The intolerance of Nir Rosen

Nir Rosen, a political contributor to many publications, including the Guardian, recently resigned from his position at NYU’s Center for Law and Security after it was revealed (by his comments on Twitter) that he found humor in the news that CBS News Reporter Laura Logan was the victim of a brutal sexual assault while covering the protests in Cairo.

Rosen Tweeted the following (in reference to CNN Reporter Anderson Cooper, who was punched while covering the protests in Egypt):

And:

This last Tweet was quite telling.

Rosen, an extreme political ideologue, seemed more troubled by the fact that the victim of a brutal sexual assault disagreed with him on the U.S. foreign policy than the horrific rape itself, and appeared concerned that the sympathy Logan may receive could diminish the public shame he thinks she deserves for her political heresy.

However, given the following remarks by Rosen quoted below, it doesn’t seem as if too many people would fall within his boundaries of political decency.

Hizballah is not a terrorist organization. It is a widely popular and legitimate political and resistance movement. It has protected Lebanon’s sovereignty and resisted American and Israeli plans for a New Middle East. It’s also among the most democratic of Lebanon’s political movements and one of the few groups with a message of social justice and anti-imperialism.”

“Israel should stop secretly supporting Fatah and adopt the “One State” solution. It should grant Palestinians and other non-Jews equal rights, abandon Zionism, allow Palestinian refugees to return, compensate them, and dismantle the settlements. If Israel doesn’t voluntarily adopt the One State solution and work for a peaceful transition, (like South Africa) then eventually it will be face expulsion by the non-Jewish majority in Greater Palestine, just like the French colonists in Algeria.”

Excerpts  from interview of Nir Rosen by Mike Whitney November 30, 2007

“As we Americans mourn our losses in the Sept. 11 attacks and in the subsequent war on terror (which has now cost more American lives than were lost in the attacks that provoked it), it is worth wondering: What exactly is terrorism? And if it is the infliction of violence on civilians for political reasons, then who are the terrorists?”

Hizb’allah Party of God Truthdig October 3, 2006

“The powerful – whether Israel, America, Russia or China – will always describe their victims’ struggles as terrorism. The destruction of Chechnya, the ethnic cleansing of Palestine, the slow slaughter of the remaining Palestinians, the American occupation of Iraq and Afghanistan, these will never be called terrorism.”

“The Palestinians do not attack Israeli civilians with the expectation that they will destroy Israel. The land of Palestine is being stolen day after day. The Palestinian people are being eradicated day after day. They must respond in whatever way they can to apply pressure on Israel.”

Hamas has been targeted since it was elected The Nation December 29, 2008

(See Jeffrey Goldberg’s post on Rosen’s pro-Taliban, America-bashing Tweets, here.)

Update

Here is an example of Rosen’s Israel-hatred from his Twitter feed:


Written By
More from Adam Levick
Guardian falsely suggests Efrat was built on Palestinian land
An article in the Guardian included interviews with a few residents of Efrat...
Read More
Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *