A Tale of Two Horrid Tales—An Analysis (8 August 2024) by Lawrence Davidson
Part I — Tale Number One
On 19 July 2024, Donald Trump gave a speech to “The Believers’ Summit,” a gathering of Christian fundamentalists seeking “practical knowledge and strategies to live out their faith boldly and counteract the prevailing ‘woke’ narratives.”
Among other chimeras spun that evening, Trump implied to his audience that in four years hence there would be no need for them to vote again. In the intervening time he would, as he had declared at the Republican convention, solve all problems and fix all wrongs: “restore the republic” and “usher in the rich and wonderful tomorrows that our people so truly deserve.” No one attending asked why such miracles were not accomplished during his first term.
Perhaps some in the cheering crowd interpreted this as proclaiming the second coming of Christ. That would certainly have been likely at the “Believers’ Summit.” At the Republican convention, others no doubt experienced the pseudo-religious enthusiasm that has greeted just about every con artist politician promising utopia, be it fascist, communist, Abrahamic, or just the mesmerizing tempo of an itinerant Pied Piper. After all, who but Hitler promised to “make Germany great again” and Mussolini implied that his Italy would reestablish the Roman Empire. It was the usurper, General Ernesto Pinochet, Chile’s God-fearing homicidal maniac, who bragged that it was he who “took back” Chile from the communists. Such assertions are so common over time that we can accurately predict from their historical results, the likely future consequences—the grizzly mornings after. In other words, one can know, with some certitude, what will happen if such claims are taken to heart by the masses and the charismatic leader is allowed to play them out. In almost all cases, the result is an authoritarian state wherein people are executed, imprisoned, exiled, forced into hiding for “political crimes.” Even now Donald Trump is planning acts of revenge.
Part II — Tale Number Two
On 25 July 2024, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivered a speech to a partially boycotted U.S. Congress (135 congressional Democrats, Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) of Kentucky and U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) did not attend Netanyahu’s talk). Sanders said Netanyahu is “a war criminal and a liar.” Indeed, the Israeli prime minister’s speech to Congress consisted mostly of fabrications. Here is a short list:
—Israel “has implemented more precautions to prevent civilian harm than any military in history, and beyond what international law requires.” This statement has been contradicted by the evidence presented in every relevant UN and humanitarian agency report.
— On Oct. 7, Hamas “butchered 1,200 people” (Netanyhu never mentioned Israel’s Hannibal Directive which surely accounts for a good number of the “butchered”) and Hamas “burned babies alive” (for which there is no evidence).
— “Iran is funding the anti-genocide demonstrators outside the Capitol Building. When the Tyrants of Tehran … are
praising, promoting and funding you, you have officially become Iran’s useful idiots.” There is no evidence for this claim. However, AIPAC was surely funding a lot of Netanyahu cheering audience.
— “The only reason people are starving in Gaza is because Hamas is stealing all of the aid Israel allows in.” Again, all the evidence points to the fact that Israel is purposely and severely restricting aid deliveries into Gaza.
The picture Netanyahu was painting was the exact opposite of the image displayed nightly on most television networks throughout the non-Western world, It is a Panglossian picture of an Israeli nation that has created, in battle, a world of horrors yet represents it as taking place in “the best of all possible worlds.” Pangloss is the imbecilic tutor of the character Candide in Voltaire’s satirical novel Candide. Pangloss was said to be a devotee of the worldview (originally proposed by the Philosopher Wilhelm Leibniz, 1646-1716) that, because God is inherently good, he (she or it) had necessarily created “the best of all possible worlds.” Pangloss would state this proposition after every one of the seemingly endless catastrophes that befell Candide and his companions throughout the novel.
Netanyahu, spinning yarns before Congress, here plays the role of Pangloss. Gaza may be reduced to rubble. Its people starved and butchered. All its resources have been stolen or destroyed. The land metaphorically sown with salt (unexploded munition). However, none of this could possibly be the fault of Israel, which fields “the most moral army in the world.” When it comes to battle, Israel, like God, is capable of producing only the “best of all possible worlds.”
Part III —The Truth Teller
Trump was introduced at “The Believers’ Summit” as “the next president” with loud and patriotic music in the background. It must have been an emotional moment for the fundamentalists, the true believers in Bible stories, prophetic promises, omens and miracles; a little peep into a false heaven.
