Is it anti-Israel, anti-semitic, or both? There are some people who really need it to be just anti-Israel, who would like to be able to criticize Israel, and say a Jewish state shouldn't exist, but not be seen as a Judeophobe.
There is certainly an argument to be made that this cartoon is critical of Israel only. The only problem is the nature of the commentary: A fascist Jewish state (headless, which I guess means brainless) is actively seeking to destroy the people of Gaza (consume them it appears). There's only one problem with this. The narrative is untrue. As I have said again and again there is no genocide going on. You can call Gaza the Warsaw Ghetto, and call the Israelis Nazis all you like. It doesn't change the fact that the comparison is false, and racist.
To put Pat Deficant's cartoon in context, let's take a look at some cartoons that have appeared in Arab publications in Europe and the Middle East, all depicting the star of David in them.
"The Holocaust: Israel's get out of jail free card."
I'm sure the world would breathe a big sigh of relief if we stopped saying, "Never again," and said, "Never mind," instead. Sorry. The Jewish people are not going to forget how the world enabled the Nazi extermination of Jews, gays, and gypsies, and shut its doors until 11 million of us were dead. We are not forgetting, and as long as the world continues to actively try and kill us, we will not forgive. The job of the Jew is not the expatiation of sin, guilt, or whatever it is that people feel that makes them think we should just stop talking about it. And whether you choose to accept it or not, watching Schindler's List does not impart the collective and legitimate fear that anywhere can become unsafe for us at any time. That's as inane as telling Lakota people that you saw Dances With Wolves and feel bad for them. You might be better served going to Auschwitz so you can sit alone with your thoughts in a gas chamber, or at least go to the Holocaust Museum in Washington D.C. and walk under the casting of the Arbeit Macht Frei gate and try to get a sense of what it must have been like to separated from your family, stripped naked, and tatooed like cattle, while the smell of burning human flesh filled your nostrils.
This one (in color...cool) is from Al-Bayan out of the United Arab Emerates. Ah yes, the Jews (or is it Israel?) control the world, like a yo-yo on a string. That's right, 13.3 million people control the world. I'm still waiting to get a single dime from this "world Jewish conspiracy" that we've supposedly got going (so are my parents, the rest of my family, and every other Jew I know. Believe me, it would be nice to get some relief from living paycheck to paycheck). There is a special category of stupid fucking idiot that subscribes to this theory.
This one is from Saudi Arabia's Al-Yawm. Born to kill? Yep, that's the Israelis for ya (or is it the Jews?) I think I'm going to rewrite that little diddy that Chevy Chase sang in Caddy Shack:
I'm sure the world would breathe a big sigh of relief if we stopped saying, "Never again," and said, "Never mind," instead. Sorry. The Jewish people are not going to forget how the world enabled the Nazi extermination of Jews, gays, and gypsies, and shut its doors until 11 million of us were dead. We are not forgetting, and as long as the world continues to actively try and kill us, we will not forgive. The job of the Jew is not the expatiation of sin, guilt, or whatever it is that people feel that makes them think we should just stop talking about it. And whether you choose to accept it or not, watching Schindler's List does not impart the collective and legitimate fear that anywhere can become unsafe for us at any time. That's as inane as telling Lakota people that you saw Dances With Wolves and feel bad for them. You might be better served going to Auschwitz so you can sit alone with your thoughts in a gas chamber, or at least go to the Holocaust Museum in Washington D.C. and walk under the casting of the Arbeit Macht Frei gate and try to get a sense of what it must have been like to separated from your family, stripped naked, and tatooed like cattle, while the smell of burning human flesh filled your nostrils.
But let's move on, shall we?
This one (in color...cool) is from Al-Bayan out of the United Arab Emerates. Ah yes, the Jews (or is it Israel?) control the world, like a yo-yo on a string. That's right, 13.3 million people control the world. I'm still waiting to get a single dime from this "world Jewish conspiracy" that we've supposedly got going (so are my parents, the rest of my family, and every other Jew I know. Believe me, it would be nice to get some relief from living paycheck to paycheck). There is a special category of stupid fucking idiot that subscribes to this theory.By the way, there are 1.66 BILLION Muslims in the world. So go figure.
This one is from Saudi Arabia's Al-Yawm. Born to kill? Yep, that's the Israelis for ya (or is it the Jews?) I think I'm going to rewrite that little diddy that Chevy Chase sang in Caddy Shack:
I was born to love you
I was born to lick your face
You were born to kill me
But I was born to kill you first.
But let's finish up with a bang, gang.
