Thursday, August 11, 2005

Fresh lemon juice on fresh wounds

DovBear posted about what one might learn from the impending Gaza event. He says that

the Gaza withdrawl is an act of Teshuva. The nation and the people are repenting for abiding 30 years of Jim Crow conditions in Yesha
Now, it is obvious if you read the entire post that DovBear meant no malice and that he worded it very carefully. After citing Rashi on tzaraas, he says it is his "abiding hope that a "treasure of gold" waits for the nation and the people who complete this process."


And yet, the only substantial differences between this post on the eve of the impending disaster for the people so affected and Toby Katz's posts on the Holocaust is, arguably, that Toby didn't bend over backwards to appear as sensitive as she could have, although I don't think she was being malicious either. But there is another difference in that the Holocaust ended 60 years ago. Is it a closed wound? Certainly not. But some scar tissue has built up there. The Holocaust 'takes' far worse than Toby Katz' Holocaust theology.

The wounds of Monday's Gaza disaster (if one can define the eviction of 8000 people as a disaster, which I think one can) are so fresh that the cut's haven't even started bleeding yet (metaphorical blood, I hope). No matter which way I read DovBear's post I see lemon juice being poured into wounds. Put aside the Jim Crow issue--I think he meant well despite my strong disagreement, and that's what distresses me about it so much. Its so insensitive that it's mean.

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