Somewhere in Western newsrooms and political backrooms, there must be an instruction manual or playbook entitled “How to make accusations of antisemitism with hardly any facts.” I imagine that Steve Paikin got hold of it and employed it to write his latest column. I am afraid that the piece is seriously lacking in intellectual honesty.
You yourself admit that worldwide antisemitism is a problem. These people are not thinking subtly. I can understand why people do all kinds of horrible things, but it doesn’t mean I’m sympathetic or defending them.
I’m saying that a particular group of extreme right wing Jews is encouraging people the world over to make that antisemitic conflation. They do so because in the short term it serves their interests, but in the bigger picture it causes damage.
It’s the fault of antisemites and those that egg them on.
Of course. Vile antisemitism has a long history.
In the process it sends a message to the world that Israel is brutal, racist and hateful. It may end up damaging Israel’s interests more than helping. Netanyahu does what’s best for Netanyahu, not for Israel or for Jews.
Your thought process is so ass-backwards it’s mind-boggling.
Israel gets invaded by barbaric terrorists who butcher 1200 people and take 250 more hostage. The next day another terrorist organization operating in a different country begins launching rockets into Israel in sympathy. Both those organizations are sponsored by a repressive radical Islamist regime that has openly stated its genocidal intention towards Israel and Jews. So Israel does what ANY other country would do - it fights back. And you turn around and say, “Fighting back makes them look brutal, racist and hateful. It’s no wonder people hate them.”
How do you not see how fucked up this is?