Bill Maher Says What Others Wont

Bill Maher is one of those commentators I don't always agree with, which is precisely why I find him worth listening to.

He remains broadly liberal, but he has an admirable habit of challenging his own side when he thinks it has lost its way. His latest New Rule, “Clash of Civilizations”, is a particularly good example.

Marking the 25th anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks, Maher asks how much Western attitudes have changed since that terrible day.

His argument is worth ten minutes of your time.

Remember When We Called Terrorists Terrorists?

Maher begins with 9/11 and a surprisingly contemporary question: why have parts of the media become reluctant even to use the word terrorist?

Twenty-five years ago, there was little ambiguity about what had happened. Al-Qaeda terrorists hijacked civilian aircraft and deliberately murdered almost 3,000 people.

Maher's point is not that there is a clash between Muslims and Christians. He explicitly rejects that idea.

The clash, he argues, is between radical Islamism and Western liberalism.

On one side are values such as freedom of religion, equality for women, tolerance of homosexuality and freedom of expression. On the other is an ideology that rejects many of those principles.

What troubles Maher is that sections of the Western Left now seem reluctant to defend their own liberal values against people who openly oppose them.

That is an uncomfortable observation.

It is also difficult to dismiss.

Then Maher Turns to Gaza

The second half of the segment is, to my mind, even more important.

Maher turns to Israel's war against Hamas and attacks the increasingly casual use of one of the most serious words in our vocabulary:

Genocide.

Maher's position is unequivocal. He argues that describing the Gaza war as genocide is false and points to Israel's conduct — including humanitarian aid and medical evacuations — as evidence inconsistent with an intention to destroy the Palestinian people.

The word genocide should not simply become another political slogan.

It describes one of humanity's most terrible crimes. If we casually attach it to warfare involving tragic civilian casualties, we risk stripping the word of its meaning.

More importantly, accusations have consequences.

From “Genocide” to Antisemitism

This is where Maher makes perhaps his sharpest observation.

If people are repeatedly told that Israel is deliberately committing genocide against Palestinians — and come to believe that as an established fact — then hostility towards Israel becomes not merely understandable but morally righteous.

And from there, the line between hatred of Israel and hatred of Jews can become dangerously thin.

Maher argues that this helps explain the extraordinary rise in antisemitism throughout the Western world since October 7.

That does not mean every critic of Israel is antisemitic. Nor does criticism of Israeli government policy become antisemitism merely because it is strongly expressed.

But accusing the Jewish state of deliberately exterminating a people has become a political tool to demonise Israel and indirectly all Jews. 

“Genocide” has become a chant on streets, university campuses and social media — often presented not as an allegation to be proved, but as an established fact.

We have seen the consequences.

As I discussed recently in Never Again Starts Here, antisemitism has grown to the point where Australia has established a Royal Commission into Antisemitism and Social Cohesion. Jewish Australians have found themselves facing intimidation and hostility over the actions of a foreign government. grappyssoapbox.com

That should concern everyone, whatever their view of the Gaza war.

Watch Maher Make the Case

Maher's presentation is short, funny in places, provocative and characteristically blunt.

You may not agree with every argument he makes. I don't think that matters.

His larger questions are worth considering.

Have we become so uncomfortable calling terrorism by its name that we obscure what it represents?

Have sections of the Western Left forgotten the liberal values they once defended?

And have we allowed one of the most terrible words in human history — genocide — to become so casually politicised that an allegation is now routinely treated as a proven fact?

Maher has his answers.

Watch the video below and make up your own mind.

Previous Posts on Israel and Antisemitism

Never Again Starts Here — Why Australia's Royal Commission into Antisemitism matters and what Australia might learn from other Western democracies. grappyssoapbox.com

Israel IS Following Rules of War — An earlier examination of Israel's conduct in Gaza and the laws governing warfare. This links to the November 2023 archive containing the article. grappyssoapbox.com

Kisin Responds to Criticism of His Israel Video — Konstantin Kisin's response to criticism of his arguments supporting Israel after October 7. grappyssoapbox.com

When Platitudes Replace Leadership, People Die

Anthony Albanese was warned. Repeatedly.

