I really shouldn’t indulge in such unseemly schadenfreude while there is a war on. But I couldn’t help chuckling this morning at seeing the Israeli far-left with its collective panties in a twist… all because nobody is paying any attention to their anti-war demonstrations. The best part was where Meretz MK Naomi Chazan had the gall to complain that “Criticism of the war has been contained and curtailed“.
I’m sorry Naomi… were you profiled by the police on the way to your demonstrations? Were you stopped and forced to turn around? Were you arrested for taking part in your demonstration? Were you beaten and imprisoned without charge for expressing your opposition to a government policy you felt is wrong, immoral or even illegal?
No?
Then please do us all a favor and have the good grace to shut up and be just the tiniest bit embarrassed at your blatant hypocrisy.
Almost exactly a year ago the Israeli right was screaming to anyone who would listen that the media was quite obviously carrying water for the government and facilitating only the message that then PM Sharon wanted publicized. Any anti-disengagement voices were deliberately marginalized or ignored by the press, and demonstrations against the pull-out from Gaza were at best ignored… and at worst, physically thwarted.
However, it may surprise you to know that I agree 100% with MK Chazan and her political allies on two important points:
- Demonstrations should not be quashed or marginalized by either the media or the government.
- Political dissent is not only good for a healthy democracy, but essential!
I just find it a tad ironic that the very people who had absolutely no problem with the media marching in lock-step with the government during disengagement (‘for the good of the country’, mind you) are suddenly outraged when the pendulum returns and knocks them over like a bunch of bowling pins.
If citizens (but not soldiers, mind you!) want to demonstrate against the war, they should do so. Seriously… if that’s how you honestly feel, get out there and scream in the streets! But if the media pretends such events aren’t news and decides to return to a policy of carrying water for the government, you have to accept the blame for your own political and media marginalization.
I may be laughing on the inside at the far left’s persistent but misguided faith in a negotiated solution with our sworn enemies even as rockets continue to fall on our cities and an entire generation of Israeli youth are in Lebanon risking their lives to try to stop the carnage on the home-front. But I absolutely share the left’s outrage at the complete lack of a free, independent press in our small country.
Cross-Posted at Treppenwitz
