Althouse: "HarperCollins omits Israel from maps for Mideast schools, citing 'local preferences.'"

January 2, 2015

"HarperCollins omits Israel from maps for Mideast schools, citing 'local preferences.'"

"Collins Bartholomew, a subsidiary of HarperCollins that specializes in maps, told the Tablet that it would have been 'unacceptable' to include Israel in atlases intended for the Middle East."

61 comments:

pm317 said...: wow!; 1/2/15, 7:56 AM
MadisonMan said...: And they issue a non-apology to boot!

We're sorry you were offended!; 1/2/15, 7:59 AM
Bobber Fleck said...: Nobody can quite seem to grasp quite what HarperCollins was thinking.

Apparently they were taking their cues from the Obama administration.; 1/2/15, 7:59 AM
Hagar said...: Eppur si muove.; 1/2/15, 8:00 AM
SJ said...: I've been told that schoolbooks in Palestinian Territories label the State of Israel as "Occupied Territory".

And have been doing so for some time.

Harper-Collins isn't following the President, they are following the Palestinians.; 1/2/15, 8:04 AM
Laslo Spatula said...: Can I get my Altlas of the United States with Washington DC removed?

I am Laslo.; 1/2/15, 8:05 AM
paminwi said...: Disgusting!; 1/2/15, 8:08 AM
Bob Ellison said...: What HarperCollins was thinking: make money.

It's not in the truth business. Truth usually sells better, but not always.; 1/2/15, 8:08 AM
Anonymous said...: Everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but not his own facts.
- D Moynihan; 1/2/15, 8:11 AM
I Have Misplaced My Pants said...: “The publication of this atlas will confirm Israel’s belief that there exists hostility toward their country from parts of the Arab world. It will not help to build up a spirit of trust leading to peaceful co-existence,” a British bishop named Declan Lang,

Oh my goodness!

This is the most amazing part to me!

Yes, let's not give those crazy-ass Israelis any more fuel for their delusions that the Arab world wants to FUCKING LITERALLY WIPE THEM OFF THE MAP; 1/2/15, 8:11 AM
Laslo Spatula said...: It will come to nukes, but it still won't be settled by nukes.

I am laslo.; 1/2/15, 8:14 AM
Gahrie said...: Does Harper Collins also publish maps for Muslims in which Spain is still a Muslim caliphate?; 1/2/15, 8:16 AM
Michael said...: I have long thought that the President of the U.S. should present to middle eastern leaders a leather bound Atlas with the holy sites of Islam omitted. Accompanied by the threat that if there is one more terrorist event anywhere in the name of Islam then the cities will vanish. I would give them six months to spread the word.; 1/2/15, 8:26 AM
Anne in Rockwall, TX said...: Was there a contract or purchase order that specified Israel be left off the maps?; 1/2/15, 8:29 AM
Michael said...: For what it is worth, map makers used to insure that their maps were not being copied by intentionally inserting streets that did not exist on their maps. Thus it was that Gay Lane in the Castro was sought after in vain by gay tourists to the Bay Area. This was in the seventies.; 1/2/15, 8:29 AM
George M. Spencer said...: Leading a crazy person to think his delusions are true only makes him crazier.

The voters spoke, and just look at how Obama is behaving.; 1/2/15, 8:34 AM
Saint Croix said...: American oil companies that wanted to drill in the Middle East agreed, in the 1950's, that no Jews would be on the crews, and that any Christians would keep their Christianity secret. No Bibles, no crosses, nothing religious.

It is my belief that this corruption, motivated by greed, has left a very bad impression about the USA in the minds of serious Muslims in the Middle East. Our approach there has been shameful. Of course serious religious belief often leads to strife--it's not like Muslims have anything to be proud about--but a lack of faith is equally disastrous, in my opinion.; 1/2/15, 8:38 AM
Amichel said...: Homosexuality offends many muslim societies as well, are they going to remove any homosexuals from the history texts as well?; 1/2/15, 8:38 AM
traditionalguy said...: Maybe Israelis are into phase III of the iron dome defense system, so when Harper Collins tried using Google Earth there was nothing there. That should make the Muslim death cultists even madder. The Jews packed up everything and left for Miami.; 1/2/15, 8:42 AM
Big Mike said...: "Despicable" doesn't begin to describe Harper Collins adequately.

