Soccer Dad

The culture in the water

A political appointee recently blamed the "Israel Lobby" for his withdrawal.

Last week a political cartoonist drew a representation of Israel that could have come from Nazi Germany.

These aren't just isolated incidents. They mark a growing acceptance of antisemitism. This may not be antisemitism on a personal level, but it is certainly on a political level. I don't doubt that Chas Freeman and Pat Olphant have Jewish friends. But they don't think that Jews should have a state of their own. Perhaps the best term to describe this is political antisemitism.

Another sign of this is the anti-Israel vitriol that passes for theater these days. A few years ago it was "My Name is Rachel Corrie." Currently the crowds who are into antisemitic chic are taking in "Seven Jewish Children." In his essay about said "play" Bret Stephens concludes:

Anti-Semitism used to be taboo, but that's been eroded by an obsessive criticism of Israel that seems to borrow freely from the classic anti-Semitic repertoire ("tell her they're filth") while adopting the brilliant trick of treating Jewish victimization as a moral ideal from which modern Israel has sadly deviated.

Readers may wonder why Ms. Churchill's trite agitprop, a cultural blip on the vast American stage, deserves a column. Maybe it doesn't; maybe it's best ignored. But I'm reminded of what a better Churchill -- Winston -- wrote about the German decision in 1917 to put V.I. Lenin on a sealed train to Petersburg, "in the same way you might send a phial containing a culture of typhoid or cholera to be poured into the water supply of a great city." Something foul has now gotten into our water, too.

For those wishing to see a rebuttal, there's Elder of Ziyon's "Seven Palestinian Children." It has the advantage of accuracy.

Crossposted on Yourish.