Yourish.com

11/19/2009

Arab oil money 1, British Israel Lobby 0

The Channel 4 “documentary” on The Israel Lobby, vigorously defended by its authors as not in any way antisemitic, is yet another example of the Israeli Double Standard. The specter of Jewish control over Britain’s politicians is so hideously scary, that the authors simply had to understand why a British politician, speaking to a group called The Conservative Friends of Israel, did not mention the Gaza War. Hm. Let’s think. “Friends of Israel,” not “Friends of Fictional Place Known as Palestine” might have been the reason. But here, in their own words, is what they found:

Afterwards, we resolved to ask the question: what are the rules of British political behaviour that cause the Tory leader,his mass of MPs and parliamentary candidates to flock to the Friends of Israel lunch in the year of the Gaza invasion? And what are the rules of media discourse that ensure such an event passes without even being noticed?

During an investigation lasting several months, we have been able to reach several important conclusions. We maintain there is indeed a pro-Israel lobby in Britain. It is extremely well-connected and well-funded, and works through all the main political parties.

It’s the British version of Walt & Mearsheimer. But here, in my opinion, is the single action that blows “The Israel Lobby” meme in Britain out of the water:

The British government decided it was “in the overwhelming interests of the United Kingdom” to make Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi, the Lockerbie bomber, eligible for return to Libya, leaked ministerial letters reveal.

Gordon Brown’s government made the decision after discussions between Libya and BP over a multi-million-pound oil exploration deal had hit difficulties. These were resolved soon afterwards.

“The Israel Lobby” contributes money to British politicians and supposedly affects the U.K.’s actions toward Israel. Yet the U.K. refused to vote on the Goldstone report, is refusing to sell arms and spare parts to the IDF for certain items, constantly chides Israel regarding the current situation, and British media (particularly the Guardian) regularly excoriates Israel. In the meantime, Muammar Ghaddafi offers BP an oil deal, and the Lockerbie bomber, who murdered 270 people, including 11 people on the ground in the U.K., goes free.

Tell me again how powerful The Israel Lobby is in the U.K., because I could really use a good laugh.

11/02/2009

The blood libeler speaks

Filed under: Anti-Semitism, Gaza, Media Bias — Tags: , — Meryl Yourish @ 12:00 pm

Ha’aretz interviewed Donald Bostrom, who can’t understand why Israelis didn’t take seriously his article blaming the IDF for killing Palestinians for their organs, and immediately launch an investigation to make sure that it wasn’t true.

But he’s not sorry for any of it, really.

Are you sorry about anything?

“I’m sorry there are so many lies about me. Like for example that they say I wrote that the soldiers hunted for youths so as to take their organs. It’s obvious that’s a lie. Even the Palestinians don’t make a claim like that. And the other side attributes anti-Semitism to me. I’m sorry about that. I’m sorry I’ve become a political tool. I’m sorry the article caused damage to the struggle for human rights here. And above all, I’m sorry that no one took the article seriously and that they did not examine the suspicions. In Sweden too they didn’t take it seriously.”

What. A. Tool. The human rights he’s talking about? Palestinians being killed by soldiers. The fact that the Palestinian that was killed, the one that inspired his story, was a terrorist battling the IDF seems to have been conveniently left out of Bostrom’s narrative.

Note that he’s not sorry at all that Israel’s enemies have another Mohammed al-Dura club to wield. What a jackass. This guy is considered a journalist in Sweden?

Do you think the IDF killed people to get body organs?

“I don’t think soldiers behaved like that. I don’t think they killed in order to gather organs. The truth is that they kill them without a trial and their bodies are taken to Abu Kabir. We don’t know whether they take out the organs. That has still to be further investigated. No one opened up the bodies after they were returned and only one man knows the truth, Prof. Yehuda Hiss, the director of the forensic institute. “

Actually, any medical doctor knowledgeable in transplants could tell you the truth: The organs that were “harvested” in such a way would be useless. But don’t let the facts get in the way of your spreading lies.

You have already had scandals at your forensic institute with other bodies, he says, and there is illegal trade in organs, so there is a need to investigate.

In other words: Have you stopped beating your wife yet? Guilty until proven innocent. Except when Israel offers the proof, the world will still insist that Israel is guilty. And then there’s the fact that he’s being accompanied by a bodyguard, paid for, no doubt, by Israeli taxpayers. Why? Um. Because he was met by protesters at the airport. Oooh. Scary.

Then there’s the conference itself, where he was booed and challenged on his made-up facts:

Lapid shot back, “To say this without a shred of evidence, that Israel possibly harvested organs from Palestinians who disappeared, in other words, whom we kidnapped, killed, and robbed their organs, is a degrading and monstrous idea.”

In response, Bostrom said that he understands why people are angry, saying that everyone lies while at war. He said that it is difficult for reporters to distinguish between what is correct and what is a lie. “If it were just one family, fine. But there were many families. Mothers have a right to know what happened to their sons,” claimed Bostrom.

Bostrom was told to his face that he was an anti-Semite. Of course, he responded that not all critics of Israel are anti-Semitic. Kudos to Yair Lapid for this:

Lapid concluded, “You are an anti-Semite because you are prepared to believe that there is a possibility that the government and the authorities would take part in such a monstrous thing. The only thing I can say in your favor is that you don’t know you’re an anti-Semite.”

I don’t think that counts very much in his favor. In fact, let us all chant the Yourish.com mantra for our Swedish photographer who says he really, really, really likes Israel, no, really: Anti-Semites of the world, just die already.

11/01/2009

Party to our own destruction

Filed under: Anti-Semitism, Israel — Tags: , — Meryl Yourish @ 8:44 am

On what planet does inviting the asshole who created yet another modern blood libel to an Israeli media convention constitute making any kind of sense?

Minister for Development of the Negev and Galilee Silvan Shalom will not be attending the Dimona media convention, in protest of the attendance of a controversial Swedish journalist at the event.

Shalom also directed his office to cancel funding for the convention, a total of roughly NIS 200,000 (about $60,000.)

Shalom’s decision came after he discovered that Swedish journalist Donald Bostrom, who claimed the IDF was trafficking Palestinian body parts, was slated to take part in the event.

“I’m unwilling to be a party to a convention that grants a platform to an enemy of Israel like Bostrom,” Shalom said. “I will not allow the State of Israel to fund a convention that grants a platform to such man.”

This is not a journalist. This is the man who said he had no proof whatsoever of the charges he was making, but that Israel should investigate them because a Palestinian brought them up. Except that the Palestinian he quoted in the article said they never even spoke to him.

Why, exactly, is this anti-Semitic jackass being invited to an Israeli media convention? Because too many Jews are stupid. Instead of shunning the scum who are giving our enemies the weapons they use to ustify killing us (cf: Richard Goldstone), we try to be evenhanded and fair, even to proven liars.

Good for you, Minister Shalom, for taking the official Israeli seal of approval off this event. Now watch Journalists Without Borders use this as another charge that Israel is mean to its press.

09/27/2009

Anti-Semite blames Jews for his UNESCO loss

Filed under: Anti-Semitism — Tags: — Meryl Yourish @ 6:00 am

So, gee, ya think maybe there wasn’t a conspiracy to take this Jew-hater down if he, well, hates Jews?

Several days after having lost the vote for UNESCO’s leadership, Egyptian Culture Minister Farouk Hosni declared Saturday his intention to “launch a culture war against Israel.”

In an interview with Egyptian newspaper al-Masri al-Yaum, Hosni charged that he lost the UN vote because of “radicalism, racism, and the Jews,” who he claied attacked him over his harsh views against cultural normalization vis-à-vis Israel.

That’s funny. I thought he swore up and down that he didn’t have a problem with Jews, that he only had a problem with, uh, well—not Jews. He never did say what the problem was. Oh, that’s right. We misunderstood what he said.

Um, no. We didn’t.

Schmuck.

09/24/2009

Yes, it’s anti-Semitism

Filed under: Anti-Semitism, Iran — Tags: , , — Meryl Yourish @ 1:00 pm

Exhibit A: The Egyptian minister of culture lost his bid to become the head of UNESCO, after a campaign that showed his viciously anti-Israel feelings, which he insisted weren’t anti-Semitism. How does he respond? By blaming “New York Jews.”

“There are a group of the world’s Jews who had a major influence in the elections who were a serious threat to Egypt taking this position,” he said.

The Arab media, of course, carries the party line, and blames Jews and “the Zionist media” for the failure of their candidate.

Exhibit B: The Supreme Leader of Iran calls Israel “the deadly cancer of Zionism” while his hand-picked president denies the Holocaust and then tells the world he is proud of his Holocaust denial. He repeated the same filthy Jewish conspiracy accusations he raised last year in this year’s speech, and although this year a few Western nations walked out, Sweden (among others) felt that the following was not enough Jew-hatred to make their delegates leave:

The dignity, integrity and rights of the American and European people are being played with by a small but deceitful number of people called Zionists. Although they are a miniscule minority, they have been dominating an important portion of the financial and monetary centers as well as the political decision-making centers of some European countries and the US in a deceitful, complex and furtive manner. It is deeply disastrous to witness that some presidential or premiere nominees in some big countries have to visit these people, take part in their gatherings, swear their allegiance and commitment to their interests in order to attain financial or media support.

This means that the great people of America and various nations of Europe need to obey the demands and wishes of a small number of acquisitive and invasive people. These nations are spending their dignity and resources on the crimes and occupations and the threats of the Zionist network against their will.

The Swedish government also cleared the Aftonbladet of anti-Semitism over their lie-filled article about the IDF killing palestinians for their organs.

Neither am I surprised that the only place you can find the above lines is in articles with the full text of the speech. The media ignored Ahmadinejad’s anti-Semitism last year as well.

