I just listened to these late May comments by Kiss guitarist Gene Simmons. They were welcome words indeed, explaining that Obama doesn’t live in the world and therefore shouldn’t tell Israel where its borders ought to be.

But there’s a 50-50 chance that an Israeli-born Jew will be smart and non-suicidal on Israel, so the fact that Simmons is among the better 50% is not exactly a shocker. Presumably, he has as little patience with the disinformation propaganda and double standards that are heaped on Israel regularly.

In 2008, however, Simmons fell easy prey to that very sort of propaganda. The year that — as he unabashedly admits — he “voted for an idea,” the year that the Obama fairy dust sprinkling onto our friends, neighbors, and relatives, unimpressively didn’t skip this otherwise sober thinker, Gene Simmons fell under the spell of another fairy dust, one that transcends election years, administrations, party lines, and eras.

And so he canceled his Belgrade concert.

Kiss Cancel Serbian Concert (April 9, 2008)

Legendary rock band Kiss have cancelled a concert in Serbia — blaming the political “situation” in the country for their decision to scrap the gig.

The Crazy Nights hitmakers were due to play in the capital city of Belgrade on 15 May as part of their forthcoming European tour.

But the agency organising the concert has now announced the band have pulled out, insisting the rockers felt uncomfortable playing in Serbia so soon after the recent elections which took place in February.

Political tensions are also running high in the area after the Balkan state of Kosovo declared independence from the country.

The Lupa agency released a statement apologising to fans and offering to refund their tickets: “The members of the band regret to inform you that the concert has to be cancelled, but the situation in Serbia does not leave them much choice. However, they hope they will perform in Serbia on some other occasion.”

In other words, when the Serbian public voted in the pro-Western quislings we wanted them to, and the country was rewarded with a Western-supported land theft in Kosovo, Kiss too felt that Belgrade needed to be punished for being punished. So because 15% of its land was stolen, Serbia didn’t deserve a concert.

It’s not enough that the press follows the State Department line on this; it’s not enough that the military is on the same page as the media on this. Or that filmmakers are on the same page as the military. Even rock stars are on board. It’s a bloody kumbaya.

How much do you want to bet that Condoleezza Rice’s compliment the following month on the band’s being “well informed about current events” was a reference to their “understanding” of the Kosovo issue:

Condoleezza Rice meets rock band Kiss (May 30, 2008)

The Kiss Army fan club has an enthusiastic new recruit: Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. In a departure from her normally staid diplomatic duties, Rice met the legendary glam rock quartet when they happened to share a hotel in the Swedish capital. Rice was in Stockholm on Thursday for an international conference on Iraq. Kiss had a sold-out gig to play on Friday.

“I was thrilled,” Rice said of her late-night encounter with frontman Gene Simmons and bandmates Paul Stanley, Eric Singer and Tommy Thayer in the executive lounge of the Sheraton Hotel where they signed autographs and handed out backstage passes and T-shirts to her staff.

“It was really fun to meet Kiss and Gene Simmons,” she told reporters, noting they seemed well informed about current events. The band had asked if she could stop by after she finished dinner with the Swedish foreign minister and Rice readily agreed, she said.

Simmons and his crew, who are on a European tour, weren’t wearing their trademark stage makeup, but were recognizable as rock stars to even non-fans by their hair, according to State Department officials who were with Rice.

Rice, a classically trained pianist, said she has eclectic musical tastes ranging from Beethoven to Bruce Springsteen. Hard stadium rockers like Kiss are included in the mix and Rice said her favorite tune of theirs is “Rock and Roll All Nite.” […]

What an original she is: Beethoven, Bruce, and the only Kiss song that anyone can name off-hand.

Moral of the story for Gene Simmons. A Jew — particularly an Israeli — should be less easily propagandized. It’s fine for Simmons to talk about the Jews and Israel, but he does not pass the Serbia Standard, and that makes his apparent intellect a fraud — he sees Israel fairly because it’s his hide on the line. I’ll let Baron Bodissey of the Gates of Vienna blog explain:

The Jews and the Serbs were corralled together and massacred in the extermination camps of Croatia, with the support (and participation) of a number of Roman Catholic priests and bishops [and of course Bosnian Muslims]. These are historical facts, thoroughly documented….For this reason, I have learned to apply what I call the “Serbia Standard” to those who argue about Israel and the Jews. Anyone who supports Israel (as I do) should also support Serbia for the same reasons. Like the Jews, the Serbs were victims of an attempted extermination during the Second World War. Like the Jews, the Serbs have been unjustly demonized. Like the Jews, the Serbs are under siege by Islam in their own land.

Since the Russians often go to bat for the Serbs, one could even make the case for a vast international conspiracy that works behind the scenes to promote Serbian interests. [One often does attempt making such a case — and the Council of Europe is apparently part of the conspiracy!]

Those who are gung-ho about the Jews and Israel but refuse to support the Serbs and Serbia (or who actually vilify them) are intellectually inconsistent and incoherent, so their arguments may be justifiably disregarded.

The Jews now have their own state, as do the Serbs. Both nationalities suffer at the hands of those who would damage or destroy them. Therefore the Jews deserve no more special treatment than do the Serbs, and vice versa.

The Serbia Standard serves as a useful way of weeding out disingenuous and hypocritical arguments by those who support Israel. If they fail to support the Serbs, it exposes their special pleading. I presume it could do the same for anyone who treats Serbia in a similar preferential manner.

Supporting both Serbia and Israel is a useful strategy. So is supporting Finland, Latvia, Romania, Italy, Ireland, Australia, Texas, Virginia, and many other nations that are bastions of Western traditions.

Have PoliticalMavens.com delivered to your inbox in a daily digest by clicking here