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October 9, 2007
The Lobby in Germany – State Financed Racism

There is a German-Iranian football player who excused himself from playing with the German junior nation team against Israel for personal reasons. It was hinted that there is some fear of retribution against near relatives of him who still live in Iran.
The national trainer and team management as well as his club trainer and management accepted this.

Now the Israel lobby in Germany is virtually lynching him with an extensive media campaign:

Ashkan Dejagah, the young team’s striker, who comes from a German-Iranian background, refuses to come to Israel to play against Israel in the Under-21 European Championship qualifying match set to take place on Friday in Tel Aviv.

Dejagah’s decision has sparked angered reactions throughout the Jewish community in Germany, in the German political arena and even in the media. "There can be no such thing as a player on Germany’s national team initiating a private boycott of Jews," said Dieter Graumann, the vice president of the Jewish community.

"It would be scandalous if Germany’s football association does not take punitive measures. If the player has reservations about playing against an Israeli team due to solidarity with a terror regime, he should not be permitted to play in the uniform of the German team."
…
A member of the conservative ruling party, Dr. Friedbert Pflueger, said: "This is completely unacceptable. Sports should not be politicized. A player cannot decide whom he will play against." The popular German daily "Bild" called to throw the player off the team.

"Bild" is a rightwing tabloid with the highest circulation in Europe. The biggest tits are on page two and the smallest possible word pool everywhere else. Traditionally it has very close links to Israel and its lobby. "Bild" condemning Dejagah is no accident.

What YnetNews sells as the ‘Jewish community’ is the Central Council of Jews in Germany. Liberal Jews here do not regard it as representative. One wonders why it feels mandated to judge soccer players.

Note the familar argumentation the Israel lobby is using: Dejagah does not want to play in Israel, and that is a ‘boycott of Jews’.

Why is any argument against Israel depicted as a boycott of Jews which implicates anti-semitism? Why are they confusing a destinct religion and race with a state that is ethnical and religiously mixed? (Also – last time I checked at least two-third of the Jews of this world had decided not to live in Israel.)

The further lobby argument is on Dejagah’s alleged ‘solidarity with a terror regime’ (projection?). But he never publicly said anything positive or negative about Iranian politics.

The last German government under Schröder and Fischer was proud to have closed a national agreement with the Central Council of Jews in Germany that entitles it to €3 million per year of German state funds.

But while claiming to be political neutral the council is in fact a likudnik infested lobby for Israel.

Support for racism, apartheid and defaming soccer players, financed by the German state. Stupid me thought we had left such behind us.

Posted by b on October 9, 2007 at 14:10 UTC | Permalink
Comments

Stupid me thought we had left such behind us.
Everywhere i turn, I think the same thought.
If there is such a thing as progress, it cannot be counted in single generations. NOT that this is a reason to stop pushing on millstones – or bashing my head into walls, as Dostoevsky has it.

Posted by: ‘citizen’ | Oct 9 2007 17:17 utc | 1

Any chance Israel will be seeded in the same group as Iran in the next WC football qualifiers?…………… oopppppppps, stupid me, they “Israel” play in UEFA.
So Syria, Lebanon, Jordan also play there I hope, would be an easy qualifying group for Ireland.

Posted by: Cloned Poster | Oct 9 2007 19:31 utc | 2

What has become of the German virtue of team spirit and loyalty to ones comrades on the field of play and/or battle?
Oh well, that’s what they get for hiring foreigners 🙂

Posted by: ralphieboy | Oct 9 2007 19:38 utc | 3

I feel sorry for the young soccer player, the Israelis had him on a hiding to nothing. If he had gone, he would have been subjected to abuse from murdering assholes who regularly threaten to attack his original culture and society. I have no doubt that would have negatively impacted on the entire German team and may be the most likely reason team management excused him, probably at their own suggestion.
If he opts out – well we can see what happens then – more grist for the Iranians are anti-semites mill combined with bullshit about his family being threatened. Therefore making Iran appear just the sort of nation that would benefit from a good bombing.
The reason he personally didn’t want to go to Israel is most likely self preservation along with a decent dollop of self esteem.
When apartheid South Africa wanted to play NZ at rugby they initially tried to harangue All Black selectors not to pick any Maori or Pacific Island players. When that was shown to be unsustainable, South Africa agreed to let the unwhite players into South Africa with a stamp on their passports announcing that the player had been made an ‘honorary white’ for the duration of the tour.
I have no doubt that had he gone this young fella would have been made to feel an ‘honorary german’ in an even more brutal way that the rightist germans have done.
It’s an ugly sight. Rightist Germans and Jewish propagandists lining up on the same side.

