Chief Rabbi speaks

[Disoriented]

Ephraim Mirvis, the Chief Rabbi, has come out and said what we all (Stalinists apart) know - ‘Labour has let the poison of anti-semitism take root’ and that ‘it is a failure of leadership, sanctioned from the top’.

Damning words and a shocking indictment on Jeremy ‘There isn’t a racist bone in my body’ Corbyn.

His lack of leadership on this issue, amongst others, is about to condemn us to five more years of the most dishonest and shockingly inept government we have ever seen.

THAT will be Corbyn and Momentum’s legacy.

[Ronnie Hotdogs]

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/20 ... -austerity

Im sure the timing is entirely coincidental...

[Red_Army]

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/20 ... -austerity

Im sure the timing is entirely coincidental...

What's that supposed to mean and what relevance does that link have?

[SuperO1881]

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/20 ... -austerity

Im sure the timing is entirely coincidental...

What's that supposed to mean and what relevance does that link have?

It tells me never to listen to those artists and avoid their music.

[Max B Gold]

Ephraim Mirvis, the Chief Rabbi, has come out and said what we all (Stalinists apart) know - ‘Labour has let the poison of anti-semitism take root’ and that ‘it is a failure of leadership, sanctioned from the top’.

Damning words and a shocking indictment on Jeremy ‘There isn’t a racist bone in my body’ Corbyn.

His lack of leadership on this issue, amongst others, is about to condemn us to five more years of the most dishonest and shockingly inept government we have ever seen.

THAT will be Corbyn and Momentum’s legacy.

I look forward to Mirvis pontificating on the evils of sectarianism in Scotland and Ireland and why the SNP and DUP have failed to tackle it.

[Long slender neck]

Nothing to do with anti semitism. Anyone with half a brain knows this is all about Israel Palestine.

Is he not worried about Boris being PM who has been found to be racist multiple times?

[Max B Gold]

Nothing to do with anti semitism. Anyone with half a brain knows this is all about Israel Palestine.

Is he not worried about Boris being PM who has been found to be racist multiple times?

Hang on. Are you saying that this statement was issued to bolster the domestic policy of a foreign country and that foreign country is trying to influence a UK General Election?

[Eat The Rich]

Nothing to do with anti semitism. Anyone with half a brain knows this is all about Israel Palestine.

Is he not worried about Boris being PM who has been found to be racist multiple times?

Clearly not as he congratulated him (Boris) on becoming leader of the Tory party (the party that the ultra-conservative Chief-Rabbi supports) and on becoming the PM. If a high-ranking Imam comes out and says some inflammatory stuff is it reasonable to assume that he speaks for all Muslims? Clearly not. Many Jewish Labour supporters have voiced anger at the Chief Rabbi for his overtly political interjection.

Anti-semitism exists in society, that means that there is a fair chance that anti-semitism exists within British institutions, given that the Labour party is a British institution you'd have to be a fool to think that there are no traces of Anti-semitism within Labour. However, the question is not whether there are some deviants lurking in the shadows but whether the Labour party is institutionally, systemically and politically anti-semetic. The answer is of course no, of course its not. There are Jews working throughout Labour, Momentum and Corbyn's team.

Its been a very strange experience being someone who has spent their life as an active anti-racist to be accused of things like Holocaust denial (StockholmO, I'm looking at you) and anti-semitism by association. It seems nothing I say can convince my accusers that its not true and that tells me that we're in a very peculiar moment. The truth doesn't seem to matter. People have latched on to an idea and it serves their purpose and they're not going to let it go. They're not going to consider the damage that they're doing by raising this most false of false flags. I'm too old to worry about taking it personally, I just want these people to understand that screaming persecution at people that are not persecuting you is not very productive, in fact its down right destructive. I can't stop something I'm not doing. Its like being told that until I atone for beating my wife we can't have a discussion about whether or not I beat my wife. Its totally bizarre.

[Max B Gold]

When did you stop beating your wife? And why have you dragged her into this Farrago of Imbecility.

[Thor]

I’m surprised at you etr beating your wife, I’d have thought you’d be campaigning for tougher laws against such abuses.

Terrible shame.

