In its April 13 edition, the New York Times publishes an article by Berlin correspondent Nicholas Kulish about German reactions to Nobel Laureate Gunter Grass's poem depicting Israel as a threat to world peace because of its readiness to strike Iranian nuclear facilities if Tehran continues on a path of developing atomic weapons ("Once Taboo, Germans' Anti-Israel Whispers Grow Louder" page A12). Kulish reports that Germans are divided on this issue in two camps -- political and cultural elites, including newspapers, have been sharply critical of Grass, while many rank-and-file Germans have rushed to applaud him. So far so good.  But Kulish is not content to leave it at that.  Instead, he loads the dice against Israel in the lead paragraph, which states that the Grass poem criticizes "Israel's aggressive posture toward Iran." Kulish presents "Israel's aggressive posture toward Iran"  as not something claimed by Gross's poem.  Instead, this bellicose phrase is...(Read Full Post)