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Ron Kampeas wrote a piece on jta.org that told it just a little differently. But if, as you say, the comment above calling JStreet a front for Hamas and Hizbollah is any indication, I wouldn't worry about it. Having interviewed Soros on the phone, once long ago, when most Jews never knew who he was...meeting him once in a social gathering (he's was obnoxious as all get out)...and being in the audience at an YIVO dinner of all places, where he slammed Israel and the Zionists, I am not surprised he wanted no public connection. I watched the dismayed reaction to his speech (my ears almost popped off). (Such a speech at YIVO? True, secular Hungarian Jews didn't know much about Yiddish culture and he was just a kid--but by the time he made that speech, shouldn't he have learned something about the organization he was speaking to?!) There were also ugly, unproved accusations of collaboration some Hungarian Holocaust survivors make about him, and they are loud and vocal and more than unpleasant people to deal with. I can see why he asked JStreet to keep it quiet.
But aren't there 990s and didn't anyone bother to look it up? Would it have been different if it was revealed from the get-go? In any event, it doesn't matter. JStreet is doing important work and represents many, many Jews who feel as they do. They are young, they made a mistake. But then there are many, many Jewish agencies in the establishment who have made much graver mistakes than JStreet's, and they managed to survive and thrive. So everyone, let's get over it, and let's not prove that Soros was right to protect himself and JStreet the best way he knew how.
I love Moshe's idea and second the motion.
Mitchell Bard's new book provides insight into the Arab Lobby, which few of us have heretofore understood. Thank you for publishing his Opinion piece.
Yes. It is true. Missionaries target the weak among us. The first group that used this strategy against us was Amalek.
I once used this reductio ad absurdum approach effectively against a prominent missionary.
"Can I be a Christian and accept Mohammad as the Messiah?"
(If he says "Yes," he loses all integrity as a Christian. If he says "No," I say, "What do you mean, you are a Jew who believes in J****?!"
He said "No" and immediately attempted to refute my proposition. He asked me, "Was Mohammad Jewish?" I said, "Yes. We could say Mohammad was Jewish. He observed the Sabbath, practiced circumcision and followed the dietary laws. These are three very important Jewish commandments."
The missionary was very angry. He continued and "went in for the kill," "Was Mohammad born to a virgin in Bethlehem of Judea?" I responded, "That prophecy was just about the first coming. The Bible does not tell us that the Messiah will be born to a virgin TWICE. Mohammad was the incarnation of J's second coming." The missionary was so furious with me he could hardly formulate sentences.
I asked him about the internal contradiction of Christianity. "Christianity is a religion which believes in the Messiah anticipated by and described in the Jewish Bible. But how do we know the Bible is the Bible? The Bible did not just drop out of the sky. The Bible was written by prophets, rabbis who did not merely write it down but taught it - teacher to student to teacher to student down through the centuries. When they taught the text to their students, they did not merely teach the contents of the text. They taught their students what the meaning of the text. Everyone knows that the rabbis did not teach that the Messiah of the Jewish Bible is J! NOW, ARE THE RABBIS RELIABLE IN THEOLOGICAL MATTERS OR ARE THEY NOT RELIABLE IN THEOLOGICAL MATTERS? If the rabbis are reliable in theological matters, then when they tell us, 'the Bible is the Bible and this is what it means,' we must believe them. However, if the rabbis are not reliable in theological matters, then when they tell us 'the Bible is the Bible,' we should not trust them. Now how do you have it? Are the rabbis reliable in theological matters or not?
The best he could do was say, "That is just your opinion."
I asked him about the objective difference between Hebrew Christianity and every other religion in the world. I asked, "In every religion there are families with traditions of adherence to that religion. There are families who have been Roman Catholic for 70 or 80 generations, families who have been Muslim for 50 to 60 generations, families who have been Protestant for 15 to 20 generations, etc. This is not true with the Hebrew Christian faith. Jews were members of some of the original congregations who accepted J. Where are the descendants of those Jewish people today? Where are the descendants of those Jews who accepted J**** just 60, 70 or 80 years ago? They are in mainstream Christian churches. They did not retain their identity as Jewish believers. That is because Hebrew Christianity is not a real religion. It is a fraud. It is merely a conduit to take Jews from Judaism into Christianity." The missionary had no comeback.
When he asked me where I pray as a Christian who accepts Mohammad as the Messiah, I was tempted to respond, "with Abdul-Salaam Heinemann."
There are five things that I really hate - cockroaches, mosquitoes, cancer, terrorists, and missionaries.
UGH! why don't they just be honest with themselves, and call themselves, Christians???
