Opinion
The peace camp charade
Manfred Gerstenfeld
Published: 23.05.12, 10:28
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37 Talkbacks for this article
1. I've been saying this for awhile: "Humanitarian Racists"
one   (05.23.12)
they spread propaganda and lies and the sheep eat it up and lose their way. very simple.
2. The Mennonites?
Sarah B ,   U.S.A. / Israel   (05.23.12)
Any one know who they are? I will tell you. They are the Amish. Looks like they have left their horses and buggies behind in favor of trumpeting the virtues of Ahmedinejad. Interesting. Time to take their special status away. Now, they can pay taxes like everyone else and their young men can register with Selective Service. No more free passes.
3. Dr. Gerstenfeld hit this one out of the park
Devorah   (05.23.12)
Hard-core peace activists tend to be among the most violent and rage-filled people on the planet. Misdirected anger, usually trigged by something personal and unrelated to their "cause," is their fuel. Case in point: I interviewed a woman, a rabid "peace" activist shortly after 9/11. She became more enraged and hysterical as the interview proceeded to the point where she was screaming. At the top of her lungs, she screamed, "THE PEOPLE IN THE WTC DESERVED TO DIE BECAUSE THE U.S. SUPPORTS ISRAEL!" And then she attempted to shove me. Prior to that, she was furiously defending the abortions she had; a subject I never raised in the first place. That's what I mean by misdirected anger. Her flawed reasoning made no sense, but that's how these folks are to varying degrees. And that's why they are never to be trusted.
4. Palestinian peace camp is a fraud. So,supporters are too.
Sam ,   Canada   (05.23.12)
What kind of peace camp can Palestinians have when they reject a Jewish majority Israel to begin with. Since the Palestinian peace camp is a fraud, whatever their supporters are offering is meaningless. It's time Israel supporters stopped falling for these scams.
5. this article
E. G. Marsch ,   Nahariya, Israel   (05.23.12)
Bravo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
6. We need a good war!
Bertram ,   London, UK   (05.23.12)
Absolutely right. Enough of this peace nonsense, it's merely a cover for anti-semitism, anti-Israelism, Islamism, leftism, vegetarianism, intellectualism and most other 'isms'. Far too much thinking going on, it's time for action. A good war is morally uplifting and, what is more, it never hurt anyone.
7. Stereotypes, generalisations, out-of-context quotes...
TaylorT ,   Earth   (05.23.12)
...yup, the usual suspects will eat this article up. I see devorah has already chimed in (how not surprising.) Some of you people are so lost, there's no chance of ever finding your way back to reality. There might be hope for others here, assuming you stop hiding away on a talkboard where your views get only token debate.
8. Should peace break out in the entire World(God forbid) these
tom ,   tel aviv   (05.23.12)
idiots would self-combust with uncontrollable rage! It's a knee-jerk attitude.
9. They are simply ...
Jules   (05.23.12)
... hostile foreign agents. Same as Joseph Stalin had in Europe.
10. All those who disagree with this article.
Sane ,   Manchester   (05.23.12)
Are foolish, stupid or worse.
11. My fling with the left wing
Dan ,   USA   (05.23.12)
Back in the 1980's, as a naive young man, I was involved with various left-wing "peace" movements. We demonstrated on behalf of various oppressed peoples: the Tibetans, Nicaraguans, black South Africans, etc. When I had the audacity to suggest that we demonstrate on behalf of oppressed Soviet Jews, I was informed by my fellow peaceniks (mostly upper-middle class, Ivy League-educated secular Jews) that Soviet Jews are not a left-wing cause, and besides, if they really needed help, the Soviet Jews could always get one of their rich friends to make out a check. That undercurrent of Jew (self) hatred disguised as humanitarianism is prevalent in nearly all so-called peace movements.
12. #6
israel israeli ,   tel aviv   (05.23.12)
Your sarcasm will make the Leftists happy, but is devoid of reality. Just because someone says he is for peace doesn't make it so. Hamas say they want peace, but for them that means exterminating every Jew (read their covenant). Your precious Leftists are no different than Hamas. They are just being paid for helping genocide.
13. (7) Taylor T
tiki ,   belgium   (05.23.12)
Talking about stereotypes, generalisation & out-of-contects quotes. I hope you have a mirror at home. You should look into it more often & stop talking to yourself to convince yourself that your right. You talk bollocks!
14. # 7
Yosef Y. MSc' ,   USA   (05.23.12)
Taylor, you cannot hide your pitiful, obscenely ignorant statements - the Earth is not big enough for that
15. #7 TaylorT. Funny that.....
Phil ,   Ireland   (05.23.12)
You haven't disputed one word written in the article. All you can do is blather generalisations and insults. Try addressing the issues instead of regurgitating your usual bland bile.
