being gay.

Like I said. Homophobia.

So ... one more time slowly -- and maybe you might need to wipe the fingerprints off your screens first so you can follow along -- I never wrote about Pride after the parade. There was no reason to mention the T-shirt. I knew I was dealing with people posting from one IP belonging to then CJC employee Ben Singer.

I was dealing with with trolls on my blog.

Just like I am dealing with trolls here.

Trolls and homophobes.

 

 

skdadl

[URL=https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=23292180&postID=128261191552539...'s the BCL thread, btw.[/URL] Not sure anyone has ever linked to it before. No wonder, eh?

skdadl

Heh. The lurkers all love me ... Wink

 

Anyway, one of them, being ever so helpful, has actually bothered to do what none of the rest of us has. He found [URL=http://thestar.blogs.com/broadsides/2009/07/my-canada-includes-.html]Ant...'s original post of 2 July 2009,[/URL] which is, of course, a Dominion Day -- excuse me, Canada Day -- post. Or it started out that way.

 

Only fair that everyone should be able to read the drama as it developed. Do note the gap between comments dated 3 July and those that start up again on 6 July. This is how the real detectives do it, kids. Build a timeline. Stick to teh evidence.

 

Thank you, lurker. You wanna keep me honest? Fair enough. We can get along that way. Cheers, and thanks.

Michelle

Gee, how surprising to hear about the "people from one IP address" belonging to a CJC employee trolling her comment section. Snerk.

Cueball Cueball's picture

Thankfully that never happens here.

Jaku

OK so here is the original thread from the Zerb:

http://thestar.blogs.com/broadsides/2009/07/my-canada-includes-.html?cid=6a00d8341bf8f353ef011571d3b925970b#comment-6a00d8341bf8f353ef011571d3b925970b

 

Still no mention anywhere here of the infamous t-shirt from Zerbisias

skdadl

Jaku, do you ever bother to read the people who post before you? I posted that link almost exactly an hour before you did.

pogge

Jaku wrote:

Still no mention anywhere here of the infamous t-shirt from Zerbisias

She wasn't writing a hard-hitting news story or a legal brief that required spelling out all the facts. She was writing a casual comment in passing to trolls who had revived a four day old blog post. How do you know she didn't have the t-shirt in the back of her mind when she wrote what she did and just didn't bother to spell it out? You don't. You're holding her to a phony standard. I wonder why. (Actually, I don't wonder why.)

 

Cueball Cueball's picture

Is there anyway that a program could be made to identify which babblers are using the same IP address? It would be nice to know. Of course the IP address would have to remain secret, but then the info bar for the poster would show what other accounts are associated with the same IP, past and present.

For example, the bar might say:

Quote:
IP Match:

Bernie Farber

Mishei

Prophit

This way Babblers could see who was potentially a sock-puppet, or ones that were posting on a professional basis from a company IP.

Prophit

Cueball wrote:

Is there anyway that a program could be made to identify which babblers are using the same IP address? It would be nice to know. Of course the IP address would have to remain secret, but then the info bar for the poster would show what other accounts are associated with the same IP, past and present.

For example, the bar might say:

Quote:
IP Match:

Bernie Farber

Mishei

Prophit

This way Babblers could see who was potentially a sock-puppet, or ones that were posting on a professional basis from a company IP.

I know who I am. I know Farber but who is Mishei?

Jaku

pogge wrote:

Jaku wrote:

Still no mention anywhere here of the infamous t-shirt from Zerbisias

She wasn't writing a hard-hitting news story or a legal brief that required spelling out all the facts. She was writing a casual comment in passing to trolls who had revived a four day old blog post. How do you know she didn't have the t-shirt in the back of her mind when she wrote what she did and just didn't bother to spell it out? You don't. You're holding her to a phony standard. I wonder why. (Actually, I don't wonder why.)

 

Pogge, you are kidding? The back of her mind? You folks are really stretching!!

aka Mycroft

Jaku, that horse is dead. Stop flogging the poor thing already.

Cueball Cueball's picture

Prophit wrote:

Cueball wrote:

Is there anyway that a program could be made to identify which babblers are using the same IP address? It would be nice to know. Of course the IP address would have to remain secret, but then the info bar for the poster would show what other accounts are associated with the same IP, past and present.

For example, the bar might say:

Quote:
IP Match:

Bernie Farber

Mishei

Prophit

This way Babblers could see who was potentially a sock-puppet, or ones that were posting on a professional basis from a company IP.

I know who I am. I know Farber but who is Mishei?

It's just an example.

But you are quite right it's quite possible that a number of different internet marketing people can be posting all from the same IP, so even if the ID's were the same, it is not necessarily the case that all the persons would be the same. They might all be paid people doing shift work to help develop a strong net presence for a certain set of ideas, views or products.

That said, you would have to have a huge amount of money and employees with a lot of free time on their hands to spend their days harrassing some pretty small potatos Toronto Start reporter by spamming her personal blog.... unless it was personal. So, in my view, whoever it was was someone who was a little disturbed employing a number of sock-puppets. Perhaps even a schizo reaction of some kind.

Some kind of weird internet stalker freak.

