Category Archives: Entryism

is honest dialogue compatible with the exposure of dishonest dialogue?

By bananabrain | Published: May 12, 2011

we at the spittoon seem spend a lot of time both criticising people who appear to be disingenuous, swivel-eyed fundamentalist weasels and their stooges, as well as calling for honest, open-hearted dialogue and support for a stronger, more liberal society in which both jews and muslims have a role to play, not just as citizens, but as jews and muslims. we believe both in the robust defence of liberty and the principles of democracy as well as aspiring to a better, more peaceful future in which people of differing religions, cultures and points of view will be able to live together – call it a messianic vision, if you like, or even “roddenberry-lite”, but we don’t see why people can’t “sit under their vine and fig-tree, with nobody to make them afraid“.

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Also posted in Activism, Anti Muslim bigotry, Antisemitism, Blogosphere, Civil Rights, Democracy, Freedom of Religion, Human Rights, Identity Politics, Interfaith, Islamism, Jewish Extremism, Multiculturalism, Racism, UK Politics | 27 Responses

Bye Bye Mr Ahmed

By Guest | Published: October 16, 2010

This is a cross-post by Habibi

Apparently Qazi Hussain Ahmed, the former leader of the South Asian Islamist party Jamaat-e-Islami, has been banned from the UK. He had a visa that was valid until 2015. It has reportedly been revoked.


Qazi Hussain Ahmed (centre)

One fan is “shocked”:

One of the organisers of the tour in the UK, S.Hussain of the UK Islamic Mission, said he had also been told that Mr Ahmed’s visa had been cancelled. However, UKIM’s national secretary-general, Zahid Parvez, said he had not heard this. “We would be very surprised and shocked,” he said. “He has been to this country so many times, and has always talked about the need to bring people together.

What, like this?

He [Qazi Hussain Ahmed] also said Bin Laden could not have carried out the 9/11 attacks because he lacked the “ability”; he said the Jews had done it, first giving the day off to all Jews working in the World Trade Centre.

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Also posted in Anti Fascism, International Affairs | 5 Responses

Is this the “counter-Enlightenment”?

By bananabrain | Published: August 6, 2010

i’ve not posted for a while, mostly because of pressure of work, but there are a number of things which are currently causing me to more or less lose sleep.

recently, i gave up posting on pickled politics, partly because of the level of personal animosity i was facing, but mostly just in frustration at my apparent inability to get my point across. now, i suppose i have nobody very much to blame for that apart from myself, but i’ve never felt that was a problem before now. now, i think i’m starting to work out what it is that is bothering me; certainly, it’s not about the denizens of one blog, or even the blogosphere, or even the media. it’s not any one set of views, not any one person, but a set of trends, a collective movement i sense in wider society.

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Also posted in Anti Fascism, Anti Muslim bigotry, Antisemitism, Blogosphere, Christian Evangelical Nutters, Civil Rights, Democracy, European Fascism, Freedom of Expression, Freedom of Religion, Human Rights, Identity Politics, Interfaith, Islamism, Jewish Extremism, Moral relativism, Multiculturalism, Obscurantism, Sectarianism, Secularism, The Far Left, The Regressive Left, UK Politics | 37 Responses

seven modest proposals for the british jewish community

By bananabrain | Published: March 16, 2010

the ferocious but charming miriam shaviv over at the jc is blogging a number of “daily proposals to transform the british jewish community” during march. i was discussing this with my redoubtable other half over friday night dinner and we thought the following might be worth submission:

1. transparency at the jewish leadership council

ok, we know who the board of deputies are. we know what it’s for. we know how it’s funded. we know how you get to be on it. we know who it represents. now, we have this new organisation called the “jewish leadership council”. on it, you have various movers and shakers, you’ve got the vc/banking/property tycoons, you’ve got the charity/safety/israel activists, you’ve got synagogue movement machers, you’ve got access, you’ve got international connections, you’ve got lords, baronesses, knights and the chair of ujs – you’ve got two women and no rabbis, for some reason. you’ve got no haredim, for some other reason. you’ve got leaders from the most broad-based and influential organisations in the community – but what are they for? clearly, this is an influential bunch of people, but who chooses them? who decided that there should be a jewish leadership council in the first place? how are they accountable? what is their strategy? what is their relationship with the board? how is it funded? i for one would like to know.

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Also posted in Activism, Antisemitism, Democracy, Education, Environmental, Identity Politics, Interfaith, Israel/Palestine, Jewish Extremism, Misc, Obscurantism, Politics | Tagged , | 6 Responses

how to complain before you see the programme!

By bananabrain | Published: March 2, 2010

now, i haven’t seen the “dispatches” programme yet, it’s on my sky+ box waiting to be viewed. however, i was quite amused to be warned by one naeem darr, who i understand is some sort of spokesman for our old friends the muslim safety forum, to have my complaint ready. helpfully, he then went on to provide me with a set of points to complain about to channel 4 and jim kirkpatrick mp. i reproduce his email in full – and include in bold the bits which he appears to know before broadcast:

Dispatches Islamophobic documentary

Channel 4’s Dispatches is due to broadcast a damaging and misleading programme on Monday 1st March at 8pm. For nearly a year the programme had undercover reporters attending events (including private meetings) of Islamic Forum of Europe (IFE) and passing themselves off as Muslims and friends, but acting as agents provocateurs to solicit replies to use against IFE.

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Also posted in Activism, Farce, Freedom of Expression, Identity Politics, Islamism, Media, PVE | 5 Responses

“well, they’re a bit extreme, but they do such good work bringing people back to judaism!”

By bananabrain | Published: January 29, 2010

david t from harry’s place forwarded me this cartoon by eli valley, whose satirical strips appear monthly in the leading us jewish magazine “the forward”.

scary kiruv cartoon

scary kiruv cartoon

on reading it, i didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. on one hand, it’s a caricature of the position of the kiruv (“outreach”) organisations, but on the other hand, once you start digging into their theology, their internal politics, their fundraising activities and their influence on the jewish community and israeli politics, it’s hard not to find them scary.

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Also posted in Freedom of Expression, Identity Politics, Interfaith, Jewish Extremism, Obscurantism, Politics, Sectarianism | 59 Responses

Has Tower Hamlets Council been Infiltrated by Islamists?

By Faisal | Published: June 15, 2009

Information about the high levels of interwoven activity between Labour Party councillors working for Tower Hamlets council and Islamist activists in East London Mosque (London Muslim Centre) appears to be reaching the public domain.

An article in the Sunday Express yesterday, by Ted Jeory, details the extent to which the Labour party in Tower Hamlets is infiltrated by members of the Saudi-backed hardline Islamist group, the Islamic Forum Europe (IFE):

The growing influence of the East London Mosque, whose education wing was built with Saudi money, on the Labour party is causing concern in Downing Street.

Gordon Brown, Justice Secretary Jack Straw and new Communities Secretary John Denham have been briefed on Islamic groups based there.

Party officials have held crisis talks about one group in particular, the Islamic Forum of Europe.

Senior party members fear it has infiltrated Labour and exerts too much power over MPs and councillors in areas with large Muslim populations.

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Also posted in Islamism, UK Politics | Tagged , , , | 74 Responses

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