Don't Touch Me

The German news magazine Der Spiegel published a well-researched and carefully written article, that looked into the activities of the Jewish and pro-Israel lobby in Germany’s parliament. Surprise, surprise, a chorus of Jewish and non-Jewish German philosemitic voices were immediately active crying Anti-Semitism.

These accusations are absurd, as is the whole discourse on matters Jewish in Germany.

Macron and the Jews

French president Macron turns out to have a knack for theatrical productions. (Any connection to the fact that his wife was his high school theatre teacher?) He persuaded the universally despised Trump, (who is on record with “I was in Paris recently, and Paris doesn’t look like Paris anymore”) to fly to Paris, just three days after he came back from the G20 Meeting in Hamburg, by inviting him to a military parade (that Trump apparently likes). As an add-on, dinner was served at the top of the Eiffel Tower. In fact, so big was Macron’s success, that Trump must have overlooked the “my tower is bigger than your tower” aspect of this part if the visit. 

Next in line was Israel’s also despised prime minister Netanyahu. To create the right atmosphere for a meeting with the recalcitrant Netanyahu, the work meeting at the Élysée palace was preceded by a Holocaust memorial event – specifically, the annual remembrance ceremony for the 1942 deportation of French Jews. The mass arrest and deportation of over 13,000 Jews to their deaths in Auschwitz was organised and carried out by French police. In his moving speech, Macron again pointed out to French responsibility for this act, in which, he said, no German was involved.

Netanyahu – who likes to present himself as the prime minister of the Jewish People, which he is not – was allowed to fit into that role by Macron. The real present, which Macron gave Netanyahu, was his statement that anti-Zionism is a new form of antisemitism. This plays right into Netanyahu’s hands. It is, however, patently NOT TRUE, M. Macron.

Macron should not have politicised this ceremony commemorating France’s shameful deportation by giving Netanyahu a stage. Moreover, Macron should not have come out with a blanket ruling on Antisemitism, as if he was an expert in this highly disputed area.

Yellow Card for Poland ?

The Polish government has announced that it will make referring to Nazi concentration camps that were situated in occupied Poland as “Polish concentration camps” punishable. Where will the offenders be sent?

The Poles have for a long time, rightly objected to the fallacious referral to the Nazi camps as Polish. However, we should not forget that many Poles were virulent and sometimes even murderous anti-Semites. Indeed pogroms took place after the war had ended, in which Poles killed Jews who were trying to return to their homes in Poland.

Moreover, considering the exceptionally high level of anti-Semitism still to be found in Poland: 45% in Poland compared to 16% in Germany and 11% in the UK, the Polish government should perhaps concentrate its resources on fighting anti-Semitism and educating its own population against racist xenophobia.

Worryingly, the current administration, as well as public and media sentiment is going wildly nationalistic. Is there a way of sending Poland out of the EU until they start behaving again? Countries such as Poland should be shown a yellow card. Perhaps even a red one.

More Bach

It seems that some readers have misunderstood what I had written about Bach’s Johannes Passion. I did not go into the question whether Bach was an anti-Semite or not, nor into whether Bach had wanted to propagate anti-Semitic texts. All I pointed out was the effect that this most beautiful music combined with some of the texts of St. John Passion will most likely have had on listeners over the centuries.

Why doubt the manipulative power of beautiful music?

St. John Passion

It is the time of year for St. John Passion and last night I heard a splendid rendering of Bach’s Johannes Passion in the Freiburg Münster. Bach in his great talent managed to vividly bring home the story told in the Gospel of St. John. Almost like an impressionist painter, with his choir, Bach brings out the atmosphere, the [Jewish] crowds and hysteria. The result is anti-Jewish agitation to the most beautiful music.

Sitting in the sombre gothic cathedral, I remembered my mother – who sang in the choir that performed the Passion in Israel in the late 60s and early 70s of last century – telling me that the words of the Johannes Passion made her feel more uncomfortable than any text she had previously sung. At the time, I did not really take much heed. I loved the music and that was enough. Having grown up in Israel, anti-Judaism was something I had never experienced. My other, who was born in Germany and had to flee with her family had first hand experience.

45 Year later, leaving the Freiburg Münster, I found myself thinking of the many generations of Christians leaving their solemn churches after hearing Bach’s Johannes Passion depicting the Jews driving the death of their Lord. How many of them, upon subsequently meeting a Jew in the streets of their town, then reacted with hatred, aggression and even violence, as a result of the animosity towards Jews that was planted in their hearts with the aid of the beautiful, so very beautiful music of Johan Sebastian Bach?

Racism – Fight Back

The current outbreak of violence between Israel and the Hamas has produced Europe-wide anti-Israel demonstrations, many of which incorporate vile and anti-Semitic proclamations and slogans as well as acts of violence against Jews and Jewish institutions.

It is not surprising that European Jews are worried and often frightened. But so should be the rest of the population. It is up to civil society as well as governments – wherever these anti-Semitic incidents occur – not only to educate but also to come down fiercely against the organisers and perpetrators of these anti-Semitic occurrences.

