Ariel Sharon

[*ALFIE*]

Am I the only one who thinks that Ariel Sharon is getting more media coverage of his critical illness then Yasser Arafat's condition before his tragic death ?

[Dolly1308]

Who cares either way ,ALFIE ?

[ianess]

Now, now.........you don't think the news channels are feeding us slightly biased information? Heaven forbid! I thought anyone who was on the side of the good ol' US of A had to be a good guy. Or am I just being slightly cynical again?

[*ALFIE*]

hmm...you know, when Arafat died, people at work made jokes about him...cruel world we live in aye..? Somehow I can't seem to imagine anyone making any jokes if Sharon tragically dies.

[jno]

well, Sharon is the leader of a medium-powerful nation; Arafat at his death was barely in charge of his own followers. Whether you like Sharon or not, I think his approaching death is more newsworthy. The suddenness of it is striking too. Arafat's was more of a slow decline (as Sharon's may yet be, of course; in which case I expect media interest in him will wane too.)

[gary baldy]

Dont you know Ariel Sharon is the leader of an oppressed state who bravely struggle unsupported by the west against an evil and powerful enemy?
Oh sorry i was getting him confused with someone else!
Good riddance to bad rubbish! I'll glady make jokes about his death ALFIE if you have any.

[henneth]

Christo radio preacher and Bible bashing fundamentalist Pat Robertson has already stirred things up in the U.S. by saying Sharon's stroke was God's work. Some sort of retribution for carving up the Holy Land (in other words withdrawal from Gaza and the West Bank and giving land back to the Palestinians). Call his radio show in Norfolk, Virginia to see if he has any jokes in the pipeline. He also called for the assasination of Venezula's Hugo Chavez not so long ago.

[gary baldy]

...or perhaps he was talking about the carving up of the Holy Land when the state of Israel was 'created', getting rid of the pesky Palestinians who had lived there for thousands of years and then oppressing and murdering them for half a century.

[GSM7554]

I dident know you were a supporter of terroists Gary.

[Drusilla]

I'm not a great admirer of Ariel Sharon, but he is a more significant leader than Yasser Arafat and his death could lead to more widespread difficulties in this troubled area than Arafat's.
Arafat's death seemed to open a door to peace, but Sharon's could well close it again, if militants of either side take the opportunity to cause mischief and mayhem.

[gary baldy]

GSM - You obviously dont know me then do you?

[Haggisdj]

Gary Baldy - Wern't the Jews there first???

[felinechums]

It seems that anti-Semitism is alive and well on this website

[GSM7554]

gary, your tone offends me very much, maybe its because i am jewish

[Drusilla]

Sorry felinchums, but that is the type of remark that merely stifles free and fair debate. rather than adding anything to the argument.

I would also point out that anyone on this site who supports Palestinians cannot automatically be considered anti-semitic because both the Jews and the Palestinians are semitic peoples.

They have a lot more in common with one another than the extremists on both sides would have people believe. That is part of the tragedy.

[gary baldy]

Haggisdj - its open to interpretation but whatever the actual historical evidence is does that makes it alright then?

felinechums - if you are refering to my comments - i refuse to be drawn in by a naive comment like yours and will not dignify cheap accusations of anti semitism because i appose the actions of the state of Israel

[gary baldy]

GSM - i'm sorry if my 'tone' offends you but the actions of the state of Israel offend me.

[mash]

I seem to remember YA also recieved alot of coverage. AS is likely to get a substantial amount due to the power Israel has as a nation and his links with the US. I think its easy to be over cynical and supicious, call me naive but I see no reason for the media to be biased about the reporting of two well known leaders who have been seriously ill, all their interested in is what sells a story and how long can it last.

[chongalolo]

How on earth can you measure the amount of media coverage any event gets? This surely depends on how many newspapers you read,TV channels you watch and radio news stations you listen to, etc etc.

[Dolly1308]

Well said chongalolo.I think Israel is only looking after itself the same as any other country would .BTW I am a WASP not Jewish so I don't have an axe to grind .