Oh Snap!: Miss Lebanon Slammed for Selfie With Miss Israel

[oberliner]

A seemingly good-spirited selfie taken at the Miss Universe pageant has caused a political stir. Miss Lebanon, Saly Greige, is being criticized for being caught in a photo with Miss Israel, Doron Matalon, along with two other girls.

After Matalon posted the snapshot on her Facebook profile, Lebanese television station Al Jadeed quipped that, since one of her hobbies is reading, she should have read that Lebanon and Israel are enemies.

Greige explained the situation on her Facebook page, saying she had been trying to avoid communicating with and taking a photo with Miss Israel since arriving at the competition, but while she "was having a photo with Miss Japan, Miss Slovenia and myself; suddenly Miss Israel jumped in, took a selfie, and put it on her social media." Greige said she hoped she would still have the support of the Lebanese people.

http://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/oh-snap-miss-lebanon-slammed-selfie-miss-israel-n288471

[Fred Sanders]

1. Does Matalon still have the support of the Israeli people? Who cares?

[giftedgirl77]

3. Oh shit! I hope a photo bomb & tag on Facebook

doesn't start a war...

[tblue]

4. Good golly! She really did apologize.

And the Facebook responders tell her yeah we know you didn't mean to get your pic taken with HER.

Oy vey! Beauty pageants are archaic and dumb.

[SidDithers]

5. Regional fuckwitism at it's finest...

Sid

[Rhinodawg]

6. Warning: Normal selfie

[oberliner]

8. At least she called her Miss Israel

And not Miss Zionist Entity

[Fred Sanders]

11. One can hope....

[Rhinodawg]

22. I think the people critizing her just hope..

She doesn't get cooties or something from being that close.

The other interesting thing is Miss Lebanon..

Is not wearing a head covering
Is wearing a form fitting t shirt
Wearing makeup.

She's a strikingly beautiful young lady.

[amandabeech]

23. She may very well be Christian.

There are still some Christians in Lebanon, and many of them are moderate. There are quite a few of that group around Detroit and Toledo, and they have little difficulty fitting into normal Midwestern life. Danny and Marlo Thomas were from that community as is Jamie Farr, who played Klinger on M*A*S*H. He is a native of Toledo and a genuine Mud Hens fan!

[LittleBlue]

18. Doesn't look photobombed to me. nt

[Mike Nelson]

7. Do they still wish for "world peace" in that silly...

...reflective Q&A? ...maybe they can start with selfies!

[oberliner]

10. Would've been cool if she said she took the picture and gave her a hug for world peace

Or something like that.

[glasshouses]

12. Cool for who? not for her when she has to go back or her family in trapped in Lebanon

[oberliner]

13. Cool for world peace - incredibly brave for her

I certainly don't fault her for not doing that and respect that she needs to protect her safety and the safety of her family.

But I would very much admire anyone who had the courage to do something like that.

[glasshouses]

16. The threat is too great for her and her family

There's being brave but there is also just being foolish and foolhardy.

I don't blame her for what she felt she had to say.

But I don't disagree with your sentiment

[branford]

9. The different reactions in Israel and Lebanon are most enlightening.

Miss Lebanon felt the need to immediately apologize for an innocent photo, and her failure to do so, might have placed her in legitimate physical risk from her own countrymen, particularly those affiliated with Hezbollah, or other Islamic radicals. It's considered culturally, politically and often religiously unacceptable, sometimes to the point of violence, to be associated with an Israeli.

The reaction in Israel is essentially, "meh."

[PCIntern]

21. Right you are...

and I was impressed so to speak that the usual folk here haven't commented upon your observation. you know: the ones who look for articles which tell stories that allow them to excoriate Jews for whatever reason. All quiet on the Western Front here.

[MohRokTah]

14. That's some purely fucked up fucknuttery right there! eom

[seveneyes]

15. She hoped she would still have the support of the Lebanese people

She has my support. Why would the Lebanese people have any issue at all with a friendly gesture such as this? Is it possible that maybe the "Lebanese people" have some religious aversion to harmless activities? A peaceful religion would welcome such acts as this.

[treestar]

17. This kind of thing is supposed to be above that

and help mitigate it - same as the Olympics. Geez, calm down Lebanese media.

[oberliner]

20. One would think

Though similar incidents have occurred in the Olympics where Israel is concerned. I am reminded of the Iranian participant withdrawing rather than having a match against an Israeli athlete.

[belzabubba333]

19. and to think some of us want to end the beauty pagent