By Michael Kuttner…
How many times can one repeat the same fatal mistakes and still not realize the toxic consequences?
It seems that for far too many the lessons will never be learnt and the same old scenarios will be re-enacted in every generation.
Current developments provide perfect examples of where historical precedents are being recycled and are likely to lead to the same disastrous end results.
Previous generations at least had the advantage of some sort of historical knowledge. Today’s generation displays appalling unawareness of past events. I am not talking about remembering the medieval age or even disasters affecting Jews under Soviet Stalinist rule. Events of comparative recent times seem not to have registered with today’s university educated mobs.
This was brought home to me in a recent very revealing conversation with a retired Dean of a prestigious American college of higher learning. In a discussion about events in the Middle East she recounted how a group of what we call “Z” Generation University graduates had no clue about Yasser Arafat. In fact they knew nothing about him. This goes some way towards understanding the massive ignorance which exists among those demonizing Zionism and Israel.
The real facts about the 1947 partition plan, the 1948 war against Israel by Arab countries and all subsequent conflicts have already faded from memory and have been replaced by lies and fables.
The perpetrators of the Shoah have been erased as history is dropped as a subject in schools and colleges. Is it any wonder therefore that those screaming “from the river to the sea” have no idea as to what river or sea they are screaming about?
Politicians and media “experts” are just as guilty in this collective amnesia of recent historical facts and as each year passes the ignorance becomes more solidly embedded. The virus of hate regenerates anew when age old libels about Israel and Jews are circulated via social media.
Unfortunately, this scourge of historical ignorance now afflicts increasing numbers of Jews. It manifests itself in various ways. The scene is set for detachment and outright hostility If one does not have a solid background of Jewish identification and a good grasp of the historical centrality of Israel.
Take the subject of Arafat as a perfect example of how ignorance of the past leads to fatal fallacies in the present.
This is a news item reported by the Jerusalem Post in October 1995:
“PLO chief, Yasser Arafat, was warmly received by American Jews yesterday at a meeting in New York that was unprecedented for simply occurring in public, but covered little new ground.
We have to accept or not to accept that we are cousins” Arafat told the National Jewish Community Relations Advisory Council.
“These are the facts, not only cousins but partners.”
Disregarding a prepared text, Arafat said, “the majority of the masses are for the peace process and the Palestinian election will show it.”
Those who were fooled by Arafat and continued to embrace him as an angel of peace refused to learn from the past. They believed the blatant lies spoken by a terrorist chieftain. Even after Arafat rejected President Clinton’s peace proposal in January 2001 the “peace now” brigade remained blinded to reality.
What followed was the intifada which unleashed terror on Israeli civilians and resulted in horrendous murders and maiming of men, women and children.
Fast forward to the present and witness how nothing has changed.
Arafat’s deputy was none other than Abbas, the current President for life of the corrupt Palestinian Authority. Last elected in 2005 this internationally anointed “democrat” spouts the same nonsense as his predecessor. The same useful idiots embrace him as they did Arafat as “the only hope for peace.” Ignoring the fact that he authorizes payments to terrorists and their families and endlessly postpones democratic elections those championing him claim he is the long awaited saviour.
His claim of a reformed PA is the “mother of all deceptions” swallowed hook, line and sinker by a hypocritical international community.
Nothing has changed over the years except that the deceptions have multiplied and have now been embraced by democracies eager to appease rather than stand up for the truth.
The “elders,” comprising a group of Israel haters including former New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark, have issued a demand that arch terrorist, Marwan Barghouti be released from jail. Responsible for the murder of countless Israelis he is now being touted as the successor to Abbas.
Unsurprisingly, those who ignore historical reality are climbing onto this bandwagon.
Arafat was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.
Abbas is hailed as a latter day messiah.
Barghouti is crowned as “the Palestinian Mandela.”
Do you see a pattern emerging here?
Are we doomed to stumble down the same disastrous path whereby Jews get murdered and the rest of the world yawns and blames us for fighting back?
The local elections in the USA have grabbed the headlines. They are a foretaste of what American Jews can expect from now on. With the far left and jihadist supporters infiltrating the Democratic Party the future prospects for US Zionists and most Jews is becoming increasingly bleak. At the same time, the far right, isolationists and virulent Jew haters infiltrating the GOP should ring warning bells.
Zohran Mamdani and other “democratic socialists” pose an existential threat to American Jews in particular and Israel in general.
Some are aware of the impending impact that these developments pose.
Jabotinsky, one of the leaders of pre-war Zionism spent much of the 1930’s vainly warning European Jews of the impending catastrophe about to be unleashed. His urging to flee Europe before it became too late was ridiculed and rejected by the vast majority of Jews who looked on him as an alarmist and rabble rouser.
It was therefore with a sense of incredulity that I read a news item about “Jews for Mamdani” and the reasons they give in a letter for supporting this candidate.
“We recognize that candidate Zohran Mamdani’s support for Palestinian self determination stems not from hate, but from his deep moral convictions. Even though there are areas where we may disagree, we affirm that only genuine solidarity and relationship building can create lasting security. That has sustained us for generations wherever Jews have lived and remains our only path forward.”
I had to read this missive several times in order to confirm that these misguided individuals are indeed serious.
Their laundering of history is mind boggling.
In the long and blood soaked landscape of Jewish encounters with Jew hating clergy, dictators, potentates and political rabble rousers, no amount of “solidarity and relationship building” has ever averted genocide, expulsion and pogroms. Sucking up to the inciters in the hope that they will overlook you has never been a winning strategy.
Fooling and convincing others that the promised and articulated threats can be dodged by embracing those dedicated to our delegitimization is the height of folly.
Will history repeat itself whereby Jews in countries facing rapidly rising hate refuse to believe the warning signs?
The UK Jewish Chronicle carried a report that Steve Witkoff’s son backed a call for British Jews to be offered refuge in the USA. This is a classic case of offering to jump from the frying pan into the fire.
With an anti Zionist Mayor ensconced in New York and a Democratic Party increasingly drifting to anti Israel obsessions the message for Jewish New Yorkers in particular and US Jews in general couldn’t be clearer.
It also hoists red flags for similar developments elsewhere including Australia and New Zealand.
An eventual logical outcome will be the outlawing of anyone declaring themselves a Zionist.
If this seems beyond the realms of possibility just remember that far too many also didn’t take the German National Socialists seriously prior to 1933.
It’s time to wake up.
Michael Kuttner is a Jewish New Zealander who for many years was actively involved with various communal organisations connected to Judaism and Israel. He now lives in Israel.
[This article was originally published on J-Wire and is reproduced here with permission from Michael Kuttner.]
