Question

In the most recent election campaigns there has been a lot of talk about “incitement” from both sides. Incitement against Arabs, against “the Left,” and against Haredim (“the Arabs are heading to the polls,” “the Haredim vote in high numbers, so you should go vote too,” “only if you vote for me will a left-wing government that destroys the country not be formed,” and so on). It seems to me that this concept of “incitement” needs clarification and definition, and that it should be examined whether it is really useful at all. It seems to me that this is a classic example of a concept that is emotionally and normatively charged because of its original meaning—a call to harm a person or a group—but now its definition has been broadened so that it gets attached to cases of more innocent statements—for example, pointing to statistical truths about groups and the fact that they have large-scale effects in terms of numbers—where attaching the term is meant to import the emotional charge from the original meaning of the concept into the cases included under the expanded definition. 
I would be happy to hear the Rabbi’s opinion on the matter. 
Shai