Israel: Stick to astrophysics, Hawking
The British physicist said he will not attend the fifth Israeli Presidential Conference because of Israel’s treatment of Palestinians.
Shlomo Avineri
Ha’aretz
For all his brilliance, Stephen Hawking shows a poor grasp of logic, said Shlomo Avineri. The revered British physicist announced last week that he would not be attending next month’s fifth Israeli Presidential Conference because of Israel’s treatment of Palestinians. He’s not the first scholar to join the boycott, but as the event’s planned keynote speaker, he’s certainly the most prominent—and one of the most inconsistent in applying his principles. Hawking, you’ll recall, deemed the American invasion of Iraq a “war crime” and said that Britain’s participation in it made the U.K. equally culpable. So what did he do to protest this atrocity? “Did he refuse to pay taxes to his government?” Did he urge foreign scientists to boycott British universities? Did he refuse to attend academic conferences in the U.S.? He did not. In fact, even though President Barack Obama hasn’t honored a campaign promise to close the “completely illegal detention camp” at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, Hawking accepted a Presidential Medal of Freedom from him. What could account for the hypocrisy of choosing to punish Israel while giving the U.S. and the U.K. a pass? Let’s hope Hawking is simply muddleheaded-—after all, he apparently doesn’t realize that Palestinians will in fact be attending this conference. Because otherwise his action has “a whiff of racism.”
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
-
Netanyahu's Rafah attack vow snarls truce deal
Speed Read Hours before the truce deal was to be finalized, Netanyahu said Israel will invade Rafah regardless
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Today's political cartoons - May 1, 2024
Cartoons Wednesday's cartoons - beware of governor, biting debates, and more
By The Week US Published
-
Democrats defang GOP speaker ouster threat
Speed Read Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene said she will force a vote to remove House Speaker Mike Johnson
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Arizona court reinstates 1864 abortion ban
Speed Read The law makes all abortions illegal in the state except to save the mother's life
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Trump, billions richer, is selling Bibles
Speed Read The former president is hawking a $60 "God Bless the USA Bible"
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
The debate about Biden's age and mental fitness
In Depth Some critics argue Biden is too old to run again. Does the argument have merit?
By Grayson Quay Published
-
How would a second Trump presidency affect Britain?
Today's Big Question Re-election of Republican frontrunner could threaten UK security, warns former head of secret service
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
'Rwanda plan is less a deterrent and more a bluff'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By The Week UK Published
-
Henry Kissinger dies aged 100: a complicated legacy?
Talking Point Top US diplomat and Nobel Peace Prize winner remembered as both foreign policy genius and war criminal
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Last updated
-
Trump’s rhetoric: a shift to 'straight-up Nazi talk'
Why everyone's talking about Would-be president's sinister language is backed by an incendiary policy agenda, say commentators
By The Week UK Published
-
More covfefe: is the world ready for a second Donald Trump presidency?
Today's Big Question Republican's re-election would be a 'nightmare' scenario for Europe, Ukraine and the West
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published