I have no sympathy whatsoever with the Arabs. You start wars. You lose wars. You pay a price for that.; 1/2/15, 8:43 AM
CWJ said...: Michael,

Perhaps, but Harry Baals Drive is quite real.; 1/2/15, 8:44 AM
CWJ said...: Geography is second only to History when it comes to societal manipulation.; 1/2/15, 8:46 AM
damikesc said...: So, we should stop buying anything from HarperCollins ever again? Got it. Thanks for the update.; 1/2/15, 8:49 AM
Saint Croix said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 1/2/15, 8:49 AM
Saint Croix said...: So, we should stop buying anything from HarperCollins ever again?

The corruption is far deeper than that.

Note how weak this is. This sort of weakness invites war. It invites violence. I despise it.; 1/2/15, 9:03 AM
Lyle said...: How could credentialed professionals allow this to happen?; 1/2/15, 9:24 AM
Saint Croix said...: I call on President Obama to replace our ambassador to Saudi Arabia. Our current top diplomat is, of course, an old white man.

It's bizarre for liberals to defend affirmative action when there's no racism in sight, and to abandon it when confronted with actual bigotry in the world.

Without making a big deal about it, I think our ambassador to Saudi Arabia should be a Jewish woman. Barbara Boxer, for instance, is my favorite choice for diplomat to Saudi Arabia. She is exactly the sort of diplomat that country needs. (As a Republican I think that's a win-win)

But even if you want to go with a more diplomatic diplomat, I don't see how liberals can object to the idea. Unless you are the party of Old White Men Who Suck Up To Saudi Arabia.; 1/2/15, 9:27 AM
Tank said...: Ayn Rand:

A = A.

==============================

Add HarperCollins to Tank's (speaking of self in third person) list of things you can't believe: US gov't, other gov'ts, media, politicians, ______________ (add your own favorite)>; 1/2/15, 9:29 AM
Tank said...: @Saint Croix

Dershowitz would be the perfect ambassador for the Saudis.; 1/2/15, 9:30 AM
Rocco said...: News headline: "Rocco's List, a popular website that maintains links to map publishers, omits Harper Collins, citing 'local preferences' ".; 1/2/15, 9:41 AM
Saint Croix said...: Dershowitz would be the perfect ambassador for the Saudis.

Yeah, but I like Dershowitz!

Anyway, I think the sexism in Islamic society is just as big a problem as the anti-Semitism. So our ambassador should be a Jewish woman. I nominate Boxer half in jest, as I would love to get her out of the country. But I also think nominating a Jewish woman would be a serious act of civil disobedience, and would require a very strong personality and a very brave one. Boxer is pugnacious so, maybe?

I also think we should simultaneously nominate a Muslim to serve as our ambassador to Israel. Ahmad Rashad, maybe. See, I like Ahmad Rashad. I think serving as ambassador to Israel would be an honor and a lot of fun. Israel is not actually the problem. I don't know if liberals understand this.

I also don't know if appointing Barbara Boxer and Ahmad Rashad to Saudi Arabia and Israel, respectively, will solve anything. But it might highlight where the problems are.

I think we should use diplomacy as a tool of peaceful aggression. Aggressiveness gets a bad name, but instead of passively accepting the Saudi culture as acceptable, we should be undermining their evil and highlighting it to the world.

I went to film school with a very rich guy from Saudi Arabia, very sweet man. Most of the upper class Saudis are like that, educated abroad and very tolerant. It reminds me very much of the American South prior to the civil rights movement. The upper class did not hate black people, they argued for segregation to protect black people. The lower class hated black people. But of course the whole rotten regime was hateful.

I'm sure the Saudis make similar arguments about the necessity to keep Jews and women in their place for security purposes. We will be upsetting them, provoking them. The Saudis will be very upset about the need for security for the American embassy. Our Jewish woman ambassador is unsettling their people, by her very existence.

And the point we are making is that their society needs to change. And if they want our ambassador to go home, we can oblige them. We don't need an ambassador in Saudi Arabia.

Our goal here should be to create a very public stink about their sexism and anti-Semitism, and also embarrass all the other countries in the world, who are also not sending women or Jews as diplomats to the region. The point is civil disobedience in the MLK style, to cause a disruption in their society in as peaceful a way as possible.; 1/2/15, 10:12 AM
Saint Croix said...: We need to open up their society, make it peaceful and tolerant, and that's not going to happen with military force.; 1/2/15, 10:16 AM
Gahrie said...: Our goal here should be to create a very public stink about their sexism and anti-Semitism,

Why?