[Eat The Rich]

Been with my dear wife for 23 years and never so much as yelled at her. I'm a sulker, not a batterer.

[Max B Gold]

Been with my dear wife for 23 years and never so much as yelled at her. I'm a sulker, not a batterer.

The psychological damage created by that approach can be every bit as damaging though. According to an expert I once read in the papers.

[Eat The Rich]

Been with my dear wife for 23 years and never so much as yelled at her. I'm a sulker, not a batterer.

The psychological damage created by that approach can be every bit as damaging though. According to an expert I once read in the papers.

I must be doing something right, I've never had to sleep on the sofa yet.

[F*ck The Poor & Fat]

Of bloody course the statement has been made at this time due to the election. And what’s wrong with that. The guy has concerns, and rightly so in my opinion, and is expressing his opinion in order to stop Corbyn becoming PM.

That is his democratic right now and a democratic right he wishes to preserve.

But the comment that Corbyn is condemning us to a Boris led Government is spot on. I dislike Boris with a passion but I will never vote Labour whilst Corbyn is the leader.

[Long slender neck]

Didn't think we'd have to wait long for Chief Idiot to chime in.

[F*ck The Poor & Fat]

Didn't think we'd have to wait long for Chief Idiot to chime in.

Ding dong.

[Eat The Rich]

Of bloody course the statement has been made at this time due to the election. And what’s wrong with that. The guy has concerns, and rightly so in my opinion, and is expressing his opinion in order to stop Corbyn becoming PM.

That is his democratic right now and a democratic right he wishes to preserve.

But the comment that Corbyn is condemning us to a Boris led Government is spot on. I dislike Boris with a passion but I will never vote Labour whilst Corbyn is the leader.

Well as long as we're clear that you won't vote Labour because . . . Corbyn. . . reasons. . . So there!

But you will vote for Boris who won't fix the country, will continue to hammer the poor, will continue to destroy the health service, will strike an enormously onerous trade deal with Trump, will allow the persecution of the disabled to continue unabated, will allow poverty to continue to grow shutting generations of children out of full participation in society, will continue to ramp up xenophobia about immigrants, will continue to undermine efforts to tackle climate change, will continue to allow the housing crisis worsen, will continue to not address the problems of an ageing population, will continue to allow the power of the rich to erode democracy, will continue to allow a small cabal of media barons to control the news. . .

As long as we're clear that that is completely and utterly irrational for anyone that isn't a sociopath.

[Red_Army]

It is possible that there does exist a problem of understanding of the Jewish community and their ways at the top of the Labour Party, and that the Chief Rabbi is overly strong in this intervention.

I think it is more than a case of a few bad apples, but that large minorities have felt emboldened to push their anti-Israel agenda, but don't understand -or don't care-that the way they are doing it is inherently discriminatory towards Jewish people. It is a sorry mess and one that I fear will not be sorted quickly.

I also don't like how non-Jewish opponents of the Labour Party have leapt on it as a way to kick Corbyn. It is hard to not feel used, as a Jewish person, in this scenario. It is also true that Conservatives have worse records on issues of race, and that there have been recent instances of anti-Semitism, but nobody has ever come out of a situation looking good by trying to paint their opponent as even worse.

I am a Labour member and I will be voting Labour on December 12. I have serious concerns about how a significant minority of members view Jewish people and their persecution, and I still hope that this situation can be resolved, but it requires understanding for that to happen.

[F*ck The Poor & Fat]

Of bloody course the statement has been made at this time due to the election. And what’s wrong with that. The guy has concerns, and rightly so in my opinion, and is expressing his opinion in order to stop Corbyn becoming PM.

That is his democratic right now and a democratic right he wishes to preserve.

But the comment that Corbyn is condemning us to a Boris led Government is spot on. I dislike Boris with a passion but I will never vote Labour whilst Corbyn is the leader.

Well as long as we're clear that you won't vote Labour because . . . Corbyn. . . reasons. . . So there!

