Meanwhile, In Paris

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hebdopoliceman-stands-guard-outside-french-satirical-weekly-quotcharlie-hebdoquot-paris-after-it

The scene (top) outside the offices of Charlie Hebdo in Paris, France this morning.

At least 12 people are dead after three hooded gunmen armed with Kalashnikovs attacked the headquarters of a French satirical magazine and opened fire on journalists and police guards.

The three men – described by a police union spokesman as “commandos” – are on the run after walking into the offices of Charlie Hebdo in Paris’s 11th arrondissement at about midday and fleeing in a getaway car driven by a fourth.

Charlie Hebdo is a satirical magazine known for publishing controversial cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed in 2012.

“Several men in black cagoules were heard to shout ‘the Prophet has been avenged'”, wrote Pierre de Cossette, a broadcast journalist with Europe1 News.

Satirical French magazine Charlie Hebdo attacked by gunmen (Guardian)

Shooting reported at Paris magazine Charlie Hebdo (Telegraph)

Previously: Anything Good In Charlie Hebdo?

Pic: International Business Times

H/T: Gavin Sheridan

Meanwhile…

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Paris this evening.

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Beyond Satire Solidarité Meanwhile, In Paris Prophet And Loss

113 thoughts on “Meanwhile, In Paris”

  1. scottser

    so the prophet has been avenged, eh? how long before some other loony finds something else for the prophet to be p1ssed off about, i wonder..

    1. Sam

      Well, you never know, there might have been a GAA match result involved as well… Loons… Keeping bronze age mentality alive in the modern age…

        2. andyourpointiswhatexactly

          Therefore Christianity is 7 centuries ahead of it: if you look at Christianity in the Middle Ages, “we” were batsh*t too.

          1. Jess

            Irish christianity in the middle ages was at least better than its roman cousin. Plenty of what we could call progressive but the romey popey called heretical.

            Its often said that when Christianity was at its most bats*it, islam was at its most enlightened. It is no coincidence that christianities batsh*tness was born out of the PTSD of the black death and constant warfare on the continent. The same can be said for islamic fundamentalism that has been growing in the mid to late 20th century out of the same sort of conflicts. Even the Irish did it during the most tumultuous periods in our history.

            People are too simplistically saying this is the fault of words written in the qu’ran. It is individuals who will cherry pick their appeals to authority to back up what they would be doing anyway due to political circumstance. Every culture from islam, Christianity, zionism, american gun nuts, khmer rouge, does it at extended periods of upheaval and conflict

        1. Neilo

          Moral and cultural relativism is of little relevance here. Certain adherents of the faith under discussion glory in slaughtering believer and unbeliever alike.

          1. Don Pidgeoni

            Mm, not relevant to go on about it the religion of peace either given that its just “certain adherents of the faith” either is it?

    1. Diddley Aye

      Not disagreeing with you entirely but they were probably responsible for the suicide bombing in Turkey on Tuesday. Fecking Militant Atheist Far Left movements wha?

  6. Kolmo

    Only religion seems to make this atrocity seem like virtuous act, I’m sure the pious f*ckheads were shouting the virtues of whatever invisible man who was apparently offended whilst ending the lives of their fellow man in front of them.

    Truly a horrific medieval mindset

    1. Jess

      I don’t think thats true. War in every form is portrayed as righteous and heroic by those waging it, even those that target civilians. Bomb Nagasaki or Dresden? heroic. Burn down cork? tactical. Assassinate a spy with an umbrella? All in the game yo!

  9. Drogg

    It has a bad year for journalists being killed now this, it is disgusting how much people hate freedom of speech.

  10. Zuppy International

    See that sign over the door with the prominent ‘LIE’ ?

    That’s all you need to know.

      1. ReproBertie

        Zuppy knows all the real facts behind a breaking news story in a foreign country because Zuppy gets the real news and not the lies fed to us sheeple

        1. Mani

          Yes, his source being a sentient kidney bean that lives in his cutlery drawer. He feeds it nectar every day and in return it whispers the truth in his ear in a voice not unlike that of Walter Cronkite.