They have many bigger problems than sexism to worry about, especially wehn it comes to women's rights and their anti-Christianism is just as troubling as their anti-semetism.

The problem is, Saudi Arabia is trapped in medievalism demanded by the Koran and their religious leaders. Reform is literally, and explicitly, forbidden on pain of death.; 1/2/15, 10:17 AM
Michael K said...: " Most of the upper class Saudis are like that, educated abroad and very tolerant."

I had a upper class Saudi as a patient in Orange County one time. He had suddenly gotten very sick for reasons we couldn't figure out. Probably intestinal worms.

Anyway, he didn't want women to be nursing him.

He did pay cash, though.; 1/2/15, 10:18 AM
Gahrie said...: We need to open up their society, make it peaceful and tolerant, and that's not going to happen with military force.

What?

This is sheer nonsense.

Do you know anything about Islam?

The only peace possible is in a world dominated by Islam, and the only tolerance possible is based on subjigation, humiliation and cash payments.; 1/2/15, 10:22 AM
lemondog said...: The Drill SGT said...
Everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but not his own facts.
- D Moynihan

Goofballs!

I dislike Google but at least its maps show the state of Israel.; 1/2/15, 10:22 AM
Alex said...: Palestine or bust. I'm washing my kaffiyeh.; 1/2/15, 10:47 AM
Alex said...: Who wants to go around jumping through burning tires?; 1/2/15, 10:48 AM
n.n said...: Well, that settles the open question if Jews should be disarmed. And confirms that it is naive to believe that Palestinian leaders will ever act in good faith.; 1/2/15, 10:53 AM
Michael K said...: They have apologized and promised the map will not be issued.

https://www.facebook.com/harpercollinsuk/posts/911442185546286

HarperCollins regrets the omission of the name Israel from their Collins Middle East Atlas. This product has now been removed from sale in all territories and all remaining stock will be pulped. HarperCollins sincerely apologises for this omission and for any offence caused.; 1/2/15, 11:07 AM
mikee said...: The United States embassy to Israel is still located in an Israeli city that is not the capital of the state of Israel, right?

Tel Aviv, not Jerusalem, right?

If the US State Department can't accept Israel's self-selected national capital, why expect a map publisher to get local boundaries right?

That the US doesn't have its embassy in Jerusalem is a disgraceful act by this country.; 1/2/15, 11:42 AM
MikeDC said...: HarperCollins is morally reprehensible for agreeing to publish this map, but in the grand scheme of things they should be free to do so.

Just like other businesses should be free to refuse to do their owners feel is wrong. Like, say, bake a cake for a gay wedding.; 1/2/15, 11:48 AM
tim maguire said...: Plenty of companies were happy to do business with the Nazi's too. I wonder what the Harper-Collins client list circa 1935 includes.; 1/2/15, 12:32 PM
Joseph Blieu said...: This sounds bad but is the Customer not always right? If NYC school textbooks have a requirement to print "Bush is Evil" on the cover page do you blame McGraw Hill?; 1/2/15, 12:41 PM
Bob Ellison said...: Joseph Blieu, it's morally wrong.

"The customer is always right" is a general guiding principle, useful when waiting a table in a restaurant, and not much use in publishing maps or textbooks.; 1/2/15, 12:59 PM
n.n said...: Michael K:

The "invisible hand" worked! As it often does in a capitalist (i.e. private ownership) society and in the absence of an established monopoly.; 1/2/15, 1:01 PM
furious_a said...: We need to open up their society, make it peaceful and tolerant, and that's not going to happen with military force.

Because Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan.; 1/2/15, 1:50 PM
buster said...: Re the article linked by Saint Croix, I think "When in Rome, do as the Romans do" solves the problem. GHW was right to accede to the Saudis' demand, and GW was wrong to accede. The purpose of diplomacy is not to reform foreign societies, or to insult their people's or their leaders.; 1/2/15, 1:55 PM
DavidD said...: Does Harper-Collins print maps of North America for Mexicans that show Atzlan in place of the southwestern United States, too, citing local preferences?; 1/2/15, 2:19 PM
Saint Croix said...: Because Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan.

