01/21/22
Herzl writes in his diary about a conversation he had with Bernhard von Bülow, in which the latter uses the poppies metaphor to critique Socialism.
From the Sep 18, 1898 entry (page 667 of the 1960 English translation),
I made my position clear—that it was folly on the part of Jews to join the Socialist movement, which would soon rid itself of them. Then, too, Jews were not Socialists at heart. I mentioned something that I had recently read: Pre-Mosaic Egypt was a Socialist state. Through the Decalogue Moses created an individualistic form of society. And the Jews, I said, are and will remain individualists.
[Bülow] liked that, too. He quoted Heine, who had talked about “egalitarian louts.” The Jews, said Bülow, would never put up with that equality stuff. He had once discussed the Socialist state of the future with a Socialist leader. It would be like a field of poppies in which every taller flower would be beheaded. Such a state would be boring and devoid of talent, too.
From the context, it appears that Herzl was in agreement with that evaluation. The irony is that Israel was built by Socialist Jews and was a predominantly Socialist country. Today it still has government-run healthcare. On the other hand, Israel is known as the place of innovators. I attribute it to the fact that there is a strong individualist undercurrent in the Jewish culture. It is good to argue, and outcompeting one another by merit is a sign of vitality.