Exhibit C: Spain disqualified an Israeli college team from an international solar power contest, not because the team broke the rules—but because the college is located in the West Bank. Apparently, global warming is an urgent cause, but the Palestinian cause is more important than even saving the earth from itself. (No, I don’t believe global warming is happening. But these people do. The Exception Clause reigns.) And of course, we heard only a few days ago that anti-Semitism in Spain is on the rise.

What do all these things have in common? They are claimed to be anti-Zionism. And yet, they resemble nothing so much as anti-Semitism.

You can put a wig and a fancy ball-gown on a pig, add earings and make-up, and yet, in the end, you still have a pig.

Yes, it’s anti-Semitism. Let’s stop pretending that it’s not.

09/21/2009

Your morning snark

Filed under: Anti-Semitism, Iran, The One, World — Tags: , , , — Meryl Yourish @ 9:00 am

I know you are, but what am I? Ahmadinejad exhibits the grown-up attitude we’ve come to expect from the Holocaust Denier-in-Chief: He flips the bird to the world in response to the worldwide denunciations of his Holocaust-denying speech on Quds Day. (And “quds” is so not the Arabic word for Jerusalem. It is the Arabic name for the city that everyone else in the world calls Jerusalem. I’m so sick of the media using that narrative.) Expect a doozy of a one-two speech from Ahmadinejad and Ghaddafi next week at the UN.

Hypocrites of the world, unite! So, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has called for the end of Israel, called the Holocaust a “myth,” and uttered myriad statements against Israel and Jews, and the world has basically stood back and tut-tutted in ones and twos, maybe in threes. Suddenly, the whole world is down on Mad Mahmoud? The EU issues a condemnation? Russia too? So, where were they last year when he was issuing the most anti-Semitic speech in the history of the United Nations—at the United Nations? I find this sudden anti-Iran bandwagon extremely suspicious. If they think this is the quid pro quo for settlement freeze, I’m thinking Bibi is laughing his ass off.

Peaceful, peace-seeking Palestinians burn down Israelis’ fields: Yeah, they want to live in peaceful coexistence. Just ask The One. Countdown to lefty NGOs saying that this is payback for Israelis cutting down olive trees in 3, 2….

ACORN? That’s a little nut, isn’t it? Obama is on record denying he knows much about ACORN. Huh. Funny, considering he defended them as a lawyer, steered funds to their coffers, and traded donor lists with them. But he has no idea how much federal money they get. Uh-huh. Sure. Right.

09/01/2009

Tuesday Snark News Briefs

Filed under: Anti-Semitism, Iran, Israel Derangement Syndrome — Tags: , , — Meryl Yourish @ 10:30 am

Oh, like we didn’t see this coming: The Palestinians are publishing it as if it’s true. The Saudis are pretending that they don’t believe it. But the Iranians? Of course the Jews are stealing Palestinian organs. There’s a Palestinian “eyewitness” who says she saw thousands of bodies taken from hospitals. Funny how that hasn’t been reported until now. But sure, the Iranians are people Obama can negotiate with. Because they’re so sane, and just like us.

Don’t let facts get in the way of my blood libel! The Local publishes an article by a Jewish doctor explaining why the Aflonbadet charge of organ harvesting is not just wrong, but medically impossible. However, that won’t stop asshats like the Media Monitors Network featuring asshats like this insisting that the IDF prove that it doesn’t kill Palestinians to harvest their organs. Honest Reporting sums up the aftermath.

Egypt kills another African, world ignores another non-Israeli-caused death in Gaza. Double standard? The deuce you say!

Ew. Ew. Ew. Okay, Madonna is at least a decent singer. But Justin Timberlake and Madonna? What is Israeli being punished for now?

08/25/2009

Palestinian family: We never talked to a Swedish reporter

Filed under: Anti-Semitism, Israel Derangement Syndrome, World — Tags: , , — Meryl Yourish @ 11:00 am

The Jerusalem Post’s crack reporter, Khaled Abu Toameh, interviewed the family of the Palestinian that is the centerpiece of the Aftonbladet story accusing the IDF of harvesting organs from dead Palestinians. And the family says they never said anything about their son missing his organs. In fact, they say, they never even spoke to the reporter.

Jalal said that he and other villagers recall that a Swedish photographer was in the village during the funeral and that he managed to take a number of pictures of the body before the funeral. “That was the only time we saw this photographer,” he recounted.

Ibrahim Ghanem, a relative of Bilal, said that the family never told the Swedish photographer that Israel had stolen organs from the dead man’s body.

So the story is made up from whole cloth. The family admits it. And yet, in true Israel Derangement Syndrome fashion, they’re quite willing to believe the story.

Jalal and other members of the family said that “rumors” about Israel killing Palestinians to steal their organs have been circulating for a long time.

“I can’t tell you if these rumors are true or not,” the brother said. “But in light of the investigative report in the Swedish newspaper, we are demanding an international commission of inquiry into the case.”

Meantime, someone in Sweden invoked their “racial agitation” law and reported the Aftonbladet. Not that they care. Their CYA excuse? They didn’t say “Jews.” They said “Israelis.” And note the quote: Reporting rumors is now “solidarity,” not reporting.

“I think it is a shame that whenever solidarity is shown for the Palestinians and criticism is directed again Israel, someone cries anti-Semitism.”

“One has to have the right to ask questions,” Linderborg replied when asked if she or the newspaper regretted publishing the article.

Nils Funcke, one of Sweden’s leading experts on legislation pertaining to freedom of speech, said he expected the Chancellor of Justice to reject the case.

“The article can hardly be construed as racial agitation. There is no ethnic group targeted; the article focuses on the Israeli army, and Israel is not made up solely of Jews,” Funcke told The Local.

Nothing will come of this. And in spite of Sweden’s Jews insisting that if only Israel hadn’t made such a fuss, this would have passed without notice in much of the world, I’m with Yaacov on this one: The reporter is an antisemite, the paper is antisemitic, and this issue is a modern retelling of the blood libel. Even worse, it’s been proven false, and the paper is publishing more articles with the same lies. But it’s anti-Zionism, not antisemitism. Really.

08/24/2009

Monday morning snark news briefs

Filed under: Anti-Semitism, Hamas, News Briefs, Religion, United Nations — Tags: , , — Meryl Yourish @ 9:00 am

The Talibanization of Gaza continues: Hamas is going to expel girls for not wearing head coverings and full-length robes to school. They’ve also begun to segregate the sexes. No icky boys teaching girls; no icky girls teaching boys. Anyone want to start a pool on when the Mutaween squads hit the streets?

A trip down memory lane: Remember this op-ed in the Times after Hamas took over Gaza? It’s titled “What Hamas Wants.”

We want to get children back to school, get basic services functioning again, and provide long-term economic gains for our people.

Our stated aim when we won the election was to effect reform, end corruption and bring economic prosperity to our people. Our sole focus is Palestinian rights and good governance. We now hope to create a climate of peace and tranquillity within our community that will pave the way for an end to internal strife.

The fox in the UN henhouse: I know you’re going to be shocked to discover that one of the “fact-finders” on the Goldstone Commission published a virulently anti-Israel letter insisting that Israel had no right to self-defense from Hamas rockets. And while I have the UN Watch in my blogroll, I have no hope at all that their letter will ruffle so much as a feather at the UN—your international home of anti-semitism masquerading as anti-Israelism.

Swedish paper double-dog-dares Israel to prove that they’re not harvesting organs: Yes, the Aftonbladet published a second article, this time with even more non-evidence: They went back and asked the Palestinians if they’re really, really, really sure that the IDF stole their son’s organs. Now that’s reporting!

08/20/2009

Jan Helin, editor, victim—liar

Filed under: Anti-Semitism — Tags: , — Meryl Yourish @ 1:00 pm

The editor who approved the despicable story that claims the IDF has been stealing organs from dead Palestinians since the 1990s—based solely, of course, on Palestinian “witnesses” and no substantive evidence—has hit back hard against Israel and Jews’ reactions:

Aftonbladet editor Jan Helin said: “It’s deeply unpleasant and sad to see such a strong propaganda machine using centuries-old anti-Semitic images in an apparent attempt to get an obviously topical issue off the table.

But he is either deeply ignorant, deliberately trying to deflect the subject, or lying. The libel against the IDF—saying that they are killing Palestinians to steal their organs—strongly resemble the centuries-old blood libel that Jews murder Christians to use their blood in religious rituals. But while the blood libel does date back to the middle ages, it is not we who are using centuries-old images, nor are we “propagandizing” the issue. Those who hate Israel and Jews have been utilizing these images since the twelfth century.

Yesterday, I published this copy of a Der Stürmer cover, which was published in 1934.

Photo of anti-Semitic Nazi propaganda rag with blood libel image

Photo of anti-Semitic Nazi propaganda rag Der Stürmer blood libel

But we don’t have to go all the way back to 1934 to find images of Jews drinking Christian (or Palestinian) blood. In 2006, Turkey released a film called “Valley of the Wolves,” which featured a Jewish American doctor harvesting organs from Iraqis during the Iraq war. (Turkey is considered a friend to Israel.)

In April of this year, Hamas aired a show depicting Jews drinking the blood of Muslims. In January, an Egyptian cleric accused Shimon Peres of having a helmet filled with the dried blood of Egyptian soldiers he killed during the Six-Day War. Images of Israelis drinking blood can be found all over the internet.

Anyone even remotely familiar with the history of Israel and Jews knows this. I suspect Jan Helin knows it as well.

Sweden’s double standard on freedom of the press

There is a decided double standard in the Sweden Foreign Ministry when it comes to freedom of the press, particularly in response to running anti-Semitic tropes in a major Swedish daily. Representatives of the Swedish government are standing up for freedom of the Swedish press, even the freedom to publish a blood libel like the one that says IDF soldiers kidnap Palestinians and harvest their organs.

Aftonbladet editor Jan Helin said: “It’s deeply unpleasant and sad to see such a strong propaganda machine using centuries-old anti-Semitic images in an apparent attempt to get an obviously topical issue off the table.