Comparing Saudi Arabia--who has not invaded anybody--to Nazi Germany or Imperial Japan is silly. Are you suggesting an armed invasion of Saudi Arabia? I don't think you'd get American support for that, let along international support. The whole idea is ridiculous.

My point is that we can (and should) engage in provocative behavior that is diplomatic rather than military. You want to skip the diplomacy and declare World War III? On Saudi Arabia?; 1/2/15, 2:36 PM
Gahrie said...: Comparing Saudi Arabia--who has not invaded anybody

Tell that to most of the Middle East, Northern Africa, Turkey, Bulgaria, Romania, Sppain, Portugal, Afghanistan, Pakistan, etc.

Saudi Arabia has been waging a war on the rest of the world to violently spread Islam since it was formed in the 1940's, and the people who lived there have been doing the same for over a thousand years.; 1/2/15, 3:34 PM
cubanbob said...: Since for business purposes Israel doesn't exist for HarperCollins the Israeli's ought to deem since they don't exist for HarperCollins the patents, trademarks and copyrights that HarperCollins has in Israel don't exist.; 1/2/15, 3:38 PM
Michael K said...: "Are you suggesting an armed invasion of Saudi Arabia?"

No, but the US Ambassador to the UN has suggested we invade Israel.; 1/2/15, 4:08 PM
cubanbob said...: @Saint Croix

Hmmm they fund the terrorists and many of their citizens are terrorists. We invaded Vichy French North Africa for a lot less than that. Just saying.; 1/2/15, 4:10 PM
Michael McNeil said...: My point is that we can (and should) engage in provocative behavior that is diplomatic rather than military. You want to skip the diplomacy and declare World War III? On Saudi Arabia?

“We” are engaging in provocative behavior — not Obama but the U.S. fracking revolution (which is occurring primarily on private not public lands) is making Saudi Arabia's principal economic resource (which fuels their worldwide campaign to convert all the world's mosques to their extremist brand of Islam) to be worth only a fraction of its value otherwise. We're seeing the results at the pump right now.; 1/2/15, 8:34 PM
Michael McNeil said...: Saudi Arabia has been waging a war on the rest of the world to violently spread Islam since it was formed in the 1940's, and the people who lived there have been doing the same for over a thousand years.

“Saudi Arabia” actually had its start in the 1740's, not the 1940's — and it's maintained the same extremist Wahhabi faith ever since.

Centered on Riyadh, the Saudi polity was destroyed once by the Ottomans, in 1818 — but reconstituted itself later in 1824. Then in 1891 the Saudi state was politically erased by a competing Arabian polity, but the Saudi dynasty resumed rule over Riyadh and its environs in 1902. By 1932 the Saudis had consolidated control over the bulk of the Arabian peninsula.; 1/2/15, 9:15 PM
John Cunningham said...: It will take a few more mass murders by Muslim scum before the American sheeple realize that we are in a war to the death--either we destroy Islam or it destroys us. Nuking the so-called "holy cities" will be a key milestone.; 1/2/15, 9:49 PM
Rusty said...: Saudi Arabia has been waging a war on the rest of the world to violently spread Islam since it was formed in the 1940's, and the people who lived there have been doing the same for over a thousand years.

And they've been doing it with our money. Now we can drive the price per barrel down to the point where they can't afford to cause mischief.; 1/2/15, 9:53 PM
Anonymous said...: In 1974 I was in Egypt after the peace deal between Sadat and Begin. I remember seeing a map in Ismailia on the Suez Canal that showed Israel, but labeled it "Occupied Palestine".

Andrew Russell; 1/3/15, 12:41 AM
jr565 said...: So now I'll figure out if sharper Collins is going to publish any books I plan on buying and now will not buy them.; 1/3/15, 8:50 AM
jr565 said...: "The publication of this atlas will confirm Israel’s belief that there exists a hostility towards their country from parts of the Arab world,” Bishop Declan Lang, chairman of the Bishops’ Conference Department of International Affairs, told The Tablet. “It will not help to build up a spirit of trust leading to peaceful co-existence.”

I wonder where those wacky Israelis got that impression. And, what spirit of trust leading to peaceful co-existence. Have the Palestinians had that EVER?; 1/3/15, 8:59 AM