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Last update - 00:13 27/02/2007
Why Israelis hate the left, or, How to Speak Leftist
By Bradley Burston


This is the second in a series of exercises in over-generalization , following Ten reasons the left hates Israel - five good, five bad. Apologies are tendered in advance to the rational left, the members of whom often hate the following as much as Israelis do.

______________


Why do Israelis hate the Western left?

  • Because Arabs can murder, rape, starve, maim, torture, deport, excommunicate, honor-kill, abuse, extort, rocket, shell, assassinate, suicide bomb, humiliate, jail without due process, occupy, and enslave other Arabs without eliciting peep one from the evolved, hypersensitive consciences of the Western left - unless the silence is broken in order to find Israel and its U.S. ally responsible.

    How to Speak Leftist: Blame the West

    Repeat until winded: Arabs have been subjugated and colonized for centuries. The interventionist and occupation policies of the IDF and its Western sponsors promote infighting among Arab allies, in order to divide and continue to conquer.

  • Because Palestinians can meat-cleaver, rocket, machine-gun, bludgeon or bomb Israeli civilians to death, without the Western left making a sound.

    How to speak Leftist: Blame Israel

    Example: Talkback in response to apparent terror stabbing death of settler, Monday:

    It must be easy holding a gun to somebody's head and calling them a terrorist when all along you have been demonizing them and restricting their freedom, but then again you are taking out the holocaust frustrations on weaker people, which in your eyes makes you strong, put your gun down and face the Palestinians even handed and see how far you will get, you are bloody cowards.

    Monty, no address listed

  • Because in recent years, attacks on Jews, Jewish graves, synagogues and other Jewish institutions in Eastern and Western Europe and in North America have reached levels unseen in recent memory, and in many cases in which Muslims were behind the incidents, the left has been notably reluctant to voice condemnation.

    How to Speak Leftist: Blame Israel

    Repeat until winded: Israel's crimes against the Palestinians have been the driving force in the rise of contemporary anti-Semitism and attacks on Diaspora Jews.

  • Because some elements of the left are willing to countenance and euphemize actual genocide when practiced by Muslims in places like Darfur, while missing no opportunity to accuse Israel of systematic genocide, when describing Israeli attempts to repel suicide bombings and other terror attacks.

    How to speak Leftist - Example:

    Talkback response from Mo, NYC:

    Zionist forces who turn a blind eye to the wholesale depravation and oppression of Palestinians are making Dafur a cause celebre. The questions the left asks are -- why are people whose hands are very dirty with human rights abuses, with wholesale cultural annihilation vis-a-vis the Palestinians (not genocide, but destruction of cultural and institutional resources and identity) -- why are such people suddenly focused on Darfur?

    If Darfur is an example of a bad situation (and it certainly is, no one on the left is denying that), why doesn't it make you wake up to what is happening in your own back yard, to which you are a party? Could it be that Darfur is an attempt at evasion/redirection? Could it be that any human rights issue if it involves Arabs as perpetrators is pounced on by Zionists to avoid attention to their own misdeeds? That's what troubles the left.

  • Because nationalism on the basis of Palestinian cultural affiliation is celebrated as the natural right of a disenfranchised people with a common history of enforced displacement, and who trace their origins to ancestral homeland - while Jewish nationalism on the same basis is condemned as inherently and irrevocably racist and illegitimate.

  • Because the Western left absolves the Palestinians of all responsibility for their fate, holding Israel solely responsible for the plight of the Palestinians, their choice to pledge fealty to the armed struggle rather than call Israel's bluff and take concrete steps toward statehood.

  • And because the Palestinians are not held accountable for their refusal to wage a specifically non-violent struggle for independence, instead relying on macho-drenched violence, which does little but alienate the world from the Palestinian cause.

    How to speak Leftist: Repeat until winded

    The withdrawals from Gaza and Lebanon prove that resistance is the only way to force Israel to relinquish conquered territory.

    The lopsided pro-Palestinian votes in the UN prove that the Palestinian cause has not been hurt by resistance.

    Israeli policies make non-violent protest impossible.

    Postscript: It has been suggested to the Palestinians many times, that they organize a massive non-violent protest in which they simply Get Up And Walk. Walk towards Israel. Hundreds of thousands of people, marching for their rights. It has worked for many other movements in history.

    No rocks. No cinder blocks. No slingshots. No AK-47s. Just get up and walk.

