Was that a taunt or a sincere but terribly misguided question? It was hard to tell because the martini in the questioner’s right hand may have bolstered his courage or diminished his filter. Either way, I felt a swell of blood filling my cheeks, so I began counting to ten – slowly and silently.
To be clear, there are those who compare Israelis to Nazis just to press the Jew button. They delight in the sport of hurling a slander that is extremely offensive, and then just sitting back, watching blood boil. The ‘they’ are most often comprised of: extreme leftist ivory tower professors, their adoring campus acolytes, Palestinians, anti-Semites of every stripe and the usual collection of run- of-the-mill drunks. The anti-Israel trope has become the mantra du joure of the extreme left.
Whether his question was a verbal attack or sincere but misinformed, I do believe every question deserves an answer except when the premise is false. That question was analogous to the time honored inquiry, “Have you stopped beating your wife?” “Answer yes or no”. There is no good answer.
Responding to Holocaust deniers is a waste of breath and time, for their kind are truly beyond the reach of reason and the range of redemption. Granted their question does not deny that the Holocaust occurred, it does something far worse; it deceitfully draws a moral equivalency between Israelis and Nazis, where none exists.
However, giving the questioner the benefit of doubt, I assumed that the question was posed out of ignorance, not malice. But since the question was based on a false premise, I did not answer it; instead I explained why the allegation has no basis in fact. If any such comparison could be made, the question would be more on target if it asked, “Why do the Palestinians treat the Jews like the Nazis treated the Jews?”
After all it is the Palestinians who want Jew-free state.
Just like the Nazis did.
It is the Palestinians who support BDS (Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions) against (Jews) Israel and establishments carrying Israeli made products
Just like the Nazis did.
It is the Palestinians who disparage Jews in cartoons in the vilest fashion.
Just like the Nazis did.
It is the Palestinians who flock to the book stores to read Hitler’s virulent anti-Semitic book Mein Kampf.
Just like the Nazis did.
It is the Palestinians who have a copy of ‘The Protocols of the Elders of Zion’ on their bookshelves.
Just like the Nazis did.
It is the Palestinians whose school plays, curriculums and holiday presentations depict Jews as vermin, pigs and rats.
Just like the Nazis did.
It is the Palestinians who randomly attack anyone they deem a Jew.
Just like the Nazis did.
Now, getting back to the question, “As a Jew, don’t you feel bad that the Israelis are doing the same thing to the Palestinians as the Nazis did to the Jews?”
Yes I do feel bad that there are people who are so ill-informed about history that they could even entertain such a question. And yes I do feel bad that Israelis are compelled to deal with the Palestinians in ways that safeguard their citizens from being blown up, randomly stabbed and purposely run down by trucks. Yes I do feel bad that sometimes Israelis have to resort to strong and effective measures to insure their own safety above the welfare of those who would destroy them.
I hope that answered your question, if that is what it was.