Gilad Atzmon praises ex-KKKer David Duke

Most literate adults (or at least those with access to the Internet) would probably know to avoid the opinions of David Duke.

Duke, ex-Grand Wizard of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, convicted fraudster and semiprofessional antisemite is hardly a reputable source.

Yet the “activist” Gilad Atzmon has a high opinion of Duke:

“…

Now there is something very interesting and it’s again the first time I’m saying it. The left is devastated by David Duke for instance. He was in the KKK when he was young. But here is something quite amazing: I read him and I was shocked to find out that this guy knows more about Jewish identity than I do! How could a supposedly ‘racist’ Gentile who probably never entered a synagogue knows more than I do about Judaism? The reason is in fact very simple : he is a proud white man. He’s interested in nationalism, in the culture of his own people, so he understands things that I am not even allowed to think about. Believe it or not, even as a Jew, I wasn’t allowed to think of myself as a racist. I was a racist, maybe I am still one, but I was not allowed to acknowledge it. Once he acknowledges the he’s talking about white people’s rights, in a way he thinks like Avigdor Lieberma ! But in fact, he is way better than Liberman. David Duke is a humanist because he says, «I want to celebrate my right and you should celebrate your rights» whether you are Muslim or black or whatever. He believes that all people should celebrate their rights, this is his current philosophy. Avidgor Liberman is not a humanist, because he wants to celebrate his rights at the expense of other people.”

Duke hasn’t, really, changed his views over the years, just polished them and tried to drag in the gullible or those seriously hung-up on the existence of Jews.

Bird of a feather flock together?

(H/T: Adam Holland)

Update 1: The SPLC on Former Klan Leader David Duke Expelled From Italy@

“No one wants David Duke.

The former Klansman, Holocaust denier and founder of a series of hate groups was expelled from Italy in early December after a court there deemed him “socially dangerous” for allegedly planning to create a pan-European neo-Nazi group. Duke, who has fled or been expelled from several countries before, was kicked out of Italy this time after a court upheld a finding that he had entered the country on false pretenses by using his middle name, Ernest, in place of his first.”

Update 2: Not forgetting Huff Post Crime’s coverage, David Duke Arrested In Germany, Ex-Klan Leader Faces Deportation:

“Since his release from prison, Duke has traveled and lectured widely, including a 2006 appearance at a Holocaust denial conference in Tehran, Iran. The conference featured numerous speeches denouncing the Holocaust as a “myth.” At the conference, Duke voiced support for discredited, fringe scholars imprisoned in Europe for denying the use of gas chambers against Jews during the Holocaust.

In the United States, Duke continues to speak regularly at gatherings of prominent right-wing groups and writes for Stormfront, a leading white-supremacist website.”

Update 3: Well worth a read, Ron Stallworth, Police Sergeant, Chronicles His Experience As Undercover KKK Member, particularly the slideshow “A day in the life of the KKK”

Ron Stallworth’s blog and his insights make very necessary reading.

Update 4: the SPLC looks at a new David Duke project, Anti-Semitism Illustrated: David Duke Working on New ‘Protocols of the Elders of Zion’:

“White supremacist David Duke has a new book coming out, of sorts – a repackaged and “illustrated” version of the notorious anti-Semitic hoax, “The Protocols of the Elders of Zion.” But unlike previous editions of the text – all of which attempted to claim that the book was a genuine transcript of a gathering of wealthy Jews who conspired to bring about the enslavement of Western civilization – Duke is taking a different tack.

“The Protocols of the Elders of Zion,” Duke now claims, is in fact a work of fiction – which means, he says, that the hoax issue is moot. Instead, as he explains in his promotional video for the book, the text is like all “great literature” – a work of art whose value lies in the greater truths it supposedly reveals about the world. ”

In all likelihood Gilad Atzmon will be endorsing that too!

Update 4: Last year the CST blog exposed Atzmon and some of his friends, Truth Movement – “Stupidest People on the Planet”??

Update 5: The SPLC takes on “Dr. Duke”:

“Former Klansman David Duke has made much of his academic credentials of late. On his website, he repeatedly refers to himself as “Dr.” David Duke, a reference to the supposed Ph.D. he “earned” in 2005 at an anti-Semitic Ukrainian institution described as a “diploma mill” by the State Department. Around the white supremacist world, excited accolades to Duke’s scholarship abound.