16. I wish YNet had a "sticky" function
Amichai ,   Huntsville, US   (05.23.12)
I wish we could "sticky" this to the top of the Opinion section so it would be read by everyone that visits YNet. This is something that's needed to be explained for a long time. It's not just "peace" activists though - for the most part, it's activists in general. Take #6 & #7 for example - they don't have a "cause", they're just contrasts who oppose anything because they love the sound of their own voice. Sort of like the "Occupy" movement in the US. They wanted a better life for themselves at the expense of others because they "deserved" it. Working for it never crossed their mind. They can't find a job? That's the fault of the rich, not the leftist politicians they've elected who've wreaked havoc on our economy. The thing all these "activists" have in common is that their leftist tools.
17. Liberalism is Destroying the World
Jessie Cohen ,   Jerusalem   (05.23.12)
In the old days, the Good Guys killed the Bad Guys. Simple - End of story. Today, you have to "UNDERSTAND the murderers, give them warmth and comfort." This attitude has destroyed many countries and will be the death of Europe as the Muslims take over and erase Europe's long and grand history. But by that time, it will be too late.
18. "Peace camp" is full of despicable people.
Chaim ,   Israel   (05.23.12)
As the author notes, many "peace camp" activists have no trouble with the Nazis and other genocidists. The pre-Hitler "peace camp" was full of despicable people and that remains true today. It is also largely true about Israel's "peace camp", which is full of people who secretly, and not so secretly, yearn for Israel's destruction.
19. Wow! what a great perspective presented in the article
William` ,   Israel   (05.23.12)
20. #7 - do you mean, YOUR reality?
William ,   Israel   (05.23.12)
Not sure many people want to return to YOUR self-righteous, myopic reality based on poor reasoning and blatant ignorance of facts. It's a world where so-called "peace activists" are violent but claim they do so in the name of peace and justice. A good example is the latest WTO protests. Now some Liberals and peace activists are simply peaceful and have good intentions. That's not the group this article talks about, nor those the Talkbacks refer to. There are anarchist scum among you who resort to racism and violence to push their personal agenda, and you know that.
21. Predictable stuff
Bertram ,   London, UK   (05.23.12)
It's good to see the predicatble rent-a-talkback crowd has responded in its precitable manner. I especially liked the 'I was once a leftist, now I have seen the light' response. Heartening stuff.
22. #21 - Bertram
Devorah   (05.23.12)
People like you make me laugh. Do you realize you're part of the "rent-a-talkback crowd" to which you refer? Duh.
23. #22 - Devorah
Bertram ,   London, UK   (05.24.12)
You are right. I stand rebuked. I should not have allowed myself to sink to your level. I think the difficulty I have is in taking seriously persistently bigoted, uninformed comments. To characterise all those who don't want to reach for their guns as 'appeasers' based on the 1938 Munich Agreement and Galtung's outrageous views is a profoundly ignorant position to take. Wishing to settle the Palestinian-Israel conflict by means other than warfare is in evryone's interests. As for the apparent equation of the Muslim world with Nazi Germany the writer of the article knows it is patent nonsense and only serves to diminish the significance of the Holocaust in the eyes of others. And, just an afterthought, Orwell who is quoted with gusto at the beginnning of the article was very much a committed international socialist who, had he lived, no doubt would have had a much more nuanced approach to the Middle East than you would imagine.
24. Excellent article
John ,   NZ   (05.24.12)
25. keep it simple
bill ,   canada   (05.24.12)
these endless complex explanations; all meaning and topic are lost; all the peace movements are wrong; israel is right; its good you have newspapers that happily give the same story
26. Stalin Nazi Pact
Zivron   (05.24.12)
It was the Bolshevism that gave the Nazis the ability to trap the Jews.If not for the USA and the UK the Stalinist Regime would never have pushed bthe nazis into eastern Europe.
27. to 3
shams ,   jerusalem   (05.24.12)
you have a point in individual habit but in general i see that the palastinians do not try to make the world fit their interest but israili do
28. to 10
shams ,   jerusalem   (05.24.12)
iam not foolish stupid nor worse // wha is worse /// is it antisimit
29. re: 6. We need a good war!
Jeff ,   Danbury, USA   (05.24.12)
Bertram, That's not people are saying. Stop jerking your knee.
30. An extremely important article
Shalom Freedman ,   Jerusalem Israel   (05.24.12)
This article is extremely important. It reveals the fraud and hypocrisy that characterize much of the self- proclaimed 'Peace Camp'. Mendacity and bias are at the heart of the effort of those who stigmatize Israel while ignoring the crimes and sins of its enemies.
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