Gypsy Scholar Receives a Threat...

Leon Trotsky as Demon

White Army Propaganda Poster

Blaming Jews for Bolshevism

(Image from Wikipedia)

. . . well, sort of a threat.

As those of you who have been reading my blog lately will know, my three previous posts on antisemitism in the comic book Far Countries and Close Countries (Monnara Iunnara, 먼나라 이웃나라), written by Lee Won-bok (or Rhie Won-bok), have met with a bit of disagreement.

One recent commenter who remained anonymous has registered intense displeasure with my blog entries on this topic. Although this individual is possibly but only very doubtfully female, I'll assume the male factor in my comments below and hope to avoid charges of sexism. Also, note that a couple of anonymous individuals were posting, but the first one seemed to be posting from the political left. The latter was perhaps posting from the political right, though I'm not certain. Their respective politics don't matter except as a way of distinguishing them, but the easiest way to keep them separate is to know that I'm posting here only the second one's comments, which can be found on the post "Antisemitism in Korea: Second Follow-Up" (February 20, 2007).

At 2:44 a.m., Anonymous said:

Mr. Hodges,

What do you think about 30 million Russian, Unkranian, Balts victims whom Jewish communists mass murdered from 1917 to 1953?

A lot of prominent Jewish intellectuals admit that their people did this.

Are you Jewish? (or married to one?) Why aren't you talking about this holocaust?

At 3:50 a.m., I replied (and distinguished him from the earlier anonymous commenter):

I guess that you're a different "Anonymous."

Your personal questions about me are not relevant to this issue, but if you want to know about who I am and the things that I discuss, then read more of my blog.

I also don't want to get drawn off-topic by a discussion of other things, but I will say this. For the mass murder of Ukrainians by famine, which I've already noted, I blame Stalin's collectivization of agriculture and intentional starving of farmers who wouldn't cooperate.

Stalin wasn't Jewish.

But I don't intend to discuss Stalin and his Bolshevik policies on this thread, which is about Lee Won-bok's problematic comic book.

At 4:32 a.m., Anonymous responded with the following comment in an entry that appended a very long and off-topic newspaper article to his comment, so I deleted this comment to get rid of the article:

"Stalin wasn't a jew."

How pathetic! Can't you do any better than that?

Of course you don't want to talk about this topic because you know you're going to lose.

[A]nyway, if you're not Jewish and want to learn more, I recommend this link. Go for it if you're interested in knowing the truth.

http://tentmaker.org/wp/?p=57

We mustn't forget that some of greatest murderers of modern times were Jewish[.]

Here's the web address to the long, off-topic newspaper article:

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3342999,00.html

Anyway, at 6:36 a.m., after having deleted Anonymous's 4:32 a.m. comment, I responded as follows:

Anonymous (mis)quotes me and comments on my putative views:

------------------------------------------------------------------
"Stalin wasn't a jew."

How pathetic! Can't you do any better than that?

Of course you don't want to talk about this topic because you know you're going to lose.

[A]nyway, if you're not Jewish and want to learn more, I recommend this link. Go for it if you're interested in knowing the truth.
------------------------------------------------------------------

Anonymous, I have deleted your comment because you quoted a very long passage that is not relevant to this blog entry. If you want to post a link, then do so, but don't post quote long passages from extraneous sources.

Also, you may not be aware of this, though you should be if you read my comments above, but I don't allow personal attacks on my blog. Your comments about me constitute a personal attack. Don't make assumptions about my motives. That's called ad hominem.

Any further ad hominem from you will not be tolerated. Follow the rules or stay away.

At 6:53 a.m., Anonymous responded with the folowing post, which contained more ad hominem, so I deleted it (but post it here):

If someone asks you a question to which you have no answer or that irritates you, does that constitute a personal attack? How? That's a cheap excuse. I just asked you a simple question what you think about the other 30 million holocaust and the reason why you're silent about it?

