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[Trojita]

http://bigstory.ap.org/article/0f23dddc7fd94587bda0216a0209aef6/israeli-army-deputy-chief-draws-rebuke-holocaust-comment

JERUSALEM (AP) — The Israeli army's deputy chief of staff drew rebukes from hawkish Israeli ministers Thursday for comparing pre-Holocaust Germany to trends in Israel today.

Speaking at a Holocaust Remembrance Day ceremony at a Holocaust study center in central Israel on Wednesday evening, Maj. Gen. Yair Golan said, "If there is something that frightens me in Holocaust remembrance, it is ghastly trends that took place in Europe in general, and in Germany specifically, 70, 80 and 90 years ago, and finding a sign of them here among us, today in 2016."

He added that Israelis on Holocaust Remembrance Day should "discuss our ability to uproot from among us buds of intolerance, buds of violence, buds of self-destruction on the path to ethical deterioration." He did not specify, but he made reference to a case in March in which a soldier was charged with manslaughter for shooting a Palestinian attacker as he lay wounded on the ground in the West Bank, saying "not everything we do is right" but that Israel's army does not cover up "problematic activity."

Education Minister Naftali Bennett called on Golan to correct his statement, else he be seen as comparing Israeli soldiers to Nazis and giving credence to Holocaust deniers. Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked said Golan was "a little confused" and his statement reflected "a lack of understanding, if not a disrespect of the Holocaust."

On the other hand, center-left opposition leader Isaac Herzog called Golan brave. "This is what ethics and responsibility sound like," he said.

The Israeli military said Thursday that Golan did not intend to compare Israel and its army to "the horrors" of Germany 70 years ago.

"This is an absurd and baseless comparison that he never would have made and it was never his intention to criticize the Israeli government," the Israel Defense Forces, or IDF, said in a statement. "The IDF holds itself to high standards of conduct and holds the value of human life as a guiding value."

 

[jelly]

Doesn't everyone think this with some of the things they do and have done. It's a horrible thing to be compared to but you have to ask what is their end game, it's obviously not Nazi Germany or conquering Europe but do they want to expand Israel until there is no opposing land or people left?

 

[UnemployedVillain]

Education Minister Naftali Bennett called on Golan to correct his statement, else he be seen as comparing Israeli soldiers to Nazis and giving credence to Holocaust deniers.

I've reread this multiple times and I still don't follow his line of reasoning. Sounds more like he simply wants nothing negative about the Israeli army or Israel to be said...

 

[FlyinJ]

I've reread this multiple times and I still don't follow his line of reasoning. Sounds more like he simply wants nothing negative about the Israeli army or Israel to be said...

He seriously just threw in as many hand-waving buzzwords as possible to discredit the guy.

It's actually kind of humorous.

 

[Zaph]

I've reread this multiple times and I still don't follow his line of reasoning. Sounds more like he simply wants nothing negative about the Israeli army or Israel to be said...

One of the cheapest ways to shut down criticism - immediately jump to the most extremes to scare someone into backtracking.

 

[Deleted member 80556]

I'm glad that there are people in Israel that can see some of the cruelties that their government is committing. I hope there's something that can be done to stop them at least.

 

[Link]

What an anti-Semite.

 

[Stinkles]

People who compare Israeli military trends to the rise of national socialism in Germany in the 1930s are worse than Stalin.

 

[Xun]

What an anti-Semite.

I'm surprised they didn't say anything of the sort.

Anyway, he's not exactly wrong in my eyes.

 

[nelsonroyale]

Hmm, interesting. Of course you could draw parallels in a way with other events...It is good that some within the establishment are willing to speak out.

People who compare Israeli military trends to the rise of national socialism in Germany in the 1930s are worse than Stalin.

Haha

 

[The Last Emperor]

People who compare Israeli military trends to the rise of national socialism in Germany in the 1930s are worse than Stalin.

Lmao

 

[andrerobot]

I've reread this multiple times and I still don't follow his line of reasoning. Sounds more like he simply wants nothing negative about the Israeli army or Israel to be said...

I'm surprised someone that kind of reasoning runs education… no, I'm not surprised… I forgot ministers are usually political puppets instead of people who are actually qualified for their job and lead their countries.

 

[Palculator]

People who compare Israeli military trends to the rise of national socialism in Germany in the 1930s are worse than Stalin.

lmao

 

[Vagabundo]

I'm glad to hear of internal Israeli criticism because the sure as shit don't listen to external criticism.

http://www.breakingthesilence.org.il/ has some good stuff too.

 

[KimiNewt]

It's kinda funny but often the higher-ups at the IDF lean more left than the right-wingers in the government (not that they're left-winged but they're not as extreme).

You can also note that the soldier's votes in the last election gave Meretz (most/only left-wing party) another seat. Maybe on account of there being little religious (ultra-orthodox) people in the army (I personally felt the people in the army were more left-wing than the population at-large, but that was probably because of the sort of unit I was in).

 

[kirblar]

It's kinda funny but often the higher-ups at the IDF lean more left than the right-wingers in the government (not that they're left-winged but they're not as extreme).

You can also note that the soldier's votes in the last election gave Meretz (most/only left-wing party) another seat. Maybe on account of there being little religious (ultra-orthodox) people in the army (I personally felt the people in the army were more left-wing than the population at-large, but that was probably because of the sort of unit I was in).

You could see the same thing in the US w/ Bush. Push for Iraq was entirely driven by external neo-cons, not internal Military/Intelligence workers.

 

[BreezyLimbo]

Something something stare something something abyss something something something lest

Spoiler

I actually forgot the saying.

But with all that Israel has done to Palestine, he's not wrong

 

[kirblar]

I always wonder if Magneto's origin was deliberately meant as an Israel analogue, or if this is just life imitating art.

 

[HStallion]

It's kinda funny but often the higher-ups at the IDF lean more left than the right-wingers in the government (not that they're left-winged but they're not as extreme).

You can also note that the soldier's votes in the last election gave Meretz (most/only left-wing party) another seat. Maybe on account of there being little religious (ultra-orthodox) people in the army (I personally felt the people in the army were more left-wing than the population at-large, but that was probably because of the sort of unit I was in).

The military are the ones who have to deal with the fucked up situation and often are killed, injured, scarred, etc. while the bureaucrats are unaffected by most of this and don't really feel the repercussions of their actions because of how insulated they are from things. This isn't just an Israel thing either.