As the closest thing the radical right has to an intellectual today, Duke claims to uphold the high standards of academia. His website brims with criticisms of plagiarism — although they come, naturally, in the form of repeated attacks on civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr., who is characterized as a “world-class plagiarist.” Plagiarism, Duke’s site adds piously, is “theft,” a rip-off that the site suggests amounts to “a serious felony.”
…
Duke, meanwhile, continues to boast of his “Ph.D” — his website, for instance, is now headlined, “The Official Website of Representative David Duke, PhD,” although he hasn’t been a Louisiana state representative for 17 years. As to the Ph.D., well, what Duke actually got at the Ukraine’s Interregional Academy of Personnel Management is a “Kandidat Nauk” degree, which ranks below a full doctorate. It was awarded to Duke for a thesis entitled, “Zionism as a Form of Ethnic Supremacism” and was the second degree given Duke by the university, which had earlier handed the former Klan boss an honorary degree.

David Ward MP, David Duke And His Supporters

Power and privilege affect people’s judgements. Proximity to it changes people, clouds their common sense.

Witness the sense of entitlement that Westminster MPs had, they genuinely could not understand the issue of their excessive expenses claims. These MPs lacked any insight into their own conduct and how others saw them.

So it is with David Ward MP.

A few weeks ago, Ward made sweeping generalisations about “the Jews”, compounded offence with an insincere apology and only then begrudgingly when threatened by the LibDem chief whip.

Now Ward continues on his path of dog whistles, paranoia and is devoid of any self examination.

After his crass behaviour, an unapologetic interview at the Guardian was meant to clear the air and help him, but Ward made things worse:

“There is a huge operation out there, a machine almost, which is designed to protect the state of Israel from criticism. And that comes into play very, very quickly and focuses intensely on anyone who’s seen to criticise the state of Israel.”

Later on, Ward had the temerity to email the Jewish News and asked the most facile of questions.

There are being a number of intelligent responses to David Ward’s idiocy, but I can’t help thinking that nothing will sink in, nevertheless, Rabbi Neil Janes makes the effort:

“Instead of leaping to the conclusion that you are being silenced by a powerful lobby or that you were ‘just’ speaking truth to evil, I advise you to begin to demonstrate your understanding and empathy for all peoples – by the way, it is not just Jews and Palestinians who live in Israel, the West Bank and Gaza. If you had done that and then voiced your concerns in a measured way, not on Holocaust Memorial Day, you may have found the reaction would have been different. “

David Duke, Ex-KKKer, Supports Charles Barron, Anti-Zionist

It is often said that politics makes strange bedfellows, but it really doesn’t sink in until you have seen the white supremacist, David Duke, expressing his support for Charles Barron, an Afro-American.

Barron is not unsurprisingly a vocal “anti-Zionist” and in Duke’s mind hatred of Jews trumps his own profound dislike of Afro-Americans, as the ADL reminds us:

“Perhaps America’s most well-known racist, David Duke was instrumental in the Klan resurgence of the 1970s. He pioneered the now common effort on the far right to camouflage racist ideas in hot-button issues like affirmative action and immigration, successfully appealing to race and class resentments.

Similarly, he was one of the first neo-Nazi and Klan leaders to discontinue the use of Nazi and Klan regalia and ritual, as well as other traditional displays of race hatred, and to cultivate media attention. “

Politicker explains the issue:

“Former KKK Grand Wizard and member of the Louisiana Legislature David Duke released a video yesterday endorsing Charles Barron in his race for Brooklyn’s 8th Congressional district against Assemblyman Hakeem Jeffries. Mr. Barron, a member of the City Council and former member of the Black Panther Party who, over the years, has made a series of controversial statements against Israel and in support of African dictators Muammar Qaddafi.

He would seem to be an odd choice for a self-described “white nationalist” like Mr. Duke, but in the video, Mr. Duke explains that he thinks Mr. Jeffries has “sold his soul to the international Zio-bankers” while Mr. Barron’s strong past criticisms of Israel outweigh their other differences. ” [My emphasis.]

So for one time neo-Nazi, Duke, his loathing of Jews is paramount, meaning he’ll support almost anyone if they echo his sentiment in that area, even an “anti-Zionist”.

I Am Glad For Rev. Sizer.

