re: #357 Killgore Trout

They might sack him for PR purposes to avoid controversy with the US. However, he probably didn’t intend anything racist with that pic. My understanding (others can answer this more authoritatively) is that Israeli attitudes towards black is less culturally sensitive because there are so few blacks in Israel. Many of the attitudes aren’t necessarily intended to be racist just less sensitive to American eyes. It’s important to understand that slavery, Jim crow and the civil rights movement were uniquely American experiences.
You can still find lots of 1920’s style stereotypical black figurines in Dutch shops. I don’t think they see it as racist, it just has some weird retro appeal to them that I’ve never really understood. You can still get Darky Toothpaste in Asia. They just don;t have the same cultural sensibilities we do.

KT. There’s a big difference between a Dutch shop owner and a spokesperson for the IDF. The IDF spokesperson needs to comport him/herself within international standards which includes US sensitivities. He’s not selling toothpaste.