Go Back to Russia. No, Really, You Might Want to Think About Doing That.

In the long, sordid history of anti-Semitism, few developments are as bizarre as this one.

Update: Ken Layne points out that the story, which I had thought was published today, actually appeared on May 23, 2003.

Comments

[The Real Bill]

Jeez, Jesse! Thanks for feeding my inner misanthrope. Are people really any better than their animal brethren?

[Warren]

The sun on the meadow is summery warm.
The stag in the forest runs free.
But gather together to greet the storm.
Tomorrow belongs to me.

The branch of the linden is leafy and green,
The Rhine gives its gold to the sea.
But somewhere a glory awaits unseen.
Tomorrow belongs to me.

The babe in his cradle is closing his eyes
The blossom embraces the bee.
But soon, says a whisper;
"Arise, arise,
Tomorrow belongs..."

To me!

[Ken Shultz]

I would be interested to see another source that documents this problem.

"But if Israel becomes an arena for swastika graffiti, of cries of Zhid and neo-Nazi sites, then why come here of all places?"

I remain skeptical that anyone really thinks that this will happen.

"I didn't think that after I'd left Russia I would ever go back to Pravda because of this issue," says Gilichinsky sarcastically, but the policy of silencing things in Israel reminds one of the policy that prevailed in the Soviet Union - a policy of silencing anything that is not in agreement with the official doctrine."

Is there a policy of silencing things in Israel?

"But above all, dealing with the phenomenon must begin with the demographic madness, whereby everyone is welcome to come here as long as he is not an Arab. Even if he hates the state, even if he hates Jews, he is considered a positive contribution to the needs of the demographic head-count.

Change the demographic references a bit, and this sounds like something an American anti-immigrant propagandist might write.

[The Real Bill]

Warren,

Very nice! Who's the poet, you?

[The Real Bill]

Ken,

Why even bother. Can you ever believe anything a racist says?

[Chris Puzak]

In one of the books published by Feral House (Apocalypse Culture perhaps?), there was an article on a one man organization called Jews for Hitler. This is almost as weird.

[The Real Bill]

A Jew for Hitler reminds me of the phenomenon of suicide by cop.

[Ken Shultz]

It's frickin' Skrewdriver.

[Warren]

TR Bill,
No, not moi. When I first heard those words in their original context, I thought they were fucking brilliant. I consider myself extremely clever for citing them on this thread.

[The Real Bill]

Clever indeed.

[Warren]

Ken,
Thanks for introducing me to Skrewdriver, now I need a shower. I didn't know anyone covered this song. Good to know you are familiar with their version.

[Ken Layne]

Ken - Ha'Aretz is a pretty good source. But the story itself appears to be from May 2003.

Here's a November 2004 BBC report on the same subject. Here's a journalist's blog post describing the BBC segment. (It's a blog, so the comments are hilarious.)

Here's an Israeli organization's web site, Pogrom, in Russian & Hebrew. (And some parts in English.)

This is real and it's not new, although it might be getting worse as the kids of non-Jewish Russian immigrants grow up and realize they sure don't like those Jews. Or Arabs. Or Africans!

In the late '80s I was hearing about this kind of thing, when I was working as a copy editor at a U.S. Jewish paper. (Like Jewish weeklies around the U.S., it was a mix of local stuff and syndicated or free-lance stuff from Israel. One of our self-syndicated columnists was Wolf Blitzer, who wrote an Israeli-U.S. affairs column from Washington. To think, Wolf Blitzer used to actually serve a purpose ....) When Gorby opened up the gates a bit, people tried to leave any way they could. It is not crazy to imagine that Jewishness -- impossible to prove or disprove based on the Law of Return -- might be claimed by some who don't have the slightest connection to Israel, just to get the hell out of the USSR. And that seems to be the problem for Israeli politicians today: Immigration to Israel was / is based on the idea that if you say you're Jewish, you're Jewish. (Unless you're an Arab, generally.) If Sammy Davis Jr. was a Jew, then why not the Russian family with one parent claiming distant links to a distant relative who was maybe sorta Jewish?

Anyway, it's a horrible thing. If nervous politicians won't do anything about antisemitism within Israel, the country is truly as politically crippled as so many Israelis outside the government claim.

[Pavel]

Couple points.

This is at least in part a natural consequence of having a state define itself along ethnic nationalist lines. It's unfortunate because to accomplish their goals, historically, much of the Zionist movement has chosen play right into racial theories of of "the Jew." Much of that legacy still remains along the more right wing elements in Israel.

Jews for Hitler.

From what I understand, Richard Green is still founder and sole member of that particular club.

[The Real Bill]

Ken Layne,

Thanks for the info. Do you think it's possible that the Israeli government is concerned that if it suppressed the speech of these anti-Jews, it might simply add fuel to the fire?

[Pavel]

Screwdriver

You should check out

[Pavel]

Hmm...let's try that again.
Jewdriver

[Steven Crane]

Skrewdriver covered Cabaret? Not that I listen to them anyway...

[Phil]

Oh, don't go back to Russia. Vladimir Putin's gonna be putting up statues of the man who won the Great Patriotic War.

[Ken Shultz]

My anti-skinhead credentials are well known around here Warren.

http://www.reason.com/hitandrun/2004/09/are_you_drunk_o.shtml

I'll assume, for some reason, that you didn't intend to post those lyrics in the way I, and apparently at least one other person, took them. You should take a closer look at your post in context--I don't see anything clever about it.

Why'd you leave off the bit about the Fatherland?

[Ken Shultz]

Thank you Mr. Layne.

[Warren]

Ken,
I didn't know about the skinhead connection. At least one person got the refrence as intended. I left off the final verse because it appears in the reprise, and I didn't search far enough to realize there was one.

[The Real Bill]

Ken,

I didn't know about the skinhead connection either. If anything, I'm a Jew lover--two girlfriends (okay, 1.5, since one was half Pomo), one step sister, one brother-in-law, many friends, and one pediatrician that was one of the kindest persons I've ever known. IMHO, a world without Jews would be a world that's even worse than this one.

[Ken Shultz]

I can only post via my phone for the moment, please pardon my brevity.

I wasn't aware of the "Cabaret" version--I apologize for my mis-read. I was obviously way off.

[Thomas Paine's Goiter]

It's frickin' Skrewdriver.

Uh, as Spongebob well knows, it's Cabaret.

[Steven Crane]

I played one of the woodwind parts in the pit orchestra for a version of Cabaret, so I know all the songs inside and out, for better or worse.

Though, I never did get enough of those Cabaret Girls.. though the "each and every one, a virgin" claim is now severly in doubt. 😉

[Ken Shultz]

I went to a quasi-fundamentalist prep school. They let us perform the "Music Man", but we had to change some of the lyrics...

"...and we're so dog on stubborn we can stand touching noses, for a week at a time and never see eye to eye."