The post below grew out of an email exchange with several interested parties, some of whom are concerned about the recent accusations against Vlaams Belang.
I say “recent”, and not “new”, because none of the material is current, and all of it has been seen before and discredited. But the hard Left in Belgium is relentless, and has suckered parts of the American blogosphere into swallowing these stories hook, line, and sinker.
Vlaams Belang is being held to a ridiculously high standard of evidence that no other mainstream European political party has to meet. No other party — not the Socialists, the Christian Democrats, the Communists — has to publicly refute and disprove every bizarre lunatic accusation made by dishonest shills with a partisan axe to grind.
Other parties can ignore wild-eyed accusations from the fringe. But let someone allege a VB Nazi salute or a VB neo-Nazi book fair, and Vlaams Belang is presumed guilty until it proves itself innocent — which it never really can.Then the next day there is another bogus accusation, and the whole farce begins all over again.
So when one of these Yelloman or EXPO types issues yet another VB smear, we are “troubled” and “concerned” and hope that Vlaams Belang will “refute these accusations”.
WHY???
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Why waste our time with these endless refutations? They suck up thousands of man-hours, achieving nothing. So far all we have seen is the same spurious junk recycled and repackaged for next round of “revelations”.
Once again, no other European party is forced to dance the “We’re-not-Nazis” two-step every day of the week. Only Vlaams Belang.
The hard Left has orchestrated this little game, and we are suckers for falling into their trap. They have us right where they want us — chasing all these Nazi spectres down dark alleys to try to make them disappear. Every day the leftists release another one from their patented Nazi Spectre Generator™, and off we go a-haring after it.For the sake of people I care about, I will do what I can to aid the process of refutation. But I think it’s a mug’s game.
In my opinion, Vlaams Belang proved its bonafides face-down and surrounded by jackboots in Schuman Square on September 11th, 2007.
That was good enough for me. We could see quite clearly who the real “Nazis” were in that charming tableau.
10 comments:
Vlaams Belang is doing its best to keep the ranks clean of neo nazies, but there were times when they actually had quite a following of Flemish nationalists with doubtful reputation.
On the other hand, they are one of the parties in Europe that have been watched and investigated by far left organisations for years and years. They will undoubtably be under extreme serveillance by far left organisation for the next few years. You should take this history into account.
The continuous bashing of Vlaams Belang should indeed not bother us to much. It is not that the counter jihad lives or dies with Vlaams Belang. The huge effort from far left should not divert us from the central cause of counter jihad. That only drains the energy of those who are actually doing something about it. Once the European population understands what is at stake, Vlaams Belang right or wrong will not matter much. Just my two eurocents.
"I say “recent”, and not “new”, because none of the material is current, and all of it has been seen before and discredited. "
That fact -- that it has long been discredited -- doesn't seem to hinder Robert Spencer from continuing to valiantly uphold his crypto-defamatory agnosticism about Vlaams Belang and Filip Dewinter. To be sure, a fastidiously gingerly refusal to soil one's white gloves in actually taking a stand in support of VB is not nearly as bad as the barbaric & berserk steamroller of demonization driven by Charles Johnson; but nevertheless, a persistent withholding of support and respect from a major figure in the anti-jihad movement (i.e., Spencer) in the name of some ethereally ethical agnosticism, no matter how genteel that agnosticism seems, only serves to hurt VB.
bottehond--
In normal circumstances your assessment would be correct. But here is my American dime: I see you and raise the ante --
The destruction of Vlaams Belang is important for anyone who considers liberty a right rather than a commodity handed down by the state.
That's one. It makes me want to ask you if you will not protect these in their struggle to survive, what political parties in Europe do you consider worth defending? Which ones are better at standing up to persecution for the right of liberty and thus deserving of our consideration?
SecondL VB is just a handy weapon by which to aim criticism at the American anti-jihad (and the European effort, too). If VB can be successfully persecuted into annihilation, then we, by association, are deserving of annihilation, too because we have stood on the front lines fighting off the constant barrage of lies about them -- and by indirection, about us.
We didn't ask for this fight, but having had it forced upon us by the unscrupulous and the opportunists, we must therefore take up VB's standard and fight by their side.
I'm fairly sure that VB, except for party members like Outlaw Mike who know America very well, don't even know who we are. They are too caught up in a fight for existence to notice what is going on outside their struggle to survive.
One does not always get to choose which battles to fight; some are thrust upon us in a way that precludes choosing not to fight back. This is one of those conflicts.
If we lose this, we will eventually lose the counter-jihad battle, too. The left will prevail, and the jihad has already co-opted the leftists in Europe.
Abandon Vlaams Belang and we will live with the thugs who are persecuting them.
Do you seriously think that once VB is smashed that the fight is over?
Do you think they will not come eventually after you and your two Euros?
It pays to be most meticulous about whom you are willing to shove under the bus...
"Plenty of room underneath!"
There's no substance to this association, just form. But The Vlaams Belang Standard makes me think of the Soundgarden song The Jesus Christ Pose.
I'm glad to hear that the Baron has been invited to the Facing Jihad summit in Jerusalem. I hope Wilders and Eldad didn't forget to invite Vanhecke and Dewinter as well. The VB's presence there would be like a pointy stick in the eye of the Islamophilic Belgian government and their running dogs in the blogosphere. Please keep us informed about the guest list, Baron.
Sorry I can't help out financially with the trip. Hopefully next year. Good luck.
Yesterday's LGF had a VB related post, with the usual worthless comments, but I was pleasantly surprised, no shocked, to read the following from Pastorius, comment #252, and a few other related comments. See? People will eventually be more reasonable, if you give them the right information. Good for Pastorius.
#113 Athos,
I see your point. I was not aware of the email Robert sent. I really only know of his pov through one of his posts and through an email he sent me.
I can not defend what he said in the email you quote.
It isn't my job to defend Robert Spencer anyway.
That being said, I think one ought to analyze the political dynamic of the counter-Jihad.
Note that the following are on the GoV/Atlas Shrugs side of the argument:
John Bolton
Bat Ye'or
Frank Gaffney
Andrew Bostom
Brigitte Gabriel
Walid Phares
Geert Wilders
Nidra Poller
Nonie Darwish
Walid Shoebat
etc.
I have a hard time believing these people are ignorant as to the argument that is going on between those who oppose VB and those who support it. They either support the Atlas/GoV position, or they are taking the same tact as Spencer.
I think that's where the "reasonable people can differ" position comes from.
Here's the anti-Jihad choices, if you disagree with VB.
LGF
Jawa Report
IBA (LOL)
Wow.
Wait, we've got Hot Air too, right?
Hm. How long before the ban stick is applied, I wonder...
I would disagree with you, BB. I believe all accusations should be met, simply because we're dealing with a political party. Ofcourse that job doesn't fall on you but rests with VB.
In my opinion, there's enough circumstantial evidence to warrant "keeping an eye" on VB. I'm not saying they're fascists or neo-nazis, but I don't believe they broken with their past completely.
Laller, I have personally been working with people from VB for three years, and have received nothing that even hints of an endorsement of fascist or neo-Nazi sympathies. Quite to the opposite, for if you understand what fascism is all about (few bother to try), you'd know that being a Rule-of-Law Conservative party, as the Vlaams Belang is, is the diametrically opposite political position of fascism.
When the Vlaams Blok started, some 20 years ago, there were indeed some connections to extremists groups. Those connections were broken clean 15+ years ago. End of story.
But today's political climate is so rotten and hate-filled that it is darn near impossible to get some common sense across to those with minds that hate.
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