[...] Helin called it an opinion piece raising questions of Israel in the context of a suspected link to Israel in that US case. He denied any suggestion of anti-Semitism from his paper.

Oh, so now it’s an opinion piece. Good tactic. The author has stated that he doesn’t know if the charges are true, but he decided to go with them anyway. And neither he nor his editor think that charges of anti-Semitism are in order. Why, they wonder, are Israelis so touchy? This is just a criticism of the IDF. Right?

Take a look at this image of Der Stürmer. This is the classic blood libel against the Jews, that we drink the blood of Christians and use it in our rituals. (Larger image in my previous post.)

Photo of anti-Semitic Nazi rag with blood libel image

Photo of anti-Semitic Nazi rag with blood libel image

Now, why on earth would we accuse a Swedish newspaper of using anti-Semitic blood libel tropes in its story about the IDF kidnapping Palestinians and stealing their organs?

The Swedish Foreign Ministry is doubling down on the freedom of speech aspect while ignoring the “lying about the IDF” aspect. Witness:

Sweden’s Foreign Ministry on Thursday said a response by the Swedish Embassy in Israel to a report by the Aftonbladet news saying IDF soldiers killed Palestinians in order to harvest their organs does not represent the government’s stance.

The embassy had stated that the report was “appalling”. But the Foreign Ministry’s spokeswoman said, “The embassy in Tel Aviv responded in accordance to Israeli public opinion, however the Swedish government is committed to freedom of the press.”

[...] Another Swedish government spokesperson, Anders Jorle said, “The Foreign Ministry would not have acted in the same way” as the ambassador.

Interesting response. Especially when you consider the Swedish Foreign Ministry’s response to another controversy, this one regarding cartoons about Mohammed.

On February 5, Swedish Minister of Foreign Affairs, Laila Freivalds stated the following in an interview:[24] We support the freedom of speech, that I think is very clear. But at the same time it is important to say that with this freedom comes a certain responsibility, and it could be objectionable to act in a way that insults people.

There was also the Swedish government’s response to a political party in Sweden holding a Mohammed cartoon contest in response to the Mohammed cartoon controversy. One of the cartoons displayed on the website portrayed Mohammed as a dog.

A Swedish foreign ministry spokeswoman told Sweden’s English-language The Local that the diplomat had apologized for any hurt feelings the publication may have caused.

Freivalds shut down the website and later lied about it, which ultimately caused her resignation. But note the difference in tone about the freedom to offend—it’s different when offending Muslims, apparently.

Let us compare and contrast. On the Mohammed-as-dog cartoon:

Swedish Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Anna Björkander told The Local it had been a “misunderstanding” on the part of the Pakistanis to conclude that the government fully shared the views of the Muslim community.

Björkander added, however: “The Chargé d’Affaires said he was sorry if the publication had hurt Muslim feelings.”

On the publication of a false story that the IDF kidnaps Palestinians and steals their organs:

But the Foreign Ministry’s spokeswoman said, “The embassy in Tel Aviv responded in accordance to Israeli public opinion, however the Swedish government is committed to freedom of the press.”

She added that Israel had not issued an official complaint on the report.

Another Swedish government spokesperson, Anders Jorle said, “The Foreign Ministry would not have acted in the same way” as the ambassador.

Barry Rubin wrote a tongue-in-cheek essay that has a solution to all of Israel’s problems: Jews should act like Muslims, and riot and protest violently every offense, real or imagined. The sad thing is: He’s probably right about the results. Just look at the difference between Sweden’s response to this issue. If Sweden were as scared of Jews as they are of Muslims….

08/19/2009

What if they published a blood libel and nobody rioted?

Filed under: Anti-Semitism, Israel Derangement Syndrome, Religion — Tags: , , , — Meryl Yourish @ 11:30 am

Compare and contrast:

A Swedish newspaper publishes a blood libel, accusing Israelis of taking (and selling) organs from Palestinians. Israelis are outraged. They file paperwork.

Deputy Foreign Minister Daniel Ayalon filed a formal grievance with the Swedish government Wednesday following a Stockholm newspaper’s report accusing Israel of trading in the stolen organs of Palestinians.

They ask the Swedish government to condemn the hateful lies.

“I demand the Swedish government condemn this groundless article,” said Ayalon.

They threaten to summon the Swedish ambassador.

The Foreign Ministry is reportedly considering summoning the Swedish ambassador and reproving him for his government policies, “Which allow such a hateful publication to go without censure.”

Ouch. Plus, there’s a very angry comment in my previous post (although I seriously doubt any prosecution could occur, as I’m unclear as to what Israeli laws were broken by the publication of this article).

Now, let’s think of another instance where a Nordic nation published something in a newspaper that stirred up controversy. Like, the publishing of a dozen Mohammed cartoons.

Danish Muslim organizations, who objected to the depictions, responded by holding public protests attempting to raise awareness of Jyllands-Posten’s publication. Further examples of the cartoons were soon reprinted in newspapers in more than fifty other countries, further deepening the controversy.

This led to protests across the Muslim world, some of which escalated into violence with police firing on the crowds (resulting in more than 100 deaths, altogether),[1] including setting fire to the Danish Embassies in Syria, Lebanon and Iran, storming European buildings, and desecrating the Danish, Dutch, Norwegian and German flags in Gaza City. While a number of Muslim leaders called for protesters to remain peaceful, other Muslim leaders across the globe, including Mahmoud al-Zahar of Hamas, issued death threats.[2][3] Various groups, primarily in the Western world, responded by endorsing the Danish policies, including “Buy Danish” campaigns and other displays of support. Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen described the controversy as Denmark’s worst international crisis since World War II.[4]

Funny how the most horrific things get published about Jews, in so many different publications, in so many different nations, so often, and yet, Jews don’t set fire to cars or riot or murder people in protest. And of course, there are the usual suspects who will also say that Jews are “overreacting” when they get upset about lies like this one.

It’s telling that the author was interviewed on Israeli radio, and even said that he had no clue whether the allegations were true. But that didn’t stop him from publishing them.

Interviewed on Israel Radio on Wednesday, Bostrom said he was worried by the allegations he reported but could not vouch for their accuracy.

“It concerns me, to the extent that I want it to be investigated, that’s true. But whether it’s true or not – I have no idea, I have no clue,” he told the station.

That’s how it works these days. Prove you didn’t kidnap Palestinians and steal their organs, Israel. Bostrom is shocked, shocked I say, at being called an anti-Semite. He’s not anti-Semitic. Just ask him.

I mentioned Der Stürmer in my last post. Here’s an image that Bostrom would probably approve (after stating that he’d want it to be investigated whether or not Jews drain Christian children’s blood and drink it):

Photo of anti-Semitic Nazi rag with blood libel image

Photo of anti-Semitic Nazi propaganda rag Der Stürmer blood libel

Then and now. There’s not much difference. This is why people like Bibi Netanyahu warn that it’s 1939 all over again. The constant demonization and dehumanization of Israelis is sounding a drum that we’ve heard before. The difference, of course, is that this time, we Jews are armed and able to protect ourselves.

Oh, and we’ll write really nasty posts about you when you lie about us. Fear us.

Swedish newspaper channels der Sturmer

Filed under: Anti-Semitism, Israel Derangement Syndrome, Media Bias, World — Tags: , , , — Meryl Yourish @ 6:00 am

It’s 2009, but you wouldn’t know it from reading this Swedish newspaper article. It’s like a mixture of urban legend and anti-Semitic blood libel. It’s so awful, you just have to wonder: Are the editors of this newspaper out of their effing minds?

Leading Swedish daily Aftonbladet claimed in one of its articles that IDF soldiers killed Palestinians in order to trade in their organs.

[...] The report mentioned Brooklyn resident Levy Izhak Rosenbaum, who is accused of involvement in the recent human organ-trafficking case that caused a storm in the US and Israel. The report said Palestinians claim youngsters were forced to give up theirs before being executed. This suspicion, the report said, may lead to an international war crimes investigation against Israel.

And who, pray tell, is feeding the author this information?

Guess.

Aftonbladet also said Palestinian youths who were snatched from their villages in the middle of the night were buried after being dismembered. The reporter, Donald Boström, said he was informed of the alleged atrocities by UN employees while he was working on a book in the West Bank.

Those would be the same eyewitnesses that said that Israeli soldiers were bulldozing hundreds of bodies in Jenin. Yes, the ever-reliable Palestinian eyewitnesses—there’s no stopping their imaginations, in any case. As to their truthfulness, well—it’s been proven to be extremely limited.

Put this one in the same category as Palestinians who insist that Yasser Arafat was killed by Israeli death rays, Israel is giving Palestinians gum that increases their libido, and, of course, the Suha Arafat claim that Israel is poisoning Palestinian children. There is nothing, it seems, that people won’t blame on Israel. But that’s not much of a surprise. They blamed Jews for poisoning wells, too.

You would think that in this day and age, lies like this would not be published. But then you would be vastly underestimating the widespread insanity that I like to call Israel Derangement Syndrome. If Israel didn’t exist, they’d still be blaming us Jews in pretty much the same way—we just would be blamed for doing it to Swedes instead of Palestinians.

I would like nothing more than to wake up and find that this article was one big hoax. I suspect that won’t happen.

07/24/2009

Racism for me, but not for thee

Filed under: Anti-Semitism, The Exception Clause — Tags: — Meryl Yourish @ 8:00 am

So, you know that theory that says you can’t blame an entire people for the actions of some of them? It’s also part of The Exception Clause, because it goes for every people on earth, except, of course, the Jews.

Britain has seen an unprecedented number of anti-Semitic “hate crimes”, with more incidents recorded so far in 2009 than in any previous entire year, a Jewish advisory body said on Friday.

Up to the end of June, there were 609 anti-Semitic incidents ranging from verbal abuse to extreme violence, compared with 276 in the same period last year.

And what, exactly, would the cause of that be?

