Earlier this week, the Jerusalem Post reported that the popular Swedish daily tabloid Aftonbladet had published a story alleging that Israeli soldiers were not only killing Palestinians but also harvesting their organs for use by sick Jews. The piece by one Donald Bostrom repeated some wild and unsubstantiated tales of atrocities told by Palestinians and then attempted to connect them with a recent story of how some Jews in America were behind the illegal trafficking of organs.
According to Bostrom:
We know that the need for organs in Israel is large, that an extensive illegal organ moving is ongoing and has been for a long time, that it is done with the blessing of the authorities, the senior doctor at the major hospital is involved, as well as officials at various levels. And we know that the Palestinian young men disappeared, they were back five days later in secrecy at night, sewn up.
This is nothing but a modern version of medieval Jewish blood-libel myths. Whereas in the past, the object of these hate-inspired canards were helpless Diaspora Jewish communities, now it’s the state of Israel. Though Bostrom disingenuously claimed that he was not promoting the tale but merely repeating what others had told him, the ultimate purpose of such libels is to delegitimize the Jewish people and to exculpate the violence committed against them.
The reaction to this story in Israel was predictably angry. Equally predictable but quite appropriate was an attempt to quiet the furor by Elisabet Borsiin Bonnier, Sweden’s ambassador to Israel. She distanced her nation from the article, calling the Aftonbladet piece “shocking and appalling.”
But the response to Borsiin Bonnier’s statement was in some ways just as shocking and appalling as Bostrom’s anti-Semitism. Opposition leaders in the Swedish Parliament attacked their ambassador for condemning the libel against Israel. Green-party spokesman Per Gahrton says Borsiin Bonnier should be recalled and taught “the basics of Swedish freedom of speech.” Even more appalling is the fact that, when asked about the controversy, the Swedish Foreign Ministry in Stockholm distanced itself from her statement, saying it had no comment.
What does it say about a country when one of its leading newspapers deems a wild blood libel against Israel and Jews worthy of publication? And what it does it say about a government and its opposition when they view efforts to condemn this vicious lie as itself worthy of condemnation? What must be understood is that this episode would not be possible outside the context of anti-Israel propaganda that permeates Europe.
As Gerald Steinberg writes in a sharp column in today’s Jerusalem Post, the source of many of the lies spread about Israel is the international nongovernmental organizations that specialize in repeating Palestinian slanders and giving them the imprimatur of an NGO. This pattern was established at Durban, the United Nations–sponsored anti-Israel hatefest, in 2001 and continues to this day. But as Steinberg notes, much of the funding for many of these anti-Zionist groups comes from European governments. The Swedish government is a particular offender. Anti-Israel incitement is no longer the province of neo-Nazi nutcases or marginalized extremists of the Left but of Europe’s ruling elites.
Fortunately, the voices of reason in Europe are not completely silent: according to the Post, a competing newspaper, Sydsvenskan, ran an op-ed on the story under the headline “Antisemitbladet,” in an obvious reference to Aftonbladet’s name:
“Whispers in the dark. Anonymous sources. Rumors,” wrote Swedish columnist Mats Skogkär. “That is all it takes. After all, we all know what they [the Jews] are like, don’t we: inhuman, hardened. Capable of anything. Now all that remains is the defense, equally predictable: ‘Anti-Semitism? No, no, just criticism of Israel.’ ”
This story is merely the tip of the iceberg in terms of European-funded and promoted anti-Israel hate. The official toleration, even the subsidization of such lies, can have only one end. Jewish history teaches us that blood libels lead inevitably to violence against Jews. Though hiding behind a thin veil of anti-Zionism, more than six decades after the Holocaust, anti-Semitism is very much back in fashion on the Continent.
Verbal engineering always precedes social engineering…
Well, I guess you’ve got to have SOMETHING to complain about….
Kudos to Abe for admitting his mistake. Words do matter. They effect how we think and how we approach a problem and how we reach a solution. Witness, for example, the now common use of “partner” for what used to be spouse. And, yes, today the person in question is often not the spouse but by using the word partner we show less respect and support for marriage.
Let’s try another: “Police action.” President Truman’s phrase for the Korean War. How many veterans felt like cops in Korea?
And another: Financial engineering. This is a great one because there’s no engineering but there are great efforts to make money with quick trades and discrepancies in the market. Some of these great “engineers” produced massive sell-offs that rocked the markets. As an engineer myself, it’s hard to see traditional engineering of bridges, circuits, or airplanes, in programs that automatically buy and sell stocks.
Words that obscure the true meaning make for sloppy thinking and sloppy decisions. Thanks for the newest example.
