[Peace-discuss] What I Learned On This List

Sun Nov 25 13:18:35 UTC 2012

"Holocaust denial isn't a pro- or anti-Zionist issue"

Holocaust denial began as nothing but a pro- or anti-Zionist issue, aside from Deborah Lipstadt needing a self-important career. And after the genocide in Vietnam (denied, of course), we needed to change the subject. Our relationship with Israel helped a lot with that.

Holocaust denial is a manufactured issue, exaggerated by genuinely dangerous and ignorant people to justify Israeli oppression and American interventions, an aspect of the Holocaust Industry, which Norman Finkelstein correctly described as a shakedown (many of the individuals criticized by Finkelstein in his 2000 book have since been convicted, disbarred, etc.). When somebody starts to be referred to as the latest Hitler, you know that more bloodshed is in order, with support from the David Gehrigs of the world. Those who obsess about pathetic holocaust deniers evidence a socially acceptable form of mental/social pathology, quite apparent in these e-mails. One of the symptoms is a hushed reverence for Elie Wiesel. For David Gehrig, a telling symptom is a childish, too-clever use of the English language to conceal a complete lack of critical thinking, and an unwillingness to engage in anything that can be remotely called historical analysis. Another is
 selective compassion and opposition to discrimination, evident in the underdogs that Gehrig chooses to put in a good word for in his precious letters in the N-G., always characterized by an implicit claim to liberal moral superiority. And of course the condescension; always the condescension, so evident in all of these e-mails. We can all only aspire to Gehrig's moral heights.

>________________________________
> From: ""E. Wayne Johnson 朱稳森"" <ewj at pigsqq.org>
>To: David Gehrig <david-cu at nukulele.org> 
>Cc: Peace-discuss <peace-discuss at lists.chambana.net> 
>Sent: Saturday, November 24, 2012 7:56 PM
>Subject: Re: [Peace-discuss] What I Learned On This List
>  
>Holocaust denial is not a racial issue.
>
>It is a matter of historical analysis, something for historians
>to look at and decide.  Some thing for anthropologists to scratch
>their heads at.
>
>Genocide is a recurrent event in human history.  All such
>events had unique characteristics.  It's 9ft tall technicolor
>quadrophonic apparent that the "victims" of the German event
>are playing that disaster for every thing that it is worth and more.
>Although it is a horrific thing, they have been willing and able
>to exaggerate and embroider and embroil the whole world into it.
>
>It's half past time to say "Enough, already".  We felt your pain.
>We also begin understand the motivation of those who inflicted it,
>although we dont agree with it.
>We dont like that, but it's just time to move on.
>
>Further, the holocaust denied or verified is quite irrelevant to the
>problems that we face today, other than as a case study of human nature.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>On 11/25/12 1:18, David Gehrig wrote:
>> How about a recognition that Holocaust denial isn't a pro- or anti-Zionist issue, but an anti-racist issue? And that counseling that it should be ignored when it appears locally -- and again, remember, on the left -- in the name of anti-Zionism is *not* an act of anti-racism but of political confusion?
>>
>> @%<
>>
>> On Nov 24, 2012, at 10:48 AM, "David Johnson"<dlj725 at hughes.net>  wrote:
>>
>>    
>>> O.K. Mr. Gehrig,
>>>
>>> As I stated in my previous e-mail,
>>> the C-U Occupy Group was approached by ONE individual who made a website proposal to our group and becuase of his " Holocaust Revisionism " ( as he called it ) opinions and articles on his website, that questioned the number of Jewish people murdered by the Nazis, we told him we were not interested becuase we disagreed with his opinions and did not want to be assosiated with his website. period !
>>>
>>> What more is there to do or discuss ?
>>>
>>> What do you suggest should be done ?
>>>
>>> David Johnson
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> ----- Original Message ----- From: "David Gehrig"<david-cu at nukulele.org>
>>> To:<peace-discuss at lists.chambana.net>
>>> Sent: Saturday, November 24, 2012 10:13 AM
>>> Subject: [Peace-discuss] What I Learned On This List
>>>
>>>
>>>      
>>>> Ah well, I tried. And it's been enlightening.
>>>>
>>>> Here’s what I’ve learned. When encountering Holocaust denial in one's
>>>> own community for the first time -- and encountering it on the left
>>>> not the right -- the proper response, according to replies from the
>>>> list of the self-proclaimed anti-racism organization, is to do the
>>>> following "anti-racist" things:
>>>>
>>>> (a) begin with a fusillade of gratuitous and off-topic insults aimed
>>>> at anyone, you know, actually bothered by Holocaust denial
>>>>
>>>> (b) immediately change the subject to, say, the JFK assassination
>>>>
>>>> (c) immediately change the subject to, say, Norman Finkelstein
>>>>
>>>> (d) immediately change the subject to, say, South Africa
>>>>
>>>> (e) immediately change the subject to, say, 9/11 trooferdom
>>>>
>>>> (f) immediately change the subject to, say, Israel
>>>>
>>>> (g) immediately change the subject to any other damn thing under the
>>>> sun but (h) smother any on-topic discussion of that Holocaust denial
>>>> as an instance of racism in our community and (i) tell the one who is
>>>> offended by the racism that *he’s* the bad guy.
>>>>
>>>> This is anti-racism?
>>>>
>>>> I believe there are many good people on this list. Yet the replies I
>>>> got were off-topic spiraling whatsits from David up-is-down Green and
>>>> a pair of Johnsons. If firemen fought fires the way these guys fight
>>>> antisemitism, CU would be ashes.
>>>>
>>>> @%<
>>>> _______________________________________________
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>>>> http://lists.chambana.net/mailman/listinfo/peace-discuss
>>>>        
>>>      
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>>    
>
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