The Herald reports this morning that:
Israelis are calling on tourists to boycott New Zealand after a second cafe owner said Israeli nationals were not welcome.
Why are we doing this? The sign comes after a cafe owner in Invercargill (arsehole of the world) kicked out two Israeli women (one of whom was a NZ citizen and has since said she does not support the Israeli government in this case). It makes us look like ignorant racist fucktards. Not every Israeli supports the IDFs actions in Gaza, just like not every New Zealander supports our new Governments lack of a voice on the matter.
I hate to make this parallel, because I believe that comparing anything to the holocaust degrades both tragedies, but this is something that some goon head in 1930s Germany would have done.
To the owner of Strawberry Tree in Kaikoura: I am disappointed. We as a country are dependant on tourism. Your actions smear our loving and embracing nation. Your ill-informed bigotry is a stain on our collective consciousness.
To the New Zealand government, this situation is surely out of control. We live in a democratic country and pride ourselves about being inclusive. Is it time to act now and tell people that it is not ok to behave in such a pigheaded way.
We are so far removed from all this violence and hate. Why do people have to continue this stupid and petty arguments here. Surely New Zealand is the proper venue where both sides could come together and talk about the problems. Show the Israeli government and Hamas that people of opposing religions/ethnicities can make it work if they just try. By protesting, by banning israelis from shops, by picking a side on the entire issue you are bringing the conflict here and continuing a circle of distrust and perhaps violence.