Despite being nothing more than a low-brow, retired oil worker who has never bothered to make a master copy for myself, I shall take the liberty of expressing an opinion on the current situation.
In particular, I would like to highlight the similarities between what is happening today and what happened to the Jews in the past.
When it comes to calls for a trade boycott of Israel, I picture the German shop windows of the 1930s bearing the slogan ‘Kauft nicht bei Juden’ (do not buy from Jews).
When it comes to demands that Israel be barred from participating in sporting and cultural events, I am reminded of the German posters of the 1930s bearing the inscription ‘Juden sind hier unerwünscht’ (Jews are unwelcome here).
As regards Israel’s military operations in Gaza and Lebanon, I would like to highlight the similarities with the Allies’ military operations against the German (and Japanese) civilian population during the Second World War. The First World War ended with a peace treaty that allowed Germany to survive as a state, and where the warfare did not cause great suffering for the German civilian population. The result: a German people who were furious and determined to restore their former greatness and take revenge for their defeat. The myth that Germany had been betrayed by the Jews was created, and this paved the way for Hitler and Nazism (the full name, NSDAP, the National Socialist German Workers’ Party, doesn’t sound all that far-right, does it?) to seize power and led to the Second World War.
Germany introduced the mass bombing of civilian targets, and the Allies responded in kind. Once American resources became available, the bombing of Germany intensified to a very high level, resulting in heavy losses amongst the German civilian population. In 1943–44, Germany sent feelers for peace to the Allies, reportedly via Heinrich Himmler. The Allies then had the opportunity to end the war a year earlier and thereby save thousands – perhaps millions – of lives. The price would have been that Germany and Nazism would have survived. Within a few years, the world would then have risked facing a re-armed Germany. A Germany with nuclear weapons and the world’s most advanced missile technology. A Germany hungry for revenge. A repeat of the First World War.
They refused, insisting on Germany’s unconditional surrender and continuing the bombing of German (and Japanese) civilian targets.
It was a cruel but wise decision. Germany and Japan have now been peaceful nations for over 80 years.
Israel faces the same dilemma in Gaza and Lebanon. Hamas and Hezbollah aim to wipe Israel off the map. They couldn’t care less about Barth Eide’s much-vaunted two-state solution. They wish to use any future period of peace to rearm for a new war against Israel. Israel is therefore doing the same as the Allies did during the Second World War: it is demanding total surrender and the establishment of a peaceful civilian government. It bombs civilians just as the Allies did in Germany when it was necessary. The only difference is that Israel gives short notice of where it will bomb, in order to minimise civilian casualties. The Allies did not do this during the Second World War.
In my opinion, Israel has just as few options as the Allies had in their day.
This presents us with an interesting dilemma:
We hail the bomber pilots and sailors of the Second World War as heroes, whilst we condemn the Israeli military as war criminals for doing exactly the same as we and our friends did. If that is not an expression of anti-Semitism, then I do not know what further proof is needed.
The world must now realise that the time when Jews entered the gas chambers and allowed themselves to be exterminated without putting up a fight is over. They will now defend their lives with every means at their disposal, including nuclear weapons, if necessary.
That is what this conflict is all about: Palestinians who want ‘their’ land back, versus Jews who want to continue living. And standing behind them is Christian Europe, which murdered 6 million Jews during the Second World War, and which is now clearly eager to kill more.
Finally, I would like to apologise to our politically correct Norwegian elite for my incorrect and outspoken remarks.
