Dieudonne answers British ban with 'quenelle' to Queen Elizabeth

They keep saying 'comedian' but I'm not sure how this is funny.

French comedian Dieudonne M’bala M’bala on Monday answered Britain’s decision to ban him from entry by giving Queen Elizabeth II his trademark Nazi-like salute.

Oh wow! We got a live one here! When everyone else finishes wiping the tears of laughter from their faces, can someone get me some thread so I can stitch my sides back up?

I'm sure the Queen was all upset and crying on her way home from her job dealing with visa applications at the Home Office.

I guess people don't have the right to be idiots in England. Or perhaps they have enough of their own and don't need to import any from France.

How is it ok to drop bombs on people via a vis the western powers yet ban speech?

Slowly but surely our freedoms are being eroded in the name of political correctness.

Banning the Nazi salute (adapted from the Roman salute) is on the level of the Osaka governor banning tattoos for government employees. I am afraid that some people will have trouble seeing how true that is though.

You see, tattoos used to belong to samurai, but the yakuza co-opted them. The Nazi salute was co-opted from the Romans. Through weakness of mind, people allowed this co-opting to happen and the original meanings and uses were lost. Bad guys won.

The quenelle is an adaptation of the stiff armed salute and means "up yours" and is meant to be an arm shoved up the backside. Its not really funny in and of itself, but gains humor through repition like so many gags. You and I have not been exposed to that since we are not French. So its not funny to us anymore than Japanese understand when a raised middle finger is funny and when its not.

His giving a Nazi-like salute, honoring a war criminal, is like Abe visiting Yasukuni shrine, honoring war criminals. A good decision, helping people move towards civilization.

Pretty sad how relative freedom of speech is in European countries. I much prefer the US stance, where freedom of speech is absolute, so long as you aren't directly harming another person.

The prevelance of hate speech is harmful. Freedom of speech is one thing, freedom to spread hate is another. Good on the UK for taking a stand.

The only thing funny about this man is that his name means, 'God-given'. His parents must not have been religious.

The prevelance of hate speech is harmful.

Actually, I kind of like that it lets us know who the idiots are.

freedom to spread hate

Who is spreading hate? Who is spreading hate merely by their presence in a country?

"I much prefer the US stance, where freedom of speech is absolute"

Even if that allows the Westboro Baptist Church to exercise their freedom of expression at the funerals of your loved ones?

"Who is spreading hate merely by their presence in a country?"

Apparently, Dieudonne is. His anti-Jewish remarks are well-documented. These are not just anti-Israel or anti-Zionist comments which would be seen as merely political opinion. On the other hand, I tend to agree with your comment that "it lets us know who the idiots are". But it's worrying when public figures such as Anelka give credence to their views. You and I may know he's just a professional footballer so probably has the brains of a piece of tofu. But kids look up to these people.

Freedom of speech should be absolute, otherwise it is not freedom but a pojnt of view. seems all the people who have vuiews that contradict the mainstream are silenced but those who spout PC like stuff get to force their views down our throats unrestricted. This clown may be offensive but not sure the salute is a Nazi one and anyway, so what if he is a tool? He should still have the freedom to make his crass jokes to those who choose to go and watch him.

Insulting the queen? He should perform at the palace. His act will go down well with her husband.

It's got nothing to do with the queen, what a t0ss3r he is. Oh well, off with his head anyway!

This is 'die Koningin Elizabeth' we're talking about. Given her ancestry, I doubt she'd be all that upset.

We have enough idiots of our own preaching hate and enough idiots in UK preaching hate against its natives. The less we import, the better I say.

His anti-Jewish remarks are well-documented.

Are they? Could you quote him? Here I will:

Racism was invented by Abraham. 'The Chosen People' is the beginning of racism [...] For me, the Jews, are a sect, a scam. It is one of the most serious because it's the first. Some Muslims take the same path when reviving concepts like the 'holy war'.

Seems to me he is talking about Judiasm the religion rather than Jews as a race (are they a race?). If he used the wrong French word or not, I don't know. But he used Muslims in the same way and in the same negative light.

Feel free to contest that or provide something else you think proves his hate speech.

Personally, I think it takes a certain kind of small mind to listen to his words and wind up with a hate of all Jewish people. But of course, if one believes that a great number of people are too small minded to see anything else, then purging him and those like him starts to make sense. But then, so does a whole lot more censorship. I think its best not to step foot on that slippery slope.

Anelka isn't 'on a stint' with West Brom. That's the team he plays for....

After Dieudonné was recorded during a performance mocking a Jewish journalist, suggesting it was a pity that he was not sent to the gas chambers, French Interior Minister Manuel Valls stated that Dieudonné was "no longer a comedian" but was rather an "anti-Semite and racist" and that he would seek to ban all Dieudonné's public gatherings as they amounted to a public safety risk. The ban on his shows has been confirmed upheld by French courts. (Wikipedia)

Spouting racist and religious hatred is something that a civilised country can do without. England has enough of a problem with far right boot boys without w4nkers like this spreading his own brand of cr@p. This is 2014, and people are meant to be more civilised - gits like this are like a cancer within modern society.

This is a joke, People in Britain and France lost their lives in WW2 to be able to spout any crap they wanted. Those that decide what can and can't be said were the enemies. Funny old world.

Funny that in a debate about freedom of speech so many need to write things like "cr@p" and "w4nkers" just to avoid the sensors.

Thunderbird2, in the bit you quoted, he said it was a pity one guy was not sent to the gas chambers, not an entire class of people.

What if someone said it was too bad I was not tortured and killed in a Vietnamese POW camp like so many other Americans? Should I instantly take that as hate speech against all Americans?

So many people died in so many ways throughout history. Part of this guy's point is to make people realize that you cannot talk about the Jews without walking on eggshells. Its a serious form of reverse discrimination. Why do all Jews get to be untouchable now? If I as a white man made black jokes today on stage I would have a much easier time of it. Of course, I do realize Dieudonne goes too far. His comments certainly don't do him any favors and he seems none too sharp. But still. I think the reaction to him is also over-done and not doing us any favors.

@Nobody's Fool

From Wikipedia

On 15 November 2007, an appellate court sentenced him to a €5,000 fine because he had characterized "the Jews" as "slave traders" after being attacked in le Théâtre de la Main d'Or

On 26 June 2008, he was sentenced in the highest judicial instance to a €7,000 fine for his characterization of Holocaust commemorations as "memorial pornography".

You say yourself that he goes too far. When it isn't clear whether we're condemning a religion or condemning people because of their cultural roots, then common sense should tell us it's best to be quiet. Otherwise we won't be welcome. I tend to agree that Jewish people get special treatment, as do American Indians and Australian Aborigines. The reason is that they were massacred in the not so distant past in circumstances that leave people of European origin uncomfortable and embarrassed. It may not be rational, but it's perfectly understandable.