The Hand That Rocks Wikipedia ...

Among the more eyebrow-raising of the referees enlisted by peripatetic – recently in South Korea, he's since been on a lecture tour of Algeria – anti-Zionist crusader the Reverend Stephen Sizer, to convince his diocesan bishop  that, contrary to perceptions by the Board of Deputies of British Jews (among others), he's not antisemitic, is retired aerospace engineer Tony Gratrex.

Mr Gratrex wrote in part in his letter to "Dear Bishop Christopher":

"In the late 1960's I lived close to Dachau whilst working in Munich. This gave me the opportunity to visit the concentration camp there many times.

Each time I visited the camp I would a[l]ways ask myself the same question; what were the Christian Church leaders in Germany doing at this time? The answer was, keeping their heads down most of the time.

Then I found out there were some few like Dietrich Bonhoeffer who didn't. In the early 1980s I was living and working in Israel. It was only then that I became aware of the history of what happened to the Palestinians....

For me Stephen Sizer is another Dietrich Bonhoeffer, but I pray there will be a better outcome.

Oh! the ironies of history."

It hardly takes a Mensa IQ to recognise, and reject, the repellent analogy implied.

A blogpost on Harry's Place stated, inter alia, a couple of years ago,

"Gratrex is an organiser for the Reading Palestine Solidarity Campaign. Reading PSC [which unlike many if not most PSC branches does not shrink from linking on its website to overtly antisemitic material, causing concern even to a prominent anti-Zionist Jew, as seen in this JC blogpost  dating to 2010 and its comments] keeps tabs on the Viva Palestina convoys, and is very supportive of their work.Gratrex has also been a guest speaker at Oxford PSC, attended a branch meeting at Bristol PSC, and was affiliated with the Bristol Convoy of Viva Palestina....

 Here is what Gratrex thinks about “the Jews”, in a comment addressed to Jenny Tonge:

I admire the work you do and am in agreement with virtually everything you say except for your attitude regarding the media.

You state that the jews do not control the media but that it is under self censorship. This is patently wrong and only a cursory glance using the internet will show that a majority of the media is jewish owned or controlled.

During the interview you use the expression “who pays the piper calls the tune” and that is precisely the problem when one considers who controls the international banking system.So Jews control the media, global financing, and the world. [Emphasis added here and below]

Gratrex left the comment on the blog of Alan Hart, a 9-11 truther.

Here’s Gratrex on reading about the Holocaust in an article about an Israeli spy in Germany:

With the mention of the holocaust in this article I can only think again of Norman Finkelsteins book; The Holocaust Industry (Reflections on the Exploitation of Jewish Suffering). How much longer is Israel going to continue to blackmail the world?"

 Another blogpost on Harry's Place, by a different author, subsequently added:

'In the original report, Harry’s Place revealed who Gratrex thought controlled the media and international banking ....

Here’s another comment, not in the original report, that Gratrex left on an overtly anti-Semitic blog:

 Not all adherents to the Torah are enemies of humanity. You are forgetting the Neturei Karta Jews

 Aside from the obvious anti-Semitism of calling all but a tiny handful of Jews “enemies of humanity”, one wonders what attracted Mr Gratrex to this particular blog…'

Reader P, who's supplied me with several screenshots of Sizerisms in the past, has sent me this recent screenshot from Facebook:

Gratrex was commenting following fulminations by Stephen Sizer about changes to his own biographical entry on Wikipedia and on Wikipedia's editing policy:

"I am really sick of the way some people are manipulating my Wikipedia entry. I would be very grateful if some balance could be restored and some of the innuendo, slander and just plain nastiness could be removed or put more constructively ["That unmistakeable odour of Zioslime," commented one of his followers]."

A pro-Palestine activist from Worcester advised that, in response to that lament, he'd logged into Wikipedia to edit Sizer's entry, only to have what he'd written removed:

'....I added information at the end of the "censorship incident" section. I wrote the following:

"Less widely reported is the fact that [Joseph] Weissman’s attacks on Stephen Sizer were conducted from behind multiple anonymous identities and that in addition to his offensive blog (he falsely accused Stephen Sizer of “supporting terrorist activity against Israel”). Weissman himself sought to censor Stephen Sizer’s views, writing letters to organisations hosting Stephen Sizer “demanding that they cancel his appearances”

I used the following two references:

http://www.richardsilverstein.com/.../english-cyberbully.../

 http://seismicshock.wordpress.com/.../richard.../

I have just been back to the page and my addition has gone. I found an edit history section in which it appears that the person who I presume has removed my submission has put a comment alongside the record of their edit as follows "(Are you joking? No, this can't be included)".

Do I simply put it back? Do I complain? What is my next step? Any advice warmly welcomed.'

 Sizer:

"Yes put it back. This is how the Zionist Lobby try to make Wikipedia their private tool of propoganda [sic]."

Reply:

'So I have just seen! The latest message  – accompanied by a warning triangle with exclamation mark.

" Please stop adding unreferenced or poorly referenced biographical content, especially if controversial, to articles or any other Wikipedia page. Content of this nature could be regarded as defamatory and is in violation of Wikipedia policy. If you continue, you may be blocked from editing "....'

 Sizer:

'Take it up the food chain. Threaten to have her blocked for arrogance...

I know of some heavyweight 'friends' about to engage with Wikipedia –  watch this space..." 

Reply:

"My addition has been reinstated again as indicated previously to the censor in a message. I note that she is a very active Wikipedia contributor and so if she were to be blocked herself then I suspect that might hurt. I will pick this up again tomorrow...."

Sizer:

"'Very active Wikipedia contributor' that's how you exert influence - like being a generous donor to a university until they invite a Palestinian guest speaker..."

Sizer again:

"....[E]very initiative puts the Lobby on the defensive. Every proactive step, however small, challenges their position and forces them to be reactive – and remember they are reading this too. Among those who 'follow' me are some known to be working for the Lobby."

Reply:

'I have been back to your wiki entry, Stephen and added the Anthony Julius quote which acknowledges that you reject "any position that threatens the territorial integrity of Israel as a sovereign nation" and describes your work as having “the merit of clearly setting out the issues that divide the two sides, and furthermore doing so without the rancour or sheer nastiness of tone typical of the polemics in the conflict". It might not undo all of the poisonous lies and distortions that have been spewed out but I think it does represent a rational and credible alternative perspective to some of those cluttering up the page.'

Alas and alack!

The official publication date of Anthony Julius's magisterial tome on antisemitism in Britain, Trials of the Diaspora, was May 2010.  Since that date (if not before), Sizer has left on record at least one statement undermining the claim that he 'rejects "any position that threatens the territorial integrity of Israel as a sovereign nation"':

Here's a screenshot:

 Oy!

I wonder why Wikipedia, being allegedly in thraldom to "the Zionist Jews," has so far neglected to add an amendment pointing that out ...