A True Coward

In the March 11 issue of the Stony Brook Press, the editors ran an anti-Semitic cartoon that calls the New York Times the "Jew York Times" (ha ha very original) and puts symbols of Judaism on its masthead. The two headlines on this cartoon paper are "Kikes Rule, Muslims Drool" and "Ham Sucks," and they are followed by a picture of an orthodox Jew with his eyes censored.

After the shock wears off from seeing this intensely offensive cartoon in print, many questions come to mind. Why would the Press run it? Why are they allowed to print these words and images using money from the school? Using money that each student, including Jews, contributes as part of school fees? And who the hell is John Tucker?

Oh, wait. I know who John Tucker is. He's a character from a movie about a guy who has a lot of girlfriends at once, and then the girls want to get even with him when they find out about each other.

In case this is just a coincidence, I emailed the Press at the address provided at the bottom of the cartoon page. I asked if John Tucker was a normal contributor or if it was a fake name. All they had to say was, "He is a good man." The person who responded did not even bother signing his or her name.

So whoever drew this cartoon is too much of a coward to take credit for his work, and the Press didn't feel it was necessary to make the "artist" stand behind his racist garbage. I guess the editors feel that the theme of accountability, which is drilled into the head of every journalism student, doesn't apply in this case. This issue of the Press is a really sad example of journalism, and I hope that it will come back to bite them.

Some people may say that the creator of the cartoon is just someone trying to make a point using shock value. But that's no excuse. A smart person can work within the system to make their point, without offending others. Whoever this "John Tucker" is, he is not one of those smart people. He is just a Jew-hater. A Jew-hater who is too scared to give his real name and face criticism.