This one is from Al-Watan out of Oman (wow, four different cartoons from four different countries that hate the Jews (or is it just Israel they hate?). This one is captioned, "The feast of the Immolation," and, "The Islamic World's attitude?" Yes, the blood thirsty, born to kill Jew (or is it Israeli?) is beheading Muslims. Funny, I've never seen any video being broadcast on Israeli Jew TV of Israeli Jews beheading anybody, but we sure get plenty of video of Muslims beheading Jews and westerners. I also remember seeing footage of an IDF soldier being torn limb from limb by Arabs during the second intifada. Maybe this cartoon is just a case of Freudian projection.
The Magen David (the star of David) was the seal used by King David. It is the ancient form of the letter Daled, identical to the Delta, with an inverted Daled on top of it. It is the symbol of the Jewish people, adorning our synagogues, caskets, ritual objects, and our homes for thousands of years. It is what the Nazis forced us to sew to our clothing so they could easily identify us. It is the symbol adorning the Israeli flag. There is no separating these meanings for a Jew. The Oliphant cartoon is a political statement against Israel. It is a Judeophobic statement against Jews when the star of David is used. Either Oliphant is a stupid fucking idiot who doesn't understand the meaning of the symbol, in which case he should put the pen down and step away from the drafting table, or he knows exactly what he's doing; enabling Judeophobes to hide behind "criticism" of Israelis as blood thirsty killers who eat Palestinians like sharks.
What would we do without Oliphant to remind us, and the rest of the world, that we are born to kill? Probably go on with our lives with a greater measure of peace.
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Hey Shtuey, I've been reading you for a bit. I caught the link from Diamond. I enjoy (mostly) your thoughts. The ones I can't say I enjoy are the ones which cause me pain. Hate causes me pain. To be clear - your thoughts are not hateful, nor do they cause me pain. I am not Jewish. I'm not anything really, but I do believe hating someone for their beliefs/whatever is just... I haven't a word for it.
Those are not 'cartoons' nor are they thoughtful, thought-provoking, insightful, humorous... they're just hateful.
I feel your pain.
That's all I want to say.
Keep writing. I'll keep reading.
Thank you Sandra.
You'd think the world would have had enough of baseless hatred by now. It's especially hard when people who claim they respect everyone clearly don't. We can just keep hoping things will get better. But idiots will be idiots.
...and idiots will keep voting them into powerful offices. hehehe
I think when self -righteous people cannot get past group think, and are willing to trade independent thought for "acceptance and approval" that the ability to make clear and distinct perceptions is lost.
Clearly the cartoons are all anti- semitic and sickeningly so. The same people who protest that that they are not would cry foul if their heritage or religious / patrioic symbol were abused so hatefully .
Anyone who does not see the hate in the cartoon is just stooopid, but dangerously so .
Amen. The only thing worse than presenting that cartoon as an example of a legitimate political statement on the I/P issue would be to use it for some petty, personal vendetta.
"The Holocaust: Israel's get out of jail free card."--Did somebody really say something so stupid?
Oliphant's cartoon really is difficult to distinguish from those other cartoons, and that in itself speaks volumes as to whether it is anti-Semitic or not.
Thank you, Shtuey, for also pointing out that in all of those drawings, there is no way to distinguish if the target is Israel (state), Israeli citizens, or the entire Jewish diaspora. In that context it is hard to not see such imagery as offensive. Such generalization about any other group would immediately be called out, especially by the left leaning hypocrites who play the victim in order to justify their own Judeo bigotry.
I need to do some looking up on this, but I would tend to think that most anti-american political cartoons, particularly coming from the Muslim world, would show George Bush as the aggressive figure, Not some demonized stereotype of the entire American nation. but for a lot of these people jews are subhuman, so to depict one as an actual individual would only serve to individualize Jews (or israelis) and shift the hate from every Jew on earth to just an "enemy" head of state. Leaders like achmadinnerjacket readily admit such differences in dealing with their enemies. In his eyes ALL jews are to be wiped from the earth, while he maintains that iranians only hate US government/policies, not individual americans.
I think a good analogy for hypocrites who like to say that Jews (or anyone else for that matter) who say these types of images are racist only do so to silence opposition in the debate is the controversy of the use of the Confederate Flag in the south. African Americans who were treated as property under that flag have every right to be outraged when it is given a prominent place in their public and civic arenas, such as on state flags. The response that it is "only a flag" and that they should get over it only exacerbates the indignation of the black community. Leftists who would never argue that flying the Confederate flag is part of southern heritage and that blacks should just get over it and stop using it as a "get out of jail free card", have no problem saying just that to people who find Oliphants cartoon offensive.
I had some difficulty posting so I hope this doesn't show up as a duplicate. I just wanted to thank you so much for taking on this kind of anti-Israel bigotry and denouncing it. I have been sickened as I've watched liberals turn on Israel. I've concluded that all the world loves a victim. When Jews stopped being victims the love had to go elsewhere. Who are the world's favorite vicitms now? Why the Palestinians, of course. I've been to the region many times. I've traveled in Palestinian areas such as the Golan Heights and Nablus. I am struck by the poor standard of living and can only ask where has all the money that went into the Palestinian Authority gone? It sure didn't go into roads, factories or hospitals. I feel sorry for the Palestinians but until they decide to turn their energies from hate and destruction into building up their own territory and educating their people - all their people including girls - then they are destined to be perpetual victims.
