Tel-Chai Nation

There's some bad news and good news about Hungary. Let's start with the bad, which comes in the form of Jobbik, described as a "far-right" political party here, which tragically won considerable spots in the Hungarian parliament:

The neo-fascist, specifically anti-Semitic movement was created seven years ago. At that time, Catholic and Protestant history professors and their students at two universities – Hungary's venerable Eotvos Lorand, and the private, Calvinist Karoli Gaspar – gathered to create from the right-wing Fidesz party a new, even more nationalist framework.

The party is also known to be pro-Palestinian Authority. “The Movement for a Better Hungary has always been primarily sympathetic to the Palestinian cause,” Jobbik states on its website. “As Hungarian nationalists, we can sympathize more readily with a people who have had their land taken away from them, in order to form a new country.”

Jobbik parliamentarian Marton Gyongyosi heavily criticized Israel for its interception of the recent attempt by a Turkish-sent six-ship flotilla to break the blockade of Hamas-ruled Gaza. The far-right lawmaker said Israel's actions should be viewed as an attack against one of Hungary's NATO allies that “calls for Hungary's support on the side of Turkey.”

[...]

Particularly disturbing is a study conducted by Hungarian sociologist Maria Vasarhelyi that found fully one-third of the country's history majors are anti-Semitic. Fifteen percent of students take racist positions, she writes, 35 percent believe that Gypsies are criminal due to their genetic coding and 60 percent said that the Gypsies themselves are responsible for the prejudice.

So let me get this straight. Why is this party being called "far-right" when I'd say they're far-left? Their claim to be "nationalist" is decidedly bogus too. The real word for them would be fascist, the antithesis of nationalist. (This actually suggests a problem with the article - it takes the whole far-right term for granted.)

Now for the good, coming in the form of a city in Hungary called Nyireghyhaza that supports Israel against the flotilla propaganda:

As Israel continues to be lambasted in the international arena, a small voice of support was heard out of Hungary on Tuesday.

A delegation of public officials from the Hungarian city of Nyireghyhaza ("Birch Church") arrived in the northern Israeli city of Kiryat Motzkin on June 8. Nyireghyhaza and Kiryat Motzkin are sister cities. As part of the Hungarian's reception, Deputy Mayor of Nyireghyhaza Laszlo Nagy presented Kiryat Motzkin Mayor Haim Tzuri with a petition signed by over 500 Hungarians in support of Israel's fight against terrorism.

The petition stated: "We, the citizens of Nyiregyhaza, assure our brother city of Kiryat Motzkin and the State of Israel of our support. We consider the breaking of the naval blockade of Gaza as a provocation and we proclaim that Israel, like all other recognized states, had, has and will have the right to protect itself and the lives and security of its citizens."

After the petition was read, Deputy Mayor Nagy spoke. "The Israeli action against the flotilla was justified," he asserted. "It was done in order to prevent an attack on the sovereignty of the State of Israel and we should all understand the importance of this."

I'm glad to find some sanity in Hungary. But what to do about Jobbik and the demonic influence they have, particularly in the academic arena? This is a case of prejudice sanctioned at university grounds by the far left, and the religious left, in Europe, and requires serious concern. Maybe that's why the city spoken of here could be a help in combatting Jobbik's influence?

Labels: anti-semitism, Europe, jihad, political corruption, racism