Steve Bell sacked

SE4 Red said:
If the latest cartoon isn't suggesting a pound of flesh with Shylock connotations then what does it actually mean?
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He makes an explicit reference to what it means in the cartoon. There is no ambiguity. Unless Steve Bell comes out and declares an antisemitic intent then it's difficult to find antisemitism without sounding like a conspiracist.

LBJ showed journalists his scar and David Levine likened it to LBJ carrying the scar of Vietnam - Steve Bell's cartoon is a direct reference which shows Netanyahu deliberately scarring himself with Gaza.

The Guardian started David Levine's obituary with a reference to the same LBJ cartoon, so it's obviously famous enough that the cartoon editor should have known the reference - even without the prompt.

The "pound of flesh" reading of it makes no sense anyway as Shylock wasn't taking a pound of flesh from himself. It requires a good chunk of mental gymnastics to make that work.

David Levine Obituary
 
pierrequiroule said:
To make that clear to anyone who has not seen the cartoon the words AFTER DAVID LEVINE are written on Netanyahu's stomach. I think there are elements in the Guardian who have been trying to get rid of Steve Bell for a number of years.
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Frankly, I'd be okay with them getting rid of him as I think his work is just awful. Obviously shouldn't be manufacturing an excuse though, but this is an area you're on eggshells around and you have to separate intent from potential interpretation.
 
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