Similarly, it is up to Israeli society and authorities to educate but also to come down fiercely against organisers and perpetrators of anti-Arab racism that is increasingly rearing its head in Israel. Unfortunately, such racism seems to get away unpunished. Moreover, the right-wing perpetrators of these racist acts are well represented in the Israeli political elite. Israel’s Foreign Minister Lieberman, for example, has just urged Israelis to boycott the businesses of Israeli Arab citizens who are taking part in a general strike in protest of Israel’s operation in the Gaza Strip.

It is generally accepted that such racist language, let alone acts of violence are totally unacceptable, and it is always a minority that perpetrates such racist outrage. But, the majority – be it in Israel or in Europe - must stop looking the other way. It must fight back. 

They want to chuck Hagel

President Obama has announced that Chuck Hagel is his nominee for the job of Secretary of Defense. The Republicans whose main contribution to the democratic process in the US is to try to derail everything that comes from the Democrats, and have already successfully thwarted Obama’s first choice as Secretary of State, Ambassador Susan Rice, are now out to kill the Hagel nomination.

The main line of attack is that Obama’s choice for Defense Secretary is not sufficiently pro... Israel. I have no idea whether Hagel is a good choice for the Defense job but I do know that being “pro Israel” should not be a prerequisite for an American Defense Secretary. Hagel's detractors also maintain that he is an anti-Semite, as he once referred to the Israel lobby as the "Jewish lobby". The fact is that there is a strong Jewish lobby that forms an important part of the strong Israel lobby in the US. Mistakenly referring to it as the Jewish lobby does not make him an anti-Semite. Indeed, there are many Jews who refer to the Israel lobby as the Jewish lobby. 

Someone must tell those morons that it is their duty is to vote for a candidate who is good for America. They should perhaps be reminded that serving the interests of a foreign country is tantamount to treason. 

Günter Grass

In a poem published yesterday, Günter Grass has informed the world that he is worried about Israel’s possible use of German supplied U-boats to fire nuclear missiles at Iran. I hope that the Iranians share his worry, although, I also would not want Israel to initiate an attack on Iran.

At a time, when Iran is being pressurised to give up its nuclear ambition, an important question is whether it is morally right for Israel to possess nuclear weapons. Not one of the (other) eight countries that currently have nuclear weapons has enemies threatening them with extinction. Yet, Israel, from the first day of its existence, has been under the threat of destruction. The world stood by when Arab countries threatened to wipe out the “Zionist entity”, as they used to call Israel, and it stands by with Iran promising that the Jewish state would disappear.

Israel has never conceded to having a bomb and therefore has never threatened anyone with its nuclear power. But, would it not be legitimate for Israel to make it clear that before its existence would be in jeopardy, it would use its nuclear weapons?

Grass speaks of Israel the nuclear power that endangers world peace; of Israel that could in a pre-emptive strike wipe out the Iranian people. He does not define Iran as a country that endangers world peace. Iran, whose existence is not in danger nor has it been threatened, is working towards becoming a nuclear power. Why?

Grass makes much of what he says was his own difficulty in speaking out against Israel. In his own version of “some of my best friends are Jews” Grass assures us that he is committed to the Land of Israel (mind you, he speaks of the land not the state). I have no idea and that is not the issue, but there have been suggestions that anti-Semitism is rearing its head out of the Grass.

He would have been on safer ground had he attacked Israel on its occupation of the West Bank and the settlement of Israelis in the occupied territories. Unlike the Iranian question, this is an issue that has nothing to do with survival or security. It is just morally wrong. But in his poem, Grass dealt with his own angsts rather than with issues of morality.

A conversation in Germany, 2009.

In Munich, as I lay in a dentist’s chair for some emergency work to a broken tooth, a friendly Moroccan dental nurse in her early thirties asked me why it was that everybody spoke badly about the Jews.

It all started with small talk. She was curious about my good German, considering that I was a visitor from London. I explained that I am a Jew and that my grandparents had left Germany in 1933; that at the time my parents were still children but that German was the language spoken in our house in my childhood. Thus, German was a sort of mother tongue.

She wanted to know why they had left and I mentioned Hitler. ‘Ah’, she said, she did not really know much about him but did he push the Jews out? I did not want to get into this conversation and just said that it was rather more than pushing the Jews out of Germany. Yes, she knew that Hitler had been a really bad guy; perhaps to make me feel better, she added that Hitler was no longer around.

But why, she wanted to know, why do so many people speak badly about the Jews. Especially, she said ‘our people’, that is the Muslims, don’t like the Jews.

How should I have responded?

Her personal experience had been good. In her own version of ‘some of my best friends are Jews’, she told me of the generosity of Jewish acquaintances and repeated the question. She really wanted to understand why it was that so many people hated the Jews.

Anti-Semitism

This is a rough translation of a conversation I recently overheard in a German restaurant:

A: 65-ish year-old man, retired colonel (German army).

B: 30-ish year-old German

A: don’t talk to me about the holocaust. I’ve heard enough about it; especially with everything the Jews are doing to the Palestinians.

B: I don’t see the connection.

A: What don’t you see? Look at them. Look at Bubis. All his money. He owns the whole of Frankfurt. Where did he get the money?

B: Isn’t that somewhat superficial?

A: the fact is that Jews now own everything in Frankfurt.