Mere Rhetoric: German Bishops Ought Not Be Making Hysterical Anti-Semitic Anti-Zionist Comparisons To The Holocaust. It's Poor Form.

When people irrationally hate the Jewish State you have to ask yourself - what's driving that irrationality? Are they ignorant? Are they stupid?

Are they latent anti-Semites trying to cover over their ideological bias with thin pretexts?

Who can tell?

The director of the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial has sent a letter to Germany's top Roman Catholic official complaining about comments made by two German bishops that compared conditions in the West Bank to the Holocaust. Avner Shalev, director of Yad Vashem, said he was appalled and surprised. "The remarks illustrate a woeful ignorance of history and a distorted sense of perspective. Israel's actions do not bear any resemblance to the Nazis," Shalev wrote in his letter Tuesday to Cardinal Karl Lehmann, head of the German Bishops Conference, who led a delegation to Israel and the West Bank last week.

They must have based their rational, level-headed appraisal on widespread reports of gas chambers and concentration camps in the West Bank. There's no other explanation for their principled, anti-Zionist stance, right?

Oh, and they're so brave for criticizing Israel. Because that's virtually impossible in Europe, right? You never see any criticism of Israel in the European press.

References:
* Yad Vashem slams bishops' comments in letter to German Catholic head

Previously:
* Mainstreaming of Anti-Semitism (Comedy Festival Edition)
* Mainstreaming Of Anti-Semitism, Hollywood Edition
* Mainstreaming Of Global Anti-Semitism, South Korea Edition

About

Omri Ceren is a PhD student studying Rhetoric at the University of Southern California's Annenberg School for Communication. He lives in downtown Los Angeles.
Email: omri@mererhetoric.com
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