Cal Thomas has reached a level of hatred for Palestinians that is on par with the anti-Jewish hatred of the late Julius Streicher (1885-1946) of Der Sturmer infamy. A former spokesperson for the Rev. Jerry Falwell’s Moral Majority, Mr. Thomas’ affinity for the “Jewish State” has absolutely nothing to do with a love for the Jewish people. While I am not accusing him of hating them either, I will accuse Mr. Thomas of using Jews, American and Israeli alike. Mr. Thomas subscribes to the apocalyptic prophecies of Evangelical Christianity and as such, he and millions like him see the “Jewish State” both as revelatory of God’s Plans and necessary for the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. Although Mr. Thomas left the Moral Majority shortly before its demise, he has never abandoned these beliefs. As such, Jews are but an instrument for his brand of Christianity’s apocalyptic visions, visions shared by Hal Lindsey, author of The Late, Great Planet Earth and Tim LaHaye and Jerry Jenkins of the Left Behind series. One should ask Mr. Thomas: What exactly is supposed to happen to all those Israeli Jews who continue to reject Salvation through Christ?
Note the underlying smug-like “I know what’s best for your people” tone in Cal Thomas’ piece. Example:
“Made decisions that too often are not in their interests?” Like perhaps rejecting Christ? This statement by Mr. Thomas is similar to his mentor, Jerry Falwell’s comment “Jews make money by accident, by not even trying” made during the Reagan recession, circa 1980-1981. “Gifted with thinking the best about human potential?” Ah yes, the naturally “smart” Jews. What kind of generalizations are these? Here, try these on for size:
But these parodies of Thomas’ words are but the tip of the iceberg of his odious written thoughts. His statement about the Palestinians harkens back to an era when it was “respectable” to talk of Jews as shifty, cunning, wily, greedy, and ever untrustworthy. Examine his words carefully:
“It should now be clear that Israel cannot tolerate a huge Arab population within its borders, so a political decision must be made. Most Arabs and Palestinians appear to be nonviolent but it can be difficult to tell the difference.”
Honestly, I have not read a more racist comment since delving through the literature of the White Citizens Councils, the Ku Klux Klan, and speeches by George Wallace, Orval Faubus, and Lester Maddox as part of my “America in the Sixties” course at FSU in 1985. “It can be difficult to tell the difference?” You have got to be kidding, right? And from that racist profiling of nearly four million people (not to mention another 3.5 million in exile), Mr. Thomas exhorts the most destabilizing of all policies: Expulsion. That action will likely trigger at best a massive oil embargo that will crack up the US and global economies, at worst, an all out regional war ending in a possible nuclear holocaust é or in Armageddon, the Apocalypse, and Judgment Day that Cal Thomas and his demented, literalist Myrmidons so eagerly await.
Mr. Michael Lopez-Calderon taught High School Social Studies in Miami, Florida for seven years until March 2, 2001, when he was asked to leave the Jewish Day school where he had taught for the past five years. Michael was asked to leave for having posted pro-Palestinian comments on Palestine Media Watch’s subscriber-only e-mail. He remains an activist in the Miami area.