Israel’s Gaza offensive against Hamas militants which was launched at the end of December was the main cause, it said, with many of the incidents taking place in January and including direct references to the fighting.

Right. But of course, it’s not anti-Semitism. It’s anti-Zionism. Because after all, isn’t it perfectly acceptable that if Israel invades the Gaza Strip to try to stop the flight of hundreds of rockets at her civilian areas, then British Jew-haters should be able to beat up British Jews at will? After all, it’s cause-and-effect. Why, it’s just like someone in Virginia being allowed to beat up a random black youth because his mother was mugged by some other black youth. Right? Right?

Of course that’s wrong. And yet, the world utterly accepts this behavior. What? They don’t? Really? Just go read the fever-swamps of comments on any newspaper that carries this story (evenYnet).

The CST said there had been 77 violent anti-Semitic incidents including two it classified as “extreme violence”, an attack which could cause loss of life or grievous bodily harm.

Most incidents took place in London and Manchester, the two biggest Jewish communities in Britain.

To sum up: Jews defend themselves against terrorists. World attacks other Jews. Yeah, not much has changed, except for the fact that Jews in Israel can defend themselves.

05/27/2009

Wily Jews outsmart Missouri neo-Nazis

Filed under: Anti-Semitism, Juvenile Scorn — Tags: , — Meryl Yourish @ 8:00 am

A perfect response to a neo-Nazi group sponsoring a highway in order to get their group publicity:

Lawmakers renamed a section of highway in Springfield that a neo-Nazi group adopted to keep litter-free after a Jewish civil rights leader.

Rep. Sara Lampe, D-Springfield, got an amendment added to a transportation bill to rename a portion of West Bypass from Farm Road 142 to West Sunshine the “Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel Memorial Highway.” Heschel marched with Martin Luther King Jr. at the Selma, Ala., Civil Rights march in 1965.

Lampe said she asked Jewish groups to nominate a religious figure to counter the Springfield unit of the National Socialist Movement, which adopted the section of road.

“It’s a counter to hate,” Lampe said.

Click on the link to see a picture of Rep. Lampe smiling, no doubt grinning about the reaction the Nazis will have to sponsoring a highway named not just for a Jew, but for a Jew who marched in support of civil rights.

For this act, I hereby nominate Rep. Lampe as an honorary Master of Juvenile Scorn™.

H/T: Eric J.

05/20/2009

Scottish film festival boycotts Israel

Filed under: Anti-Semitism, Israel Derangement Syndrome — Tags: , — Meryl Yourish @ 11:00 am

Loathesome Ken Loach managed to bully a Scottish film festival into giving back £300 that Israel donated for travel expenses of an Israeli film director.

And here’s the worst of it: The Scots stayed strong when the local Palestinian group protested Israeli involvement, telling them, effectively, to bugger off—until Loach the Roach got involved.

SPSC, which campaigns in Scotland against Israel’s attacks on Gaza, orchestrated a torrent of e-mail protests from people opposed to the move. But festival organisers refused to budge. EIFF managing director Ginnie Atkinson said not accepting support from one particular country “would set a dangerous precedent by politicising a cultural and artistic mission”.

The SPSC then enlisted the support of Mr Loach, well known for his support of Palestinian human rights.

Mr Loach released a statement through the SPSC which read: “I’m sure many film-makers will be as horrified as I am to learn the Edinburgh International Film Festival is accepting money from Israel. The massacres and state terrorism in Gaza make this money unacceptable. With regret, I must urge all who might consider visiting the festival to show their support for the Palestinian nation and stay away.”

The following day the EIFF – which has since been in talks with Mr Loach – did a U-turn. It said: “The EIFF are firm believers in free cultural exchange and do not wish to restrict film-makers’ abilities to communicate artistically with international audiences on the basis that they come from a troubled regime.

Who is Loach the Roach? Well, I devoted an entire On Second Thought to his Jew hatred disguised as anti-Zionism. Listen to the segment and you will hear Loach blame the world’s anti-Semitism on the creation of Israel. Yes, that’s right—Loach says that the founding of Israel is the cause of the world’s anti-Semitism.

Score one for the Jew-haters of the world in this round, and one in the minus column for the Edinburgh International Film Festival. And may I say: I’m extremely grateful my great-grandfather showed Edinburgh his backside and came to America in 1914. He doesn’t seem to have been wrong about Scotland.

01/17/2009

British academics: Israel must be destroyed

Filed under: Anti-Semitism, Israel Derangement Syndrome — Tags: , — Meryl Yourish @ 5:44 pm

British academics, including some notably anti-Israel Jews (that are hereafter referred to as “Ex-Jews“), are no longer just in favor of the generic fabled “peace.” They want Israel to lose the war against Hamas which, of course, means they want to see the end of the Jewish State. And though they will deny that is the meaning of their letter, how else can you explain this:

The massacres in Gaza are the latest phase of a war that Israel has been waging against the people of Palestine for more than 60 years.

There were massacres against Jews in Israel since before the State of Israel was created. The war has been waged for more than sixty years, all right—but not by the Jews.

The summer of 1929 was one of unrest in Palestine. Jewish-Arab tensions were spurred on by the agitation of the mufti in Jerusalem. Just one day prior to the start of the Hebron massacre, three Jews and three Arabs were killed in Jerusalem when fighting broke out after a Muslim prayer service on the Temple Mount. Arabs spread false rumors throughout their communities, saying that Jews were carrying out “wholesale killings of Arabs.”

The academics further prove that they are, in effect, extremely dangerous morons:

We must do what we can to stop Israel from winning its war. Israel must accept that its security depends on justice and peaceful coexistence with its neighbours, and not upon the criminal use of force.

The “criminal use of force” by Hamas is now more than six-thousand rockets into Israel, as well as hundreds of deaths from suicide bombings. If Israel depends on the peaceful coexistence with its neighbors, where was the response to the rockets, mortars, and shootings that Hamas has conducted from Gaza even in these last three years? Why is it that the use of force is never noticed against Israel, only by Israel in defense of herself?

Israel’s war against the Palestinians has turned Gaza and the West Bank into a pair of gigantic political prisons. There is nothing symmetrical about this war in terms of principles, tactics or consequences. Israel is responsible for launching and intensifying it, and for ending the most recent lull in hostilities.

That “gigantic poltical prison” of the West Bank has one of the Arab world’s highest standards of living, and the current economic boom is keeping the Palestinians extremely peaceful, considering what’s going on in Gaza. There is also the fact that the Palestinians have been getting more and more self-rule back—but please, don’t let the facts get in the way of your lies.

As to the end of the lull, Hamas fired hundreds of rockets into Israel after the cease fire ended, and fired plenty more even during the cease fire. They never fully stopped firing rockets. But that, apparently, is irrelevant to the signers of this Declaration of Annihilation for Israel. Yes, annihilation. Because we all know what would happen if, God forbid, Israel’s enemies ever did manage to win a war. There would shortly be a massacre of Jews the likes of which the world has not seen since—1945.

The terrorists are very clear about their intentions.

Our struggle against the Jews is very great and very serious. It needs all sincere efforts. It is a step that inevitably should be followed by other steps. The Movement is but one squadron that should be supported by more and more squadrons from this vast Arab and Islamic world, until the enemy is vanquished and Allah’s victory is realised.

The British academics have also made it clear that they no longer believe that negotiations are the way to achieve peace—well, not for Israel, anyway. Maybe for other people.

Israel must lose. It is not enough to call for another ceasefire, or more humanitarian assistance. It is not enough to urge the renewal of dialogue and to acknowledge the concerns and suffering of both sides. If we believe in the principle of democratic self-determination, if we affirm the right to resist military aggression and colonial occupation, then we are obliged to take sides… against Israel, and with the people of Gaza and the West Bank.

Calling for Israel’s defeat does make these people more than just your everyday anti-Zionists. They know full well that a real Israeli defeat would lead to the slaughter of most of the Jews in Israel. That makes this a call for genocide. It is disingenuous to pretend otherwise. Let’s call a spade a spade, and a group of Jew-hating bastards a group of Jew-hating bastards. And that includes the Ex-Jews among them.

By authoring and signing this letter, these anti-Israel academics have given up any pretense of legitimacy they ever had. By calling for the destruction of Israel under the guise of Israel’s losing this war—by attempting to hasten it by calling for a boycott of the Jewish State—these academics have proven that they are not on the side of peace. They are on the other side, and in this war, the other side is an irridentist, anti-Semitic, Islamist terrorist group. This is the second paragraph of the Hamas charter:

Israel will exist and will continue to exist until Islam will obliterate it, just as it obliterated others before it

This is the group that the academics want Israel to lose to: A genocidal, lunatic, Islamist branch of the Muslim Brotherhood.

It’s a funny thing. What these academics call “Israel’s war against the Palestinians” is, in reality, the Palestinians’ war against Israel. At every juncture, Israel has sought peace. At every juncture, the Palestinians turned Israel down. The infamous Three No’s of Khartoum are what created the “twin prisons” in the first place. But, as always, Israel’s critics never place responsibility for the failure of the peace process on the Palestinians and the Arabs.

And so we have, from the country that brought us the problems of the Middle East in the first place, their latest solution offered by their so-called academics: Make Israel lose the war.

Hamas hasn’t the capacity to beat Israel. And here in America, where we have quite a larger export ability than Great Britain, well, that boycott isn’t gonna fly. Nor will it work in your own country—the teacher’s union failed boycott proved that. And wouldn’t you know it: The architect of that boycott, Mona Baker, is among the signatories to this letter.

What a surprise.

Make no mistake about it. A call for Israel to lose the war with Hamas is a call for Israel’s destruction. These academics may close their eyes and stick their fingers in their ears and claim that they can’t see or hear the facts, but the facts remain: This is a hideous, immoral call for the destruction of the Jewish State.

Yeah, good luck with that, you anti-Semitic shits. I don’t see it happening.

