Brazil official calls (Avigdor) Lieberman 'racist and fascist'

[Scurrilous]

<snip>

"Hours before Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman's landmark visit to Brazil, a leading member of the country's ruling party called him a "fascist" and said that leftists will protest his presence.

The leader of Brazil's Jewish community said the visit is needed to "reverse exactly such attitudes."

Lieberman's 10-day visit to South America, the first in several years by an Israeli foreign minister, is set to begin today with Brazil, before moving on to Argentina, Peru and Colombia.

"Lieberman is a racist and a fascist," Valter Pomar, secretary of international relations for the Workers Party (PT), told Haaretz. "The Brazilian left is organizing protests against him and against the policy he represents."

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, also a PT member, will meet Lieberman today in Brasilia. "Everyone is entitled to his own opinion," a spokesman for the Brazilian foreign minister said. "Pomar's view certainly does not represent the government's position."

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[LeftishBrit]

1. Well, so he is

Israel isn't a fascist state, but Lieberman is a fascist politician - like Griffin, or LePen, or Pat Buchanan.

[Donald Ian Rankin]

4. Blame PR

Le Pen got 18% of the vote in a French presidential election at one point. That isn't much lower than Lieberman's level of support, I don't think - I'm not even 100% sure it isn't higher.

But due to the different electoral systems, Le Pen is a comic irrelevance and Lieberman - and Shas, UTJ, National Home and other small far-right groups - wield serious influence and do a great deal of harm.

Israel does *not* have significantly more fascists than many other countries, but thanks to its electoral system it has a much bigger fascist problem.

[LeftishBrit]

5. 100% agree!

I used to be very pro-PR, but the effect it's had in Israel and some other countries has put me off it in its pure form.

Our own system has its problems and sometimes leads to a disproportionate Parliamentary majority for a leader of a party that got well under half the popular vote.

I think the French system lies somewhere between ours and Israel's, and seems possibly to work better - though perhaps a French DU-er will now post to tell us all the problems with their system!

[Donald Ian Rankin]

6. I think converting large pluralities into majorities is a good thing in an electoral system.

N.T.

[LeftishBrit]

7. Up to a certain point; but when a Maggie Thatcher has an overwhelming parliamentary majority with

just 42% of the popular vote, it can have its disadvantages.

[azurnoir]

2. A number of people think that about Lieberman

and some of them have government positions, albeit most do not vocalize their opinion quite so publicly

[bemildred]

3. So? nt