If it’s Anti-Israel, It’s not Racism

Augean Stables ^ | 5 April 2006 | Richard Landes

[thedavetx]

In my essays on France, I remarked that under guise of anti-Zionism, anti-Semitism has returned because Zionist crimes gave Judeophobia an “objective” explanation.

So while the Europeans in their cognitive egocentrism, apologized for Palestinian terrorism, which they took to express thwarted national aspirations, they continued to fuel Jihadi violence. The outbreak of the Intifada and constant exposure to “le petit Mohammed” brought the violent discourse against the Jews to new heights in Europe. This was especially true in France with the highest numbers of both Jews and Muslims in Europe, where formerly mixed and functional neighborhoods of Jews and Muslims from North Africa were split apart by the new tone. The racaille won: attacks on Jews and Jewish sites multiplied.

Indeed France has become the bell-weather of violence against the Jews, the earliest and most widespread manifestation. As a Tunisian cabdriver said to me, “I grew up in Tunisia with Jews in my neighborhood. I didn’t become an anti-Semite until I came to France.”

“Were you watching Hizbullah cable TV,” I asked?
“No, French news.”

Now we have a new and terrifying illustration of this phenomenon in Sweden. (One would think that by 2006 some kind of learning curve had started to kick in, but apparently the Europeans are very slow.) The minister of Justice has decided not to pursue a case against the main mosque in Sweden despite it’s overwhelmingly vicious rhetoric which contravenes laws against making “derogatory statements about ethnic, racial, national, religious and sexual minorities or to incite hatred and violence against them.” The logic is breathtaking (or, as Solomonia puts it, dhimmi logic)

In his decision to discontinue the preliminary investigation Lambertz wrote that “the lecture at hand contains statements that are strongly degrading to Jews, among other things, they are throughout called brothers of apes and pigs.” Furthermore a curse is expressed over the Jews and “Jihad is called for, to kill the Jews, whereby suicide bombers - celebrated as martyrs - are the most effective weapon”.

The Chancellor raises the question whether the statements “should be judged differently, and be considered allowed, because they are used by one side in a continuing profound conflict, where battle cries and invectives are part of everyday occurrences in the rhetoric that surround the conflict.” Lambertz thought that the “recently mentioned statements in spite of their contents are not to be considered “incitement against an ethnic group according to Swedish law”. His conclusions were that the preliminary investigation should be discontinued because this case of incitement against Jews could be said to originate from the Middle East conflict. That is, in spite of the calls for ”killing the Jews”, these statements are not a crime in the legal sense in Sweden, because of the current conflict in the Middle East, according to the Chancellor of Justice.

One could not get a better expression of:

• double standard — there is no parallel demonizing discourse either in Jewish synagogues or even in Israeli politics.
• foolish indulgence of precisely what the law (and presumably the Swedes) wish to prevent.

• implicit racism — we will make an exception for these people because we can’t expect them to live up to our standards.
• egotistic splitting — since we Swedes are not the target of this, it’s not our problem.
• anti-Judaism through proxy — the Jewish community — who apparently don’t really count as Swedes — will have to put up with this hate speech, after all, we’re not saying these things.

• self-destructive behavior — we’ll just let these folks say what they want even if we are fostering the most violent and intolerant attitudes among our ever-growing and ever-more aggressive Muslim minority.

  My question: is this pure stupidity? veiled anti-Semitism? or the principles of Eurabia at work?

  In any case, it well suits the image of Europeans, sipping their anti-Judaic wine while holding an open bar for their anti-Semitic Muslims to knock back 160 proof fire water. A friend of mine has a good test for whether something rises above common garden-variety dislike of Jews (which is perfectly acceptable, we’re all free to like and dislike): if the distaste for Jews is visibly self-destructive and people still can’t let go. Time for a new version of “Isn’t it ironic.”

[thedavetx]

Richard Landes is a Professor of History at Boston University.

