PewDiePie Is Innocent

This is Part Two: the explanation.

So, I have reasons to believe that this is not as big a deal as people are making it out to be.

Sure, there is antisemitism, and that's wrong and evil. But PewDiePie isn't a racist. Did he

apologize for his comments? Yes, I believe so.

Was his show cancelled on Disney? Yes.

Is PewDiePie paying for his understanding of the freedom of expression? Maybe.

Is he 'bitching' in this video? Nah.

Does he believe that there should be 'truth'? It seems so.

So, I wrote some things about this in comments sections on some You Tubers' channels or on people's shared videos.

"The Media wants to paint me as some sort of villain"..."unless you really know me and what I do... they just want to put those labels out there... that's all that matters, because that's how they get paid."

And more, which he says in his defense, in the video.

I am totally against "labels" which everyone who read my posts or comments, knows. I go on and on, and write (probably too much) about "labels". My biggest 'problem' is the use of words that used to be Muslims words and have been misappropriated, like the word "salafi".

So since PewDiePie, has the guts to do what he wants, and say what he wants, I'm also going to go out on a limb (what, no way?) and say that I'm a salafi and proud of it. Salafi, as you all should know if you have read anything about this I've previously written, is just a way to say a Muslim who follows the original teachings. It isn't some evil "terrorist" or evil "Salafist" (Salafist is a word that uses the Arabic root and is Anglicized, a very big deal today). It is like when Christian evangelicals or the Orientalists before them, use the name Mohamed, as a root word, and add "dan" and you have the unsightly label "Mohamedan" and if you add an 's' it's Mohamedans, which is us!! Wow.

Why can't Christians just call us Muslims?? I call them Christians.

Why use a "label" that is not something we appreciate, except that you want to instigate hatred and promote your 'world view' that is an old world view from the Dark Ages??

Here are some of the things I said in defense of Pewds.(Can I call him that, even though I don't know him and I would never (probably) subscribe to his channel?)

N Word!!

Is this funny? I don't think it's funny, because there's not much context to it, I just put it out there, without context. (I was talking about not labeling people, and then said the evil "N Word".)

I don't think PewDiePie did that with his videos.

He isn't a racist, nor is he promoting racism.

I don't think it's wrong for black people to say 'nigga' or whatever they say to each other, or their 'homies' or whatever. (Excuse my ignorance on the subject)

but I see some Mexican sounding name doing it too, and I guess that's also okay, being that I don't think most Mexicans in America are racist either. Maybe he is a 'homie' so it's, again, okay.

I know Holocaust denial is a big subject. No one wants to deny the Holocaust, although some do. But I mean most people don't deny the Holocaust or the number of Jews who died in concentration camps. I won't get into this except to say that I have always sympathized with the Jews and the victims of the Holocaust for the loss of lives and the torture that they or their families went through, and even for any present day suffering that they suffer due to hate.

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I hope he never targets my channel, because I'm the mom using my kids in videos! Usually they appear to be enjoying themselves, but not always. I haven't posted much content yet, but one of my daughters has some really good ideas, and we have a series of stories she want to make into videos. 

Please, don't judge me!!

"I'm not actually trying to offend people" he says, in his self defense. I believe him. Many people beieve him, because they say they know Piewdiepie.

Karim, another YouTuber, posted his take on the controversy, defending PewDiePie. 

In some comments, people were talking about the meaning of  "Semitic" and concluded that "Arabs are also Semite". They said, they don't think it has anything to do with the Abrahamic religions, like Karim was saying. 

I wrote,  

"Salam I could tell Karim didn't exactly know what he was saying. But he's a good guy." in reply to someone's comment. 

I had this to say about Pewdiepie, "He is always making stupid jokes" 

"Karim, ur right. Piewdipie gives to charity and that will affect his good work (probably) somehow. But he is still really well off so don't worry about him too much."

And then, I added my own original thought, because I like to do that:

"Disney has racist stuff and don't apologize. Why should Piewdipie apologize for a couple jokes? He is always making stupid jokes.

 Let's address the fact that two Indian boys will do something for five bucks without questioning what they are doing. Are they impoverished or just really ignorant of the English language?" 

Many people mention that Piewds gives tonnes to charity and is a really good guy who is not racist as the "click-bait media" would have everyone believe. 

My point about the "poor Indians" if indeed they are "impoverished" is true, is also that PewDiePie (I have since learned to spell his 'name') is a good guy who "gives" a lot (millions in fact, or so it says in comments).

Comments run the gamut from friendly and cute to nasty and even racist, or bordering 'racism'.

Perhaps there is some racist antisemitic stuff being posted since PewDiePie's recent efforts (funny videos). 

