In the 1976 movie “Network,” former news anchor Howard Beale proclaims he’s mad about the country’s state of affairs; he’s not going to take it anymore, and he invites viewers to join him in expressing their outrage. Author Michael S. Gutter has experienced that same anger regarding the scourge of anti-Semitism and articulated as much in his book “Never Again Still Means Never Again: Dismantling hate groups and other musings.”
“It’s shameful that slander, libel, harassment, discrimination, and hate crimes are still perpetuated against Jews by radical groups and nut jobs. Enough is enough. So, I have looked at various reasonable ways we should address anti-Semitism going forward, and it all leads back to one inevitable conclusion. We need to go on the offensive,” he writes in his introduction.
Jewish Contributions
At the time of his writing, the author states there were only 4.8 million Jews in the United States, or 0.2 percent of the population. Although they comprise a fraction of the citizenry, Gutter expounds on the remarkable contributions the Jewish people have made in various fields, including medicine, physics, literature, big tech, philanthropy, and entertainment.Similarly, the author states that Jews are only .0019 percent of the world’s population but have been awarded 210, or 22 percent, of, Nobel Prizes between 1901 and 2021. Of those 210 recipients, 36 percent were for Jews who were U.S. citizens.
‘Mein Kampf’ and the Fuhrer’s Drug Addiction
His book is spiced with cutting sarcasm and disdain directed at members of hate groups, but there is no denying the facts and statistics appearing in Gutter’s well-researched book. He describes in detail the lies and inconsistencies found in Hitler’s book, “Mein Kampf.” He writes:“‘Mein Kampf’ is just so far-fetched, with a litany of lies, untruths, complete mischaracterizations, and a void of facts. This is the first time it really dawned on me that this horrible fiction writing led to so much death and suffering.” He concludes, “A terrible book with horrific ideologies written by a madman who somehow convinced millions of people he was their answer.”
The Treaty of Versailles Lie
The author blames Hitler for the lie that it was the sanctions imposed by the Treaty of Versailles that led to Germany’s hyperinflation following World War I. In reality, the hyperinflation Germany suffered between 1921 and 1924 stemmed from the Kaiser and German officials borrowing money instead of collecting taxes from its citizens. The author writes that Hitler used the Kaiser’s monetary ineptitude and the worldwide depression from 1930 to 1933 to launch his political career, consolidate his power, and blame Germany’s Jews, who made up less than one percent of the population.“The Treaty of Versailles didn’t cause or lead to anything. The lies about it did,” Gutter says.
Other topics Gutter covers extensively are Hitler’s inner circle and Nazi organizations; the Nazi death camps; what role other world religions played during the Holocaust; Nazi looting; Holocaust deniers; the history of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict; and the declining number of American Jews today.
In a final note to hate groups, the author writes that he has no issue with dissension, opinions different from his, or even those who hate, but he emphasizes that misplaced hate and hate that leads to violence deserve no place in our society.
Gutter should be admired for tackling the thorny issue of addressing and combating hate groups so persuasively and passionately. It does seem odd, however, that the narrative is aimed at hate group members who are unlikely to read it.