His blog Augean Stables and website The Second Draft contain a myriad of insightful essays (and video at TSD) on: misreporting and propaganda by the news media, the Arab-Israeli conflict, and the rise of anti-semitism in Europe, among other topics.

[Gordongekko909]

When I first heard about those anti-hate-speech laws, I was wondering if they would be applied to Muslim hate speech against Jews. It seems not.

As for the Imam that uttered those threats, police be upon him, I'm sure that there is a special place in Hell reserved for just his breed.

[jimfree]

There was a Hawaii Five-0 episode - that dates me. It involved a family that was robbing and killing, for not very serious gain. At the end of the episode the whole family together are apprehended and Jack Lord as Steve McGarrett asks "Why?" The teenaged daughter in the group says "They wasn't kin." McGarrett asks "What?" and she replies "It's okay if it's strangers."

I suggest that the antisemitism of today is part of no less corrupt a morality, no less short-sighted a world-view.

[jimfree]

When I first heard about those anti-hate-speech laws, I was wondering if they would be applied to Muslim hate speech against Jews. It seems not.

Hate crime laws are very infrequently applied when the defendent is black. Some people only care about hate crime laws for acts like the James Byrd dragging murder, not for mass assault and murder by Colin Ferguson.

[Gordongekko909]

Some people only care about hate crime laws for acts like the James Byrd dragging murder

Which is funny, because out of the three perps in that case, two got the death penalty and one got life without parole. What would hate crime laws have done? Mandate anger management courses for them, too?

[Frank_N_Sense]

The French have truly learned how to be MOTHER LOVERS.

[Presbyterian Reporter]

The leftists among the mainline protestant churches use the same strategy in their demonization of Israel. Namely,
they ignore the anti-semitic rhetoric and terrorist acts committed by the Palestinians and go into a tirade as to how evil Israel is.

The divestment strategy of the Presbyterian Church USA was passed by commissioners to the General Assembly who are known for their alliance with the ideology of the leftist PCUSA leadership.

For such a small country, Israel seems to be in the cross hairs of all leftists. One wonders why the leftists hate the Israelis so much they would take the actions taken.

[happygrl]

Richard Landes BUMP!

[Salem]

Thanks for posting this.

I had opportunity to correspond with Richard Landes a while back (BCC'd a few other FReepers on that) when Daniel Pipes forwarded him a retort of mine to Landes' assertion that "post Millennial" rage directed against the Jews was an impending threat by the Christian community (which, of course, has not materialized).

At that time, Landes struck me as just another pedantic academic with odd ideas writing to justify their paycheck and pompous title.

But his initiating the "Second Draft" project, and now this blog, has left me pleasantly surprised.  

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[UnbelievingScumOnTheOtherSide]

His conclusions were that the preliminary investigation should be discontinued because this case of incitement against Jews could be said to originate from the Middle East conflict. That is, in spite of the calls for ”killing the Jews”, these statements are not a crime in the legal sense in Sweden, because of the current conflict in the Middle East, according to the Chancellor of Justice.

Kill all Muslims. And if the Swedes take side by calling that "hate speech", then kill all Swedes. /SARCASM

[fdsa2]

Ake Green was acquitted using the same laws...

"All bad precedents begin as justifiable measures."

[prairiebreeze]

A friend of mine has a good test for whether something rises above common garden-variety dislike of Jews (which is perfectly acceptable, we’re all free to like and dislike): if the distaste for Jews is visibly self-destructive and people still can’t let go. Time for a new version of “Isn’t it ironic.”

He draws a very fine line IMO. "Disliking" an entire race,religion and culture...hard to see that as anything but racism. And a person whose "dislike" is so intense it becomes self-destructive wouldn't have enough self-awareness to even recognize it's they that have the problem. They wouldn't recognize (or admit), there was anything they needed to let go of.

[prairiebreeze]

One wonders why the leftists hate the Israelis so much they would take the actions taken.

It's left over or continued animous from the Holocaust, IMO. Not that anybody would admit it.

[SJackson]

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