    And if Israel responds with violence, which is likely, the Palestinians will win. The world will respect their cause. Not just the Western left. The Palestinians will win a state. Alongside Israel.

    As it is, the masked testosterone undergrounds only win themselves macho bragging rights, which, for them, appears to be enough.

    But if the masses renounce violence, the Palestinians will finally win one.

    Not just the left.

    ___________________


    Recent blogs:

    Ten reasons the left hates Israel - five good, five bad
    Al-Aqsa Mosque is good for the Jews
    Is the BBC too pro-Israel? Is The NY Times?
    Mitt Romney, blood libel, and that old time Jew hate


    ___________________


    The guiding principles of the talkback forum for this article will be mutual respect and openness to dialogue. Participants, even if they rule out, dismiss or oppose coexistence, must, within the confines of this forum, practice it.

    Censorship will be unapologetic.

    Political orientation will have absolutely no bearing on whether a comment is posted or rejected.

    The following will be grounds for deletion:

    1. Racist remarks, as well as slurs on the basis of religion, ethnicity and gender.
    2. Use of the terms Nazi, Hitler, to describe the actions and policies of Israelis, Palestinians or other parties to the Israel-Arab conflict.
    3. Disparaging remarks, personal attacks, vulgarities and profanities directed at other participants in the forum.
    4. Advocacy of violence against individuals or religious, ethnic or racial groups, including statements which may be construed as urging attacks on leaders, officials, security forces or civilians.

