Web Summit CEO Paddy Cosgrave steps down in wake of controversy over his Israel comments::Paddy Cosgrave said his “personal comments have become a distraction from the event, and our team, our sponsors, our startups and the people who attend.”
For context what he said was:
war crimes are war crimes even when committed by allies, and should be called out for what they are
Apparently condemning war crimes is enough to lose your job these days.
How dare he point out that Israel is carrying out war crimes.
I, for one, do not want to live in the kind of dystopian wasteland where we allow our allies to be called out for their war crimes…
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Everything you said is valid… but to me, it doesn’t really apply to this specific context. As far as I could see (admittedly I did only skim the article) but the general statement he made did not mention any specifics. I think it’s unfair to take a broad statement such as condemning war crimes, and to rebut it by saying well a lot of other people are calling this one specific instance a war crime when it hasn’t yet been proven.
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It’s not a competition to see who can commit the most war crimes. This whole idea of comparing one faction against another to see who is worse is just stupid. It should not even come into play when someone simply condemns war crimes! The fact that people read so much into a simple statement says more about them than the person who posted it. If someone’s reaction to someone saying “war crimes are war crimes even when commited by your allies” is to think “well that person is justifying Hamas’s actions” then the problem lies there, just as much as it is to think “that person is saying Israel doesn’t have a right to defend themselves”.
All it is is making the world more divisive when it should be unifying to condemn the tragic loss of innocent human life. People should not impose their factional viewpoints on something as simple as that.
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These are all points to be making to a totally different conversation. The original comment that caused this person to step down was a condemnation of committing war crimes, not an analysis of which specific acts qualify as war crimes nor whether they support a specific party. These type of comments further the exact problem I pointed out. It’s not an excuse to say “but they do”. Be better, don’t make the same mistakes just because everyone else is.
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If your best case is “It might not technically be a war crime”, you are not in a great position.
You: Accuse Israel of war crimes
They: Prove that Israel technically didn’t commit any war crime
You: tHaT’s NoT a GoOd ArGuMeNt
I’m not saying I agree with everything Israel is doing, but calling their actions war crimes when they’re not is just wrong. I hate to break it to you, but insisting on a lie doesn’t make it any more true.
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Even though he’s right, this is why you should have an anonymous account. Just focus on your business with your real account and stay out of trouble.
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When people say ‘cancel culture’, they are generally talking out of their ass, but this is what I say is the cancel culture, that someone saying ‘war crimes are war crimes, even when allies did them’ is somehow so abhorrent that they are sacked. Think about it, war crimes are acceptable but pointing them out is not.
No they aren’t talking out of their ass and yes this is an example of
Yes they are generally talking out of their ass and this is an example where they’re not.
No, being “cancelled” for saying something racist isn’t the same as this.
This is honestly the kind of shit that starts conspiracy theories as it makes you wonder why these companies care so much about a mostly harmless comment. Is it just a general pressure among the elite to always side with Israel? Is their actually a secret Jewish cabal controlling the world? ( there isn’t) or is it something else, like for example the CEO of Intel Pat Geslinger being a hyper religious Christian who has spent a lot of money and time creating the group “Transforming the Bay with Christ” which has a bunch of other business leaders, wealthy individuals and no profit leaders who’s goal is to convert a million people over to their version of Christianity. And who are most likely Christian zionist who thing the Jews returning to Israel is prerequisite of the second coming of Christ.
Stepped down ? For real ?
This is the best summary I could come up with:
His decision comes after a slew of major companies and tech leaders pulled out of the conference following his comments on Israel’s response to the Hamas terrorist attacks.
"Unfortunately, my personal comments have become a distraction from the event, and our team, our sponsors, our startups and the people who attend.
He subsequently issued an apology for the “timing” of his comments, on October 17, saying he understood they had caused “profound hurt” and that he “unequivocally” supported “Israel’s right to exist and to defend itself.”
However, Cosgrave also alluded to his prior remarks, saying “Israel should adhere to international law and the Geneva Conventions – ie, not commit war crimes.”
Cosgrave’s comments sparked an uproar among tech leaders, many of whom canceled their appearances at next month’s conference.
Major companies including Intel and Siemens — two of the major sponsors — also announced they were pulling out this week.The conference — one of Europe’s biggest tech events — is to take place November 13 to 16 in Lisbon, with 70,000 delegates, a Web Summit spokesperson previously told Insider.
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