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Which brings me to this piece. It’s been sitting in my “draft” pile. It’s another piece that references “Star Trek,” specifically the episode “Let that be your last battlefield” from Season 3 of the original series. When it aired early in 1969, it contained a powerful indictment of racism based on skin color.
It made me think of the racism we see today that works against the Palestinians in Gaza. Obviously, the genocide in Gaza isn’t being driven solely or even primarily by racial animus, but vilification and dehumanization of an enemy as barbarous, primitive, violent, and the like is nothing new to history.
So, with that caveat, here’s a “draft” piece from my slush pile. I hope it’s worth reading.
BEING BLACK ON THE WRONG SIDE
In 2012, William Pfaff asked what he termed a serious question: What would Israel like to do with its Palestinian population? The Israeli government’s answer now seems clear: Eliminate some and push the rest out of Gaza altogether. Even apartheid conditions, with Gaza as an open-air prison, now appear too merciful to hardline Israelis today. They want instead to end the occupation of Gaza by ending Gaza: by getting rid of all the Palestinians there, after which Gaza will be reconstituted as part of Israel.
Israelis and Palestinians, both Semitic peoples, are trapped in a death match where one side, the Israeli obviously, has complete dominance. Even so, Israelis increasingly see Palestinians as violent and uncivilized, unreachably so, which put me to mind of this classic "Star Trek" clip. Palestinians, it seems, are simply black on the wrong side, therefore they must be subjugated or eliminated.
Again, Jews and Palestinians are both Semitic peoples, for whatever that is worth. They both have a history in Palestine. (I’m not getting into the contentious argument over whose “claim” to the land is more legitimate, as ultimately that matters far less than respect for fundamental human rights and due process under international law.) Yet far too many Israelis, supported especially by the United States, see Palestinians writ large as both inferior and dangerous, even Palestinian children.
It recalls Nazi ideology that saw Jewish people as inferior, as dangerous, as a pox on the superior German Volk. Following the twisted logic of Nazism, Jewish people had to be eliminated precisely because they were inferior, dangerously so. What’s driving the elimination of Palestinians in Gaza is a similar mindset shared by many in the West, whether consciously or unconsciously.
In the “Star Trek” episode referenced above, the planet in question, Cheron, is torn apart by warfare between peoples whose only real difference is whether they’re black on the right side of their face, or the left side. It sounds ridiculous, but is it, really?
We must try to connect these wars.
I find it interesting that more people don't ask themselves, if X country is "bad", why do they support Y country that is "good"?
Example- Americans who still support Ukraine. Mostly Democrats. They don't support Israel. But since 10/7/23, Russia has made far more gestures in support of Palestinians than Israel. Apparently the corporate media explains this away by invoking Russian "dependence on Iran", which literally makes no sense, although I confess I couldn't bear reading the propaganda on that one.
Conservatives were very quick to see the scam of Ukraine and funding Ukraine. Funny that the Republicans, often smeared as white supremacists by Democrats, are the ones correctly calling out US support for Nazis in Ukraine. While the Democrats ... well you get the point.
I have learned during these past two years that every country I was raised to hate and look down on is a country that organizes their economy for the good of the people. Sure some do this more than others, but every single demonized country has nationalized at least some of their "national" resources, which fills their treasuries with money they spend on improving their citizens' lives.
It's just interesting how the contradictions grow stronger every day. And people's material conditions get worse every day.
We live in exciting times. Sad, scary times, but very exciting times for the masses of humanity.
And should Trump ever get in the position where he could "bomb Moscow and Beijing," one can only wonder where he'll be when the buttons get pushed.
A good guess is that he'll be at some Podiatrist's office seeking another Deferment for chronichly
recurrent Bonespurs.
If not Brainspurs.