Slippery slope

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Once started, a disastrous chain of events will inevitably follow and will be almost impossible to stop.

Michael Kuttner

That is what happens when the slippery slope syndrome kicks in with a vengeance.

We have witnessed it in the past and now we are in the midst of the worst example of this deranged phenomenon since the days of the Shoah.

It starts with a seemingly random event and then snowballs like an out-of-control avalanche, sweeping everything and everyone away in its path. No amount of logic and defensive action will avert the headlong rush towards collateral damage and associated carnage.

As I write these lines, sirens are sounding for two minutes throughout Israel, and the entire country stands in memory of all those murdered by the Nazis and their willing collaborators.

This year, our thoughts are also focused on a worldwide resurgence of the same hate and its mutation into lethal anti-Israel/Zionist violence.

Apart from a hard core of resurrected extreme right Nazi sympathizers who peddle conspiracy theories about Jewish world domination, we are today faced with additional groups which have embraced Jew hate. These new haters present us with unprecedented challenges because they straddle and span a wide segment of the population.

Once upon a time, those on the left of the political spectrum had an affinity with Jews suffering oppression and discrimination. Their solidarity and active involvement in the years after the Shoah and leading up to the regaining of Jewish sovereignty was a given. Most socialist politicians, with some notable exceptions, were fervent supporters of the Zionist enterprise and staunch opponents of fascist-type agitators.

How times have changed.

Nowadays, it is those on the political left who are among the most vociferous delegitimizers of the Jewish State. They are the cheerleaders for all those who accuse Israelis of being colonizers, apartheid facilitators and guilty of genocide. In a world gone mad, it is these people who now accuse Jews of being oppressors and a threat to world peace. Whereas previously, it was the lunatic right and the theologically compromised who accused Jews of blood libels and poisonings, it is now the leftist lemmings who joyfully embrace each and every such libel peddled by Islamic terrorists and their supporters.

The boycotters of anything Israeli and the enthusiastic proponents of recognizing a terror-supporting Palestine are, in the main, firmly on the left. Those in the centre and moderate right who have fallen for these objectives illustrate just how deceptive and lethal the slippery slope can be.

One sector of Israel/Jew haters remains constant.

From the very beginning of the Russian Communist era and especially since Stalin’s regime of terror there has been an almost unrelenting hatred towards Zionism and Judaism. Except for a very short lapse in 1947 when the Soviet Union voted for the UN partition plan the Kremlin has supported every Arab attempt to eradicate Israel. Although Putin expresses sympathy with Russian Jews the fact remains that his support for Islamic terror tactics against Israel follows an old familiar pattern.

The Communist nations of China, Cuba and North Korea remain staunch cheerleaders for Iranian genocidal ambitions and constant critics of Israel’s actions to thwart them. It follows that international groups on the extreme left and governments with neo-communist leaders follow Lemming down the well-trodden path of anti-Israel/Zionist rhetoric and policies.

An increasingly relevant factor in the explosive growth of haters can be seen in the under-thirty age range. This demographic encompasses high school and university students as well as those who have entered the work force and joined political parties or pressure groups.

Some observers seem mystified as to why these so-called educated individuals should be eagerly flocking in large numbers to join anarchist-type demonstrations, sit-ins and Israel delegitimization protests. What motivates these people to demonize Israel, Jews and Zionists and yet remain conspicuously silent when faced with the most horrific human rights atrocities in the rest of the world?

The answer is simple yet remains unspoken in today’s woke and politically correct Orwellian environment.

This age group is bereft of any knowledge of history and actual facts. History as a serious subject has been dropped from many educational curricula. Where it is still taught it is superficial, laden with prejudicial themes or emasculated to such an extent that the students graduate totally clueless. That explains why mindless mobs are mouthing meaningless slogans without having the slightest idea of the real and actual facts of the situation. It is a perfect example of mass brainwashing and an identical clone of past Hitler Youth, Communist Red Guards and current North Korean hysterical leader worship.

In the complete absence of any sort of knowledge, these idiots are easy prey for those with a vested interest in manipulating and funding chaos and anarchy. Cluelessness also means that Iran, Hamas and associated terror facilitators can easily promote the most outrageous libels and conspiracy theories against Israel and Zionists. These recycled accusations fall on fertile ground and germinate into full blown hate with very little effort.

The bottom line is a complete and utter failure of education. These historical illiterates have no clue about how Jew hate developed and finally engulfed Jewish communities. They also have a total blank when it comes to the history of the Jewish People and their historical connections to Israel.

Even more serious are those Jewish youth and adults below the age of 30 who have been seduced by poisonous lies and join the haters as they spew their venom. The media, of course, love these self-haters.

Has there been a failure in teaching history in Jewish Day Schools or is this a byproduct of galloping assimilation and detachment from anything Jewish? Holocaust museums and centres have proliferated yet they only touch a minority. In countries where Holocaust studies are not compulsory the ignorance percentage is frighteningly high. These museums are doing their best to educate but if the demographics now on display at universities and elsewhere are anything to go by the prognosis for the future is dire.

What happens when these under thirty’s assume political positions of influence? Will the sane silent majority shun them and decline to vote for them or will the current slippery slope lead to inexorable tragedies. We can already see in some democratic countries where lack of a political backbone is leading. It does not bode well for a tolerant society as far as Jews are concerned.

The UN is a classic example of how quickly the slippery slope can turn lethal.

After the First World War, the League of Nations endorsed the San Remo Agreement whereby all the territory from the “sea to beyond the river” was guaranteed for Jewish settlement. The perfidious British then hacked off part in order to reward its Arab Hashemite friends. In 1947 the UN further emasculated any future Jewish sovereignty by proposing a partition plan thus rewarding those Arabs who had supported Nazi Germany. From 1948 to 1967, Jordan illegally occupied Judea and Samaria as well as half of Jerusalem, thereby banning Jews from praying at the Kotel and other holy sites. Needless to say, not one UN member objected to this travesty.

We have now reached the ludicrous situation whereby the UN consists of a majority of members who are non-democratic, abusers of human rights and outright sponsors and patrons of terror. The organization and its associated bodies are a cesspool of hate against Israel and an enthusiastic participant in each and every attempt to smear the Jewish State’s legitimacy. The worst part is witnessing the moral cowardice of the remaining democracies as they either vote in favour or shamefully abstain whenever an Israel-bashing motion is proposed.

This year, as we celebrate 76 years of sovereignty, we will be cognizant that this independence has been and continues to be achieved at great cost and sacrifice. Israel is the only nation whose continued existence is under constant threat and whose legitimacy is continually challenged.

More than two thousand years of unremitting hate should have taught us some valuable lessons.

Jews have been described as an eternal people who have outlasted all their oppressors.

The rest of the world should take note.

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 and is J-Wire’s correspondent in the region.