01/15/2009

It’s not anti-Zionism—it’s anti-Semitism

Filed under: Anti-Semitism, Israel Derangement Syndrome, Jews — Tags: — Meryl Yourish @ 7:00 am

Fifty-five anti-Semitic incidents in France in the last two and a half weeks:

A total of 55 anti-Semitic incidents occurred in France since the start of Israel’s Operation Cast Lead in the Gaza Strip, said President of the French Jewish Students’ Union Raphael Haddad on Monday.

“This is a higher number of incidents than that of 2001 after the second intifada started,” Haddad said in a meeting with Secretary of State for Urban Policies Fadela Amara.

Way to go, France. Twenty percent of the total number of attacks in 2007 in only 18 days.

According to Haddad, a total of 271 anti-Semitic incidents were noted in 2007.

By the way: Now it’s 57 incidents.

Two synagogues in France have been vandalized, one with a swastika scrawled on it, a Jewish organization said Wednesday, in what some observers believe to be a result of tensions over the fighting in the Gaza Strip.

[...] In Lille, the vandals scrawled graffiti including a swastika on the synagogue’s facade and shattered a window. In Mulhouse, the vandals wrote “hateful slogans” on the synagogue, the group said in a statement. It did not provide further details.

Shall we stop pretending that violence against Israel isn’t violence against Jews? Because it’s certain that the attackers of these synagogues are making a statement about Israel.

01/13/2009

There’s a kind of hate, Part II

Filed under: Anti-Semitism, Gaza — Tags: — Meryl Yourish @ 7:00 am

There’s more kinds of hate

Paris area synagogue firebombed
Two Molotov cocktails were hurled at a synagogue north of Paris, the latest attack in what the interior minister said Monday is a new wave of anti-Jewish and anti-Muslim attacks over the violence in Gaza.

All over the world

Jews are the enemies of Allah and should be killed
“Jews are the enemies of Allah,” and therefore by definition are the enemies of all Muslims. This opinion is expressed by Dr. Walid Al-Rashudi, head of the Department of Islamic Studies at Saud University in Saudi Arabia, in a speech broadcast last week on Hamas TV. The religious scholar also prays for the extermination of all Jews: “Kill them one by one and don’t leave even one.”

Tonight

Turkey: Antisemitism Gets Out of Control
Breaking News: A bomb has been exploded midnight January 12 near the Israeli investment bank ‘Bank Pozitif’ which is close to the Israeli Consulate Building in Istanbul.

The Prime Minister in Turkey has encouraged hatred against Israel in his speeches which has become obvious anti-Semitic propaganda among the general public.

There are people around the clock besieging the Israeli consulate in Istanbul shouting their hatred against Israel and Jewish people. All around Istanbul billboards are full of propaganda posters against Israel like; “Moses, even this is not written in your book” and “Israel Stop this Crime.” On the streets the people are writing such graffiti as: “Kill Jews,” “Kill Israel,” “Israel should no longer exist in the Middle East,” and “Stop Israeli Massacre.”

The week-end before, some people wrote, “We will kill you” on the door of one of the biggest synagogues in Izmir resulted in the closing down of synagogues. Near Istanbul University, a group put a huge poster on the door of a shop owned by a Jew: “Do not buy from here, since this shop is owned by a Jew.” A group put posters on his wall saying that: “Jews and Armenians are not allowed but dogs are allowed.” Some young people are even threatening others with violence if they are seen as pro-Israel in social networking websites such as Facebook and Hi5.

All over the world

“Kill Jewish people evrywhere in their world :-) !!!”

You can hear the sounds

“Hamas, Hamas, Jews to the gas.”

Of haters in hate

Gaza op prompts wave of anti-Semitism in Belgium
A Molotov cocktail was thrown at the liberal synagogue in Brussels on Monday. No injuries were reported, but the building sustained damage.

“Things are heating up here in Belgium,” said Jewish Agency and Bnei Akiva envoy in Antwerp Meir Vachotzker. “When the fighting in Gaza started, a Molotov cocktail and a rock were hurled at a synagogue in Charlerois and caused damage.”

On Saturday unknown assailants attempted to torch the house of a Jewish family in Antwerp. An eyewitness who resides nearby alerted the police to the place and they managed to extinguish the flames before the house caught fire.

Saturday also saw large demonstrations by Muslims and left-wing activists against Israel and in support of Hamas. Vachotzker said that the protesters set Israeli flags aflame, burned a Chabad menorah and sprayed swastikas and hate graffiti on Jewish-owned shops. The police arrested some 50 rioters.

And once again: It’s not anti-Semitism. It’s anti-Zionism.

Except it isn’t. It’s the world’s oldest hatred.

01/12/2009

We are all Georgians now

Filed under: Anti-Semitism, Israeli Double Standard Time, Jews — Tags: — Meryl Yourish @ 8:00 am

See the title of this post? When you Google it, the only person you read about who said “We are all Georgians now” is—John McCain.

Last summer, Russia invaded Georgia, launched tons of missiles, armor, explosives, ground troops, took over part of a country that is not Russia’s, and the world—tut-tutted. And oh, yeah—Russia violated the cease-fire agreement.

There were no UN resolutions. Of course, Russia, as a permanent member of the UNSC, would veto it. But the General Assembly was silent. The Human Rights Council was silent. Liberal bloggers shook their fingers at John McCain and mocked his words.

Compare what happened in South Ossetia and Georgia last summer with what is happening now. There are protests all over the world, with more fools than there were in 2006 proclaiming “We are all Hezbollah” marching and declaring “We are all Hamas” today.

100,000 in Spain. 30,000 in Belgium. Thousands in London, Paris, Germany. All of them marching against Israel’s assault on Hamas. Yet none of them marched against the war in Georgia.

Why is that, we wonder? Why did they ignore the war that caused scenes like these?

Russian violations of the agreement also took place in nearby villages, where tall plumes of smoke were visible.

Witnesses said that Russian troops had entered the villages, then allowed South Ossetian militia members to plunder houses and steal cars.

“Our village is burning. They are taking everything out of our houses,” said Dodo Gagnidze, who was standing on the side of the road near Gori. “The Russians said everything was over. Is this what they mean?”

Human Rights Watch issued a statement Wednesday saying that its researchers had seen South Ossetian militias burn and loot Georgian villages on Tuesday. The organization quoted a village official in the Gori area saying that at least three villages had been burned.

Why are they ignoring Sri Lanka, where the fight against the Tamil Tigers has cost 70,000 lives? Why not a word about how “We are all Sri Lankans now”?

Why are they not marching against the massacres in Africa?

Why is it that they only march when Israel is involved in a conflict?

I think we all know the answer. None of those other conflicts involve Jews. Only Jews are not allowed to defend themselves. Only Jews are not allowed to respond to force with force. Only Jews are supposed to stand still and let whichever enemy of the moment destroy them.

Sixty years ago, out of the ashes of the death camps arose a slogan for the Jews: Never again. Too many people have mistaken the meaning of that slogan. Let me reiterate the true meaning of “Never again”: Never again will Jews stand by and allow our people to be slaughtered. Never again will Jews depend on the world to protect us. Never again will we rely on anyone but ourselves for protection.

And that is the key to why the world gets unhinged when Israel wins wars, or pushes back the terrorists. Because in the history of the world, for the last two thousand years, Jews were expected to be the victims, not the victors.

Get over it, world. We’re not going back there ever again.

So to the asinine emailer who said this:

It’s incredible that fundamentalist Jews are now acting as the Nazis did in WW2. The abused has become the abuser and in the the process is fast losing sympathy around the world. People are tired of being reminded about the holocaust as though it was the only act of mass ethnic cleansing in the 20th century. Of course to say that, one would be branded an anti-semite, the one stop term to guilt the gentile.

Stop being arrogant, oppressive, self righteous “chosen people” and others will stop trying to kill you and will let you live in peace.

Bullshit. You have never allowed us to live in peace. Not when we were the oppressed minority throughout Russia. Not when we were the oppressed minority throughout Arab lands. Not sixty years ago, not a hundred years ago, not a thousand years ago—not ever in the Diaspora. And now, not when we’re back in Israel, our ancestral homeland.

So, take a good long look in the mirror, you anti-Semitic schmuck. And then do me a favor: Listen to a rousing chorus of the Yourish.com mantra.

Anti-Semites of the world, just die already.

Yet another anti-Semitic anti-Zionist protest sign

Filed under: Anti-Semitism — Tags: — Meryl Yourish @ 7:00 am

The AP didn’t scrub their video completely. They forgot to exclude this sign in their video story of the Washington, DC pro-Hamas pro-Palestinian rally:

Anti-Semitic protest sign

Just remember, folks. It’s not anti-Semitism. It’s simply anti-Zionism.

Riiiiiight.

01/09/2009

There’s a kind of hate all over the world

Filed under: Anti-Semitism, Israel Derangement Syndrome — Tags: — Meryl Yourish @ 9:00 am

There’s a kind of hate

Venezuela’s Jews close their schools
Brener, 77, who spoke with The Jerusalem Post by telephone from New York, said that Jewish schools in Caracas closed for few days out of concern that they would attract anti-Israel demonstrations.

All over the world

Anti-Semitic threats up in Germany, Switzerland
Jewish communities in Germany and Switzerland are facing a growing number of threats and anti-Semitic incitement since the outbreak of the IDF operation in Gaza.

The President of the Central Council of Jews in Germany, Charlotte Knobloch, told The Jerusalem Post on Wednesday in an exclusive interview that there had been an increased number of threats directed at the community.

Tonight.

Hate hit list
Fears grew last night that hate-filled Islamic extremists are drawing up a “hit list” of Britain’s leading Jews — bringing the Middle East conflict terrifyingly close to home.

TV’s “The Apprentice” boss Sir Alan Sugar and Amy Winehouse record producer Mark Ronson are among prominent names discussed on a fanatics’ website.

