What do Ireland and Spain have in common? This week, the answer is Jews. On Monday, Spanish prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, came out with a truly bonkers – bonkers shocking, that is, rather than bonkers amusing – statement while announcing sanctions against Israel. Sánchez was angry that he couldn’t nuke the Jews (sorry, Israel): “Spain, as you know, doesn’t have nuclear bombs, aircraft carriers, or large oil reserves. We alone can’t stop the Israeli offensive. But that doesn’t mean we won’t stop trying. Because there are causes worth fighting for, even if winning them isn’t in our sole power.”
Such a shame. If only Spain had nuclear weapons, then it could have done even better than Hitler and wiped out the 7.4 million Israeli Jews. Or blackmailed Israel into surrendering to Hamas. Nice guy, Pedro. I bet some of his best friends aren’t Jews.
In comparison, Irish state broadcaster RTE’s decision this week to boycott next year’s Eurovision Song Contest if the Jews (aka Israel) were taking part hardly merits a mention. There’s not much equivalence, after all, between wishing you could instigate a nuclear apocalypse and not singing a bad song. But on its own terms, it’s instructive. The Irish state isn’t regarded by many of my fellow Jews as one of the most antisemitic on earth for nothing. Contempt for Jews has a long history in Ireland.
Not that one can divine too much from Eurovision votes, but it is nonetheless intriguing that in this year’s contest Spanish voters put Israel top, and Irish voters put it second. But just to square the circle, Spanish culture minister Ernest Urtasun has said Spain should also boycott Eurovision if the Jews (sorry, did it again: Israelis) are there.
Boycotting Jews is now a thing, so of course Spain and Ireland are going to be at the forefront. On Wednesday, the Ghent Festival in Belgium joined in, cancelling a concert by the Munich Philharmonic because it would be conducted by a Jew (oops, Israeli), its future chief conductor Lahav Shani. The festival’s statement was quite something. The decision to make the festival Judenfrei on the scheduled night of the concert was “based on our deepest conviction that music should be a source of connection and reconciliation…We have chosen to preserve the serenity of our festival and to guarantee the concert experience for visitors and musicians alike.” Keep the Jews away for the good (“serenity”) of everyone else, was the message.
So, what’s another answer to that original question: What do Spain and Ireland have in common? Both decided there really wasn’t much to be concerned with by the Third Reich and so they wouldn’t bother with World War Two. They sat it out. Eighty years on, they’ve both chosen a side. And it’s the one that goes for the Jews.
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