Rev. Stephen Sizer has put out this statement:

“In response to the CCJ Statement, I welcome the news from Surrey police and CPS that, having “carried out a thorough and extensive review of the material in question” they have concluded that “no criminal offences have been committed. The matter has now been closed and no further action is being taken,” a conclusion which will come as no surprise to those who know and work with me.

My support for a just and lasting peace between Israelis and Palestinians, based on international law and recognised borders, achieved by peaceful and democratic means, has unfortunately left me open to what can only be described as an unbalanced and targeted campaign from certain quarters, a situation which is deeply regrettable.

I care passionately about the safety of the Jewish people. I repudiate racism, anti-Semitism as well as Islamophobia. I would not have posted a link to a website I knew to be anti-Semitic. Having consulted a number of Jewish friends, I now keep a small list of websites to avoid in future. I will be more careful about the origin of material I post on my blog and Facebook, and welcome opportunities for discussion with members of the Jewish community to move forwards in a spirit of mutual respect. “

I am glad that Rev. Sizer has put out this statement.

I am glad that he says he’s going to be more careful in the future, and some might think it would be churlish to asked why he made those mistakes in the past, but let us look to the future.

I hope Rev. Sizer sets an example to others and makes sure not to link to racist or extremist material, directly or indirectly.

I have thought for many years that it is a great pity that the Palestinians’ cause is so often sullied by association with anti-Jewish racism. They deserve much better.

I should point out that criticising the Israeli government, in and of itself, is not racist, as long as dual standards are not applied, historical myths perpetuated or offensive imagery used.

The Israeli government should be open to criticism, as with every government, for their actions, however, it is, how you do it, that is the issue.

When Western supporters of the Palestinians’ cause associate with known racists or push their material they bring it into disrepute, as with Baroness Tonge and the conspiracy theorist, Ken O’Keefe.

Nor should we be naive enough to assume that anti-Jewish racists do not try to exploit grievances in the Middle East to foster hatred against Jews. They do, it is their agenda.

That is what Western supporters of the Palestinians’ cause need to engage with.

Some have belatedly seen the issue and try to repudiate it, which is to be commended, but as the PSC conference showed us there is still a problem.

Let us hope that Rev. Sizer, and like-minded individuals, will remember how racists will exploit any conflict with Israelis. That there is a serious need to become sensitive to anti-Jewish racism. To avoid any, however tenuous, connection to racists, extremists or their material. Finally, that ignorance is no excuse.

I welcome Rev. Sizer’s statement and hope others follow that example.

(H/T: Phil Groom)

Rev. Sizer And The Questions of Veterans Today

In light of Rev. Stephen Sizer linking to an antisemitic site, Calvin Smith has asked some pertinent questions:

“What is Veteran’s Place? Is it properly anti-Semitic or predominantly anti-Israel?”

The quick reply is, yes, Veterans Today (run by Gordon Duff) is most definitively an antisemitic web site.

Nevertheless, I think Calvin Smith and readers deserves a fuller answer.

Veterans Today is a sullenly obsessive site, whose target is Jews, across the world and throughout history.

We can verify the nature of this site by sampling some of its pages. Readers should be warned that the following are specimens of racist material, used to illustrate the character of Veterans Today.

First off, we find articles either praising Adolf Hitler, excusing him or trying to deflect attention from his murderous crimes:

Hitler and the Banksters: The Abolition of Interest-Servitude posted by Dr. Ingrid Rimland Zundel, wife of well known Holocaust denier Ernst Zundel, author of “The Hitler We Loved and Why”

If you have any doubt about the sympathies of the author, or Veterans Today, then this article puts them to rest, when he argues:

” On August 30, 1939, in an act of great statesmanship, Hitler again offered to the Poles the Marienwerder proposals,(21) namely retention of the existing 1919 borders, the return of Danzig (97% German), the construction of a 60-mile autobahn and rail link connecting West and East Prussia (from Schoenlanke to Marienwerder) and an exchange of German and Polish populations. On the orders of the international bankers, the British Foreign Secretary, Lord Halifax, strongly advised the Poles NOT to negotiate. This is how and why World War II was started. The ensuing forced war resulted in victory for the international financiers and defeat and slavery for all the people of Europe.

