One of the most worn out tropes advanced by the Guardian hard left is that they indeed oppose “actual” anti-Semitism but are frustrated that Israel’s supporters casually employ the term to stifle its critics.
Occasionally, the insincerity of such charges are in full view – especially when such critics fail to condemn those who engage in explicit and undeniable Jew hatred.
The response by many commenters to Andrew Brown’s CiF post, WikiLeaks and Israel Shamir, represents such an example.
Though Brown makes the case that Shamir is an unrepentent anti-Semite quite well, it should also be noted that Shamir has stated that “It’s every Muslim and Christian’s duty to deny the Holocaust;” described the Jews as “virus in human form;” and endorsed the Protocols of the Elders of Zion.
Yet, for some CiF commenters, Shamir is not a hater at all but, rather, a “renegade Jew” who’s tragically misunderstood (presumably in the tradition of renegade Muslims such as Ayaan Hirsi Ali).
While such a comment by itself wouldn’t necessarily be worth discussing, please note that his comment received 204 “Recommends”.
COMMITTEE FOR ACCURACY IN MIDDLE EAST REPORTING AND ANALYSIS
The tragically misunderstood Israel Shamir
One of the most worn out tropes advanced by the Guardian hard left is that they indeed oppose “actual” anti-Semitism but are frustrated that Israel’s supporters casually employ the term to stifle its critics.
Occasionally, the insincerity of such charges are in full view – especially when such critics fail to condemn those who engage in explicit and undeniable Jew hatred.
The response by many commenters to Andrew Brown’s CiF post, WikiLeaks and Israel Shamir, represents such an example.
Though Brown makes the case that Shamir is an unrepentent anti-Semite quite well, it should also be noted that Shamir has stated that “It’s every Muslim and Christian’s duty to deny the Holocaust;” described the Jews as “virus in human form;” and endorsed the Protocols of the Elders of Zion.
Yet, for some CiF commenters, Shamir is not a hater at all but, rather, a “renegade Jew” who’s tragically misunderstood (presumably in the tradition of renegade Muslims such as Ayaan Hirsi Ali).
While such a comment by itself wouldn’t necessarily be worth discussing, please note that his comment received 204 “Recommends”.
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