But you will vote for Boris who won't fix the country, will continue to hammer the poor, will continue to destroy the health service, will strike an enormously onerous trade deal with Trump, will allow the persecution of the disabled to continue unabated, will allow poverty to continue to grow shutting generations of children out of full participation in society, will continue to ramp up xenophobia about immigrants, will continue to undermine efforts to tackle climate change, will continue to allow the housing crisis worsen, will continue to not address the problems of an ageing population, will continue to allow the power of the rich to erode democracy, will continue to allow a small cabal of media barons to control the news. . .

As long as we're clear that that is completely and utterly irrational for anyone that isn't a sociopath.

Of course not all of us believe the list you have chosen to post. But that’s your opinion. But, for instance, you need to study Labours record on house building in recent decades. Or perhaps it’s forgotten that the gap between rich and poor widened under Labour.

But to me I don’t give a toss about what party failed. My opinions of politicians has never been so low.

[Eat The Rich]

Of bloody course the statement has been made at this time due to the election. And what’s wrong with that. The guy has concerns, and rightly so in my opinion, and is expressing his opinion in order to stop Corbyn becoming PM.

That is his democratic right now and a democratic right he wishes to preserve.

But the comment that Corbyn is condemning us to a Boris led Government is spot on. I dislike Boris with a passion but I will never vote Labour whilst Corbyn is the leader.

Well as long as we're clear that you won't vote Labour because . . . Corbyn. . . reasons. . . So there!

But you will vote for Boris who won't fix the country, will continue to hammer the poor, will continue to destroy the health service, will strike an enormously onerous trade deal with Trump, will allow the persecution of the disabled to continue unabated, will allow poverty to continue to grow shutting generations of children out of full participation in society, will continue to ramp up xenophobia about immigrants, will continue to undermine efforts to tackle climate change, will continue to allow the housing crisis worsen, will continue to not address the problems of an ageing population, will continue to allow the power of the rich to erode democracy, will continue to allow a small cabal of media barons to control the news. . .

As long as we're clear that that is completely and utterly irrational for anyone that isn't a sociopath.

Of course not all of us believe the list you have chosen to post. But that’s your opinion. But, for instance, you need to study Labours record on house building in recent decades. Or perhaps it’s forgotten that the gap between rich and poor widened under Labour.

But to me I don’t give a toss about what party failed. My opinions of politicians has never been so low.

You'll get no argument from me about New Labour. That was a miserable time for anyone on the Left. We had a Neoconservative party and a mothballed conservative party. I'm not especially fond of the Labour party, I don't share their beliefs about many things but at least they're trying. The Tories are so dug in to their little niche as managers of the arse print left behind by the British Empire that they are incapable of doing anything but extracting what little nourishment there is left down the back of the sofa and feeding it to the already bloated bourgeoisie.

[F*ck The Poor & Fat]

Well as long as we're clear that you won't vote Labour because . . . Corbyn. . . reasons. . . So there!

But you will vote for Boris who won't fix the country, will continue to hammer the poor, will continue to destroy the health service, will strike an enormously onerous trade deal with Trump, will allow the persecution of the disabled to continue unabated, will allow poverty to continue to grow shutting generations of children out of full participation in society, will continue to ramp up xenophobia about immigrants, will continue to undermine efforts to tackle climate change, will continue to allow the housing crisis worsen, will continue to not address the problems of an ageing population, will continue to allow the power of the rich to erode democracy, will continue to allow a small cabal of media barons to control the news. . .

As long as we're clear that that is completely and utterly irrational for anyone that isn't a sociopath.

Of course not all of us believe the list you have chosen to post. But that’s your opinion. But, for instance, you need to study Labours record on house building in recent decades. Or perhaps it’s forgotten that the gap between rich and poor widened under Labour.

But to me I don’t give a toss about what party failed. My opinions of politicians has never been so low.

You'll get no argument from me about New Labour. That was a miserable time for anyone on the Left. We had a Neoconservative party and a mothballed conservative party. I'm not especially fond of the Labour party, I don't share their beliefs about many things but at least they're trying. The Tories are so dug in to their little niche as managers of the arse print left behind by the British Empire that they are incapable of doing anything but extracting what little nourishment there is left down the back of the sofa and feeding it to the already bloated bourgeoisie.

Sorry Eat, but I’m happy to discuss my opinions of the merits or otherwise of recent Governments performance but I draw the line with extremist, and what in my opinion are irrational, views which have little to do with balance. Time for me to retire from this one.

