The Atheist Rabbi
I know that like me, some of you are so allergic to Glenn Beck and his foolishness that you probably ignore him most of the time. With his recent attack on George Soros, which as many have pointed out, is pulled right out of the Protocols of the Elders of Zion, he merits comment.
From Media Matters:
On the October 5, 2010, edition of his Fox News show, Beck continued his smear campaign against George Soros, saying that “many, including the Malaysian prime minister, believe it was billionaire speculator George Soros who helped trigger the [Southeast Asian] economic meltdown.”
Now take a look at what the prime minister of Malaysia actually said in 1997:
We do not want to say that this is a plot by the Jews, but in reality it is a Jew who triggered the currency plunge, and coincidentally Soros is a Jew. It is also a coincidence that Malaysians are mostly Moslem. Indeed, the Jews are not happy to see Moslems progress. If it were Palestine, the Jews would rob Palestinians. Thus this is what they are doing to our country.
And look at some of what he said in 2003:
The Muslims will forever be oppressed and dominated by the Europeans and the Jews.
It cannot be that there is no other way. 1.3 billion Muslims cannot be defeated by a few million Jews. There must be a way.
We are actually very strong. 1.3 billion people cannot be simply wiped out. The Europeans killed 6 million Jews out of 12 million. But today the Jews rule this world by proxy [emphasis mine]. They get others to fight and die for them.
Another unbelievably offensive part of his report was Beck’s claim that George Soros was a Nazi collaborator of some kind. He was, in fact, a child survivor. The Anti-Defamation League has issued a condemnation that you can read here.
Just as bizarrely, Beck issued criticism of Soros’ role in several anti-Communist revolutions when he helped to fund freedom organizations. So is Beck suddenly a Commie? Is he an antisemite? No, he’s just a dullard.
He’s throwing around antisemitic canards because he’s an unthinking demagogue. He quote-mines anyone he can to make a point. In fact, he thinks he’s a big Jew lover and that when he kicks Soros he’s helping Jews. He’s got allies there, too.
A lot of right wing Jews hate Soros because he supports J-Street and doesn’t give to Israel. Soros’ criticism of Israel is mild. He has stated that he doesn’t give to Israel because it’s not his priority and Israel has the support of many Jews already. His priorities are different. That’s his prerogative. He is proud of his Jewishness, has said so, and has helped many Jews with his work for democracy. (J.J. Goldberg has more on this in his blog.)
So there you have it. Beck is a carnival sideshow freak, desperate for attention, putting together little conspiracy formulas by tying together right wing Jewish and antisemitic canards to make a ridiculous point about someone he hates.
The most hysterical part of all this? He’s now made himself an ally of Iran.
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In