Labour Peer and pal of Tony Blair Lord Levy, Foreign Secretary David Miliband and Princess Diana’s divorce lawyer Anthony Julius are also understood to be potential targets.

British anti-terror expert Glen Jenvey is convinced online forum Ummah is being used to prepare a deadly backlash against UK Jews.

His warning came as Europe was hit by anti-Semitic attacks over Israel’s push into the Gaza Strip.

All over the world

Attempted Arson At London Shul As Hate Soars
Brondesbury Park Synagogue was the target of an attempted arson attack this week as the Community Security Trust continued to warn Anglo-Jewry to be on its guard in the wake of Israel’s anti-terror operation.

Monday’s outrage, during which the building’s side door sustained fire and smoke damage, came as the CST reported a massive rise in anti-Semitic incidents in Britain compared to the norm for this period of the year.

You can hear the sounds

Anti-Semitic incidents cross Australia
A Sydney Jewish man was attacked during a pro-Palestinian rally and a major Melbourne synagogue was painted with anti-Israel slogans.

The 47-year-old man, who declined to be named, was attacked Dec. 29 when about 1,000 demonstrators ground Sydney’s city center to a standstill as they marched against Israel’s airstrikes on Gaza, according to a report in the Australian Jewish News.

News of the attack came as Temple Beth Israel, Melbourne’s largest Progressive synagogue, was painted with anti-Semitic and anti-Israel slogans earlier this week.

The Sydney man, who suffered a dislocated shoulder that may require surgery, unwittingly became caught up in the crowd and, faced with the vitriolic anti-Israel slogans, exchanged words with several protesters, according to the report.

Of haters in hate

Jewish center in Germany damaged
German police say a Jewish community center in the northern port city of Rostock was damaged by vandals in an apparent anti-Semitic attack.

Police said Thursday that one or more suspects threw stones through several windows overnight, including a pane decorated with the star of David.

The building was defaced with graffiti last week that included a crossed-out star of David.

You know what I mean

Girl attacked in France over Gaza conflict
The Times of London reported Wednesday that concerns mounted after three teenagers were arrested for an alleged anti-Semitic attack on a 15-year-old girl north of Paris.
The newspaper reported that the victim was insulted, knocked to the ground, kicked and punched by a gang of 10 youths as she left school. The victim said her attackers told her they were seeking to avenge Palestinians in Gaza.
Her alleged attackers — who were between 13- and 15-years-old and all from her own school — were arrested on suspicion of “aggravated violence and anti-Semitic insults,” a police source said.

All over the world

Jews in Rome outraged over boycott call
Jewish community leaders in Rome expressed outrage over a trades union proposal to “identify and boycott” Jewish-owned shops in the Italian capital in protest of Israel’s operation in Gaza, The Times reported Thursday.

The proposal was put forward by Giancarlo Desiderati, leader of the Flaica-Uniti-Cub union, which represents 8000 shop assistants in Rome, the report said.

You can hear the sounds

Police warn British Jews of revenge attacks
Prominent British Jews have been advised to review their security arrangements after several were identified on Islamist websites as “financial supporters of Israel”.

As the Gaza death toll rises, police are increasingly concerned about the possibility of “reprisal” attacks on Jewish people and buildings. One post on an Islamic discussion forum, referring to an anti-Israel demonstration this weekend, said: “We need to take some weapons with us, preferably sub-machineguns.”

Of haters in hate

Burning car rams synagogue door in France
A burning car was rammed into a synagogue door in southwest France as the interior minister convened Muslims, Jews and police in Paris to warn against contagion from the Gaza conflict.

Damage to the synagogue in a Toulouse neighborhood was limited to a blackened door, and there were no injuries even though a rabbi was giving a course to adults inside, said an official of the regional prefecture, Anne-Gaelle Baudouin.

Of haters in hate

Protester Calls for Jews to ‘Go Back to the Oven’ at Anti-Israel Demonstration
But as the protest continued and crowds grew, one woman in a hijab began to shout curses and slurs that shocked Jewish activists in the city, which has a sizable Jewish population.

“Go back to the oven,” she shouted, calling for the counter-protesters to die in the manner that the Nazis used to exterminate Jews during the Holocaust.

“You need a big oven, that’s what you need,” she yelled.

The protest organizers, asked to comment on the woman’s overt call for Jewish extermination, said she was “insensitive” but refused to condemn her statement.

Of haters in hate

Papal response: Vatican compares Gaza to Nazi camp
The pope’s minister for peace and justice was accused yesterday of speaking like a Holocaust denier after comparing Gaza to a “big concentration camp”.

Cardinal Renato Martino, a veteran Vatican diplomat with years of experience as the Pope’s delegate to the United Nations, told an interviewer for L’Avvenire, the daily paper of the Italian bishops, that “nobody” in the Israel-Hamas dispute “sees the interests of the other, but only their own”. He continued: “But the consequences of egoism are hatred for the other, poverty and injustice. The ones who pay are always the defenceless populations. Look at the conditions in Gaza: more and more it resembles a big concentration camp.”

The missing part of Walt’s thought experiment

Filed under: Anti-Semitism — Tags: — Meryl Yourish @ 7:00 am

Stephen Walt is being oh-so-cute by pretending that if religious Jews replaced religious (fanatic) Palestinians like Hamas, the results would be the same. Here’s his risible “thought experiment”:

Imagine that Egypt, Jordan, and Syria had won the Six Day War, leading to a massive exodus of Jews from the territory of Israel. Imagine that the victorious Arab states had eventually decided to permit the Palestinians to establish a state of their own on the territory of the former Jewish state. (That’s unlikely, of course, but this is a thought experiment). Imagine that a million or so Jews had ended up as stateless refugees confined to that narrow enclave known as the Gaza Strip. Then imagine that a group of hardline Orthodox Jews took over control of that territory and organized a resistance movement.

It goes on. Soccer Dad pointed out that it’s obvious that Walt knows nothing about Judaism. He doesn’t even know much about religious Jews, as they are the ones who generally do not fight—studying Torah is considered their highest calling.

Walt further defends himself with this quote:

But then he went on to explode that analogy, and get at the core issue: Lack of Political Sovereignty. Canada and Mexico are states. Palestinians have no state.

Let’s try another thought experiment. Let’s say that six million Jews, religious, secular, atheist, men, women, and children, were forced from their homes. Let’s say they were first put into narrow enclaves in cities throughout Europe—let’s call them “ghettos.” Then let’s say they were takent out of those enclaves, put onto trains, crowded into cattle cars, and sent to prison camps, where they worked and starved and died and were murdered in great numbers.

How many of those six millions Jews grew up to become suicide bombers? How many of the religious Jews advocated murdering the civilians of the people who rounded them up and forced them into those camps? And what happened to those that survived?

Yes, I know. Their descendants had the nerve to grow up and bother Stephen Walt, in whose mind this world would be ever so much better if only us pesky Jews would go quietly into our ghettos again.

01/02/2009

But it’s anti-Zionism, not anti-Semitism

Filed under: Anti-Semitism — Tags: — Meryl Yourish @ 1:30 pm

A Chicago Jewish day school received a bomb threat.

A molotov cocktail was thrown at a Chicago synagogue.

Hand-made posters in support of Hamas were placed on two synagogues in Irvine, California.

None of these places are Israeli. And yet, somehow, they’re all being attacked as if they were connected to Israel. Why is that? Hm. Let’s think.

Officials say they don’t know if there’s a link between the incident and increased violence in the Middle East.

Right. They don’t know. They can’t figure out why people will attack Jewish schools and religious institutions when they’re angry with Israel, the Jewish State.

But again, it isn’t anti-Zionism. It’s anti-Semitism.

12/29/2008

Hatemail of the day

Filed under: Anti-Semitism, Israel Derangement Syndrome, Juvenile Scorn — Tags: — Meryl Yourish @ 9:45 pm

And the hates just keep on coming.

I got an email from some idiot who wrote the following comment, which I did not approve, as it violates the No Israel-Bashing rule.

Wow. They used international humanitarian aid as bait before committing their massacre, just to make sure there would be a handful of militants mixed in with the civilian deaths. Why doesn’t Israel just start painting the Red Crescent symbol on their tanks? It’s about as honorable.

Typical anti-Israel crap. I don’t waste my readers’ time with it. Apparently, chaos4700 took offense, and tried to show me the error of my ways.

I find it disgusting that you celebrate this atrocity against the Palestinian people. Your own blog shows you not only know about Israel’s duplicity — the fact that the “peace process” has been nothing bit a ruse to discredit the notion that any sort of compromise is possible — but you embrace this duplicity with open arms. It’s clever that Israel fooled Hamas by sending in a few scant humanitarian shipments as a false show of good faith? Maybe that’s considered acceptable behavior to Zionists, but the rest of the world would consider that a crime.

Let’s see. A war is an atrocity, lulling your enemy into a false sense of security is a war crime, Israel doesn’t really want peace (those tricky Jews!), and, um, somehow, I’m in league with them, and the proof is on my blog. Wow. Who knew I was so big and powerful?

Then there’s this:

Maybe that’s considered acceptable behavior to Zionists, but the rest of the world would consider that a crime.

If anyone but Israel did it, the rest of the world would be writing about how clever it was to fool the enemy that way. But note the first slide towards anti-Semitism, starting, as always, with a slap at Zionists. Tip of the iceberg. Wait for it. We’re heading down the slippery slope to anti-Semitism.

Israel has been planning this massacre for months — your own blog posts constitute evidence of that. They’ve been planning it as far back as the unilateral withdrawal itself, if Dov Weissglass’ own words are to be believed.