"Let me summarise it, the world is run by jews and companies like disney are against muslims...they wouldn't comment as much when muslims are oppressed. I am a semite Muslim also but Disney and the media are corrupt." 

Someone more recently posted a long rant in the comments section there. His name is Borat (very European sounding name, obviously, not sure which part of Europe). He writes about the Talmud, the Goyim, and Ben Franklin, in five long paragraphs. (I didn't get to reading the whole thing because I was searching for my comments and a few others there).

Some of the comments if not racist, might border on racism or more specifically "anti-semitism". 

Lots of people are in part against the corrupt media (the "click-bait" media and that mentality in general). PewDiePie is one of those people who is against "censorship" of "humor", "comedy" etc.

Some of the comments, however, border on "hate" or "racism".

But this might be a matter of "interpretation". 

Are people permitted (by freedom of expression) to post comments about their views regarding "propaganda", or "censorship" or "Disney" or "the media" or "American foreign policy" or "Hitler" or "the Holocaust" or anything else that's bothering them or which they believe to be true? 

 Not everyone is just defending Pewdiepie, but they are also expressing their anger (in many cases, justified) against the media. 

Another comment said, "Conspiracy Theorist" "created by the CIA to discredit government dissident." in reply to one Arab (Semite) comment. Seems they are in agreement about government control. 

Someone commented, "If somebody joke about Muslims, nobody care, if another race or religion become sensation!" The reply that came back seems  less than supportive but could also be seen as "accomodating" (interpretation, is also important), "actually Muslims are sensitive lol... [elipses are his/hers]" I noticed the use of the capital "M", a good sign. As well, he seems to be joking, not insulting IMO.

The reason to examine the context, is because there is a lot of "joking" and "trolling" on YouTube. Some content, by uploaders, as well as comments  is really hateful but lots isn't.

I don't want to dwell on the "moslems" here, lol. In short, let's say that there has been a lot more support for all religions on YouTube by people in comments, recently. It could be because Muslims also are being more vocal and the effect is "rippling" outwards. 

Maybe this is a sign of good things to come. 

There could also be seen to be a rise in anti-Semitism, so it's hard to tell. Maybe racism in general is still on the rise in many parts of the world. Especially Europe.  

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On another channel, there was this, about the accusation of racism (that Pewdiepie is antisemitic):

"The people disliking this video should change their names to Suq Madiq". I have no idea why that's funny or smart, but anyway it got more than a few thumbs up. 

It should be noted, that people generally disagree that the video was racist, and they also say that You Tube is a forum for off color jokes, satire, parody, etc. I concur. I also agreed with this sentiment, and commented that YouTube is not TV and it is the parents' responsibility to watch what their children are watching on the internet, and that surely they are more responsible for their children's welfare than a comedian or popular YouTuber who doesn't even have kids of his own (EVEN though he had a Disney deal)? Where do we draw the line at personal freedom vs civic responsibility? 

Even "MILO", who is at the centre of a bigger controversy, has certain freedoms and that can be a double-edged sword. (Note that I have no opinion to express about Milo here, due to the debate about what he really said vs what people say about him.) Some people are committing professional suicide with that sword, unfortunately (There must be some excellent examples but I can't think of any, lol) I mean besides the obvious, are there any that really stick out? I guess, the first that comes to mind for me, a while back, was George Galloway. He kind of got into hot water all the time, because he is pro Palestinian.  Being on one side in one problem, and on another side in another issue, can lead to labels (again) like "hypocrite" or "drunk". It is not as easy as some think to strike a balance between what one sees is moral and what is politically correct or just obvious (to most people). 

America does the same thing, siding with Israel on the one hand while denouncing terrorism on the other. The same thing happened to Galloway, apparently, when he said some "nice things" about Saddam Hussein, as the late Christopher Hitchens pointed out at the time.

Whether we like it or not, our words or actions will have some effect on others. It could be negative or positive. And there's no way to know which it is sometimes. 

Does Freedom of Expression have to give way for there to be improved humans rights and less persecution of minorities or some groups?  It's not easy to distinguish freedom from hate all the time. Haters like to hate and will protect themselves, or the person they love most. They won't offer you a sympathetic ear or an apology!

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I recently also defended the Quran and other religious texts. I believe they should have special status as books, protections against hate speech because of their religious significance to many people. I wrote an article a long time ago and also posted it on my blog much later, where it still remains. It's significant (to me anyway) that the UN Special Rapporteur to Palestine also wrote something similar (as a lawyer of some status) about this same question. He has a website, Transnational.org, I believe.                   *

In my previous post maybe, there was something about Americans and/or Christians being hateful. I DIDN'T mean All Americans or ALL Christians. Sorry if anyone was offended.