The reception Netanyahu got at Congress was more enthusiastic still. The Prime Minister got 58 standing ovations in the course of speaking for about one hour. It is a wonder anyone had time to sit down. And all of this enthusiasm over the spouting of lies. That this could happen amidst a significant portion of the elected officials of the USA is indicative of the fact that a long-standing false narrative, carefully cultivated by the Zionists, still dominates the minds of conservative and fundamentalist America.
In the year 1837, the Danish writer Hans Christian Andersen published a short tale entitled “The Emperor’s New Clothes.” As the story goes, the emperor in question loves nothing better than to array himself in flattering clothes in which he parades around in public. One day two tailors (really con artists) tell the emperor they can weave him the most beautiful suit in the world—but only those who are the most loyal and smartest of his subjects will be able to see and appreciate his new attire. Those unfit for their positions or just simple of mind will fail to see the clothes. When at last the emperor presented himself in public, flaunting his new suit, almost everyone applauded because they were afraid to admit they saw only the king in his underwear, lest they be thought of as unfit or stupid. Except there was one little boy in the audience who obviously did not get the memo. He was the one who shouted out, “But he isn’t wearing anything at all!”
The analogy is pretty obvious. Netanyahu painted a picture of Israel that defied reality. Those in the audience, or at least the vast majority of them, either had convinced themselves that the prime minister was clothed in the truth or would not admit they had doubts. So they just repeatedly stood and applauded. But we can also find in the audience an equivalent of the clear sighted boy. That was Representative Rashida Tlaib from Detroit, the only member of Congress of Palestinian ethnicity. There she sat at her station in the midst of the Congressional and Senatorial crowd attending the Israeli Prime Minister’s address. She held up a small sign which read on one side “war criminal,” and on the other side, “guilty of genocide.”
The scene also reminded me of the obligatory biblical reference. In 630 BCE the female biblical prophet Huldah, who had a reputation for truth-telling, told the leaders of the land of Israel that their behavior and that of the citizens, had offended God and doomed the country. Like Huldah, Tlaib’s message was straightforward. She labeled today’s Israel a genocidal state, practicing behaviors and policies which offended most of the world and defied the international laws so painstakingly constructed after World War II. This modern day criminal behavior has already begun to isolate the Zionist state and label it a rogue among the world’s nations. Thus, the future of the Zionist version of Israel is already uncertain.
Part IV —Conclusion
What is the connection between these two horrid tales? If nothing else, the willful ignorance of their audiences is an important common feature. And the key factor about willful ignorance is that it is, consciously or unconsciously, a matter of choice.
For instance, the fundamentalist audiences that cheer Donald Trump either know, or could know if they made a reasonable effort, that the man has anti-democratic character flaws that should disqualify him for any elected office, much less the presidency. In effect, they choose to ignore these facts. This makes them culpable for their active support of a criminal. They are Trump’s “useful idiots.”
The same can be said for those giving standing ovations for Benjamin Netanyahu. Everyone of these folks know, or could know if they made a reasonable effort, that Netanyahu runs a government involved in the violation of the most serious of international laws. This makes them culpable for their support of a mass murderer. They are Netanyahu’s “useful idiots.”
Such willful ignorance allows for the confusion of history itself. In his recent speech to Congress, the Israeli Prime Minister said, “This is not a clash of civilizations, it’s a clash between barbarism and civilization, between those who glorify death and those who sanctify life.” Actually, this is a good approximation of the choices confronting us all. However, even the briefest familiarity with history would show that Netanyahu, and Trump as well, have the sides switched around. It is the Palestinians and their supporters who now stand for a civilized future. The barbarians are those who supply and those who use 500-2000 pound bombs to gain their ends.
If you want to find someone with a clear idea of our present reality, someone who is ethically sound and committed to principles supportive of a world based on humane law, that person is Rashida Tlaib—the one “speaking truth to power” in the U.S. Congress. The choice for all of us is between her awareness and ethical standards and those who cheer Netanyahu and Trump. Choosing either of the latter means abandoning the guidelines of humane law. That choice will incur historically predictable consequences—ones that will make you rue the day you ever listened to the likes of Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu.
