It is the gift that keeps on giving. Israel haters taking swipes at each other.
In the latest instalment, two of our “favorite” nincompoops are at it: DouchebloggerTM Richard Silverstein and Electronic Intifada’s Ali “Abumination” Abunimah.
It started with this whining rant from Silverstein’s latest post.
Israel Lobby Smears Kerry as Anti-Israel, Pro-Hamas; Questions His Conduct of Iran Talks
A bit of personal disclosure is in order: I felt ambivalent when I first read this story. While it raised my level of indignation sky-high, I have to say that I harbor mixed emotions about Ali Abunimah and Electronic Intifada. Not about the content of his blog (which I largely respect and admire) nor about him personally since I don’t know him well. Rather, my issues are with the fact that I’ve been excluded from publication there.
In fact, when I faced my own crisis and my website was hacked by pro-Israel cyber-thugs, I asked Ali to publish a piece I’d written about it. I’d hoped there’d be some sense of solidarity between me and supporters of the Palestinian struggle for justice. There wasn’t. A later attempt to publish a different piece at EI was also rejected. A number of other anti-Zionists–including one who writes regularly for EI–and who once collaborated with me on important human rights projects, have stopped all contact with me.
While I’ve collaborated willingly in the past with EI writers on projects and used EI as a source for some of my own reporting, I’ve been put in a sort of far-left herem (“excommunication”). It isn’t only EI: I’ve noted how often the anti-Zionist left accuses me, both publicly and privately, of being a tool of Israeli intelligence.
All that being said, my personal issues shouldn’t interfere with the fact that Ben Dror Yemini has attacked not just Ali Abunimah, but the entire progressive Israel-Palestine community. To paraphrase Pastor Niemoller, they may first come for Ali Abunimah, but eventually they’ll come for the rest of us as well. I refuse to ignore injustice merely because of my own personal disappointments or because I’ve failed someone’s political litmus test.
Enter Abumination.
@richards1052 (cont.) multi-thousand word submissions according to the same editorial standards.
— Ali Abunimah (@AliAbunimah) November 13, 2013
Ok, granted Abuminiation issued a rather polite smackdown, but I am guessing Silverstein will not react too well to it.
Watch this space.
