Israel and Gaza: How True Anti-Semitism is embraced

I just read an excellent piece in the American Thinker, titled "Waking Up to Urbane Anti-Semitism," by Cheryl Halpern. In the article, Ms. Halpern makes a compelling argument about how Jew-hatred has been given cover by Israel-hatred. Meaning, yesterday's anti-Semites use the worn out excuse that they don't actually hate Jews, but they hate Israel.

Of course, this is simply a rationalized justification, which is neither rational, nor justified. One solid proof that this is false exoneration is completely fatuous is a situation Halperin discusses is in Barcelona, Spain, when they canceled its Holocaust memorial ceremony since "making a Jewish Holocaust ceremony whilst a Palestinian Holocaust was taking place was not right."

Aside from the complete stupidity of this attitude - imagine someone saying we should not memorialize the Polish victims of 9/11 because Poland was accused wrongly of inciting the Germans, which was Hitler's justification for starting World War II - the very notion that Israel is doing to the Gazans what the Nazis did to the Jews is just revisionism at it's finest.

And yet, Arab sympathizers continue to lay this false victimhood of the Palestinians right at Israel's feet. A comment on Ms. Halpern's essay shows just how ingrained this revisionism is:

Let's see...you have a group of people (Ashkenazi Jews) who are Asiatic - not Semitic - rounding up a genuinely Semitic people, imprisoning them in a concentration camp (Gaza), and cutting off their supply lines. Tell me who the real anti-Semites are?

So let's look at exactly what Israel's perceived crime in Gaza is. To understand the issue, you must go back to then end of the Six-Day War - a war that Israel had no choice but to fight. We can discuss why this was so in a different post.

Upon the victory, Israel conquered the Sinai peninsula and along with it, the Gaza Strip. Upon signing a peace deal with Egypt in 1979 - the original "land for peace" plan - President Sadat refused to include this tiny strip of land, which until 1967, had been under Egypt's control.

So why did Sadat refuse it? His verbal "official" answer was that he wanted the Palestinian people to have their own self rule. However, it was widely known that Sadat feared the militant Palestinians and had for years tried to keep them as far from Cairo as possible. As it turned out, his fears were justified, as his assassination proved.

So, somehow Egypt's problem became Israel's. Menachem Begin also greatly feared what the Muslim Brotherhood-influenced Gazans meant to Israel's long-term security. However, he was forced to have to deal with it. History will now say his lack of motivation in confronting this situation immediately was a big mistake.

However, after years of conflict, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon went against his own historical ideals and decided Gaza was far too much trouble that it was worth. Since the somewhat newly formed Palestinian Authority was unable to control the Strip, he unilateraly pulled completely out of the Gaza Strip and gave it lock, stock and barrel to the Palestinians to do what they wanted to.

So how is this Apartheid? How is it suddenly Israel's problem again? The fact that Hamas, the elected government of Gaza, can not govern should only be Israel's concern when their problems flown over the Israel border. Gaza becoming Judenrein is exactly what the Gazans wanted, right? What about the vast amount of goods and services that Israel does supply to Gaza? Israel also allows Gazans to travel to Israeli hospitals, as well.

After all the money given to the Palestinians, why have they not built their own infrastructure? Why are their no water treatment plants, or thriving industry? Why is the Gazans main export still rockets fired indiscriminately into Israeli neighborhoods?

The answer of course, is that the Arabs do not want to live in peace with their Israeli neighbors. No matter how many world leaders (including all our former and current politicians claim so). Saudi Arabia, Iran, Egypt, Jordan (for whom their country was created for the sole reason to give a homeland to these people) and Syria...all of them prefer to keep the Palestinians where they are, as a cover for their own horrendous political failures.

This comment I just quoted is so wrong on so many fronts. According to this idiot (he goes by the name "Boogeyman"), Israel is "imprisoning (Gazans) in a concentration camp." Really? How so? Is Israel responsible for them? Is Israel forcing them to hard labor? Is Israel burning them in ovens? Is Israel stopping them from traveling, from emigrating, from being free?

All Israel is doing is keeping their borders closed - which not only is what Egypt has done, but is exactly what every country does (or in the case of America's borders, should do).

And yet, this genius - and millions more people - can not fathom why Israel would not allow people who elected Hamas - a government whose very charter calls for the death of Jews - to travel freely within its borders.

So why do you suppose idiots like "Boogeyman" - who seems to say the exact same propaganda the certain American (and world) academics say, similar words that many World leaders use - believe this? Do they not know that these Arab criminals are hell-bent on killing every last Jew on earth?

No, that don't care.

Arab propaganda, fueled by a world starving for Arab oil and blatant anti-Semitism (or of you prefer, anti-Jew sentiments), have managed to revise history and use it to create victims of Arab misery into victims of Jewish aggression. The world may know that every Arab nation is a thugocracy, but the fact that Israel is a free country makes them an easy target. After all, it is a hell of a lot safer to protest a country than won't torture you for protesting, than it is to go and protest in countries like Iran or Saudi Arabia.

My point is that there is no difference between being anti-Israel and being anti-Semitic (or anti-Jew). Idiots like "Boogeyman" simply use that excuse to cover for their ignorance and deep seated hatred for Jews. Is it possible to disagree with Israel's policies, regarding the Palestinians? Absolutely. Disagreeing does not make one "anti." However, calling for the end of the Jewish state (which is the goal of divestment campaigns) and comparing the atrocities in the Holocaust to the self-created plight of the Gazans is anti-Semitism.

In a day and age where the American President refuses to accept the the fact that Islamic Jihad as the motivating force behind terrorism, I can see that this form of anti-Semitism is becoming more and more accepted on the world stage. Revisionists have succeeded in creating an alternate reality and until we, as Americans - and whether we like it or not, we are the last great hope for the world - rise up to take on the global evil of Islamic extremism, which we can not do until we recognize it for what it is, it will be far too late to say "Never Again."

And yet, it should not be forgotten that many of these revisionists are Jews themselves. As I stated in my post yesterday, far left-wing Jews - along with members of J-Street - are even more responsible for this rabid increase in hatred against Jews because they give cover to those who have no real desire to see Israel succeed.

It is way past time to expose these self-destructive and self-hating Jews for who they are.