What else could you do beside deleting my post for you've got no truth to back up your hypocritical stance?

http://tentmaker.org/wp/?p=57

Let's see if you're cowardly enough to delete this truthful link.

As noted, I deleted this 6:53 a.m. comment, but I retained Anonymous's links in my response, which I posted at 7:05 a.m.:

Anonymous, I've told you to avoid personal attacks. Calling me hypocritical and cowardly in your second comment definitely constitutes a personal attack.

I'll allow the links that you provided even though these are irrelevant to this blog entry:

http://tentmaker.org/wp/?p=57

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3342999,00.html

I've deleted the rest of your post because of its personal attack on me.

Be civil, stick to the topic (Korean antisemitism), or stay away.

At 7:20 a.m., Anonymous turned more civil and posted the following:

OK, let's talk about the Korean comic book.

Mr. Hodges, you don't believe what Prof. Lee said in his book?

I as well as many many others in this day and age of internet can easily prove to anyone interested in getting to the truth that what he said is all true. So why make a big fuss about "Korean anti-semtism"? Is stating and knowing truth antisemitic?

If you're not happy with what the professor said, just prove him wrong with facts like an academic you're. You haven't done anything of that sort s far as I read your blog.

Let me ask you. You really think Prof. Lee's view is groundless?

What do you say, Mr. Hodges?

I wait for your answer.

At 7:33 a.m., I replied:

Yes, I think Lee's views are groundless. The comic is both anti-American and antisemitic.

I don't believe that Jews control America. American Jews do play prominent roles in American society. The percentages of Jews in academia, in politics, in journalism, and in various professions exceed their percentage in the population.

But this doesn't amount to control, and it isn't conspiracy.

In a few years, percentages of Koreans in prominent positions in America will also exceed their percentage in the American population.

So will the percentages of Chinese.

I don't think that these things will result from conspiracy. Rather, these cultures -- Jewish, Korean, and Chinese -- emphasize education and hard work, and these two things are the keys to success.

This is what I think.

By the way, I should add that I'm very busy because the academic year is beginning, and I have a lot of work to do preparing my courses, so please don't be disappointed if I do not reply at length to your queries.

At 7:48 a.m., Anonymous responded:

You're living in denial, Mr. Hodges (to your peril if you're not a jew; to your benefit if you're one).

Whether you care to have a look or not, I here provide you with a mountain of factual evidences that will demolish your contention.

http://www.jewishtribalreview.org/

I bet a million that you won't be able to repute a single passage from that site, not because you're busy and all that, but because you simply can't for the truth is not on your side.

So long...

Deciding to bid Anonymous good-bye with a joke, I replied at 8:37 a.m.:

So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish(y links)...

But my pun didn't strike Anonymous as humorous, and at 8:45 a.m., he posted this:

Your last post betrays your true identity to my satisfaction, Mr. Hodges.

I shall have a talk with my 지인들 in the university board and inform them of our short exchanges here.

Good luck.

By referring to his jee-een-duhl (지인들), Anonymous implies that he is Korean (which might or might not be true) and explicitly claims that he has these "acquaintances" (지인들) seated on the university board, by which he probably means Korea University. Anyway, I posted the following at 8:56 a.m.:

Sorry, Anonymous, I thought that you would appreciate the humor in my punning on your "So long." I guess not since you are now pretending to threaten me with your 지인들 at Korea University.

My "true identity"? Okay, I admit it -- I'm really Douglas Adams, and since I'm already dead, I have nothing to fear in threats from the living.

Anyway, I've already glanced at the site that you linked to, but haven't had time to read it.

Thanks for your concern...

So, I'm being threatened with the loss of my job at Korea University. I presume that this is an idle threat, but Anonymous can perhaps derive satisfaction from learning that I won't be at Korea University much longer anyway.

I would, however, be interested in seeing what would happen if my Korea University contract were not ending and if Anonymous were not bluffing but was, in fact, going to attempt to use his connections to get me fired from Korea University for making a pun.

Pun my word, wouldn't that be odd?