Wish You Were Here…?
British anti-Semitism has always been a sight to behold, made all the more ironic since it was British politicians in the 19th and early 20th centuries that loved the Jewish people and worked for them to re-settle Palestine.
But now, roughly since the conclusion of World War 1, anti-Semitism in Britain is at a fever pitch. It doesn’t help that London’s mayor, Sadiq Khan (of Pakistani lineage), is an anti-Semite. Other British politicians such as George Galloway and Jeremy Corbyn also join the frenzy.
But it is perhaps most disappointing that a music artist is firmly in their camp.
Roger Waters, founding member of the iconic British rock group Pink Floyd, simply hates Israel. His push of the wicked BDS (“Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions”) campaign to financially hurt Israel, has made him almost as famous as his music career. Roger is clearly no longer a 60s-era peacenik.
Now comes a funny story from April 1 (hint, hint, April Fools). Israel’s Strategic Affairs Ministry announced on Twitter that Waters would perform in Tel Aviv on July 16.
“Mark your calendars!” seemed almost a taunt to Waters, who of course would not set foot in Israel to play music.
His profanity-laced response was not surprising:
“HO! F******* HO! EXCEPT THIS IS NO LAUGHING MATTER.”
He then took to Facebook to continue his rant:
“THE MURDER OF UNARMED CHILDREN AND PARAMEDICS AND JOURNALISTS AND OTHER PEACEFUL PROTESTERS BY COWARDS IN UNIFORM WITH HIGH POWERED SNIPER RIFLES FROM BEHIND FORTIFIED POSITIONS IS NOT A MATTER FOR JEST.
“YOU DISGUST ME, AND YOU DISGUST THE WHOLE OF THE REST OF THE CIVILIZED WORLD.”
One man, Arsen Ostrovsky, replied on Twitter:
“Oh c’mon, lighten up ‘ol chap! It’s was just an April Fool’s Day prank. Or at very least, crawl back under your racist, Antisemitic rock. No one here wants to see you anyway!”
The twitter announcement by the Israelis was pretty funny, I think. It also exposed the extreme views of people like Waters.
One has to think that the decline of Christianity in Europe in the past few hundred years has a lot to do with this.
There is a fascinating mini-series on Netflix now, “Traitors,” about British and American counter-intelligence efforts as World War 2 was ending. A subplot is the question of what to do with Palestine.
There is clear spotlighting of anti-Semitism in the British government at the time.
One wonders how many realize the true nature behind it all. It seems clear to me that Jew-hatred is ancient and supernatural in origin. Even my secular friends who might otherwise laugh at such a statement admit to being flummoxed by it. Apart from the Bible, anti-Semitism doesn’t make sense.
Why would an aging British rocker rant and rave like a madman about a small joke?
What’s inside him is the heart of the matter.