Today the bankers reign supreme. The European Union with its commissars in Brussels and its so called “European” Central Bank headquartered in Frankfurt,(22) increasingly resembles the old Soviet Union. However, with the recent ongoing “sovereign” debt crisis and the collapse of the Euro, the plan for a united Europe anchored in perpetual debt enslavement has received a major setback and has indeed started to disintegrate
.
Notwithstanding the inability of Adolf Hitler to permanently liberate Europe, it behooves us to appreciate that what he achieved was not done in vain. It is incumbent on us to learn and understand the fundamentals of usury and to spread that knowledge relentlessly, until our material and spiritual liberties have been restored. “

This is not isolated, another vile piece by J.B.Campbell states:

” We now know that the insane Jewish liars are guided in this by a mystical attachment to the number six, as seen with their national symbol, the six-pointed star. Six, or six hundred, or six thousand, or six hundred thousand, or six million Jews must be removed before the messiah returns or Israel reappears or whatever. It’s not important to us, just that this is a magic number to them. And they should be wholly burnt in ovens. Hence, Holocaust (wholly burnt). Read >>> Jewish History and the Scriptual Orgin of the 6 Million Dollar Number “

It goes on in a similar vein. Yuck.

The owner of Veterans Today, Gordon Duff dives straight into Holocaust revisionism:

“Two thousand people in Europe are in prison today for questioning some part, no matter how minor, of the holocaust. The official story of the holocaust is a compendium of testimony of several hundred thousand people as there was little physical evidence left at the end of the war. Some facilities were reconstructed based on testimony, for historical perspective but in general, it is believed that the Germans destroyed all evidence of death camps and mass graves when they learned they were losing the war.

Thousands of those who find this explanation unsatisfactory and had chosen to disagree, some noted historians, some scientists and some simple troublemakers and activists, have been imprisoned. At the trials, holocaust victims claimed that such questioning harmed them irreparably. However, not one holocaust victim has ever spoken up about the endless numbers of phony holocaust victims who besmirch them every day and have for nearly 65 years. Why is that?

One thing the revisionists claim is that almost every story from the holocaust, including notable books and even world famous holocaust survivors are, in actuality, the worst phonies of all. The analogy of the “phony veteran” is applicable here. After each war, endless numbers of those, who for reasons legitimate or not, felt their contribution to the war effort was less than honorable or noteworthy, claim accomplishments they are undeserving of. It is also known that combat veterans are seldom seen on bar stools at service organizations talking about heroic exploits. “

All of this repellent material was found in a cursory search of Veterans Today.

Any thoughtful individual would not have chosen to link to this site without first verifying the source of the material, and as we have seen Veterans Today is full of the most unspeakable antisemitic filth around.

Looking down its “Featured Columnists” is like a mini-Who’s who of bigots, conspiracy theorists and semi-professional Jew haters.

Alan Hart
Allen L Roland
Anthony Hall
Bob Johnson
David Swanson
Debbie Menon
Denise Nichols
Dr. Ingrid R. Zundel
Ed Mattson
Eileen Fleming
Gordon Duff
James Petras
Jim Fetzer
Jim W. Dean
Johnny Punish
Ken O’Keefe
Ken Smith
Kevin Barrett
Khalil Nouri
Kourosh Ziabari
Paul J. Balles
Raja Mujtaba
Robert O’Dowd
Sami Jamil Jadalla
Sherwood Ross
Stephen Lendman
Stewart Ogilby
Stuart Littlewood
Tim King
Tom Valentine
Vojislav Milosevic

So, the fuller reply to Calvin Smith’s question is, yes, Veterans Today is most certainly an antisemitic web site and I have not even mentioned references to David Duke, ex-Grand Wizard of the Ku Klux Klan or 911 conspiracy theories.

It is hardly coincidental that hard antisemitic sites are replete with conspiracy theories, as such notions are central to anti-Jewish racism.

Whilst it’s true to say that, not every conspiracy theorist is an antisemite, every committed antisemite is a conspiracy theorist, as it is integral to their racism.

In my view, no considered or attentive person would use, link to, associate with the Veterans Today site or any of its authors.

If they did, then you must question their judgement, commitment to anti-racism and above all their attitudes towards Jews.

I think Rev. Sizer should truly reflect on this issue and ask himself the questions:

1. What impulse made me use material from the antisemitic site, Veterans Today?
2. Why was I drawn to it?
3. How can I avoid making this mistake once more?

