At the same time, a more successful effort may be in play. Through his popular web site Jew School, blogger Daniel Sieradski has encouraged others with their own sites to Google Bomb the Wikipedia entry for the word "jew" with links. As of this morning, the page was ranked #3 on Google for the search.

Holding search engines responsibility for the results they deliver is a legal and logistical impossibility. However, Google's refusal to alter its results runs contrary to a widely-publicized incident two years ago in which Google caved to pressure from the Church of Scientology to remove results for "scientology" for Xenu.net, a site critical of the Church. While the links were eventually results and the site is now the second result for that search string, Google's self-righteous stand rings hollow in the light of history.

The Internet has proven to be the ultimate tool for free speech. On the Web, there are no checks on speech of any type, including hate speech, nor should there be. The ranking of "Jew Watch" in the Google results is not a tacit endorsement of the site's contents by Google, but rather by the Internet community as a whole. The site is ranked first of the 1.7 million hits for the word "Jew" based on Google's algorithm, which is based in large part in the number and quality of links to the site. Though many of these links may have actually been condemning the content of the page, they nonetheless drove it to the top of the list by merely mentioning it.

Blame directed at Google for the rankings is misplaced. The true fault lies not only with those who practice hate speech, but also those who are unwilling to speak up when confronted with it. Continuing denial of rising anti-Semitism worldwide only empowers those who practice it; a lack of condemnation implies a tacit endorsement. This latest incident is just one more indication that one of the great evils of the 20th century is alive and well in the 21st.