Jerry Seinfeld’s week of difficult appearances continues, this time in Virginia.
As soon as Seinfeld took the stage for a stand-up comedy set at Chrysler Hall in Norfolk on Saturday night, a man in the audience jumped up and yelled, “Free Gaza,” TMZ reported. The audience immediately began booing the heckler and chanting “Jerry! Jerry!” as another bystander wrestled the protester into a headlock.
Security escorted the man out of the building, but the show was interrupted by other protesters eight times throughout its 90-minute run.
The controversy around Seinfeld’s views stems from his vocal support of Israel — which he visited following the Oct. 7 attacks — and his wife’s $5,000 donation to a GoFundMe for pro-Israel counterprotesters at UCLA after a late April protest turned violent.
Seinfeld didn’t seem bothered by the interruptions, telling the crowd not to boo the man because he had a right to protest.
“This is exciting. I like this,” the comic said as the original protester was escorted out of the venue. “I like a little Jew hate to spice up the show.”
I want to point out a key distinction that you successfully made here. Individual Israelis have a right to defend themselves. I, personally, do not recognize the state of Israel nor its supposed right to self-defense.
No, that is absolutely not what I meant. Israelis have a right to form a government, and that government is right to protect its citizens (that is not what it’s doing right now).
You did make me change the second part from “has a right” to “is right to”, which is interesting.
Palestinians should also have a right to form a government. If I say they have a right to protect their citizens, that likely means war and genocide. I’d hope that if the Palestinians form a government and a state, they realize that they lose the war and decide that peace is in their best interests.
Either way, the full on genocide needs to stop. Whether I think the Gazans are murderous, religious zealots or not*, they’re still human. They deserve aid. Israel’s blocking of aid should have been enough that we pull support. Maybe we did behind the scenes, who knows. We shouldn’t be funding Israel (or Northern Virginia, really), as much as we do. I don’t think Israel collapses without US munitions, certainly not to Palestine. Defending them from Iran is fine (which is also not what we’re doing).
Palestinians don’t want peace. Israelis don’t want peace. What the fuck are we supposed to do about it? We can try to limit the damage in the short term (and we should), but I don’t have long term solutions, and I don’t think anyone else does either.
*(I understand they have reason to be. But is wanting to murder an entire people ever justified?)
The previous person already said you should back that statement up. And then you repeat it again.