The Palestine Telegraph And Racism

[Warning, by necessity and as an illustration this post contains links to racist web sites and material. Apologies. ]

One of my readers asked me to “find any racist material in a 4-5 minute trawl of the Palestine Telegraph home page today.”

Cleverly, the request is deliberately restricted to the homepage of the Palestine Telegraph, which we could assume, as with many racist websites, is not going to have the most hard-hitting material.

Often when you study racist websites you find the salacious racism hidden behind a nice facade, and so it is with the Palestine Telegraph.

Readers should bear in mind that racism comes in many different strands and intensities. Those that push it do not always use the crudest methods, as can be seen below.

Firstly, on the front page of the Palestine Telegraph, there is a picture of Newt Gingrich, surprisingly wearing a kippah and the article contains this piece:

“It is generally considered taboo in the United States and even evidence of “anti-Semitism” to talk about the influence of “Jewish” or pro-Israel money in elections. That a former Gingrich advisor and well-known Republican pundit is doing so openly is a notable development.”

So in this piece we see two main messages, one that Newt Gingrich is beholden to Jews and there is ‘the influence of “Jewish” or pro-Israel money in elections‘. Therefore, according to the article, it is Jews that somehow buy elections in the US.

Still it is not that crude, more of what American call a political dog whistle.

Now anyone remotely familiar with old fashion antisemitic imagry will remember the racist lie about “Jews controlling the world”, which has mutated to “Jews control US elections”.

Secondly, there is a piece entitled “The Jews go to war (with themselves)” taken from the well known racist site, Redress.

The piece’s author, Lawrence Davidson, believes there is a dictatorship in Israel as evidence in this contribution “Zionist-Israeli Dictatorship Comes to Full Cycle With Netanyahu” where he argues:

“About five million Jews enjoy full rights while eleven million Palestinian Christians and Muslims have been denied any human rights, deprived of citizenship, and half of them have been forced to live under the brutal Israeli military occupation since 1967.

Only about one and a half million Palestinians were allowed to stay inside the Zionist state with citizenship but without equal rights.

Now the Zionist dictatorship is extending suppression to Jews, showing the dictatorial, racist, apartheid Israeli regime for what it really is.”

I won’t pick apart the obvious mathematical error of 11 million and the monomaniacal tone which aggressively exudes from his work, but suffice to say Dr. Davidson’s hyperbole suggests that he doesn’t know what real dictatorships, like Burma, North Korea, etc look like.

Looking at the opinion pieces in the Palestine Telegraph we are treated to a meandering tract from Laura Booth where she quotes the racist, Gilad Atzmon:

“In 2003, he wrote in an essay; ‘There is no anti-Semitism any more. In the devastating reality created by the Jewish state, anti-Semitism has been replaced by political reaction’. This is a point he returns to this evening. “

That is a common theme found amongst anti-Jewish racists. They don’t want to have to deal with or explain the reality of racial violence against Jews in Britain, which even the BBC and the Guardian report on.

Elsewhere the Palestine Telegraph asks the question, “Which is more evil, al-Qaeda or Israel?” By now readers can guess what the Palestine Telegraph’s answer is.

Not unsurprisingly, the Palestine Telegraph publishes a very sympathetic piece on Fred Toben, well-known Holocaust denier. That’s just for starters.

So racism, yes, you can find it at the Palestine Telegraph. It is not always the crude stuff of neo-Nazi web sites. They learnt their lesson after pushing David Dukes videos. The racism is there, if you are sensitive to it.

One final example from the Palestine Telegraph:

“It turns out that WW1 and WW2 were planned in advance for the sake of a group following the dictates of Zionism, a non religious socio-political Ideology which puts their leaders at the top of a Pyramid, while the rest of mankind, their “servants” are piled in a heap right at the bottom, unaware of what is being instigated at the pinnacle of this structured pyramid!! It is not too dissimilar to a Social Class Ladder: the working class, that is the masses or, I prefer to use a stronger and more apt term, the Servants/Slaves; then we have the Middle class, the middle men who in turn receive their delegated orders from the higher echelons of society, their MASTERS, the Elite, Aristocracy, the “Illuminati Factor” in fact, the billionaires in Power, who are covertly controlling our world and our communities and lives, choosing methods that are abhorrent to a fair, just ethical moral Society.

