Sometimes Caitlin Johnstone really hits me hard in the stomach with her op-eds. Her recent "Multiple Western Press Outlets Have Suddenly Pivoted Hard Against Israel" is a perfect example of this. (She is available free on Substack and Consortium News.)
"After a year and a half of genocidal atrocities, the editorial boards of numerous British press outlets have suddenly come out hard against Israel’s genocidal onslaught in Gaza...''
"These people have not suddenly evolved a conscience, they’re just smelling what’s in the wind. Once the consensus shifts past a certain point there’s naturally going to be a mad rush to avoid being among the last to stand against it, because you know you’ll be wearing that mark for the rest of your life in public after history has had a clear look at what you did..."
"So if you’re still supporting Israel after all this time, my advice to you is to make a change while you still can. There’s still time to be the first among scoundrels in the mad rat race to avoid being the last to start acting like you always opposed the Gaza holocaust."
Perhaps this affected me because of the "context," the memories of 1968 and the swing against the Viet Nam War, when a quixotic single-issue candidate (Gene McCarthy) did surprisingly well early in the Democrat primaries. It contributed to President Johnson deciding not to run for reelection. It also caused timid, conventional candidates to carefully stick their toes into the Anti-War movement. Bobbie Kennedy was the next to jump on McCarthy's bandwagon. Then it became a stampede.
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| from Life.com |
I remember a joke by a popular comedian of the time that went approximately like this:
Spineless candidate: "And I came out early against the war."
Reporter: "When did you come out."
Spineless candidate: "Moratorium Day. But it was early on Moratorium Day. Most candidates waited until 2 or 3 o'clock in the afternoon."
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Yes, I can still remember the comedian and his voice, but can't remember his name. But Caitlin Johnstone wasn't around in 1968, so I wonder if she even understands the effect her op-ed had on people like me.
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