In America, the term “Mickey Mouse” usually means one of two things. Most often, it refers to an innocent Walt Disney cartoon character that was always getting into some mischief and fun.
But it can sometimes be used in a political context to describe something unprofessional, ineffective and childishly ridiculous. Last week, the Hamas terrorist organizations added another definition: “cartoon hatred” to poison the minds of children.
The Hamas-owned TV station in the Gaza Strip broadcast an episode of “Tomorrow’s Pioneers” featuring a character that looked a lot like an overweight, disheveled Mickey Mouse who urged Palestinian children to “take up arms” against America and Israel.
“Martyr Mouse,” as it was dubbed in the Western media, was encouraging Palestinian children not to raise their arms in protest, but to go out and find guns and murder people.
Despite the Palestinian information minister’s promise that the show would be suspended immediately, it was shown again two days later.
Most people are used to the fundamentalist hatred that has become the symbol of Hamas, a terrorist organization that distorts Islamic teaching to push Palestinians, usually either young or just plain stupid, to strap on an explosive-filled vest and commit suicide.
Hamas targets are always the tough ones, like little children and old men and women who ride Israeli buses. That’s their style. There is no bottom to their heinous lack of morality or principle.
This kind of hate broadcast from Hamas has been going on for a long time. And it’s not funny at all.
In truth, it is about time Palestinians, Arabs and Muslims stop trying to justify this kind of hateful garbage and stand up and denounce it — along with Hamas, Hamas hatred and Hamas leaders.
Hamas has repeatedly shown it has no place in any leadership positions at all. Garbage about how they were elected democratically is a lie not even worth debating.
So why do Palestinians, Arabs and Muslims allow Hamas extremists to get away with what they get away with?
Is it because they really believe Jews are “monkeys,” as described in the Hamas “charter”? Is it because they are such victims of oppression, and have so little intelligence that their only response to oppression is to be more oppressive, criminal and monstrous than the monsters they denounce?
I don’t blame Hamas. They are extremists driven by hatred. How else do you explain a philosophy whose sole goal is to use suicide bombers who target innocent children, old men and women and civilians to prevent Palestinians and Israelis from achieving peace based on compromise?
I do, though, blame mainstream Palestinians. They claim they want justice, but all they do is scream hate.
I blame the Palestinians who complain about how badly they are treated but cheer the fanatics when innocent Israelis are murdered in cold blood on buses, at restaurants and in schools.
I blame the everyday, average Palestinian who has allowed hate and vengeance to become their leadership, and has forgotten how to speak the words of righteousness, justice and principle.
In any other civilized community on earth, political leaders behind this kind of pathetic hatred would be chased out of office by an embarrassed public.
Instead, all I hear are Palestinians, Arabs and Muslims responding to the Martyr Mouse controversy saying, “What else do you expect from a people so oppressed by the vicious Israelis? They are going to do these crazy things.”
What I expect is that Palestinians who have even a modicum of decency and self-respect will use this incident not to bash Israel and complain that Palestinian criminal behavior and terrorism is the result of Israeli behavior, but to show some courage and say what is right.
Ismail Haniyeh must resign as Palestinian prime minister — and he should take every one of those Koran-thumping religious fanatics in his cabinet who have used a distortion of Islam as the basis for their fundamentalist hate.
There is no other answer.
Quit making excuses. Stand up for principle, not selfishly driven hate.
Ray Hanania is an award-winning Palestinian American columnist, author and standup comedian. He can be reached at www.hanania.com.