Gary, I've never encountered people more preoccupied with muttering, "my shit don't stink" over and over.
And your CSA flag analysis is spot on.
Katharine B; it is ironic that the brutal PA/Hamas terror regime that keeps Palestinians living under the gun, and in abject poverty, it is their propaganda machine portraying them as victims of Israel to cover the crimes they commit against their own people.
Though there are many in the West Bank and Gaza that are tired of being controlled by the PA terrorist mafia, speaking out is a death sentence, while people with dissenting opinions fill Israel's streets and newspapers. But still we hear that the Israelis are the Nazis. Whatever.
Thank you for this education. I'll admit... much of this hate has slipped by me in the past. Right over my head.
You know, it wasn't until the Democratic party was overtaken by pro-Palestine fanatics that my eyes began to open... to what we are about to lose, in terms of world civility.
I guess... in a sense... I should be thankful to the O-bots, for the wake-up call about the anti-semitic, anti-woman agenda underlying much of what they call "progressive." Until 2008, I had no idea.
when the hell did the Confluence become an antisemitic place?
*shakes head*
I'm back to square one. I'm back to the first thing I ever learned from my nana
" we are jewish, and the world hates us and doesn't give a shit if we die"
My employer has a ethnicity monitoring scheme going on. The options are:
Asian, Black(black african, black british, black caribbean), Chinese, Dual (black and asian, black and asian, black caribbean and white, black caribbean and asian ), White (white british, white irish, white other) and Other.
I am an Other.
Shtuey - very well-done.
I too was clueless about the anti-Semitism within the left wing of our political spectrum. Almost every Jewish person I know is a liberal. So when did the left decide they didn't need us? When did the Obamacrats decide they preferred Islamic terrorists and hatemongers to Israel?
Maybe it has to do with wanting in on Iranian oil money. But unfortunately, that's not all there is to it. They have to promote and spread the type of blatant anti-semitism that Oliphaunt's cartoon promulgates. Otherwise, how can they explain turning against our only friend in the ME?
Every day I cry harder and long for a day without the Leftist hate mongering. If the truth be known none of the people on the left care about anyone bu themselves.
There are three things I believe the leftist dominated Democratic parties care little for: Jews, disabled folks and gays! so I don't understand their liberal mentality!
We don't need to talk about the AAs the Dems never really supported Civil Rights and that goes right back to JFK. LBJ passed the Civil Right laws so he could be known by something other than a villain that was marketing the Vietnam War!
Gary, what you said!@!! and then some ..
Also , one does not have to even "approve" to be part of the problem ... all that is required is that one does not disapprove.To not realise that comparing the Jews to stormtroopers is a hate crime is pretty dim perception indeed. But to allow it to pass as a neutral event and not call hate propaganda, if you know it ; is worse yet.
As for people muttering my shit don't stink ,their sense of smell is as glaringly obviously impaired as their judgement .
here is a link to a WW2 NAZI propaganda site with nazi cartoons
http://www.bytwerk.com/gpa/lustige.htm
This one in particular is telling.. and not too dissimilar from Oliphants in meaning .
http://www.bytwerk.com/gpa/images/lb/lb43-29.jpg
S.Y.D.; 2008 confirmed what I had been feeling for a long time; that the Democrappy Party are nothing but a bunch of users. Think about it. As pro-woman as they profess to be, what kind of effort as the party led to actually make equality for women happen? Same for gays. While state after state passes amendments stripping gays of their equal protections, what does the Democrap party do? If anyone has an answer other than "nothing" I'd sure like to hear it. If anything, they distance themselves as much as possible in the hopes of scoring votes from center right voters. The Democrap party never met a voting demographic it didn't like.
The party attitude on women was a real surprise though. Beyond the fact that the party allowed Hillary Clinton to be the victim of virtual rape at the hands of the press, the Rules and Bylaws Committee, and the now Asshole in Chief (this is what a feminist looks like?), I was stunned when prominent, so-called liberal feminists supported TelePrompter Misogynist, and then viciously attacked Sarah Palin. Whether she is the liberal cup of tea or not, she was brutalized in a way that made what happened to Hillary look like a ride in the tunnel of love.