"J street" is a front for supporters of Hamas and Hezbollah under the aegis of being pro Israel supporters. their affiliations have always been ducious, and the SOROS connection was well know long before the NY Times expose. This is a group that any member of the House or Senate should avoid, as they will be linked with the enemies of the USA and Israel hiding as a "new progressive lobby". Jeremy Ben Ami, good job!! HAH!
This is a terrible thing, but if they have the money, there is really nothing the Orthodox in Brooklyn can do other than live and let live. Is the Jewish Week espousing violence?
Seinfeld & Midler? And they are being paid?
The one refused to acknowledge that his TV character (let alone his real self) was Jewish throughout its run. The other made here career portraying a schmutzkeit slut with a concededly great voice. these are the heroes - the role models for the rest of us? and they won't even do the opening for free? Now there's some serious Tzedaka! You just can't make this stuff up!
Israel is inviting the wratch of the Almighty for trying to divide the land that He gave to the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Circumcize your hearts and listen to the Lord, Israel.
Jews for Cheeses is a great cause.
Another important missed piece of information is Pamela Geller's link to Jewish Defense League (JDL) events used to promote such views.
Since I'm the only one reading this blog, I figure I have your undivided attention, Gary. It's even better than writing an email, which gets stuck with all the others that have to get scanned and deleted.
So before I get back to writing sermons and shiurim for Yom Tov, I'll make a suggestion for a new blog or feature at the JW. It's based on your Aug 25th column, which bewailed the deterioration of dialogue in our community. I propose a new feature called "Both Sides Now," (with apologies to the 60's song--no bows and flows of angel's hair here). It would be devoted each week to showing fairly both sides of a controversial topic, whether political, philosophic or halakhic. The only rule would be that one cannot simply set up one side as a straw man--both sides have to have their say and, while one can argue that one side makes more sense for application today, one can never argue that the other side is not a legitimate option. (That is, one cannot so argue and expect to get published.)
The blog format would allow the length that print articles would not, and thoroughness could trump soundbites.
Maybe, just maybe, this will get thoughtful people to examine views other than their own, and even find in them redeeming value. Maybe we can foster a few more students of Beit Hillel, who always presented the views of Beit Shammai before their own.
There is an important factual error in this report, and that is the Pamela G. Oshry was genuinely concerned about the Park Place Islamic Center 9 months ago. In fact, it was not until after she became the lead of the Stop Islamization of America (SIOA) movement in April 2009 at the behest of its European organizers, and a month before her July 2010 book release that she got involved in protests about the Park Place Islamic Center.
When you look at these facts, it provides a different context on the issue.
Chag Samayach!
I had both of my (now adult) Jewish sons circumcised and they thanked me for it. Too bad for yours.
To me Libermans plan seems extremely logical. I'd like to hear the oppositions reasonsing
Listen, I asked Jim Russell if he was racist or an anti-semite. He said "No"... He answered "No," on the news.
That's good enough for me. Despite his supposed writing, he said "No." What don't you understand?
Nital Lowey can leave office with her oxygen tank. Good riddance.
There are many Whites who will be running for office against the status-quo politicians who simply don't represent the White voters.
I hope White people don't wake up angry.
This is nothing but a smear agains Jim Russell for something written 10 years ago.
Please. I was getting "push polls' from Nita Lowey's staff for a few weeks now.
It's one smear after another. I hope the voters of Westchester are smarter that that. First he is "racist" now he is anti-semitic? Anything will be said to keep Nita Lowey in position to spend our tax dollars on what we don't want.
Where are the jobs? Please shut up.
Paladino is an upstate crook who dislikes Silver because he's a downstate crook.
Interesting ... no mention of the Jewish Museum. Did the reporter spend any time in the area?
NewsBusters: Journos Slam Liberal 'Pro-Israel' Group for Lying About Soros Money
http://newsbusters.org/blogs/alana-goodman/2010/09/27/journos-slam-liberal-pro-israel-group-lying-about-soros-money
hector, it's on amazon.
...Why was there no mention of RECTANGLES on 74>75th and 1st avenue ?
No, Steve, the "real story" is not who released these documents. It is the fact that J Street lied about its backers and now they're trying to spin the fact that they lied. It seems libs only care about who leaked when the revelations put their own agenda into question. And just as J Street (by their own admission) is serving as Obama's protective back as he pressures Israel, some folks are now trying to protect J Street.
The suggestion that the timing is "funny" is beyond ironic. It's not just that direct talks started weeks ago. It's the fact that liberal "rights" groups in Israel embargoed a story about tax exempt groups in the US funding projects in the territories until the very day Netanyahu was meeting with Obama - clearly to embarrass the former.
If J Street is embarrassed to have people know they're taking Soros money they shouldn't take Soros money. As we learned from Watergate, it's often the cover up, not the crime, that gets people in real trouble.