Cueball Cueball's picture

Antonia did not say that Ben Singer was posting. She said that several internet "persons" were posting from and IP that belonged to him.

al-Qa'bong

Quote:
Quote:IP Match:

Bernie Farber

Mishei

Prophit

Close, but not quite.  I noticed winnifred skipped town after I pointed out here how his style was exactly like that of Mishei/Maccabbee/Lakesh, whom we all knew was a sock puppet.  There was even a thread in which the sock puppets were caught puppeteering.  A former babbler named "hinterland" caught him at it, if I remember correctly.

Cueball Cueball's picture

al-Qa'bong wrote:

Quote:
Quote:IP Match:

Bernie Farber

Mishei

Prophit

Close, but not quite.  I noticed winnifred skipped town after I pointed out here how his style was exactly like that of Mishei/Maccabbee/Lakesh, whom we all knew was a sock puppet.  There was even a thread in which the sock puppets were caught puppeteering.  A former babbler named "hinterland" caught him at it, if I remember correctly.

Whatever example you use, I was just giving an idea how this kind of tracking could work, without actually outing the people by revealing their IP address.

I think it would really discourage sock-puppeting.

aka Mycroft

Cueball wrote:

Antonia did not say that Ben Singer was posting. She said that several internet "persons" were posting from and IP that belonged to him.

I stand corrected.

aka Mycroft

I think it would be inappropriate for anyone to speculate regarding whether or not the individual(s) who were allegedly posting comments to Antonia's blog from an IP address formerly associated with Ben Singer of the CJC.

al-Qa'bong

Quote:

Whatever example you use, I was just giving an idea how this kind of tracking could work, without actually outing the people by revealing their IP address.

 

OK, I get it now.

skdadl

Michelle, I meant to ask you, since I know there are others here with intense feelings one way or t'other about eggs, whether you had tried Julia's poaching method and how it turned out for you. Me, I'm a convert. You should see the cute little packages I can turn out now with my runcible spoon, although it's true that that takes practice. Well, doesn't everything?

Michelle

I haven't yet!  I haven't been inspired to because the last few times I've made eggs for the fambly (usually on weekends), I've made omelettes with shallots, chopped mushrooms, cheese, etc.  It's a good way to stretch one egg and make it seem like a great big breakfast. :)  But I will at some point!

hysperia hysperia's picture

I admit I've only skimmed this thread and I s'pose that's dangerous but hey, it's Mother's Day and I have a mother, two sons and a grandson!

But Holy STFU!  I can't believe Steyn is still talking about this since it couldn't have been covered more thoroughly the first time around.  It is indeed educational to see how badly the history of the episode can get f'ed up.  Still.

I was on that blog thread when everything came down and I must say, what was most noticeable was the amount of trolling by the pro-Israel contingent.  Antonia's comment, as has been said, came in the comments and certainly wasn't the focus of the post - as skadl says, "In the back of her mind"?  You must be joking?!  What an awful thing to accuse Zerbisias of - carrying Bernie Farber and his t-shirt in any part of her mind!

It might interest you to know that I wrote a letter to Farber and The Star after he had his letter published accusing Zerbisias of being anti-gay (HA HA HA) as well as anti-Israel or anti-Semitic or whatever the hell she is supposed to be.  My letter was mostly on the Israel issue but I did do a small bit of defending of the Zerb as well.  Farber posted my letter (with my real name of course) at the CJC website and accused me of anti-Semitism.  Nice.

If the conversation is worth having at all, it really ought to be more about Steyn and Farber.  Myself?  I was just amazed at the power Farber was able to wield at The Star what with Kathy English's total demolition job of Zerbisias in a great big huge column the following week.  I know there is a nasty anti-Semitic meme to be had about the power of the Jews over the media.  But really.  It might not be "The Jews" but it sure was Bernie Farber! 

I know Zerbisias views her current job-change at The Star as a promotion and The Star sure has treated it that way.  But I just can't help thinking about how the change has effectively shut her up about Israel and Gaza and SUPPORT of the gay community and, worst of all for me, feminist issues.  Speaking for myself I missed her like hell this week when Nancy Grace told us to shut the f**k up.  Is that, indeed, what The Star has done?  As goes Bernie Farber, so goes The Star?  Just sayin'.

skdadl

It really has been Holy STFU! week, eh, hysperia?  Wink  From Nancy Ruth to the Pentagon bannings of our reporters ... I mean, how did the world suddenly decide that Canadians talk too much? Lordy.

 

What really struck me about that post at BCL's -- and I think that is what got this revived conflagration going -- was the willingness of several people who normally like to think of themselves as "respectable" -- Warren Kinsella (snerk), BCL (snerk), and various Friends of Farber (FoFs) --  to cosy up to the execrable Meir Weinstein and the horrifying JDL as a way of making points against Mark Steyn.

 

I mean, srsly? Let's think this through. Has it never before occurred to these peeps that running on the logic of "the enemy of my enemy is my friend" can get them into some very uncomfortable bedtime situations, not to mention large vats of boiling oil? Me, I much prefer the logic that goes "I don't make friends with people who make friends for crooked and sleazy reasons."

 

I also don't make friends with McCarthyites. I'm not friends with Mark Steyn and don't wish to be, but I'm glad he stuck up for Antonia against the witch-hunt, and I'm glad he got the jokes and passed them on.

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