Stephen Colbert, who parodies rightwing t.v. pundits, debates himself on the Israeli assault on the Gaza aid flotilla and tells the Israeli ambassador to the US that ‘the Palestinians should go back where they came from.’
| The Colbert Report | Mon – Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c | |||
| Formidable Opponent – Michael Oren | ||||
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Tragically, there is in fact a strain of Israeli propaganda (technically known as ‘hasbara’), consisting of fraudulent ‘scholarship’ that alleges that today’s Palestinians were late arrivals in British Mandate Palestine. The fraud was perpetrated by someone allegedly called Joan Peters in her ‘From Time Immemorial’ and perpetuated (without attribution, since academics had busted Peters) by that great dispassionate historian of the Middle East, Alan Dershowitz.
Of course, the Palestinians should go back to where they came from. It’s called the right of return and Colbert threw Oren when he suggested it,
Juan, can you link your reading audience to a few of thsoe rebuttals? Thank you bunches. :)
colbert started out all tough then licked the ambassadors arse
He let Israel off the hook, though, as if for the entire duration of the conflict Israel has been defending itself and has never been the aggressor. Then again, Oren is good at what he does, and maybe Colbert wasn’t able to finagle him the way he is often able to do to others.
A question Prof. Cole. The word Hasbara sounds very much like the Arabic word Kasbara, derived from ‘Kasb’ i.e., lie. So Kasbara is a bunch of lies. Are the two words related?
Some of you are misinterpreting what happened. Stephen’s jab at the media, repeating he is ‘a friend of Israel’; then asking Oren to explain why Palestinians were barred from having snack food (which there is no sane explanation for, but Oren being the tool he is, tried); then the ‘back where they came from’….That was BRILLIANT on Colbert’s part. You can think it was referring to right of return specifically, or the fact they they are on *Palestinian* land generally, or perhaps further, that they are barring Palestinians from that land, and even claiming a necessity to monitor the native population (and their food intake); whatever you want to point to, Colbert hit Oren with a pipe he never saw coming. I actually laughed out loud when it happened.
It seems like the ambassador is talking out of both sides of his mouth, he does not agree with Colbert that Palestinians should go home yet he thinks Palestinians and Israelis can live peacefully. The wholes reason there is no peace is that the Israelis took the Palestinians homes.
The whole idea of sending everyone back home is an interesting (if even only theoretically) exercise and unveils the roots of the problem.
I believe this is a comic situation where most issues are raised, but as they say “Laughing is the best medicine”… I love it…A successful clip on all issues… Colbert rules. Thumbs up to him!!! Loved the look on Oren when was asked whether he agrees that Palestinians should go back to where they came from?? as compared to Helen Thomas’s remark that Jews in Israel should go back to the countries where they came from!!!
I enjoy this kind of cynic laughter.. It has also double meaning as what Palestinians ask for ” right of return” to pre 1967 borders. So in a sense it was a blow to both Israelis & Palestinians at the same time..lol.. Good Job Colbert… keep up the good work.