          1. Zuppy International

            You’re free to tune in and follow whatever soap opera you chose to follow. If you want to make out that all the characters are real, well that’s up to you too.

          2. Mani

            I’m sure that sounded great in your head, Holden, perhaps keep your other bon mots there in your mental creche.

    3. Sam

      You mean the last three letters of the word “Charlie” that don’t have the same shine as the first 4, and match up with where the line of the neighbouring buildings are reflected in the glass?

  13. Shane

    Sick deluded murdering animals, my thoughts go to the families who lost loved ones today for no reason that can ever be justified.

  14. Janet

    I live in the neighbourhood where this was kicking off, it understandably is going nuts. Apart from the shock of these nutters among us and the grief for the families, way to go for making every Muslim in Frances life harder. What justification for finishing off the injured policeman ? They didn’t mistake him for a journalist.

    1. Dubloony

      Hi Janet, no idea what to say other than best wishes to you and your neighborhood in the days to come.
      Its shocking stuff.
      Any news of the gunmen?

      1. Janet

        Thank you, its truely shocking. Massive manhunt now on, I truely hope they get them quickly. Place is shut down, kids stuck in school… horror on your doorstep for some idiots warped nonsense.

        2. Dubloony

          Jesus, terrifying stuff. Stay safe.
          Hope no-one decides to take the law into their own hands either, could make a bad situation worse.

          1. Janet

            There is a meet at République at 18h for a stand for freedom of press. Hopefully no drama there.

  15. brown dogg

    the halakabalakas now seem to be finished in France, soon Germany, followed by England, thank nogodd! Europe shall be saved!
    up PEGIDA!

    (I freakin’ love freedom of speech)

    1. brown dogg

      me too, as we’re well aware FOX is the only fair and balanced news source in the states, bar Breitbart and Truth Revolt

      1. Joe the Lion

        I meant I prefer the updates about Foxes murdering sprees in the News. Sorry wasn’t I clear?

  17. brown dogg

    okay. okay, eyem gonna take a stab at what happens next:

    French authorities will urge the public not to jump to any unhelpful conclusions about the identity and motivation of the killers.

    Politicians, police chiefs and mainstream media reports will urge restraint over what is clearly an inexplicable rogue incident which may have nothing whatsoever to do with the Religion of Peace.

    Extensive – and largely fruitless – efforts will be made to find Muslim community leaders prepared to speak out against the incident, in the unlikely event that it proves that the killers may have had Islamist sympathies.

    Liberal commentators will take pains to draw a distinction between Islamism and Islam, noting that the former is a malign perversion of the latter which (apparently) explicitly forbids the murder of innocents.

    whatcha bet, whatcha bet?

      1. brown dogg

        ah shi’ite, i forgot that one,

        The BBC, The Guardian and their fellow travellers, such as Scottser, will despatch reporters to Bradford, Luton, Rotherham, Birmingham, Tower Hamlets etc with a view to proving that Islamophobic incidents have increased as a result of unfortunate events in Paris. Campaign organisation Tell Mama will confirm that this has been the case, citing the fact that there have been lots of angry tweets on Twitter.

        1. scottser

          soon i will publish my photos of abu hamza al-masri munching on a bacon sandwich and drinking buckfast outside a paddy power in birmingham.

      2. Twunt

        “in the unlikely event they may have Islamist sympathies”

        is that a typo or are you taking the piss?

  18. Friscondo

    This was a despicable, cowardly attack. There can be no justification. However, it is something that happens every day In the deliberately destabilised Middle East. The slaughter perpetrated by the U.S. and its allies has resulted in the deaths of tens of thousands, the displacement of millions and the fabric of civil society torn apart, with untold consequences for decades. The suffering of these peoples is truly horrific. The question must be asked, who has benefitted from this destabilisation?