By Jewish community leaders.
By media commentators.
By allies overseas — including the Prime Minister of Israel.

The warning was clear: unchecked anti-Israel agitation and antisemitic intimidation would turn violent. And yet Albanese did nothing — except talk.

Bondi Beach is now the price of that failure.

For nearly two years, Australia has tolerated street intimidation, chants calling for violence, harassment of Jewish Australians, and the open vilification of Israel — all waved through under the banner of “peaceful protest.” Hate laws sat idle. Police stood back. No deterrence. No consequences.

And every time tensions escalated, Albanese reached for the same empty phrase:

“There is no place for antisemitism in Australia.”

Words. Always words. Never action.

Saying you oppose antisemitism while refusing to enforce the law is not moral leadership — it is tacit permission. It signals to extremists that intimidation will be excused, hatred indulged, and threats ignored. Eventually, someone takes that signal seriously.

The Jewish community has been shouting into the void. Their concerns were minimised. Their fear dismissed. Their warnings treated as political inconvenience. Even now, after blood has been spilled, the government’s instinct is damage control — not accountability.

Multiculturalism does not survive on slogans. It survives on boundaries. When a government refuses to enforce those boundaries, it does not produce harmony — it produces radicalisation.

Anthony Albanese did not pull the trigger.
But he failed to stop the conditions that made this inevitable.

And Australia must now reckon with the cost of a Prime Minister who chose platitudes over protection.

Multiculturalism Without Boundaries Ends in Violence

It has finally happened. A horrific terror attack in Australia — long seen as a multicultural dream country. Tonight, a mass shooting erupted at Bondi Beach during the first night of a Hanukkah celebration, with gunmen opening fire on innocent people gathered for a Jewish festival. 

At least nine to ten people have been killed and many more wounded in one of Australia’s deadliest shootings in decades, as police responded and took two suspects into custody. (Reuters)

This isn’t random violence — it occurred at a Jewish community event. Israeli and Jewish leaders internationally have condemned the shooting as antisemitic terror targeting Jews in Australia. (The Jerusalem Post)

For two years, Western cities — including Sydney — have seen rising antisemitic chants and protests. Yet Australia’s response has been largely words, not action. Saying “we do not tolerate antisemitism” without enforcing serious protections amounts to tolerating it by default.

What could the government have done?

• Enforce and strengthen hate speech laws.

• Act decisively on repeated community warnings.

• Protect Jewish events and public spaces proactively.

Instead, calls have gone back and forth — including reports commissioned from community groups — with limited follow-through. The stark reality now: threats and intimidation have escalated into real terror. (Combat Antisemitism Movement)

Multiculturalism is under strain. True multicultural success depends on shared respect for core values and a real commitment to protect all communities. That means robust legal action against hate, serious security planning, and honest leadership — not just rhetoric.

Australia must rethink its approach to community safety, enforce its laws without fear, and ensure no group is left vulnerable. The safety and cohesion of this nation depends on it.

Moral clarity!

Sometimes the words spoken by leaders do not age well. Circumstances change and not only are the words no longer relevant but history has made them shrill and out of kilter. 

Yet I happened to come across a short clip from years ago that rings as true to day as it did when it was delivered. The clip is taken from a much longer speech Trump delivered in Saudi Arabia to the leaders of the Gulf Cooperation Council in 2017. 

Perhaps it is even more meaningful given it was delivered to Muslim leaders whose co-religionists include the Islamists terrorists who are and have been the major source of religious terrorism for decades. But listen to the words, they apply equally to all religion-motivated terrorism. And they ring true today, especially given the wide support given to Hamas terrorists by many who should know better.