Dear Rabbi Youdovin, I will first provide a copy of the Rabbi's comment on Richard Falk's piece entitled Poetry and War on his Global Justice in the 21st Century blog. Some of the other comments on the page, submitted by equally confused, albeit less refined hasbarachiki, illustrate the point further. My corrected version follows.I have taken the liberty of making a few corrections to your text. Perhaps they were just typos, but I do discern a pattern which is typical of rabbinical (talmudic) thinking - the reversal of cause and effect, oppressed and oppressor, victimizer and victim, and so forth. Projection is a kind of mirroring where one's own faults are projected onto the image of those perceived as the "other," the enemy, whose status as enemy was self-created in the first place. Needless to say, this involves a closely related neurotic pattern, self-deception, which then becomes the basis for deceiving others. It's a fascinating psycho-pathology which we see played out on a daily basis by Israel's apologists. Prof. Falk: You ask, “What is it about our world that allows the Guernicas, Auschwitzs, Hiroshimas, Srebrenica to keep happening?” May I propose an answer? Tragic catastrophes happen when people turn a blind eye on evil. Or find excuses for not confronting it. During the past decade thousands of rockets and missiles have been fired at Israel from inside Gaza, Each of every one of the nearly 10,000 lethal weapons arriving since 2008 was smuggled into Gaza under the deliberately unseeing eye of the UN Commission on Human Rights, whose Special Rapporteur on “The situation of Human Rights in the Occupied Palestinian Territories reported only alleged Israeli violations. Hamas’ own scorecard for the 2000-2001 period, as quoted in the Palestinian Times, lists more than 5000 ground-based acts of terrorism, including suicide bombings, attempted kidnappings, sniper attacks and ambushes. These also went unreported, although virtually everybody except UNCHR knew what was going on. This is what Elie Wiesel calls “the sin of silence”. When committed by the agency responsible for monitoring human rights violations, it sends the terrorists a clear message that they can act with impunity knowing that the beat cop will be looking the other way. Inevitably, this emboldens them to expand and intensive their terrorist operation. Why is there any doubt that Hamas is a terrorist organization? Indeed, it’s one of those rare terrorist groups that, like Hitler in Mein Kampf, is straightforward in proclaiming its objectives and tactics for achieving them. These are enshrined in Hamas’ National Charter, among them: “Israel will exist and will continue to exist until Islam will obliterate it, just as it obliterated others before it.” (Preamble) “The land of Palestine is an Islamic Waqf [Holy Possession] consecrated for future Moslem generations until Judgment Day. No one can renounce it or any part, or abandon it or any part of it.” (Article 11) “Palestine is an Islamic land… Since this is the case, the Liberation of Palestine is an individual duty for every Moslem wherever he may be.” (Article 13) “The day the enemies usurp part of Moslem land, Jihad becomes the individual duty of every Moslem. In the face of the Jews’ usurpation, it is compulsory that the banner of Jihad be raised.” (Article 15) “Ranks will close, fighters joining other fighters, and masses everywhere in the Islamic world will come forward in response to the call of duty, loudly proclaiming: ‘Hail to Jihad!’. This cry will reach the heavens and will go on being resounded until liberation is achieved, the invaders vanquished and Allah’s victory comes about.” (Article 33) “The Day of Judgment will not come about until Moslems fight Jews and kill them. Then, the Jews will hide behind rocks and trees, and the rocks and trees will cry out: ‘O Moslem, there is a Jew hiding behind me, come and kill him.” (Article 7) This jihadist call to genocide and ethnic cleansing is not the rantings of a rogue operative who’s gone mad with homicidal fury. The National Charter has been Hamas’ official foundational document since 1988. It affirms what the organization believes and intends to do in language that is crystal clear. And yet, the same SR who failed to report Hamas’ human rights violations and its build-up to terrorism on an ever-increasing scale now assures readers of this blog that these precisely stated objectives are only “vague aspirations,” and that