30 January 2009

Norway's Anti-Jew status?

The amazing inquiry from Norway with these keywords - "anti jew status update" in full - caused my feverish imagination some overtime. How does it really go in Norway? So here is an imaginary scene:

(Imagine a lonely pub on a snow-covered street of a Norwegian village. Let's call it "The Polar Bear's Corner", for lack of knowledge. The windows are covered by a thick layer of ice - at least the upper halves of the windows that could be seen over the snow. Helgi* dismounts his snowmobile near the pub, shakes off about half a meter of snow accumulated on his monumental shoulders and head, enters the pub. There is no one, absolutely no one in the pub, as usual - only the owner cum barman, Grímr and, at the counter, a permanent fixture of the place, local fisherman Hróaldr). The following discussion develops (for brevity the 5 minute intervals of silence between the sentences are removed):

Helgi: Good evening.
Grímr: Uhu...
Hróaldr: Mmm... (takes another swallow of Aquavit and another bite of lutefisk)
Helgi: It is cold outside. Colder than reindeer's hoof.
Grímr: Uhu...
Hróaldr: Mmm... (takes another swallow of Aquavit and another bite of lutefisk)
Helgi: So, how was your fishing today, Hróaldr?
Hróaldr: Er... (gestures vaguely, takes another swallow of Aquavit, skips the lutefisk)
Helgi: I see. And how is the anti-Jew status, Grímr?
Grímr (looking at a barometer-like contraption on the wall): Fine... jah... just fine... (pours a glass of Aquavit for Helgi)
Helgi (settling down behind the counter): Mmm...
Grímr: Uhu...

The excitement caused by Helgi's entry settles down slowly...

Speaking of Norway, a hardly related item:

A Norwegian diplomat stationed in Saudi Arabia sent a mass-distributed email stating that "the grandchildren of Holocaust survivors are doing the same thing to the Palestinians, as the Nazis did to their grandparents," using her official Norwegian Foreign Ministry address.
Couldn't be related to "anti-Jew status", could it?

Although, read in Z-Word Blog.
... I claim that the biased actions and positions of this government and part of the country’s elite concerning Jews and Israel are indicative of structural failures in Norwegian civil society.
And direct from Philosemite:
Norway, a country that used to be very pro-Israel, has turned into one of the most anti-Israel countries in Europe today.
So, all in all, I would say that the Anti Jew status in Norway is quite cool. No problems with Anti Jew status in Norway, none at all...

(*) This and other names are really ancient Viking names. Used to protect the privacy of the real people and for fun.

Cross-posted on Yourish.com.

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