Another mainstream shift. Here are two segments that Jon Stewart's Daily Show did last week mocking the U.S. for cutting off UNESCO funding because the agency voted to admit Palestine as a member. The pieces feature brilliant comedic turns by John Oliver. The butt of his report is Robert Wexler, the dogged former Florida congressman who now heads some Israel lobby organization. Oliver exposes the U.S. move as heartless and hurtful to our image around the world.
The reports are best politically for their repetition of the word Palestine, though in the end they come up short. The comedians are unable to talk about the Israel lobby, which is what effected the aid cutoff. They can't name the villain, though Stewart knows the villain. Wexler is his contemporary, and this is a Jewish problem. Just impossible to talk about openly. I guess that's next.
It struck me that Wexler was presented as a “former congress member”, which, of course, he is, without however mentioning that he resigned his seat to take up his current position as president of the S. Daniel Abraham Center for Middle East Peace.
There was also a good video Jon did about the US/Israel/Iran. He approached it from an American perspective (for the most part). Was funny and even-handed I thought.
Oh my. One of the most brilliant pieces I have ever seen on the Daily Show. Laughing, almost crying so terribly absurd. John Oliver/writers totally captured. US (Israel’s proxy) slaps Unesco, Gabon down for doing the right thing. John Oliver delivers..clearly Jon Stewart and team in support. Has taken the Daily Show a long time to get here and address the I/P situation honestly which they have been doing the last several years but as the saying goes “better late than never” Clearly when they do open the gates they cover the issue in a way no other real or fake real MSM outlet does.
How is it Wexler and others do not get that they are being slammed. How does this benefit his angle or agenda?
On Sunday Fareed Zakaria opened up his program with why he supports containment if the claims about Iran were actually accurate.
“Oh my. One of the most brilliant pieces I have ever seen on the Daily Show.”
I agree. I’ve heard a bunch of people who even don’t follow I/P talking about it.
I remember contributing to Wexler’s campaign one year. He was pushing hard to impech Bush and Cheney. Sadly, I’ve come to see that he’s PEP.
As most of our Reps are or are forced to be
OK, the USA is unexplainedly evil, right, got that. we could change the law but were not going to, and — always remember — we’re the good guys! (Yes, let’s always try to persuade ourselves of that!).
And the kids were SOOOO cute. Africa strikes back!
Boffo. Great stuff. (More news than the NYT).
This is not satire but worth noting. Gareth Porter writes that Israel is killing the wrong Iranian scientists.
link to consortiumnews.com
It is definitely pushing the ante. I can’t think of any other mainstream show that even comes close to The Daily Show. It’s very intriguing to consider how Jon Stewart has gotten away with this in America. I guess one reason is that the show itself if quite popular. The other is that if some Zionist organization try to criticize the show, it will be rebutted and skewered. Of course such “defense” mechanisms aren’t effective if some corporate takeover strategy were to take place to remove the show from The Comedy Channel.
Phil, I disagree with this:
” though in the end they come up short. The comedians are unable to talk about the Israel lobby, ”
They didn’t come up short. They connected all the dots, lots and lots of dots, and left it for the view to say to himself. If anything, they mocked the idea that you just can say the Israel Lobby benefitted.
I think Phil’s summary is excellent as it is. They come up short in the end. I still have to see whether Jon Stewart’s ideas on the subject are worth anything.
Must compliment JS. This was an act of unprovoked Israel criticism, brought with humour.
Yeah, this was great! If you have very, very low standards.
In a normal, democratic country he could have said what need’s to be said, not play around the bush hoping that smart people will “get it”. Smart and informed people already “get it”, so this is just some feel good broadcast for interested intellectuals.
But the main issue, that the masses will not understand, is that the USA is willing to do absolutely anything for Israel and it’s lobby, no matter how stupid, or downright inhuman it is. The masses will only get that when someone will have the guts to say it plain and simple, hopefully without being forced to resign the next day.
Land of the free my ass! It’s the land of the happily deluded! You cannot criticize a foreign country for fear or reprisals, it’s not much lower that you can go.
But yeah, for the USA I guess this is a great milestone in “free speech”.
tod says,
Land of the free my ass! It’s the land of the happily deluded! You cannot criticize a foreign country for fear or reprisals, it’s not much lower that you can go.
Ruefully, tod, I must agree with you. It is infuriating.
Phil you are exactly right and tod’s comment is too.
I watched, but it was like hearing a long joke in which the punch line is missing. It’s clear that the punch line would be just a little bit too much to say, so we are left hanging with a non sequitur video as it stands.
Stewart is usually excellent in that he nails the culprit whatever the subject at hand. Here, he couldn’t do it.
Stewart is basically not touching the issue but through Oliver and writers. Stewart did not even get close to mentioning this issue or brutal Israeli leaders or policies for almost 15 years. Last couple years things have opened up. And when they open…wow. Oliver and writers…brilliant
Gosh those were the most cutest kids!
I liked this segment, too. Couldn’t stop laughing.
Q – Just impossible to talk about openly.
R – That is where Mondoweiss steps in.
Stewart and Oliver were right on target til the wrap up summary. In their scripted wrap-up they had a chance to explain the “moral of the story” by identifying winners and losers but they punted instead. Even so the story exposed the absurd allegiance our government has to Zionism and the state of Israel in emotional and specific ways that MSN outlets haven’t touched.
Shame we cannot see Jon Stewart program outside the US.
I know Mayhem, it’s even more idiotic than DVD region encoding.
Fortunately there is a way around it – just temporarily use a free VPN service like Hotspot Shield. Your connection will be routed through a server most likely in the US and the media servers running Jon Stewart’s show will not geoblock you.
Works for me just now, I’m in Australia.
You can watch The Daily Show via the Web. Here is the link for this particular show. link to thedailyshow.com
It was moving. The audacity of Wexler was ugly and myopic. The audacity of Oliver was relentless, with the Gabon ministers, and making the kids cover their eyes. But it was especially funny and this is captured at the end as he is chased out of the classroom in a real slapstick moment.
yep
Very good, until they state that “nobody is winning here”. Of course somebody is winning, and that is expansionist occupying status quo Israel and its supporters.
good point. But in the big picture Israel loses too
Kathleen, yes normal, humanist, peaceloving Israel loses. Their racist brethren lose only if they are stopped some day. Which is far from certain, unfortunately.
Wexler’s insistence that “It’s a LAW!” (i.e. “We HAD to do it!”) was particularly contrived and galling. Contrast that with these former (and I suspect, current, if the whole truth be known) officials illegally supporting, and being supported by, the listed terrorist org MEK (that is funded by Israel). That’s a LAW too.
Common theme/Moral: We are free to either enforce or disregard laws as long as it is at Israel’s request and/or interest to do so.
Pity more people don’t know more about the background of TDS report. Maybe these segments will start the wheels turning though. It’s tough to watch them and not realize that there is much more to the story, as in “Why would Wexler act like laws can’t be changed and that he didn’t want this one to be changed?” Every schoolkid knows they can and do.
I just heard on the This Week in Tech (TWIT) podcast that using only one victim of many is more effective in getting and keeping people’s interest in a tragedy (the discussion was about a viral fund-raising video about maimed kids in Uganda). The theory is that too much misery makes people think they are helpless to help. Perhaps implying more dots here and leaving them unconnected to the rest of the story, invites people in and continue to do their own problem solving, long-term.