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      1.   Israelis hate `the left" because they hate justice, 09:25  |  ka 26/02/07
      2.   Thank you for recognizing rational leftists 09:27  |  Zvi 26/02/07
      3.   tosefta and how to speak leftist 09:31  |  harzion 26/02/07
      4.   ka the left are a bunch of misbegotten hypocrites 09:40  |  harzion 26/02/07
      5.   ka "israelis hate justice" 09:40  |  harzion 26/02/07
      6.   ka as you would expect compares us to the nazis 09:42  |  harzion 26/02/07
      7.   The Israelis are correct and the European Left is correct..... 09:42  |  Swiss (Dino) 26/02/07
      8.   ka "israelis hate anyone who reminds them of good manners" 09:44  |  harzion 26/02/07
      9.   ka "israelis under the influence of religious bigotry" 09:45  |  harzion 26/02/07
      10.   ka is devious 09:48  |  harzion 26/02/07
      11.   the left are the national socialists of the past 09:49  |  Yair 26/02/07
      12.   #1, ka, KIDUSH HASHEM 10:17  |  Cipora Julianna Kohn 26/02/07
      13.   #5, Dino, keeping score 10:19  |  Cipora Julianna Kohn 26/02/07
      14.   SPEAK in lefty?simple."Third world can do no wrong" 10:25  |  PETER SM 26/02/07
      15.   Bull#$it Dino/Swiss 10:33  |  S 26/02/07
      16.   KA wonderful justice,Stalin,Pol Pot.China.North Korea. 10:36  |  PETER. S.M 26/02/07
      17.   # 13 Cipora Julianna Kohn and "pompous"..... 10:52  |  Swiss (Dino) 26/02/07
      18.   # 15 S 10:55  |  Swiss (Dino) 26/02/07
      19.   dino never heard of pompous to do with a beautiful palace 11:01  |  letitbe 26/02/07
      20.   #17, Dino, since you are so much in need of a compliment 11:02  |  Cipora Julianna Kohn 26/02/07
      21.   What drivel 11:14  |  Marilyn 26/02/07
      22.   HARZION Its just ka,?Khalid`s,usual repetoire.Taqiyya for kufars. 11:17  |  PETER. S.M 26/02/07
      23.   # 20 Cipora Julianna Kohn 11:19  |  Swiss (Dino) 26/02/07
      24.   # 19 letitbe 11:22  |  Swiss (Dino) 26/02/07
      25.   Leftwingers are insecure worried soles 11:23  |  Johnny 26/02/07
      26.   dino and pompous palaces 11:29  |  letitbe 26/02/07
      27.   #21, Marilyn 11:42  |  JB 26/02/07
      28.   For Bradley - the Palestinians tried this. Look what happened. 11:44  |  Clickfool 26/02/07
      29.   Leftists = 1/4 whoossy chicken with a political creative barrier 11:46  |  Joseph E . 26/02/07
      30.   Opposing the "West" 11:49  |  JB 26/02/07
      31.   Recognizing one side only 12:04  |  Tzfonit 26/02/07
      32.   How to Speak 12:25  |  Ralph 26/02/07
      33.   yes, tzfonit, - hammas more sincere than leftists 12:29  |  dromit 26/02/07
      34.   GLOBAL WARMING IS LEFTIST SECULAR HUMANISTIC CON TRICK ?? 12:33  |  Bill. 26/02/07
      35.   #28, Clickfool, part 1 12:33  |  JB 26/02/07
      36.   #28, Clickfool, part 2 12:36  |  JB 26/02/07
      37.   This article and its examples are full of crap BB 12:39  |  Bandar Michaels 26/02/07
      38.   Bradley you forgot to add that Arab countries 12:51  |  Judith, Haifa 26/02/07
      39.   THE LEFT just rehashing anti-Jewish practises of past centuries 13:02  |  Yacov 26/02/07
      40.   Bloody boring 13:13  |  Tom Spender 26/02/07
      41.   The Left is hypocritical. Full stop. 13:29  |  Psalm 26/02/07
      42.   My Buddy Click 13:32  |  Yonatan Netser 26/02/07
      43.   Marlyn`s predictable hate filled response 13:35  |  Nik Miller 26/02/07
      44.   Israeli left, the sad story. 13:37  |  Akram Zekaria 26/02/07
      45.   Dino; I certainly read what I comment on. 13:44  |  S 26/02/07
      46.   Empty Voices,Empty Shoes 13:54  |  Ronnie Wolman 26/02/07
      47.   Bravo Ka !!! 13:54  |  mehmet 26/02/07
      48.   Yes, I agree, the Palestinians should expose ... 14:07  |  Andreas 26/02/07
      49.   # 45 S Poor S, your wife will keep on loving..... 14:07  |  Swiss (Dino) 26/02/07
      50.   What I find suprising is some Israelis hate the Left 14:12  |  Chris Linthwaite 26/02/07
      51.   HATE THEIR HATEFULNESS 14:26  |  B 26/02/07
      52.   One look.... 14:26  |  Robin Benzecry 26/02/07
      53.   Burston Bradley Mr 14:38  |  Sassie R 26/02/07
      54.   ka #1 14:43  |  Sarah 26/02/07
      55.   Marilyn 14:55  |  Sarah 26/02/07
      56.   Tzfonist#31 15:01  |  Sarah 26/02/07
      57.   A Zionist and a Leftist Part I 15:07  |  Eli 26/02/07
      58.   A Zionist and a Leftist Part II 15:08  |  Eli 26/02/07
      59.   Chris Linthwaite 15:11  |  Sarah 26/02/07
      60.   Why SOME israelis hate the left 15:14  |  Anne 26/02/07
      61.   hate the left 15:15  |  Ralph 26/02/07
      62.   So Ka and Mehmet 15:19  |  One of a Kind 26/02/07
      63.   Chris #50 Calm down and think sir 15:29  |  FOX 26/02/07
      64.   Nik MIller in Tel Aviv 15:53  |  Marilyn 26/02/07
      65.   # 59 Sarah 15:54  |  Swiss (Dino) 26/02/07
      66.   Yes Sarah I have 16:01  |  Marilyn 26/02/07
      67.   1. Four rational reasons the left is uncomfortable with Israel 16:16  |  Common Sense 26/02/07
      68.   2. Four rational reasons the left is uncomfortable with Israel 16:18  |  Common Sense 26/02/07
      69.   # 57 Eli 16:44  |  Avrohom Y 26/02/07
      70.   #59 Sarah 17:01  |  Chris Linthwaite 26/02/07
      71.   Tzfonit #31 17:09  |  Gabe1 26/02/07
      72.   Avroham it didn`t happen 17:09  |  Marilyn 26/02/07
      73.   #63 Point taken 17:23  |  Chris Linthwaite 26/02/07
      74.   If you were Israel... 17:26  |  JB 26/02/07
      75.   Psalm: Are You Well? 17:29  |  CHGODMK 26/02/07
      76.   It is of nu use.... 17:36  |  Edith 26/02/07
      77.   Chris Linthwhite#70 17:38  |  Sarah 26/02/07
      78.   I think... 17:40  |  Edith 26/02/07
      79.   why Israelis hate, hate the left? are they so important? 17:45  |  abraham...mico 26/02/07
      80.   israel can not represent the west !! TO: one of a kind 17:47  |  mehmet 26/02/07
      81.   Well said Bradley 17:50  |  Danite 26/02/07
      82.   A little History lesson for Marilyn 17:51  |  T & J