Posted by: Debs is dead | Oct 10 2007 0:17 utc | 4

The reason he personally didn’t want to go to Israel is most likely that it then would turn out difficult to visit his family in Iran with an israeli stamp in his passport (just using his german one propably wont help it).

Posted by: snafu | Oct 10 2007 5:00 utc | 5

I am a South African / White African ( I have more claim to that than some Americans have to being American )
I wish that you would all come to the new Democratic Rainbow South Africa. “Apartheid” is still alive and well. The oppressors are now the victims and the victims are the oppressors. sort of like the State of Israel. Sweet justice you may say — quite correctly. BUT what about all of us that were just innocent bystanders ( The South African Liberal Party — which eshewed violence ) — As the article on Darfur mentions — this is NOT simply “black or white” .
To plagiarise……
The only way to break this is through more and better information. But that’s a difficult, laborious and thankless task. Doing such one is immediately accused of downplaying the issue and via the black and white mechanism branded as helping the perceived perpetrator of the issue at hand.
People just hate to interrupt their masturbation.
===========
Ergo post hoc
or
Cogito ergo sum

Posted by: Chris | Oct 10 2007 7:07 utc | 6

“Apartheid” is still alive and well. The oppressors are now the victims and the victims are the oppressors.
Chris, I am uniformed about this. Could you point me to some sources?
Is this the needed adjustment (in regards of economic ownership, there probably has to be some adjustment) or where does it go over the top. What can be done to get this right?

Posted by: b | Oct 10 2007 12:30 utc | 7

Jews who emigrate go first to Germany. More, in number of immigrants, by year, than to Israel. Conditions are better, it is Europe, etc. Who wants to live in Israel? Nobody except Xtian US cooks who get pulled out of poverty and obtain a house, with ground and pool, if you please..
Germany should just give up its politically correct stance, and speak out about its policies. Both Israel and the US have made moves in the past 15 years to stop the special conditions for Jewish (almost all from the ex USSR) immigrants. Germany should stand up.
But as dominated by the US, it cannot. And in Europe, as I see it, the specter of the break up of Yugoslavia, basically Germany obeying US bidding and itching to deploy its army legitimately for the first time after ww2, casts a very dark shadow.

Posted by: Tangerine | Oct 10 2007 18:01 utc | 8

And in Europe, as I see it, the specter of the break up of Yugoslavia, basically Germany obeying US bidding and itching to deploy its army legitimately for the first time after ww2, casts a very dark shadow.
yes, I see that too – not imminent, but there’s a tendency. This is more within the political ‘elite’ than within the people though. Still its dangerous. Through in the natural size of the biggest country in the continent and some ambitions get very ugly.

Posted by: b | Oct 10 2007 18:15 utc | 9

OT sort of (though about German govt): B, what effect do you expect the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision not to hear Khaled el-Masri’s appeal to have on your government’s willingness to pursue his CIA abductors?
Last I heard they’d backed down, but the decision not to hear the case is a real green light for continued abduction and torture. When there was a chance for the victim to get some satisfaction in court, I can see how the German govt would have found it easier not to confront the U.S. over the agents. But now…? Or is it still inconceivable?

Posted by: Nell | Oct 11 2007 11:43 utc | 10

to have on your government’s willingness to pursue his CIA abductors?
Zero. Merkel and the foreign minister Steinmeier are listening more to Washington than to their voters.

Posted by: b | Oct 11 2007 12:47 utc | 11

If I were of Arab or Iranian origin I also would refuse to compete in competition against the jews,given their history of racism. The Palestinian is treated worse than the black in aparthied South Africa!!! They live in the shacks in the refugee camps whilst the jew lives in his nice home compliments of the US and German governments (who they continue to bleed -read THE HOLOCAUST INDUSTRY).

Posted by: Anonymous | Nov 4 2007 1:21 utc | 12

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