Fighting Anti-Semitism: Is anything working?

Haaretz put up an article with that (hardly) intriguing header.

Normally, the Elders' response would be unprintable. After all, who *^&%@#&^ cares?

"The fight against anti-Semitism has escalated as well, with Western nations making heightened efforts to root out Jew-hate and Holocaust denial."

OK, fine. Anyway, what is really of notice is the responses to this article. Some of them, at least. Why is it that each time the word "anti-Semitism" appears in print, it immediately draws all the slithering creatures that should feel much better under the stones they belong to?

To start with - mildly infected nimrods:

"Now anti-Semitism is on the rise in North America, and its two main causes are: Israel's harsh treatment of the Palestinians and a growing population of Muslims who do not feel guilty about the Holocaust and who identify with the Palestinians."

Signed: Mark Marshall, Toronto, Canada

"The Israeli Occupation of Palestinian land gives a principled facade to anti-Semitism. No one can take Israeli complaints about anti-Semitism seriously when Israel operates an Apartheid regime against Palestinians."

Stephen Murray, Amsterdam, Netherlands Antilles

The two above belong to "we do not condone, but it is understandable" category. Let's move on.

"One doesn't need to be a semiotician to get astounded at how the French police investigation into the money-extortion case became in the Israeli media about the Jewishness of some other victims targeted by the gang. They also ascribed solidly the "Muslim" adjective to the gang of extortionists, spiced the story with the displaced Iranian element and concluded in statistical calculus of alyiah numbers."

"All the victims of materially-motivated crimes have one or another nationality.
I only wonder if this media manipulation is conducive to fighting the anti-Semitism. Or if that man who was stabbed for simply being an Arab next to my place in Jerusalem will get any national commemoration as was the case in France."

Julius Chesnuliavichius, Paris, France

See how argumentative is our friend Julius? How deftly he operates complex words like "semiotician", "statistical calculus", "conducive". That, instead of explaining in simple words why most of the gang's victims happened to be Jewish and why the effing eff does Julius feel a need to display his ugly self in public?


"I happen to be a Catholic Christian; anti-Catholicism is the root religion of the English! But we have the confidence to recognise prejudice and accept that it's part of the failing human condition."

"Why should everyone like us? Or you?"


Catherine Appleby, United Kingdom

Why, Catherine, you may be much better off converting to Judaism then, it seems. Come to us, baby! You will like us at the end - it is a promise! And we'll like you and everything will be just peachy!

And the "Friendly Reptile Of The Day" prize goes to:

"Falling back on the old "anti-semitism" bit anytime a Jew is attacked (and in this case, it looks as though it was actually an extortion plot) only devalues the term and serves to keep real "anti-semitism" underground and unchecked, where it festers until there's no more room to contain it."

"I shouldn't have to point out that that is exactly the sort of thing that led to the Holocaust to begin with."

"Jews need to take a good hard look at why people dislike them, and then take actions to alleviate those causes."

"If you've always had a problem with all of your neighbors over the centuries, then perhaps you should be looking inwards for the solution."

"Just a friendly bit of advice. :)"

J.J., Washington, U.S.A.

I rather like you, JJ, you are a guy/gal after my heart, I can tell. No mincing your words and no hiding behind the bushes. And since you are direct and to the point, we'll give you a direct and free advice: go buy a banjo, choose a convenient monument in Washington, have a seat in the vicinity and sing the text quoted above to the tune of Yankee Doodle. You will be the rave of the city in no time, I promise. You may even use the proceeds to buy yourself a trailer in Oklahoma, where, with deity help, you shall become another victim of a beer OD.

And stop posting in Haaretz - there is no future in it, especially after the nice Mossad folks knock on your door.

Cross-posted on Yourish.com