Post Purim hangovers

Once the Purim carnival festivities are over and the masks removed the real world again intrudes into our daily lives.

While we have been whooping it up and celebrating the triumph of good over evil in Persia all those many years ago, today’s Hamans have been busy. The question is whether we have learnt our lessons or whether we are doomed to repeat the same old mistakes all over again.

POLES APART

The shock waves following Polish attempts to rewrite history continue to rumble on. Blaming Jews for also being perpetrators during the Holocaust the Polish Prime Minister unleashed an avalanche of criticism. This in turn generated an upsurge of anti Jewish reactions from Polish media and public alike. Cartoons and graffiti swiftly followed and the atmosphere has become so toxic that many young Jews are now for the first time questioning whether they have a future there. Reactions range from blissful optimism for a Jewish future on the blood soaked soil of Poland to fearful doubts.

These doubts would have been reinforced after an interview given by a priest, the editor in chief of a Catholic weekly, in which he stated:

“For us, the truth corresponds to facts. For the Jew, truth means something that conforms to his understanding of what’s beneficial.”

There is something odious in the atmosphere there which given past history is likely to get worse rather than disappear. Like the canaries in the mine, the Jews of Poland should take the hint and hightail it out of there as soon as possible. Why we keep going back to the “scenes of the crime” is a mystery I have never been able to understand.

Poland is not the only country in the EU which is facing a growing problem with Judeophobia. Iceland is considering banning Brit Milah (circumcision) for babies which in effect would doom its small Jewish community. Denmark, which still basks in its rescue of the Jewish community during German occupation, is poised to hold a referendum on the future of Brit Milah and thus the atmosphere steadily becomes more hostile.

Meanwhile life for Jews in Europe becomes more fraught with danger as children as well as adults are assaulted, threatened and intimidated into hiding any outward manifestation of their identity. It’s not just Europe. Statistics recently released show an unprecedented upsurge in Jew hatred in the USA as well.

DIPLOMATIC DRAMA

The decision by President Trump to recognise Jerusalem as our Capital has unleashed a whirlwind of threats, bluster and downright hypocrisy. With the announcement that 14 May is to be the date for the first stage of the implementation of the Embassy transfer the rhetoric has ramped up even higher.

As expected our missing “peace partners” exploded in a frenzy of frustrated fury threatening days of rage, jihad and holy wars on a global scale. Anyone trying to excuse the religion of peace would have a hard time explaining why religious and political leaders keep invoking Islam as the reason for launching a campaign of vilification and lies against the notion that Jerusalem is part and parcel of Jewish history. From the PA telling Nicky Haley to “shut up” and Abbas claiming direct descent from the Canaanites the torrent of abuse and revisionist nonsense keeps pouring forth.

One of the most remarkable aspects of this convulsive reaction to the American decision to shift the Embassy is the date chosen. May 14 is the civil date when in 1948 the Jewish State was formally declared and re-established. This date has been designated by the Arabs as Yom Hanakba – the day of catastrophe. Therefore in their eyes shifting the US Embassy on that date is a double tragedy. The very idea that Jews have returned to their homeland is anathema to them. One needs to ask, if this is the case, what realistic prospect for genuine peace can eventuate? Co-incidentally 14 May is Yom Yerushalayim when the city was liberated from Jordanian illegal occupation so wittingly or unwittingly the Americans have picked the perfect day.

Instead of trying to inject some reality into the minds of the Arab and Islamic world, the EU prefers to pander to their delusions. Thus it has been announced that the EU condemns Trump’s decision and endorses the notion that Jews must be ethnically cleansed from the City of David.

The media is no better as Honest Reporting reports in this video:

UN PURIM FARCE

Purim may be finished but that does not stop the UN from proving that it has become an irrelevant tool in the hands of the immoral majority. While Syrian men, women and children are massacred and chemical agents obtained from North Korea are employed in scenes not seen since the Holocaust, the UN is powerless to prevent further tragedies.

Instead, in the midst of these human rights abuses, two events encapsulate why this Israel bashing body is hopelessly irredeemable.

Syria has been elected to a UN forum on “protecting people from abuse.” The Secretary General lent his support to Syria’s appointment.

The Iranian Justice Minister, a known human rights abuser, was invited to address the UN Human Rights Council.

Our Purim costumes and masks have been stored away for another year. However the masquerade and charades of those who demonize us continues on a daily basis. Just as we survived then so we will prevail now.

Michael Kuttner is a Jewish New Zealander who for many years was actively involved with various communal organisations connected to Judaism and Israel. He now lives in Israel and is J-Wire’s correspondent in the region.