These Masters, controlled by such luminaries as the Rothschild Dynasty, have been working in the wings establishing their Corporate Financial and Imperialist ,Colonialist Empire, getting richer by the day, their power increasing by the hour, while their servants, their minions, their puppets do all the hard work, shed blood sweat and tears, and physical and mental sacrifice.”

The Palestine Telegraph is replete with monomaniacs, racists and 911 truthers, so those that read it should be aware of its authors and their obvious agenda, the advancement of anti-Jewish racism.

I do not believe it is representative of Palestinian opinions as it is published in Britain and many of its authors are not Palestinians, rather people with serious chips on their shoulders, against Jews.

The Palestine Telegraph is filled with negative imagery of Jews, conspiracy theories, the works of racists, etc., it should be avoided by anyone who is genuinely committed to anti-racism and those that wish a peaceful resolution to conflicts in the Middle East.

Jeremy Moodey and The PSC Set Me Thinking

[Warning: by necessity this post contains links to racist web sites, as evidence. Apologies. ]

After my brief exchange with Jeremy Moodey I decided to test a theory.

I wondered how long it would take me to find something really unsavory in the posts of a pro-Palestinian activist? A day? A week? Or even longer?

As I knew Jeremy said he doesn’t “have an anti-Semitic bone in my body”, and I believe him, he seemed a good candidate.

If Jeremy was right it would take ages or be an impossible task.

Sadly, it was shockingly easy.

Exhibit no. 1, Jeremy Moodey’s Twitter account is following the unusually named wikizionism. They seem to be a neo-Nazi creation as suggested by their publishing of the Protocols of the Elders of Zion and a piece by William Pierce. He was the brains behind the National Alliance, the American neo-Nazis and the author of the Turner Diaries. There’s a lot more racist filth there, but that enough.

That took about 30 seconds, allowing for a slow Twitter.

Next, I wondered if Jeremy had pushed any links to antisemitic sites in his tweets, by mistake of course.

That I thought would be harder and take forever, as Jeremy wasn’t some crank.

In fact, Jeremy was a potential Tory candidate and is an ex-Banker. Obviously he’s very smart, not a hothead or flake material, so presumably would see through any disguised racism.

Exhibit no. 2, Jeremy approvingly links to a Palestinian Telegraph article:

“Article on how the Board of Deputies stifles free speech in the UK through unfounded accusations of anti-semitism dld.bz/a88Qb”

Readers will remember how the Palestine Telegraph published a David Duke video and wrote revolting articles accusing Jews of organ theft. I could go on, but a quick scan of their articles reveals that same disgusting conspiratorial racist tone. Yuck.

Exhibit no. 3,

“#PSC is under pressure from allegations of a Marxist takeover and (wrongly) anti-Semitism. Should be an interesting AGM bit.ly/z8yIHY“

I was going to stop there, but it occurred to me that Jeremy had, conceivably, a dark sense of humour when he linked to the racist Uprooted Palestinians blog. Or perhaps I am being charitable?

It is a Gilad Atzmon fan site and run by the cranks, Stephen Lendman and Stuart Littlewood. If you ever want to see naked racism and 9/11 truthers then such a blog is made for you.

That took about 3 minutes.

So in the space of about 4-5 minutes it was trivial to find how a PSC supporter (and I assume Jeremy is one) used racist material, linked to it or at the very least read it.

I imagine the defence would be something like “these were mistakes, trivia, not of consequence” or something similar. The problem with that excuse is, I should not have been able to find any racist material in the first place, connected to a PSC supporter but I did.

As I said, I believe him when he says “I do not have an anti-Semitic bone in my body “.

But then again maybe we define antisemitism differently?

I am sure that Jeremy is one of that 81% of PSCers that reject Holocaust denial.

I can only guess what would have happened had I looked into the PSC’s 17%. It doesn’t bear thinking about.

[But enough of the humour, just in case people misunderstand me. Having read Jeremy Moodey’s tweets with some care, I do not believe he is an antisemite, or anything close to that. He strikes me as having a genuine concern for Christians in Israel/West Bank.

Yet it is disturbing to find racist material so nearby. Not 100% sure what to make of it.]

Palestine Solidarity Campaign and The Question Of Racism.

I am indebted to Jeremy Moodey and Anthony Cooper for pointing me towards the controversy around the UK’s Palestine Solidarity Campaign.

Surprisingly, at the weekend their annual general meeting upheld the decision to expel a rather nasty racist.

