This Is How It Starts.....
When Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat, came to San Francisco California State University, he was prevented from speaking at the university, that resulted in a high profile public humiliation of Israel and the Jewish community. He was shouted down by protesters. Mayor Barkat’s visit was planned. University administrators expected that there would be protests against him. The university police were sent in, but in a decision that should deeply disturb all who value a civil society, the police were instructed not to remove the demonstrators and instead to stand by and watch the event be completely shut down.
The public university administrators and police stood and watched as Mayor Barkat, the Jewish student organization that sponsored him, and all in attendance, were permanently bullied off the stage. Officers were well equip and they had the power to end the violence, but were instructed to stand down, watch, and do nothing, as freedom of speech was replaced with a policy of whoever shouts the loudest wins. Those whom were there to protect and restore order, stood, watched, and did nothing. That signaled the protesters, as well as protesters worldwide, that university policy allows violence and disruption against guest speakers.
The administrators and police high profile inaction emboldened the mob, which consequently grew louder and more destructive, as police permitted. The Mayor waited for the protesters to be removed so the event could proceed, but it never happened. Eventually, Mayor Barkat asked his audience to huddle around him so he could speak to them over the mob’s chants, but it was a lost cause. “Get the fuck off our campus, get the fuck off our campus,” the mob yelled at the mayor and the attendees with bullhorns, indoors, over and over. “Get the fuck off our campus.”
A group of BDS supporters disrupted a lecture by two Israeli students titled "present the humane side of the IDF" at the University of South Florida earlier this past week. Supporters of BDS entered the lecture hall waving Palestinian flags and banners, interrupted the lecturers, and shouted at them, bringing the program to a halt. And there are a lot more stories such as these that can be told.
In November,1938 German authorities looked on without intervening, as rioters busted windows that littered the streets of Jewish owned stores, buildings, synagogues and had their property shattered. Here, also the police and authorities looked on watching the riots and did nothing to protect those from getting killed or injured.
100's of Jewish people were murdered during that attack. With more deaths coming from post arrest, maltreatment of the Jews, not the rioters. Subsequent suicides resulted from dismay, the death toll climbed into the hundreds. This event lead to the start of arresting Jews and deportation to concentration camps. Between 1933 and 1945 it was so widely reported as it was happening, and the accounts from the foreign journalists working in Germany sent shock waves around the world, but no foreign government made any serious attempt to stop Germany. "Kristallnacht” was followed by economic and political persecution of Jews.
US Democratic presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders has criticized Israel’s atrocities against Palestinians. He says, Israel is the cause of the Palestinian peoples misfortunes. Sanders goes on to say, Tel Aviv’s settlement expansions in the occupied West Bank undermine the peace process.
A member of Stanford University’s Student Senate argued that it is not anti Semitism to claim Jews control “the media, economy, government and other social institutions.” And added “Questioning these potential power dynamics, denial of Israel’s right to exist, is not anti Semitism.
Sanders, Obama and Clinton claim to be pro Israel, and also defend their statements as not being anti Semetic. To Bernie Sanders, Palestinians suffer because of Israels existence. To Obama, there will never be peace because Israels prosperity forbids it to do so and Clinton advocates, the Palestinians have a right to a homeland in Palestine.
The Bill Clinton administration, wishing to help Palestinians in their newly formed Palestinian Authority, supported a law to encourage Palestinian exports. The law and its implementing regulations enabled Palestinian businesses to sell their products in America under their own identity, rather than having to declare Israel as the goods country of origin. This labeling never meant that the Israeli settlements in the West Bank couldn't export goods into the US labeled “Made in Israel”. However, the Obama administration is now taking a broader move on the federal and state level, aimed at distinguishing settlement products from those made in Israel proper. Making any distinction between products made in Israel and those produced in West Bank settlements, makes the case that this distinction is viewed as an attempt to boycott Israel, hurt its economy and deny its sovereignty.
The impact of the EU labeling rules is already evident. Formulations of the country of origin has to be labeled, “West Bank/Gaza, Golan Heights, east Jerusalem’’. Labeling Israeli wines for example, going to America as labeled, would decrease sales as these wines have a large Jewish Israel supporting market. It will discourage those that wish to buy products made in Israel, but won't because any of these labels seemingly, appears as if the product is not from Israel, but perhaps from a Palestinian origin.
The 1933, Kristallnacht” was followed by Nazi economic and political persecution of Jews. The EU and the US are not very far from doing the same to Israels settlements. The Nazis boycott of Jewish products and business were also a state managed campaign of ever increasing harassment, arrests, systematic violent theft, forced transfer of ownership to the Nazi Party as the EU and US wishes to transfers Israeli property to the Palestinians. The EU and US actions would hurt Israels economy, sustainability, and ultimately destroy the Jewish State. With this boycott will came widespread violence, murder and hooliganism directed at Jewish businesses and individuals, not only in Israel, but worldwide, as we are seeing in Europe today.
The Star of David was painted across thousands of doors and windows, with accompanying slogans, as the EU and US labeling are doing today. Nazi posted signs saying "Don't Buy from Jews!" The EU and US labels, say the same. Signs were posted throughout Nazi territory "Go to Palestine!" (Geh nach Palästina!).
Today, more than ever, since the end of World War ll, Never Again! stands its test.