[Eat The Rich]

Of course not all of us believe the list you have chosen to post. But that’s your opinion. But, for instance, you need to study Labours record on house building in recent decades. Or perhaps it’s forgotten that the gap between rich and poor widened under Labour.

But to me I don’t give a toss about what party failed. My opinions of politicians has never been so low.

You'll get no argument from me about New Labour. That was a miserable time for anyone on the Left. We had a Neoconservative party and a mothballed conservative party. I'm not especially fond of the Labour party, I don't share their beliefs about many things but at least they're trying. The Tories are so dug in to their little niche as managers of the arse print left behind by the British Empire that they are incapable of doing anything but extracting what little nourishment there is left down the back of the sofa and feeding it to the already bloated bourgeoisie.

Sorry Eat, but I’m happy to discuss my opinions of the merits or otherwise of recent Governments performance but I draw the line with extremist, and what in my opinion are irrational, views which have little to do with balance. Time for me to retire from this one.

I'm an extremist. You're an extremist. We're all extremist to someone. That's the nature of a hierarchical society. Middle ground, centrism, moderation... they don't make sense in this world. You're either for hierarchy in general (in which case you probably benefit from it or think that with a new man in charge you would benefit from it) or you're against hierarchy (in which case you're duty bound to oppose the system root and branch). Call it extremism if you like but i'm pointing right back at you. For it, against it, its all extremism. That's all there is.

[Max B Gold]

Of course not all of us believe the list you have chosen to post. But that’s your opinion. But, for instance, you need to study Labours record on house building in recent decades. Or perhaps it’s forgotten that the gap between rich and poor widened under Labour.

But to me I don’t give a toss about what party failed. My opinions of politicians has never been so low.

You'll get no argument from me about New Labour. That was a miserable time for anyone on the Left. We had a Neoconservative party and a mothballed conservative party. I'm not especially fond of the Labour party, I don't share their beliefs about many things but at least they're trying. The Tories are so dug in to their little niche as managers of the arse print left behind by the British Empire that they are incapable of doing anything but extracting what little nourishment there is left down the back of the sofa and feeding it to the already bloated bourgeoisie.

Sorry Eat, but I’m happy to discuss my opinions of the merits or otherwise of recent Governments performance but I draw the line with extremist, and what in my opinion are irrational, views which have little to do with balance. Time for me to retire from this one.

But, but if you moderate centerists shiteout of the debate us extremists win. I didn't have you down as a spineless Yella bellied loser.

[Sid Bishop]

Salma Yaqoob, a founder and former leader of the far-left Respect Party, was allowed to join Labour four months ago, despite running a notorious campaign in the 2017 general election against a Labour MP, Naz Shah.
A video of Ms Yaqoob speaking at an anti-Israel rally in May has also resurfaced, showing her telling a crowd that Israelis should not host the Eurovision Song Contest because “for years have pretended to be Europeans. The only link is they’re European colonisers.”
She said of Israel: “No matter how much lipstick you put on a pig, a pig is still a pig”.
https://www.thejc.com/news/uk-news/call ... s-1.490670

[slacker]

I have serious concerns about how a significant minority of members view Jewish people and their persecution

Eh? Do you actually think there’s “a significant minority” of current Labour members who just really hate Jews (either in the UK or elsewhere) and wish them harm individually or as a group, or are you talking about defence & criticism of Israel and the current Israeli Govt strategy in relation to the Palestinians here?

I’m not a Labour member, and although I’ve had a few heated debates about Israel/Palestine/Middle East with some over the years, I can honestly say I’ve never once felt threatened, unwelcome, or experienced any persecution from any of them at any time, unlike the - thankfully few in number - rabid far-right and jihadi nut-jobs who have targeted synagogues, Jewish graves, shops and even individuals who “look like” Jews.

That known-conservative orthodox Chief Rabbi doesn’t speak for me, that’s for sure. I’ll be voting Labour (not tactically Liberal even if they look like they’ve got a sniff of unseating the local Tory fixture, because he’s one of the less-obnoxious one-nation types who lost the whip recently, and probably less right-wing than Swinson’s orange book loons).