US Senator Lindsay Graham has just tweeted an article titled “Greta Thunberg sets sail with Gaza flotilla that aims to break Israeli naval blockade,” adding the comment, “Hope Greta and her friends can swim!”

Australian Zionist think tanker Arsen Ostrovsky somehow outdid Graham, tweeting “Oh look, the little jihadi Greta Thunberg is trying to get into Gaza, to show solidarity with Hamas. It would be so sad if something were to happen to her flotilla…”

There’s not a lot that can shock me about Israel and its supporters these days. But if you’d traveled back in time a few years ago it would be hard to explain to someone how we got to a timeline that includes Israel supporters openly advocating the assassination of Greta Thunberg.

  • Anomalocaris@lemm.ee
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    4 days ago

    i think the term itself dates to nazis…

    brb, double checking…

    Using semitic to refer to jews was german scientific racism. Which then was used for antisemitism.

    although antisemitism isnt a German invention, the term is.

    • acargitz@lemmy.ca
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      4 days ago

      Yes it is of German origin but so far back that it is basically at the root of European Enlightenment and it’s intellectual history brings together Germany and France, etc. So I wouldn’t say it is exclusive to the Nazis. As a word it has deeper roots in the European intellectual tradition.

      The word “Semitic” was coined by German orientalist August Ludwig von Schlözer in 1781 to designate the Semitic group of languages—Aramaic, Arabic, Hebrew and others—allegedly spoken by the descendants of Biblical figure Shem, son of Noah. The origin of “antisemitic” terminologies is found in the responses of orientalist Moritz Steinschneider to the views of orientalist Ernest Renan. Historian Alex Bein writes: “The compound anti-Semitism appears to have been used first by Steinschneider, who challenged Renan on account of his ‘anti-Semitic prejudices’ [i.e., his derogation of the “Semites” as a race].”

      (quoting Wikipedia)

      • Anomalocaris@lemm.ee
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        4 days ago

        reply, sorry. I’m in another thread with someone who’s straight up antisemitic. thought it was his reply, my bad.

      • Anomalocaris@lemm.ee
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        4 days ago

        if you had reading comprehension, you would understand that it was made to be used for scientific racism. because otherwise ‘jewish’ is just a religion and not an ethnicity.

        but Bigots don’t tend to have reading comprehension