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Haavara FAQs: Why did David Ben-Gurion describe Jewish pain and suffering as the LEVER after the Nazis enacted Nuremberg Race Laws in Sept 1935? Let us cite Ben-Gurion's official biographer, Shabtai Teveth |
In the context of exploiting Jewish pain and suffering, Prof. Aviva Halamish used the word LEVER to describe the process with which Jewish refugee crises were exploited to turn Palestine into a Jewish majority state, thus clearing the path for the creation of the "Jewish state." On the other hand, we NEVER imagined she was citing Ben-Gurion's terminology until we examined the primary sources (see pages 852, 854, and 848)!
As you contemplate reading what Teveth wrote, please note that: A) Ben-Gurion vividly articulated his plan (of monetizing Jewish pain and suffering) a month after the Kristallnacht pogrom in late 1938. Knowledge of Ben-Gurion's hate speech is an open secret in Jewish communities around the world. B) Ben-Gurion & Co. NEVER retracted his antisemitic hate speech, which was followed by Hitler's infamous hate speech at the Reichstag (both hate speeches were less than 60 days apart). C) Much of David's hate speech was translated into a policy during WWII. D) The American Jewry investigated much of what was written here in early 1983, but the investigation was quickly nixed. E) If you think what was written was an anti-Zionist rant, think twice. Here, Hannah Arendt (one of the top intellectuals in the 20th century) recognized the power of Ben-Gurion's LEVER two years before Nakba and compared it to steam power that could move a locomotive.
Here is what Ben-Gurion's official biographer, Shabtai Teveth, wrote in the Burning Ground. To get a better context, we highly recommend reading the whole final chapter in Teveth's book. Actually, the last chapter's title is very telling: Disaster Means Strength. For the love of God, if he called "Jews As Firewood" it would have been much more expressive.
During the pre-Nakba period, Ben-Gurion kept emphasizing the importance of monetizing Jewish pain and suffering in the process of building the "Jewish state", and overtime that seems to explain why David was ambivalent to rescue discussions (actually, Teveth described how Ben-Gurion was completely tuned out with regards to rescue efforts; he didn't want to hear about rescue). Honestly, we found NOTHING relevant to rescuing Jews whatsoever. On the contrary, we were stunned to find that the word rescue used to have negative connotations for Zionists during the pre-Nakba period, and that explains why little budget was spent (from what was collected ) on rescue efforts. Trust us, although the last chapter is full of Hasbarah, it is still worth reading.
As you fully absorb the earlier assessment, now imagine if it was FDR or Winston Churchill used such evil language to further their political goals? Just imagine if they used such terms (such as lever or firewood) to describe leveraging Jewish pain and suffering! Allow that to sink in for a minute, and imagine what Jews would have done to them. We wonder: could Jerusalem's Mufti Haj Amin al-Husseini used such language? We have addressed that in another section if you care!
Finally, Dan Kurzman (another biographer of Ben-Gurion) cited something similar; you might find it helpful. Also, Dr. Chaim Weizmann was known to have written something similar just before the Evian Conference was convened in the summer of 1938. The more we research Zionists' policies and actions in the 1930s and 40s, the more we find real contempt for diaspora Jewry (not just in Europe). These comments were not some angry and isolated ones; these comments were turned into policies that were executed when Jews faced destruction. Thus, Jews between all people should take them seriously since the could be repeated:
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