Ben Smith is a vicious far-Left ideologue whose writings suggest that believes “Islamophobes” are a far greater threat than Islamic jihadis, and so it’s no surprise that he would have nettled Macron by “legitimizing” the jihad massacres in France rather than defending the freedom of expression.
But Macron himself is not consistent. If France is so committed to defending the freedom of expression, why was Rasmus Paludan deported?
“Emmanuel Macron slams media coverage of France’s position on Islamic extremism,” South China Morning Post, November 16, 2020 (thanks to The Religion of Peace):
French President Emmanuel Macron has called a New York Times correspondent to criticise English-language coverage of France’s stance on Islamic extremism after recent attacks, arguing it amounts to “legitimising” violence.
“When France was attacked five years ago, every nation in the world supported us,” Macron told Ben Smith in comments published in the latter’s column on Sunday.
“So when I see, in that context, several newspapers which I believe are from countries that share our values … when I see them legitimising this violence, and saying that the heart of the problem is that France is racist and Islamophobic, then I say the founding principles have been lost.”
In his column about their exchange, Smith said the French president had argued “foreign media failed to understand ‘laicite’,” or secularism, a pillar of French policy and society….
“We will not give up cartoons,” he vowed.
Macron reiterated his point in an interview with Le Grand Continent, in which he stated that, despite his respect for different cultures: “I am not going to change our laws because they shock elsewhere.”
“The fight of our generation in Europe will be a combat for our freedoms,” Macron said, adding that he believed they were being “overturned”….
The Financial Times published a piece by a correspondent that was titled “Macron’s war on ‘Islamic separatism’ only divides France further”.
The paper later took down the column, citing factual errors.
Defending France’s stance in a letter to the Financial Times in which he denied stigmatising Muslims, Macron wrote: “France – we are attacked for this – is as secular for Muslims as for Christians, Jews, Buddhists and all believers.”…