Okay, Junior, let’s start with propriety. If you’re going to cite someone’s words, how about you, ah, cite them? Reference, please? What? No reference? Of course not. I am omniscient, or something. My own blog posts constitute evidence of that. As to the “massacre” tag: No, it’s war. The most they can come up with lately is an estimated 62 civilian casualties out of 364 deaths. It’s an UNRWA estimate, and so, suspect. But let’s go even with that. That’s an 87% terrorist death toll. On the other hand, Hamas has killed four Israelis, including one soldier. That’s a 75% civilian death toll. Which deaths should more properly be called a “massacre”?

You and your government have made a mockery of diplomacy and you’ve turned your back on everything the rest of us fought for when we helped saved the Jewish people from the atrocities of World War II.

Hey, genius: I’m an American. But let’s take a closer look at the latter half of this sentence:

you’ve turned your back on everything the rest of us fought for when we helped saved the Jewish people from the atrocities of World War II

Nobody saved the Jewish people from the Holocaust. Nobody. Let’s stop making shit up and stick to the facts, shall we? The liberation of the death camps was the result of the defeat of Nazi Germany. It was not an intended result. It was an unintended result. Evidence of the destruction of European Jewry was hidden or denied and ignored by America and England. Please don’t think I can’t see through this tactic like it was made out of Saran Wrap. You don’t give a shit about the Jews. Witness:

How dare turn around and commit atrocities of your own and betray the memories of those you lost to the Holocaust — the memories of those that many of us lost, because Jews were not the exclusive victims of those crimes.

Yeah, we were. The Holocaust is about the destruction of the Jews. Yes, others died in the death camps, and many died as a result of the war. But Hitler singled out my people for complete and total extermination. First Germany, then Europe, then the world. Read up on your history, jackass. Start with the phrase “The Final Solution.”

Note the tactics. Mr. Would-Be Troll pulls the old “Jews are just like Nazis, only worse because of their history” bullshit. Then he tries to minimize the Holocaust. Here’s the thing. We would be extremely happy not to have the Holocaust as part of our history. But it’s there, no matter how hard Holocaust-deniers try to say otherwise. Tired of hearing about it? Go complain to the Europeans. It’s their fault it happened.

Next, out come the anti-Semitic standards mixed with the Chomsky talking points. Israel, the criminal state, should not exist, etc., etc.

The rest of the world isn’t fooled, anymore. For sixty years you’ve answered the crimes committed on your own people by inflicting them on others

Talking Point Number One: Israelis are Nazis. Check.

Talking Point Number Two: The existence of Israel is a crime.

[blahblahblah]

I’m sorry, what? I fell asleep.

I’m not telling you this because I expect you to listen to me, or to care about anyone you don’t consider fully human

Talking Point Number Three: Channeling neo-Nazi drivel. Check. (Note: This one isn’t a Chomsky talking point, it’s a David Duke talking point.)

I’m telling you this so that you remember that there really was a choice, some time in the future when we’re all suffering the effects of Israel’s crimes against humanity, much like we all suffered from the effects of the crimes of Nazi Germany and Stalinist Russia. You remember that you helped sow these seeds; unfortunately, we will all have to suffer the whirlwind thanks to you.

Talking Point Number Four: Jews are responsible for all the world’s evils. Check. Note that here we have two breathtaking pieces of Jew-hate in two sentences. The Jews are to blame for the “crimes” of Israel today. The Jews were to blame for Nazi Germany and Communism, too. Say, where have I heard this stuff before? Oh, that’s right. On every neo-Nazi site, everywhere. Stormfront, much? Your mask has fallen off, you poor little faux Palestinian supporter. Seems to me that you’re not so much interested in protecting the poor, poor, pitiful Pals as you are expounding on your hatred of all things Jewish—which of course, includes Israel.

Told you. I can smell an anti-Semite from six miles away, and not just because they tend not to shower regularly.

I doubt it will ever actually touch you directly — I imagine you’re affluent enough to remain afloat even in the economic crisis that is going to leave myself and many of my friends close to destitution,

And here we have the “rich Jew, poor me” neo-Nazi stereotype. I hope my readers will take this as a learning experience: So many of the Jew-haters out there hate us out of sheer envy. I do not doubt that this jerk is close to destitute. That’s what comes of being unable to qualify for a job that doesn’t including having to ask “You want fries with that?” all day long. However, unless “affluent” is now defined as “able to pay your own mortgage,” well, no, loser. Sorry I don’t fit your stereotype, but there you have it.

and since you’re safely ensconsed here in the US you’ll never have to witness the suffering and the horror that is war for yourself

Um, wait a minute. First I’m Israeli. Now I’m American. Learn how to edit your own hate mail, genius.

By the way, this creep is coming from an IP address in Madison, Wisconsin which, while decidedly loony left territory, is still in America. Which means that he won’t be experiencing war anytime soon either, since he’s safely ensconced here in the U.S. Hypocrite, thy name is chaos4700.

I’d like to say that you’ll have to live with your own demons for the rest of your life as a consequence of the crimes you endorse, but I imagine you will sleep farily soundly. I have no illusions that appealing to your sense of humility and compassion will bear fruit. So there is really little more to say.

You’re right, Bucko. I sleep just fine. Because I don’t have kassam rockets bombarding my homes and schools and playgrounds and parks. I don’t have Hamas snipers firing on my farmers. I don’t have bomb shelters built in my schools and at my bus stops. But Israelis do.

THIS is why the IDF is firing on Gaza today:

There’s a saying I used to have in college that’s appropriate to use now: Eat shit and die, chaos4700.

Don’t bother sending another email. You’ve been killfiled.

12/02/2008

The anti-Semitic comments swamp

Filed under: Anti-Semitism — Tags: — Meryl Yourish @ 9:30 am

This is the reason I don’t have unmoderated comments. This is the reason that my comments policy follows the No Israel-Bashing rule.

Soccer Dad linked to a Jeff Jacoby column that discussed the UN’s obsession with Israel. Here are some of the responses to that column:

“KeLeMi” says:

First, criticizing Israel isn’t anti-Semitism.
Second, Israel was founded by displacing the indigenous population. At the beginning of the 20th century, 90% of the population of what is today Israel was Arab. After 1948, they were forced from their homes after Jews from Eastern Europe arrived. These people were descended from European tribes and had no historical connection to ancient Israel. Today Palestinians are forced to live under extremely inhumane conditions. How would you like it if a judge told you that you had to give half of your home to a stranger and let him move in, and let him run your half of the home? I wouldn’t like it. But this it what Palestinians were told about their homeland. It’s fact, not anti-Semitism. By the way, the Arabs are also Semites.

“Skinec” says:

It’s impossible to demonize such an racist and foul government. The idea that Jewish people HAVE to have their own country to be able to practice religion freely is stupis and wrong!

“Xenophon” says:

Frankly, after many years of observation I have determined that Jewish people are VERY good at picking at scabs. Fomenting trouble where there isn’t any then professing their compassion for their fellow men. I can’t remember the name of the individual at the time, but I recall a certain shrine treasured by Arabs. The Arabs were quite concerned about its sacredness. When there wasn’t any real reason to visit that shrine, this then leader of the Jewish State visited it as though thumbing his nose. I still wonder why we in the USA have a Holocaust museum. Why whatever evils are visited on Jewish people are always that baddest and worst of evils? Even in the entertainment field our American society often ridiculed under the guise of drama. Take a moment and think back and you’ll see my anaolgy of scab picking is quite appropriate. Anti-semetic? No but anti fomenters of trouble.

Hate much? And that’s only on one page.

Yeah, the comments policy is there for a reason. No, it’s never going to change. Unless anti-Semites suddenly and completely die out, in which case, well, there’d be a lot fewer people in the world.

11/21/2008

The UN’s Jew-hatred

Filed under: Anti-Semitism, Israel Derangement Syndrome, United Nations — Tags: , — Meryl Yourish @ 1:30 pm

It can’t get much clearer than this. From an Eye on the UN press release:

This Monday, November 24th, the UN will commemorate its annual International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People with a film depicting Jews as Nazi-equivalents and a public exhibit mourning the sixty years of Israel’s existence.

“The event is an annual reminder that the UN’s real agenda is to delegitimize the birth – and the perseverance – of the state of Israel,” said Anne Bayefsky, Editor of EYEontheUN.org.

Monday’s observance marks November 29, 1947 – the day that the UN voted to establish a Jewish and an Arab state in Palestine – a decision accepted by the Jews and rejected by the Arabs. This year’s observance is being held a week early due to scheduling conflicts.

As in years past, there will be a formal meeting Monday morning of the Committee on the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People, a film, an afternoon meeting of the General Assembly on the “Question of Palestine,” and the opening of a public exhibit in the entrance to the UN’s New York headquarters.

Former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan referred to November 29th as “a day of mourning and a day of grief,” and the usual procedure is for UN member state after UN member state to use the opportunity to grieve for the suffering of the Palestinian people at Israeli hands.

The General Assembly is scheduled to adopt another six resolutions condemning only Israel for violations of human rights. The total number of resolutions criticizing Israel expected to be adopted at this fall’s General Assembly is 20, as compared to only four resolutions critical of human rights records in any of the remaining 191 UN member nations.

The 2008 installment of what is in essence a repeat of the “Zionism = Racism” allegation, will be the public showing of the film “La Terre Parle Arabe” or “The Land Speaks Arabic.” The film draws parallels between the Nazis’ final solution and the alleged Zionist design for Palestinians. It is commonly billed with these words: “…the late-19th century Zionists…drew up plans, put them into practice, then…used… force, often brutal.”

And it gets even worse.

Here is some of the script for the UN public’s edification:

“Christians and Muslims alike…unite in their hatred of Zionism…I preferred to die as a martyr rather than be governed by the Jews …We were against the Jews…The number of Jews increased constantly…The children cried …The Hagana had no mercy, no pity. Zionists! They were Zionists!… The Jews were shooting at us, they were facing us…The Jews yelled “turn around you bastards, you dogs.” They machine gunned us…They started killing people who were asleep…[We]…found a poor woman…pregnant. They had killed her and the baby came out of the womb. They started slaughtering them until morning.”

