MAY 26, 2021 – Recently, the QAnon Congresswoman caught flak for what was deemed an anti-Semitic remark—comparing public health measures to Holocaust savagery. I see it differently.
Comparing the face mask rule with the Holocaust lacks the cogency necessary for placement on the broad scale of anti-Semitism—from insidiously subtle to outrageously overt. Congressional Dems and Reps alike have condemned the Georgia Republican for an “anti-Semitic” statement, though Republicans also had to criticize “anti-Semitism” among the “radical left.” I think the reference to anti-Semitism by everyone is itself a bit off the rails. “[A] bit off the rails”? Let’s call it what it is: “a derailment.”
To be sure, I understand “anti-Semitism” to the extent I comprehend all bigotry; which is to say, I simply don’t understand it. How can people treat people the way we do? Why do hate, fear, and envy prevail over love, trust, and respect as humanity rocks upon a bongo board—one foot on the civilized side; one foot on the uncivilized? In any event, most people have such a limited grasp of racism generally and anti-Semitism specifically, that the terms have become detached from useful application.
When I heard the distinguished Congresswoman’s comparison of The Vaccine to the Holocaust, I did not think “anti-Semitic.” I thought, “Dumb.” The analogy so lacked alignment, it was no more sensible than comparing anything to the Nazi death camps. It was as though someone tripped on the sidewalk and a dislikable bystander blurted out, “Auschwitz!”—her dislikability well-established prior to and quite apart from the historical context of her thoughtless utterance.
A rock is more analogous to a jar of mayonnaise than a mask mandate—or vaccination against a deadly disease—is analogous to being singled out as a member of a group targeted for unspeakably uncivilized treatment. The comparison is so devoid of reason it ought not even trigger discussion. To call it “anti-Semitic” does nothing to reduce anti-Semitism. Ironically, use of the term in condemnation dilutes the word as much as the Congresswoman’s thoughtless analogy does in the first place.
Now back to the Republican “critics” who just had to add, “But the Dems are hypocritical in not calling out anti-Semitism among the ‘radical left.’” Stop! Criticism of the Trumpian, Machiavellian, unscrupulous Netanyahu doesn’t make a person any more “anti-Semitic” than does disapproval—even outrage—regarding oppression of Arab Palestinians, who, we must hasten to add, are also “Semites”—the term referring to peoples with a common origin of . . . ready for this? . . . language. If Republicans only grasped that Israel is a nation state in which members of 39 political parties compete in elections and 49% of the Jewish population—which is less than 74% of the total population—are “Hiloni,” or secular (40% of whom identify as atheist), and so often at odds with the Misorti (who, in turn, are often at odds with themselves), the Dati, and the Haredi.
Let’s get back on track. Let’s call “dumb” what it is: nothing more than “stupid.”
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© 2021 by Eric Nilsson
