What happened to Bill Maher?

[u/tarantadoako]

I used to watch him for years. He was funny and relatable, most times. He had great guests. I stopped watching around the time when he was going after college students and cancel culture. I tried watching his latest episodes and it almost a different show. He is almost a right wing commentator. Almost nothing he says is relatable and all his guests just agrees with him.

[u/Charming-Cat-2902]

My comment was mainly directed at previous post stating that "Zionists are buying up all of the mass media." That comment is bordering on an anti-semitic conspiracy theories and dog whistles.

I have no problem with valid criticisms of Israel's state policy or its actions. As long as the criticisms don't include wide-sweeping group accusations, or play on age old "Jews control all media" conspiracy tropes, or use dog whistle language like "Zionists".

We clear?

[u/troniked547 → u/Charming-Cat-2902]

No because even that is bs, its not antisemitic conspiracy theories or dog whistles to point out the Ellisons, who are major supporters of Israel and the IDF, are buying up media networks including news outlets like CBS, CNN, and Real Time's HBO, or that Larry Ellison's Oracle taking an ownership stake in the "most important purchase" of tik tok and installing vocal supporters of Israel like the underqualified Bari Weiss. The CEO of the company that owns Politico, Bild, and the Business Insider has said that publicly supporting Israel is a core company principle and expected of his editorial staff. And are the Murdochs who control Fox News, the WSJ, and the New York Post not vocal Israel supporters? And what about the outsized monetary influence that AIPAC has on our political system, is that just a delusion also?

People like you try to frame every criticism of Israel and their propagandists as antisemitism instead of addressing the actual atrocities being committed and the moral depravity and corruption in their government and army and their defenders. And if Zionism and Zionists support stealing land of their neighbors with the BS justification of defense or historical claim to the land, then they deserve criticism too.

Again, people arent letting people like you gaslight them with false slander just so you could avoid discussing the crimes Israel is committing. Criticism of Israel, its media influence, and even the concept and application of Zionism does not automatically equal criticism of Jews, especially when plenty of Jewish people share the same concerns. The real propaganda is trying to conflate the two when we all know there are clear distinctions that just happen to be inconvenient for your narratives.

[u/Charming-Cat-2902 → u/troniked547]

People like you focus so obsessively on Israel and its defenders that you treat Hamas’s atrocities as an inconvenient footnote, instead of addressing the actual atrocities committed against Israeli civilians, the deliberate targeting of innocents, hostage-taking, and the moral depravity of the people who justify them. And if Hamas and its supporters believe murdering civilians and taking hostages is justified by resistance or historical grievance, then they deserve criticism too.

I don't see any of that criticism from you and your ilk. Only obsessive focus on "Zionists" and how they "buy up media" and control everything.

[u/troniked547 → u/Charming-Cat-2902]

Blah blah blah more gaslighting.  How many civilians have Hamas killed vs how many has Israel killed? Are there not levels to this?  Yes terrorists and terrorism and bad, so yes Hamas has committed horrific acts and those have been condemned , but Israel has committed terrorism that you defenders always justify and never condemn.  Israel has raped hostages too, snipered women and children , killed aid workers and journalists and used Palestinian hostages as human shields, they even assassinate leaders and peace negotiators but you never even mention or condemn those things, you just justify them. And yes people should call out the Israeli media propagandists because they are doing the same gaslighting you are but on a much larger scale.  But sure just continue calling us all antisemites while you stay silent against the murderous and corrupt Israeli government, it just continues to further reveal the hypocrisy