When Criticizing Israel Crosses the Line

Mark Ruffalo (Forward)

 “I am not an antisemite. In fact, I find it repugnant to hate the Jewish people. But there are a lot of powerful Jews in the world who are responsible for some truly horrific acts against humanity. To call them out for genocide is no more antisemitic than calling out Hitler for his genocide. And it isn’t only genocide. There are a lot of powerful Jewish oligarchs who are causing all kinds of havoc in the world. They need to be called out and stopped. But I am not an antisemite and I love the Jewish people.”

That opening paragraph pretty much describes the Mark Ruffalos of the world. People who might believe their own rhetoric, but whose condemnation of Jews is almost bad as the rabid antisemites that think the Jewish people ought to be extinguished. This miserable excuse for a human being sickens me!

Sadly, many ignorant Jews tend to go along with this narrative, even claiming that they are expressing Jewish values when making broad antisemitic statements. These statements often recycle tropes that have been used against us for decades, if not centuries: The Jews control the banks. The Jews control Hollywood. The Jews control the government. Or at least their leader, Netanyahu, does.

I am not talking about the antisemitic right. They wear their ignorance on their sleeve for the entire world to see. And many of them admire Hitler for his attempt to “eradicate this degenerate blood-sucking people” from the world. They are not going to convince any normal person of their nonsense. I am talking about an altruistic left that sees the world through its own unique lens of oppressors and the oppressed, of the wealthy and the poor. In each case, the former are supposedly perpetually taking advantage of the latter.

That pretty much describes the ‘Ruffalos’ of the world. Despite his strong denials - Jews are the target of his accusations – using rhetoric which creastes the perception among many of his fans that Jews are as evil and control everything. The only Jews Ruffalo and company seem to like are those who know little to nothing about their Judaism and therefore agree with their characterization of wealthy and powerful Jews exploiting powerless non-Jews.

I completely understand why he gets away with it. As I have said many times - It is hard to disagree with the observation that Israeli Jews are, for the most part, prospering while many Palestinians are struggling to survive under what they regard as the harsh policies of their occupiers.

Indeed, Ruffalo’s anti-Israel sentiments did not begin with Israel’s war in Gaza. Long before that, he portrayed Israel as a vicious apartheid state that should be boycotted divested from, and sanctioned - until its supposedly evil system is destroyed. Replaced with a Palestinian state that would restore dignity to the people supposedly living under Israel’s thumb.

To the casual observer, this might seem logical and even just. The supposedly inhumane Jews would be replaced by the far more humane Palestinian people, who would never establish a government of repression. Because, after all, that would supposedly be incompatible with their Muslim faith. Islam is a religion of peace!

This is what happens when you see the world through jaundiced eyes. You see what you want to see…

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