Wednesday, May 08, 2019
Now Farage is caught up in anti-Semitism row
As if we hadn't had enough of anti-Semitism from Jeremy Corbyn's Labour Party, the Guardian reports that another UK party leader has also been caught up in a similar controversy.
The paper says that Nigel Farage is facing strong criticism from Jewish organisations and a series of other groups after it emerged he repeatedly took part in interviews with a far-right US talk-show host, during which the Brexit party leader openly discussed conspiracy theories, some of which have been linked to antisemitism.
They add that Farage appeared at least six times on the show of Alex Jones, who was sued by bereaved parents after claiming a US school shooting was faked, and was banned permanently from Facebook last week:
Farage, who led UKIP for many years, quit the party last year because he said he disliked its hard-right, anti-Islam stance under Gerard Batten. However, the website that Jones fronts, Infowars, regularly features anti-Islam stories.
In his various appearances on Jones’s show, Farage discussed themes commonly associated with an anti-Semitic conspiracy theory that Jewish financiers are behind a plot to replace nation states with a global government.
In the six identified interviews, which date from 2009 to last year, Farage, whose Brexit party is leading polls for the upcoming European elections, repeatedly uses words and phrases such as “globalists” and “new world order”, which regularly feature in anti-Semitic ideas.
In the interviews, Farage also says:
In an earlier interview with Jones, who is also banned from Twitter, Farage mentions Bilderberg, saying: “These lunatics genuinely believe that they know what’s best for us, genuinely believe in this concept of global government, and it will be a disaster.”
Later in the same interview, from June 2010, Farage argues Bilderberg members, along with other supposed plotters, could soon start “censoring and maybe ultimately even imprisoning those who challenge them and fight them”.
In many ways we should not be surprised that Farage night embrace conspiracy theories such as these. He has flirted with some very dodgy characters indeed during his political career. Nevertheless, it is shocking to see a UK Party Leader openly embrace these ideas. People should be under no illusions what they are voting for if they put their cross against a Brexit party list on 23 May.
The paper says that Nigel Farage is facing strong criticism from Jewish organisations and a series of other groups after it emerged he repeatedly took part in interviews with a far-right US talk-show host, during which the Brexit party leader openly discussed conspiracy theories, some of which have been linked to antisemitism.
They add that Farage appeared at least six times on the show of Alex Jones, who was sued by bereaved parents after claiming a US school shooting was faked, and was banned permanently from Facebook last week:
Farage, who led UKIP for many years, quit the party last year because he said he disliked its hard-right, anti-Islam stance under Gerard Batten. However, the website that Jones fronts, Infowars, regularly features anti-Islam stories.
In his various appearances on Jones’s show, Farage discussed themes commonly associated with an anti-Semitic conspiracy theory that Jewish financiers are behind a plot to replace nation states with a global government.
In the six identified interviews, which date from 2009 to last year, Farage, whose Brexit party is leading polls for the upcoming European elections, repeatedly uses words and phrases such as “globalists” and “new world order”, which regularly feature in anti-Semitic ideas.
In the interviews, Farage also says:
- Members of the annual Bilderberg gathering of political and business leaders are plotting a global government.
- The banking and political systems are working “hand in glove” in an attempt to disband nation states.
- “Globalists” are trying to engineer a world war as a means to introduce a worldwide government.
- Climate change is a “scam” intended to push forward this transnational government.
In an earlier interview with Jones, who is also banned from Twitter, Farage mentions Bilderberg, saying: “These lunatics genuinely believe that they know what’s best for us, genuinely believe in this concept of global government, and it will be a disaster.”
Later in the same interview, from June 2010, Farage argues Bilderberg members, along with other supposed plotters, could soon start “censoring and maybe ultimately even imprisoning those who challenge them and fight them”.
In many ways we should not be surprised that Farage night embrace conspiracy theories such as these. He has flirted with some very dodgy characters indeed during his political career. Nevertheless, it is shocking to see a UK Party Leader openly embrace these ideas. People should be under no illusions what they are voting for if they put their cross against a Brexit party list on 23 May.