    1. brown dogg

      yep, got one for that too

      On a BBC youth debate programme the audience will be canvassed as to their views on the cause of the increased tensions. To a man – and regardless of whether or not they are themselves Muslim – they will blame only two factors: “foreign policy” and “Islamophobia.” A young, attractive, female Muslim on the panel will win massive applause from the audience by dissociating herself and her co-religionists from the actions of the killers, explaining that though they may have thought they were acting in the name of Islam they weren’t, actually, because they just weren’t.

      So that’s OK then.

      1. jungleman

        France were very eager to get involved in Syria in 2013 though and are taking part in the bombing campaign against ISIS now. They also have carried out campaigns against Islamist groups in Africa recently. That being said, this is really more to do with French individuals than French foreign policy. However, the vacuum within which this fanaticism flourishes has undoubtedly been created in large part by the foreign policy of western nations vis a vis Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan, Libya, etc.

  19. Bejayziz

    It would be great to see publishers and individuals alike printing or even posting one of the pictures to their facebook or twitter accounts in solidarity for the people and support of freedom of expression

  20. gorugeen

    Christopher Hitchens got it spot on;
    “god is not great….(how) religion poisons everything”.

    1. Neilo

      No greater admirer of The Hitch than me but his holy roller-bothering grew more tiresome as it went along.

  23. Milk Teeth

    Is it me or have broadsheet comments taken a massive step to the right lately. When are we doing the time warp?

          1. Don Pidgeoni

            Do not go into any of the threads on deportation of asylum seekers if you value your sanity

          2. Janet

            Oh yeah I walked away in disgust from one of those… Some true Island mentality shining through there sometimes unfortunately.

    3. Odis

      “Comments taken a massive step to the right”
      So go on then “Milk Teeth” – give us the really nice leftie, hugbox version of events that we’re sadly missing here.

    1. Procrasto

      I dont see how its offensive. its for a section where they show whats going on, surely? – comic, factual, tragic, noteworthy? It is an event and its happening, they didnt make a pun or anything?

      1. Lush

        I’m sorry, I just found it flippant.
        I maybe over-reacted to the headline, yesterday was a really shite day.
        I live in France; since I arrived here 13 years ago, it is the journalists and cartoonists of Charlie Hebdo, amongst others, who have helped me to understand and learn about France and the French.
        It is all too, too sad.

  26. SADDo

    So why did this magazine deliberately choose to antagonize sections of the Islamic community in the first place? There was plenty of satire they could have picked up – say for example the decrepit Du Plantier’s pursuit of Ian Bailey to the point whereby his right to travel has been removed, or the French interventions in Central Africa and elsewhere, not to mention their role in crises after crisis in Africa undpinned by pursuit of wealth such as coltan and diamonds. They were white, whine quaffing journos appealing to bourgeois prejudice – I wonder if it were muslim of black kids killed in Marseille by French cops would they give a sh!t? Or how about anti-semitic attacks in Paris. Of course not. To be honest, if this were any other nationality I’d feel sympathy, but they’re French, arrogant, and they have a lot of questions to answer about their own society and the causes of this tragedy. Their colonialism has fed massive immigration and discontent issues in the Banlieues. We’re not all Charlie today. I am sure the Irish Times crowd will be outraged, but a few bottles of Sancerre at the next dinner party in Ranelagh and some sobstory hashtags tweeted to the likes of Lara Marlowe will see them right. All killing is wrong. Period. Not reporting all killing is also wrong. Period.

    2. ABM's Bloodied Underwear

      Because they chose to, as was their right. Just as when they took swipes at every other major religion.
      If you had looked up their history rather than your own inbred opinion and misconceptions you might have seen that.

    4. Janet

      Wow …. and you have the balls to sweepingly call all the French arrogant ? Reread what you wrote if you want to hear strident arrogance and misconceptions. Do you actually know any French people ? Understand anything about the mindset and I’m not talking about some take on their culture and politics you have from your camping trip 30 years ago.

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