It’s not Abe, it’s Max; my mistake. And I should have written “affect” and not “effect.”
We are now being treated to Orwellian NEWSPEAK. Is this a portent of things to come? Or is this a portent of things that have already arrived?
Hmm.
I can’t seem to get my post to post. My other post, that is. These short ones go up immediately.
I guess I’ll post this in installments.
My wife is a government worker, and she just got a message in her inbox. It reads:
FROM: The Symbolic Obfuscation Department (formerly called the Department of Underperforming Names and Communications Examination)
TO: All employees of the Union of Helpers and Providers (formerly called the United States Government)
We here at SOD (formerly DUNCE) have been hard at work developing a new rubric that will serve as the grammatical substructure for the first American presidency of the twenty-first century (be advised, we have moved the past eight years back into the twentieth century, by erasing the years 1980-1988, meaning that all memory of those years and whoever might have been President then will be struck from the history books). The important thing to communicate presently is that words matter. Names matter. It is important that we, as Helpers and Providers, guide the way in which Americans (we decided to keep that term) think and speak about political issues.
Bearing this in mind, we have developed the following vocabulary which you are expected to use:
–The GLOBAL WAR ON TERROR is now known as OVERSEAS CONTINGENCY OPERATION.
–A TERRORIST is now known as a CREATIVE PARTICIPANT IN THE POLITICAL PROCESS.
–An EVANGELICAL or ISRAELI is now known as TERRORIST.
–An ILLEGAL ALIEN will now be called a HARD-WORKING DOMESTIC INTERNATIONALIST WITH TRADITIONAL FAMILY VALUES. Also, anyone who uses the word ILLEGAL ALIEN will be termed a RACIST.
–The WAR IN IRAQ will henceforth be called THE CHENEY AND BUSH MCHITLER UNNECESSARY AND IMMORAL INVASION FOR THE ENRICHMENT OF THE MILITARY-INDUSTRIAL COMPLEX AND OIL CARTELS. (We understand this is a long name, but it’s very particularly important that you use this one. Try to fit it into a sentence today, for example.)
–ISLAMIC EXTREMISTS are now known as FRIENDS FROM THE RELIGION OF PEACE WHO TAKE THEIR FAITH VERY SERIOUSLY.
–FAILURE will now be called an UNHELPFUL LAPSE OF SELF-ESTEEM EVENT.
–Replace the words BILL AYERS, REVEREND WRIGHT or TONY REZKO with WARREN BUFFETT.
–The TELEPROMPTER will now be known as the MAGICAL REFLECTOR OF WHAT OBAMA IS THINKING.
–Please replace the words REPUBLICAN and GOP with NAZI and PNO (“Party of NO”).
–We feel the word VICTORY is unhelpful when applied to any enterprise which began on January 19, 2009 or earlier. Otherwise, please add the words GLORIOUS AND UNPRECEDENTED before the use of said term.
–Whenever you might have said GOOD or EVIL, say ABOVE MY PAY-GRADE.
–The PRESIDENT will now be called HIS HOLINESS THE BARACK OBAMA, CITIZEN OF THE WORLD AND MESSIAH FOR ALL HUMANKIND.
–The STATE DEPARTMENT is now called the OFFICE FOR THE MODERATION OF MISUNDERSTANDINGS AMONG WELL-INTENTIONED AND DULY-ELECTED OVERSEAS LEADERS.
–And this one comes as a special request from Hillary Rodham (note the name change) at the O.M.O.M.A.W-I.A.D.E.O.L.: MEN will now be known as PHILANDERING SPERM DONORS, while WOMEN will be known as SURVIVORS OF DOMESTIC ABUSE. For BOYS and GIRLS, just add FUTURE- to the terms replacing MEN and WOMEN.
–An ABORTION is now called a TUMOR-REMOVAL PROCEDURE, and PRO-LIFER is now known as MISOGYNIST.
–The CATHOLIC CHURCH may be called one of two names, the CABAL FOR THE OPPRESSION OF WOMEN AND HOMOSEXUALS, or the ANTI-RELIGIOUS ZEALOTS WHO PERSECUTED GALILEO.
–Please refer to Jews as PROBABLE MEMBERS OF ‘THE LOBBY.’
–And please call all members of minority groups, except for Jews, Mormons or Asian-Americans, VICTIMS.
Words do matter- even if Obama continues the ‘actions of Bush’- he will not continue them the same way. He might stay in Afghanistan- but is it to fight bad guys and bring democracy, or to protect our business interests and strike deals with bad guys? He might continue to hold captured terrorists- but he’ll give them a lawyer and aid and comfort. Listen to his words- he is telling you exactly what he wants to do- don’t be naive and think the words mean nothing.