The exhibit to be opened at 6 p.m. on Monday in the UN lobby – the public entrance through which school children from across the United States and tourists from around the world pass every day – is entitled “The Palestinians: 60 years of struggle and enduring hope.” Bayefsky comments: “The “sixty years” of struggle is telling. It puts a lie to the alleged root cause of the Arab-Israeli conflict as an “occupation” that began with the 1967 war. The real complaint is the alleged wrong of the creation of the State of Israel itself.” She adds: “The carefully selected word “struggle” also speaks volumes. What the UN glorifies as a struggle is a series of wars launched by Arabs to annihilate the state of Israel beginning in 1948, and the ongoing “struggle” of Palestinian and other Arab terrorists dedicated to the same end.”

Tell me, does the world commemorate the 60th anniversary of the separation of Pakistan from India?

The modern state of Pakistan was established on 14 August 1947 (27 Ramadan 1366 in the Islamic Calendar), carved out of the two Muslim-majority wings in the eastern and northwestern regions of British India and comprising the provinces of Balochistan, East Bengal, the North-West Frontier Province, West Punjab and Sindh. The controversial division of the provinces of Punjab and Bengal caused communal riots across India and Pakistan — millions of Muslims moved to Pakistan and millions of Hindus and Sikhs moved to India. Disputes arose over several princely states including Muslim-majority Jammu and Kashmir, whose ruler had acceded to India following an invasion by Pashtun tribal militias, leading to the First Kashmir War in 1948.

No? Why is that, I wonder? Hypocrisy? Naaah. Anti-Semitism? Now you’re getting it.

11/20/2008

Nobel laureate calls for Israel’s UN expulsion

Filed under: Anti-Semitism, Israel Derangement Syndrome — Tags: , — Meryl Yourish @ 12:00 pm

It isn’t anti-Zionism. It’s anti-Semitism. And here’s why:

Nobel Peace Prize laureate Mairead Maguire says the United Nations should suspend or revoke Israel’s membership.

Maguire, in a news conference Thursday, said that it’s time for the international community to take action against Israel. She claimed Israel should be punished for ignoring a series of United Nations resolutions over the years.

Maguire, who won the 1976 peace prize for her work with Catholics and Protestants in Northern Ireland, is currently visiting the Palestinian territories to protest Israel’s blockade of the Gaza Strip.

Interestingly, Maguire never called for the UN to revoke or suspend Ireland’s membership in the United Nations. I didn’t hear her call for the suspension of Iraq’s membership during the decades when Saddam Hussein was violating binding UN Security Council resolutions. I didn’t hear her call for the suspension of Iran’s membership as they continue to violate UN resolutions as well. Nor is she calling for the expulsion of Lebanon, which recently brought Hizbullah into their government and absolutel refuses to disarm the group, as per UNSC 1701.

Funny, how the only nation she thinks should be thrown out of the UN is Israel.

By the way, Israel is not ignoring any binding UN Security Council resolutions. She is ignoring General Assembly resolutions, which are nonbinding and utterly meaningless, considering that the OIC bloc controls the voting and actually runs annual anti-Israel resolutions that get voted up every year. Check the list, which grows bigger every year.

Time for the Yourish.com mantra: Anti-Semites of the world, just die already. And that includes Nobel Laureates, too.

11/18/2008

European anti-Semitism: Alive and kicking Jews

Filed under: Anti-Semitism — Tags: — Meryl Yourish @ 8:50 am

Anti-Semitism has never left Europe. It never will, even if every single Jew in Europe moves to another continent. And it seems to be in vogue again. And why not, when the European press demonizes Israel at every opportunity?

A wave of anti-Semitism and attacks against rabbis has been plaguing Eastern and Western Europe, and in just two weeks three rabbis in three different cities were harassed by locals.

The first incident took place in Berlin, Germany, when 36-year-old Rabbi Yehuda Teichtel was driving eight of his students in a minivan. Local police reported that two unknown persons in a Mercedes passed the van and blocked it from proceeding, crying insults of an anti-Semitic nature.

The driver of the vehicle then threw a molotov cocktail at the van, but luckily it did not explode and rabbi and students remained unharmed.

Gee, going after a van full of Jewish students… what does that remind you of?

Two other attacks, in Russia and Prague. The one in Prague had an unexpected result:

“One of them kicked me. I tried to defend myself; I was in the army and I still remember a bit of ‘krav maga’. Then I returned to the restaurant and called for help. Meanwhile they threw two stones; one of them hit my foot and the other hit the door of the restaurant.

“We threw the stones back at them. They started to run but bumped into the Jewish community’s security officers, who called the police. The men were arrested and confessed that they had come to hurt Jews.”

Please note that it was the Jewish community security officers that stopped the attack. And name another religious group that has to supply its own security throughout the world. I don’t think you can.

Meanwhile, Germans are busy desecrating Jewish cemeteries…

Police say a pig’s head and an anti-Semitic banner were left at the gate of a cemetery in the city of Gotha. They said that several glasses containing a red blood-like liquid were thrown over the cemetery’s gate.

In Erfurt, a memorial plaque at the entrance gate to a Jewish cemetery was also covered in a red liquid. Police are analyzing the liquid to determine what it is.

and attacking anti-Nazi displays. Because the German students are pro-Palestinian, and gee, Jews=Israel no matter what, right?

Roughly 1,000 pupils and left-wing activists who unlawfully occupied Humboldt University (HU) and some of whom destroyed an anti-Nazi exhibition on Wednesday were reacting to the university’s close ties to Israel, the university president has said.

Christoph Markschies told The Jerusalem Post that one of the protesters in the lobby of the university said “Damn Israel” when asked by another student to “stop” vandalizing the exhibit “Betrayed and Sold,” about the plundering of Jewish businesses under the Nazis.

“Friendship with Israel is part of the HU’s identity,” said Markschies, adding that “no one can tell me that the exhibit was damaged because it was a mistake.”

Markschies had to barricade himself in his office to escape what he called “the mob.” He said that “HU was directly targeted” because of its solid partnership with Israel.

Somehow, it seems that those 1,000 students and “activists” have forgotten the meme. You know, the one that goes “It’s not anti-Semitism, it’s anti-Zionism.”

As I’ve said all along: Yes, it is anti-Semitism.

11/11/2008

To the anti-Israel trolls who think I care

Filed under: Anti-Semitism, Israel Derangement Syndrome — Tags: — Meryl Yourish @ 4:00 pm

Every so often, in spite of the fact that I clearly state in my comments policy that this is a No Israel-Bashing Zone, I get a comment from an anti-Israel passerby who can’t seem to get it through his head that I will not be approving the same crap I can read in a thousand other places. Last night, it was a child at Georgetown University who has evidently been brainwashed to perfectly repeat his Chomsky talking points, trying to hijack a thread about how Hamas is using propaganda and lies (the hoax that Gaza has run out of fuel) to make Israel even more vilified in the world. The troll copied Michael Lonie’s comment and wrote:

Oh so that gives Israel the excuse to underserve a variety of annexed Palestinian communities which Israel claims have become part of the Jewish Nation State. Hamas manipulates things for political and economic gain, but Israel systematically violates human rights in cases where they clearly have not only the ability but the obligation as a “Western” democracy to do a better job.

This is pretty typical of the standard anti-Israel commenter. They don’t reference the post they’re commenting in. They excuse all forms of violence and terror against Israel. They don’t respond to the points in the post or in the comments. They go out on an anti-Israel screed that generally references the latest Counterpunch or Indymedia article, or the last lecture they attended on Palestine Solidarity Day, and then they find—my blog.

They find a blog that is proud of Israel. A blog that is unabashedly pro-Israel. A blog that sees nothing wrong with the Likud party, and thinks the use of the world “Likudnik” says more about the user of that word than about the person they’re describing as such. They find a blog where Israel’s accomplishments are celebrated, and where Judaism and Jewishness is a good thing, something to be proud of, where I do believe that Israel is a light among nations, warts and all.

And it rocks their little anti-Israel world.

And so, they must enlighten us poor, pitiful Likudnik, pro-Israel know-nothings. If only we would see. If only we would listen. Don’t we understand that the evil colonial Zionists stole the land from the poor, indigenous people of “Palestine”? Don’t we know that Israel is the last of the colonial movement of previous centuries, and it simply must be dismantled and replaced with a single-state democracy for Palestinians and Israelis, who will then live in peace ever after once the five million “refugees” are allowed to return?

And most of all, don’t I understand that it is my duty to allow them to poison my comments the way they poison every other comment thread on blogs, online newspapers and magazines, and nearly every other community site?

There is not a site on the internet with unmoderated comments that will not devolve into anti-Semitism if you mention religion or Israel or, well, just about anything. And while there are a fair number of Jewish weblogs, still, the overwhelming viewpoint in comments threads is anti-Israel. Read Fark, or DailyKos, or Comment is Free. Read Harry’s Place and see how support of Israel brings out the anti-Semites. Or read the anti-Semitic messages that I collect and publish from time to time to see how enraged the Jew-haters get at a proud, pro-Israel Jew who will never allow them to call Jews by the names of our worst tormentors, or say that the Palestinians—who have suffered fewer than 4,000 deaths in a war that has been going on for sixty-one years—are suffering a modern-day “Holocaust,” when that is patently untrue.

So once again, to the anti-Israel trolls and commenters who want to trash the Jewish State—the lone true democracy in the Middle East—the state where Arabs can vote and run for office—the state that continues to work on weapons that will kill only Israel’s enemies and spare the innocent bystanders that the Arab terrorist takes such glee in destroying—get lost. Find another place to peddle your lies. Go cry to your buddies that your speech was censored, because you’re not going to become a regular here. Lurk all you want. Send emails, if you please. We just love mocking anti-Israel, anti-Semitic little trolls.

And there’s a never-ending supply of them. Guaranteed I will write another post like this a year or so down the road.

They never learn.

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