Hamas is nothing more than an unfairly maligned band of freedom fighters who seek only to end the Occupation. Nonsense. In fact, very dangerous nonsense. How does one stop human catastrophes like Gaza from happening? Yes, Israel must do a radical revision of its approach to the Palestinians. But whoever places total blame on Israel makes himself, to use Prof. Falk’s words, “…victimized by subjectivity …when it collides with desire.” Are we capable of learning anything at all from the corpses being drawn from the rubble of devastation in Gaza day by day? Or from the deaths of three kidnapped Israeli teenagers? Or the brutal murder of a Palestinian counterpart? I think we can. Or more accurately, I hope and pray that we can. But we can only if we can overcome our desires, such as obliterating a sovereign state, as well as our proclivity for withholding or distorting facts that discredit our self-serving and utterly subjective narratives. Rabbi Ira Youdovin Corrected version [RT] Prof. Falk: You ask, “What is it about our world that allows the Guernicas, Auschwitzs, Hiroshimas, Srebrenica to keep happening?” May I propose an answer? Tragic catastrophes happen when people turn a blind eye on evil. Or find excuses for not confronting it. During the past decade thousands of rockets and missiles have been fired at (Gaza) from inside (Israel), Each of every one of the (hundreds of thousands) of lethal weapons arriving since 2008 was (bought and paid for by the US under the domination of tribal Jewry). (Acts of terror were committed by the Jewish terrorist groups the Stern Gang and Irgun, aided and abetted by the Haganah. Since 1948, these acts have been committed by the State of Israel on a daily basis, far too numerous to count.) This is what (that enormously successful fraud) Elie Wiesel calls “the sin of silence”. When committed by (those responsible for informing the public, let alone responsible for the spiritual well-being of their parishioners) it sends the terrorists a clear message that they can act with impunity knowing that the beat cop will be looking the other way. Inevitably, this emboldens them to expand and intensi(fy) their terrorist operation. Why is there any doubt that (Israel) is a terrorist organization? Indeed, it’s one of those rare terrorist groups that, like Hitler in Mein Kampf, is straightforward in proclaiming its objectives and tactics for achieving them. These are enshrined in Quotes from the real Middle Eastern terrorists, among them: “The Palestinians are beasts walking on two legs.” “The Palestinians would be crushed like grasshoppers…heads smashed against the boulders and walls.” “Palestinians are like crocodiles, the more you give them meat, they want more.” “We have no solution… You [Palestinians] shall continue to live like dogs, and whoever wishes may leave, and we will see where this process leads.” “When we have settled the land, all the Arabs will be able to do about it will be to scurry around like drugged cockroaches in a bottle.” This (Zionist) call to genocide and ethnic cleansing is not the rantings of a rogue operative who’s gone mad with homicidal fury. the same (MSM) who failed to report (Israel’s) human rights violations and its build-up to terrorism on an ever-increasing scale now assures readers of (their rags) that these precisely stated objectives are only “vague aspirations,” and that (Israel) is nothing more than an unfairly maligned band of freedom fighters who seek only to (defend themselves). Nonsense. In fact, very dangerous nonsense. How does one stop human catastrophes like Gaza from happening? Yes, Israel must do a radical revision of its approach to the Palestinians. But whoever places total blame on (Hamas) makes himself, to use Prof. Falk’s words, “…victimized by subjectivity …when it collides with desire.” Are we capable of learning anything at all from the corpses being drawn from the rubble of devastation in Gaza day by day? Or from the deaths of three kidnapped Israeli teenagers? Or the brutal murder of a Palestinian counterpart? I think we can. Or more accurately, I hope and pray that we can. But we can only if we can overcome our desires, such as obliterating (the Palestinian people), as well as our proclivity for withholding or distorting facts that discredit our self-serving and utterly subjective narratives. Roger Tucker (as a mitzvah on behalf of the deluded) Rabbi Ira Youdovin |
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