David Baddiel - Jews Don't Count [split topic]

[Zetetic]

I find the phrase "Jews (or at least people with Jewish heritage)" a bit chilling really.

[chveik]

horrible writing. looks like the first draft of a teenager's autobiography

[Sebastian Cobb]

I get the impression that Baddiel's professional Jewishness is a bit like Vernon Kay being a 'professional northerner', in that it's part of their professional identity, partially through their own work and partially through them not really having many interesting/notable talents of their own.

Certainly going back to the 90's and before all this Labour AS stuff, it seemed to be a talking point for Baddiel and Skinner to fall back on, rather than him taking it upon himself to be some sort of serious ambassador.

[bgmnts]

What's his point? Just says to me that Jewish people are everywhere and thriving and no problem.

[keir]

I'm reminded of Alexei Sayle's bit about a local eaterie which has, over the years since the 1970s, had many different names and identities as the times have changed, including, at one point, The David Baddiel Sports Bar For Insecure Jews.

[poodlefaker]

He's in good anti-racist company here:

[Zetetic]

You can make images smaller by specifying a width, for example:

Code Select Expand


[img width=800]https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Ex0Jz5NW8AUjucp?format=jpg[/img]


(People can click on the image to make it bigger again, if they want.)

[poodlefaker]

cheers

[Cold Meat Platter]

He's in good anti-racist company here:

It's like one of those hypothetical free bullet lists, isn't it.

[BlodwynPig]

I was in the Spectator a few weeks ago

[idunnosomename]

He's bolded though so not a racist like fascist Taki

[Jack Shaftoe]

Lucas went to Haberdasher's Aske's.

My dad went there! Same year as PR tycoon type Martin Sorrell, who was deeply unpleasant, apparently. Good story, me.

[KennyMonster]

Lucas went to Haberdasher's Aske's.

Is that how someone becomes Jewish?

[Echo Valley 2-6809]

Lucas talks to Dame Edna about Habs, 8m14s in - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2iGl-73QnKU&t=494s

[MoreauVasz]

Am I being unfair in thinking that Baddiel was 'radicalised' by Who Do You Think You Are?

It just seems that, back in the day, he never acknowledged his heritage. I even remember a bit about him being beaten up by skinheads by mistake because they thought he was Pakistani.

[The Culture Bunker]

Am I being unfair in thinking that Baddiel was 'radicalised' by Who Do You Think You Are?

It just seems that, back in the day, he never acknowledged his heritage. I even remember a bit about him being beaten up by skinheads by mistake because they thought he was Pakistani.

Being overly cynical, I had wondered if a lot of it was him seeing a way to keep his career rolling now that he's not got a comedy partner to do a lot of the heavy lifting for him anymore.

[MoreauVasz]

Being overly cynical, I had wondered if a lot of it was him seeing a way to keep his career rolling now that he's not got a comedy partner to do a lot of the heavy lifting for him anymore.

I wouldn't go that far...

I admit this hits quite close to home for me as I have some claim to that heritage but have never taken an interest. Meanwhile, one of my siblings has and this has resulted in some real tension as his identity tends to clash with mine whenever we talk about our shared family history.

He views me as being in denial, I view him as inauthentic. In truth, I suspect that it's heartfelt and that identity may be one of those things that you can just legitimately 'discover' later in life.

I mean, we don't question it when people transition later in life or when celebrities like Elton John pivot from suing people for suggesting they're gay to draping themselves in rainbow flags so maybe I shouldn't instinctively roll my eyes at people who discover a proud Jewish heritage after a life spent pointedly not acknowledging said heritage but yeah... David Baddiel, if you like being a Jew do much, name Joseph Albo's first three albums.

[king_tubby]

Am I being unfair in thinking that Baddiel was 'radicalised' by Who Do You Think You Are?

It just seems that, back in the day, he never acknowledged his heritage. I even remember a bit about him being beaten up by skinheads by mistake because they thought he was Pakistani.

Nah, the routine was about him being beaten up twice, once for being Pakistani and once for being Jewish.

[MoreauVasz]

Ah fair play. Happy to stand corrected.

[Sebastian Cobb]

It was enough of his act that Bo Selecta distilled him to a rather crass 'traditional' Jewish caricature who used to say "call me a Jew... they like it when you call me a Jew" in the early 2000's.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iRKMlY5JiBs

[Jack Shaftoe]

My family are a bit Jewish heritage, but we didn't find this out until recently and there's no cultural awareness of it at all. We went to a Methodist church for a bit and that was the extent of my religious education. I do wonder if you're like Baddiel, and (as far as I know) not that bothered about the history and culture of it all, but look sufficiently Jewish that people constantly have a go at you about it, probably in later life you think 'fuck it then, may as well make something of it'.

[gilbertharding]

I remember he was the chair/host/whatever of the Radio 4 show Heresy - which started in 2003 - and one week one of the 'truths' was something to do with Jews controlling the media (possibly  "You can be anti-zionist without being anti-semitic",  or maybe "There is such a thing as the British establishment and it is in control" according to Wikipedia). Someone in the audience tried to argue the case, that Jews did run the world/media with excruciating results. Incredible stuff.

In 2007 he made a documentary for BBC1 on the subject of the history of restitution for holocaust victims and their descendants, "Baddiel and the Missing Nazi Billions".

In January 2010 he "courted controversy with film about 'Muslim Jew'", The Infidel.

This identity thing isn't new, is what I'm saying.

[gilbertharding]

My family are a bit Jewish heritage, but we didn't find this out until recently and there's no cultural awareness of it at all. We went to a Methodist church for a bit and that was the extent of my religious education. I do wonder if you're like Baddiel, and (as far as I know) not that bothered about the history and culture of it all, but look sufficiently Jewish that people constantly have a go at you about it, probably in later life you think 'fuck it then, may as well make something of it'.

His mother was a refugee from the Nazis. He may not be religious, but his culture/ethnicity/whatever will not have been a secret to him.

[gilbertharding]

It was enough of his act that Bo Selecta distilled him to a rather crass 'traditional' Jewish caricature who used to say "call me a Jew... they like it when you call me a Jew" in the early 2000's.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iRKMlY5JiBs

This doesn't look good for Corbyn.

[Jack Shaftoe]

His mother was a refugee from the Nazis. He may not be religious, but his culture/ethnicity/whatever will not have been a secret to him.

Ahh, fair enough.

[Bad Ambassador]

The most entertainment he's given the world in 20 years was the mention in Stewart Lee's song about Russel Brand's wedding.

[jobotic]

Dunno, denouncing everyone the left for having a blind spot when it comes to antisemitism, while having your name on the front of The Spectator next to an actual anti-Semite and Nazi apologist is quite entertaining.

[Sebastian Cobb]

Dunno, denouncing everyone the left for having a blind spot when it comes to antisemitism, while having your name on the front of The Spectator next to an actual anti-Semite and Nazi apologist is quite entertaining.

His response when this is sort of pointed out to him.
https://twitter.com/Baddiel/status/1377273068142403595

[bgmnts]

Professor F J Lewis
@F_J_Lewis
·
16h
Replying to
@Baddiel
See that Taki Fashy Theodoracopulos McFashFace?

He's your friend, he is. He's your best mate. You write columns for the Spectator together.

lol

[dissolute ocelot]

The Spectator! Where James Delingpole wrote an article defending the alt-right and said anti-Semitism was "just mischievous internet kids experimenting with irony".