It's all about getting votes, winning elections, and maintaining power. That's why ACORN got $3.5 billion and we get shit. Why give the actual voters a reason to vote when ACORN will be registering illegal aliens for the next 4 years? Anyone hoping to see real immigration reform better forget it because the illegals are the Democrap Party's plan for victory in 2012.
me; the thought speak at The Confluence is the typical presentation of an infection of liberal thoughtlessness. There is a class of liberal that is cause directed. There must be a cause. There must be a victim. The issue must be black and white, and once the victim is perceived and chosen there is nothing that can change it. This class of liberal will say anything and do anything to avoid having to examen reality that differs from their world view. It is inconceivable to them that Israel is not happy about its current hall monitor status in the West Bank, manning check points, and maintaining security fences that not only keep Arabs in, but keep Jews out. A perfect example is the town of Chevrun. This is the site of the Cave of Machpelah, the place where the Jewish patriarchs and matriarchs are buried. It is the second holiest site in Judaism, apart from the Temple Mount. When I first went to Israel in the '70s we went there without a problem. Now, the only way to get there is by armed bus. This is not because of the Palestinian people. It is because of their "government" that uses terror against them. And of course the situation was exacerbated when a Jewish fanatic laid siege to Rachel's tomb and slaughtered a number of innocent people. Religious Jews would love to be able to have unfettered access to these holy sites, and the Israeli government certainly has the weaponry to force the Arabs out, seize Chevrun entirely and prevent them from having access to the tombs as well, despite the fact that this is a holy site for Muslims. If Israel was the Nazi state that liberals love to say it is then I suspect these new Nazis would have driven the Arabs out to make way for religious Jews. What most people don't know is that the Israeli government forcibly expelled Jews from Chevrun in the name of peace. So much for the Nazi Israeli. I wish these fucks would get an education before spouting on about shit they know nothing about, disseminating disinformation as fact. They do both sides a grave disservice. Sadly, what's going on at TC also involves a herd mentality. Some of us refused to bleat along and got shit on as a result. Whatever. It's just another example of Kesey's Postulate in action: "In any given situation, there are always going to be more dumb people than smart people."
MB; the forsaking of Israel and American Jews is two-fold. They see the Palestinians are the victims of the Jews, rather than hostages to the PA mobsters that control them, and let's face it, we're only .02% of the population of this country. That's not a lot of votes. And since the FEC isn't doing a thing about illegal foreign contributions, all that Arab oil money trumps Heeb money I guess. Since they are able to cut us loose they do it because we're not going to stick with them after Pampers is done shitting on Israel, and they know it.
Hey Shtuey,
didja ever notice how much RC nuns apparel resemble burkhas ??
Don't mind me, I am so tangential by nature some people think I am scattered ..
but I have this disturbing " habit" of noticing patterns ...
swanspirit, the nuns at catholic school taught us that it was common attire during Jesus' lifetime. Mary is always shown wearing a veil, and that is why I think nuns adopted that "habit". he he...you'd think after 2000 years they'd deserve a makeover :)
On a related note, I remember when I was a very young man i moved to LA to sew my oats with college friends. I lived smack dab in the middle of Hollywood (on Hollywood and La Brea). That area has a very large orthodox community of Jews. I remember my 12 year old sister coming to visit me one time and as we walked down La Brea she asked me why there were so many Amish people living in the middle of Hollywood LOL...
The Amish and some sects of Orthodox Jews do have similar attire, but I think the Jews have better hats. Does that mean I'm suppressing the dialogue.
Oh, Gary, in answer to your question about the Holocaust as get out of jail free card comment; yes, someone actually said that. The exact quote is: "... the Holocaust should not be used as a “get out of jail free card” for excusing policies of the Israeli government that end up exacerbating a bad situation."
I wonder what the vote in the Knesset must have been like over that one: "All in favor of using the Holocaust as a get out of jail free card say, "Heil Hitler!"
I seriously have to question anyone who takes a commenter like that seriously after a remark like that.
i've said this before and i'll repeat it until my people are thrown into the ovens again, which by the way will NEVER happen.
no matter how loudly the anti-israel lobby screams that there is no parallel between being against israel and being an anti-semite, the truth is clear. anti-israel=jew hater.
let us also remember that there is a huge contingency of self-loathing jews which are mostly comprised of far left liberals. when you're an "apologist" for your own people...nevermind.
it is long known to be a well established fact that jews tend to be liberal. the comment that was made referring to victimization can be applied to the liberal jews as well as the entire far left libs. jews are charitable and empathetic, by and large. they gravitate to those that have less and appear needy, whether that is self inflicted or not. this mindset, though noble at times, is leading to the furthering of acceptable hatred of the jews. those very factions who are more than willing to receive jewish attention are quick to denigrate their benefactors.
until the jews wake up to this fact (never), we will see the rise of anti-semitism.
as of late, i've heard myself literally saying to friends, "why don't you stick up for your own kind?" it makes me sick to hear myself say that because i *was* raised to give a damn about everyone else. however, these are precariously dangerous times, and jews better start learning the lessons of the holocaust.
i've been reading a litany of material blaming the jews for 9/11 with such statements as, "how come more jews weren't in their offices that day?"
i sit stunned.
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