However, there was opposition to the expulsion, some 81% of delegates voted for it, about 19% were against it or abstained.

Cynics may suggest that means that the PSC has about 17% racists in its ranks, but I am sure that is not the case. How could it be?

Still, Jeremy Moodey and Anthony Cooper set me thinking. Jeremy argues that “Zionists” (whoever they might be) shut down debate, but he can’t really see the other side of the story.

That is when ‘anti-Zionists’ shout and scream about “Hasbara”, “Zionist propaganda” and “Media control” instead of looking at the occurrences of anti-Jewish racism found close to home.

That ultimately leads to a shouting match, which doesn’t actually answer why anti-Jewish racism is so often found close to, or accidentally pushed by Western supporters of the Palestinians’ cause.

[And let me say here and now, I think it’s perfectly possible to criticise the government of Israel for its actions, as one could do with any government, as long as one avoids racist imagery, demagogic language and double standards.

Further, I think it does the Palestinians cause no good to be associated with racists, the Far Right and extremists in the West.]

The problem in many of these discussions is bad faith.

The assumption that naturally the other side in these debates are evil, wicked or mendacious. I think that’s a fairly pointless exercise, even if it were true.

Moreover, it doesn’t provide any meaningful answer to the questions, why do racists become drawn to these campaigns in the West, and why aren’t they ferreted out sooner?

In my experience, you don’t have to look very hard or long to find racism around these campaigns or the activists. I don’t mean that everyone is a racist or anywhere close, but as they wade knee deep in vitriol and invective against “Zionists” that racism pops out.

One of many examples is the case of Jenna Delich, Bob From Brockley explains:

“If you haven’t already read about British academic and trade union member Jenna Delich, who cites David Duke’s website in support of a boycott of Israel, and about the UCU activists who have threatened action against Harry’s Place for publicising the scandal, then below are some places you can read about it.

It is worth noting that the article to which Jenna Delich linked is not by David Duke. It is by one Joe Quinn and originally appeared on a 9/11 Truth Cult site called sott.net. It would not have reflected well on Jenna D if she had found the article there, but she didn’t; she found it on a Ku Klux Klan site, which reflects on her rather worse.”

Rather than admit her mistake, Ms. Delich sought to shut down the web site that first covered it and in the process brought more attention to her actions.

It would be far better if these “activists” made a serious effort to understand anti-Jewish racism, the Far Right and tread more carefully, lest people assume the worst.

Gilad Atzmon And A UFO Cult

I hadn’t appreciated it but the well known racist, Gilad Atzmon is a Honorary Raelian Priest.

Apparently, this weird religious grouping, believes that humans are the product of alien intervention or creation. It is a UFO cult.

Rick Ross has more on these cranks. I liked this piece by Geoff Stead from 1999:

“Sometime soon, aliens will descend on the Earth and snatch 144,000 humans. The chosen thousands will be whisked away to another dimension where they will remain while the world they knew is destroyed.

When the dust of the cataclysm finally settles, the hostages will be scattered back on the planet to begin rebuilding the human race, mostly through cloning methods.

Of course, the theory is totally unbelievable….unless you are a follower of the bizarre UFO-based cult known as the Raelian religion. Surprisingly, more than 40,000 people world wide are devotees.

That includes a Gold Coast group based in Mudgeeraba which met yesterday to discuss their extraterrestrial theories.

Among the planned activities was viewing a video message from the cult’s founder, former French sports journalist Claude Voril-hon, who visited Queensland in 1997.

Voril-hon, who changed his name to “Rael”, claims to have been visited by aliens in 1973 who told him they created the human race through cloning more than 25,000 years ago.

“Human cloning is a way to eternal life,” said the cult’s scientific director Brigitte Boisselier. “We embrace it because the Raelian religion is a religion of science.

The “religion’s” head-quarters is in Montreal where it operates a theme park called UFOland.

Attractions include a full size replica of the spaceship Voril-hon claims visited him, a giant model of DNA and displays on cloning and genetics. What isn’t openly explained is why only 144,000 Earthlings will be taken when the aliens return.

For that information, it seems you have to join the organisation. And there appears to be no shortage of people who have signed up.”

I suppose the lesson is that culties can like racists too?

Not forgetting that David Duke is a fan of Gilad Atzmon as well.

(H/T: Adam Holland)