New "Anti-Semites" Week of Sept. 20 - Sept. 26 2007

WHO: The European Union
WHY: "The E.U. (European Union) has a record includes culpability for centuries of anti-Semitism, culminating in the Holocaust - through today with its donor monies supporting the Terrorist Arab organizations, nations and proxies."
FOR THE RECORD: The European Union has not existed "for centuries" at all, coming into existence with the signing of the Treaty on the European Union at Maastricht in 1992. The precursor to the EU, the European Community dates from 1957, and its primary precursor, the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC), dates from 1952. Neither the EU nor any of its primary precursor organizations even existed during the Holocaust, much less "for centuries." Juan Carlos Ocaña, "Chronology," The history of the European Union, The European Citizenship, 2003. Further, the EU as such, being conscious of the Holocaust of the evils of Anti-Semitism has taken an aggressive stance against it from the outset. European Parliament, "Resolution of the European Parliament on racism, xenophobia, and anti-semitism, B4-0261/94," 27 October 1994, Directorate-General for Research
SOURCE: Emanuel A. Winston, "Dear Christian Friends of Israel," 25 September 2007, NewsReleaseWire.Com

WHO: Clare Short, British MP and former Secretary of State for International Development in Tony Blair's government before resigning in protest over Britain's participation in the invasion of Iraq.
WHY: "Is it any accident that British MP Mrs. Clare Short in the House of Commons attacked the Jews as vicious racists when their only crime she could think of is that the Jews still exist, which she considers an offense to human decency? What right do they have to try to live in peace with the Arabs and constantly thwart every attempt of the Palestinian suicide bombers to annihilate their whole population? She claimed that the Jews practice an even more egregious form of apartheid than what existed in South Africa."
FOR THE RECORD: "I think a settlement on Israel-Palestine is really easy if America backed it. It is a two-state solution, on 67 boundaries with East Jerusalem as the capital of the new Palestinian state. That could all be driven, and of course, because Israel is completely dependent on American arms, money and supplies, if America wanted that settlement, it would be had. Then both people, the Palestinian and the Israeli people, want the two-state solution. I'm afraid the peace we're talking about, just a withdrawal from Gaza and then Prime Minister Sharon planning to take half of the West Bank, will not bring peace. So, we're looking – I’m afraid this is a moment of hope because there’s a cease-fire, but we're going to go on with more and more violence and suffering and support for terrorist action." Clare Short Interviewed by Amy Goodman, "Clare Short On Why She Quit Tony Blair's Government In Protest of the Iraq War & How British Intelligence Spied On UN Chief Kofi Annan," Democracy Now, 15 February 2005
SOURCE: Jackie Mason & Raoul Felder, "An Incurable Disease," The American Spectator, 25 September 2007

WHO: Columbia University
WHY: For inviting Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to speak on campus.
FOR THE RECORD: "Columbia, as a community dedicated to learning and scholarship, is committed to confronting ideas—to understand the world as it is and as it might be. To fulfill this mission we must respect and defend the rights of our schools, our deans and our faculty to create programming for academic purposes. Necessarily, on occasion this will bring us into contact with beliefs many, most or even all of us will find offensive and even odious. We trust our community, including our students, to be fully capable of dealing with these occasions, through the powers of dialogue and reason." Lee C. Bollinger, "President Bollinger's Statement About President Ahmadinejad's Scheduled Appearance," Columbia University Website, 19 September 2007
SOURCE: Jessica Freiman, "Columbia students protest visit," The Jerusalem Post, 25 September 2007

WHO: The whole University system of New Zealand
WHY: Apparently because two students (Joel Hayward and Hans Kupka), at two universities (University of Canterbury & Waikato University) were accused of writing papers dealing with Holocaust Denial. In the case of Hayward, apparently he wrote a Masters thesis that constituted Holocaust Revisionism and in the case of Kupka, he was merely accused of being a Holocaust Denier.
FOR THE RECORD: "A wide-sweeping claim that New Zealand universities suffer from chronic anti-Semitism has been made in a book, World’s Apart: The Re-Migration of South African Jews, by a South African-Australian academic, Colin Tatz, and reported in the current issue of Education Review. Education Review says that, in a section on contemporary anti-Semitism in the book, Tatz describes two controversial cases, one each at the Universities of Waikato and Canterbury, and what he says was the associated “ill grace, impatience and disdain of senior academics with Jews”. The first case, that of Joel Hayward’s 1993 MA thesis on the fate of Jews in German hands, was contested in 1999 by the New Zealand Jewish Council, which unsuccessfully asked the University of Canterbury to revoke the thesis because of it’s Holocaust-denying nature The second case, an acceptance by Waikato for Hans Kupka to undertake a PhD study on the German language in New Zealand, including interviews with Holocaust survivors, provoked an outcry in 2000 when it was alleged Kupka had neo-Nazi links and ran a Holocaust-denying website. Asked if his conclusions about New Zealand’s universities were too harsh, Tatz told Education Review that the Hayward and Kupka cases had precedent, including a call by the University of Otago Medical School in the 1930s for New Zealand not to accept Jewish doctors. Tatz told Education Review that a “wide supporting cast” of academics and managers in the universities involved had been guilty of failing to take the concerns of Jews and others seriously. Despite his claim of chronic anti-Semitism, however, Tatz goes on to say that his verdict on New Zealand universities is generally positive as the two cases cited were not swept under the carpet, university staff were not punished for whistle blowing and the processes that surrounded the cases were remarkably open. The University of Canterbury told Tertiary Update that it stands by the statement it made on 20 December 2000 on the release of the report by the Hayward Thesis Working Party that it does not support Holocaust revisionism and does not harbour anti-Semitic feeling." Association of University Staff, "AUS Tertiary Update," The Scoop, 20 September 2007
SOURCE: Tara Ross, "Visitor accuses universities of anti-semitism," Stuff.Co.NZ, 24 September 2007

WHO: Apparently everyone who the author combines into some sort of weird conspiracy of "Sinisterism;" more specifically: "totalitarians living off our dime;" "Nazi or a Bolshevik or a Fascist;" "defender of Earth against Global Warming;" "a jihadist trying to murder Israelis or a slave of Kim Jong Il sending nuclear material to Syria;" the "Far Left;" "really nasty evil people;" "Syria, Iran, and North Korea;" "Al-Qaeda in Iraq;" "tenured university professors who try to indoctrinate or, in the alternative, drive out all non-totalitarian thought from our useless, nazified universities;" "'journalist' for the New Your [sic] Times or a 'commentator' from MSNBC;" "'liberator' from Yankee Imperialism, closing private schools in Venezuela;" and so on and so forth. The sole exception to the "Sinisterist" conspiracy appears to be the "mythical and nonexistent 'Far Right'"
WHY: It would seem the "Sinisterists": "Do they hate Jews? (Do they defend Palestinians and excuse homicide bombers?) Do they hate Christians and either murder them in foreign lands or harass them at every moment in American cultural life? Do they hate Israel and engage in such outrages as academic boycotts of Israel and divestment of assets in Israel? Do they hate America or at least always blame America first? ... What offends Sinisterists is that the Jewish people have survived. What offends Sinisterists is that Christians believe in Christ and have survived their own many holocausts. What offends Sinisterists is that Israel thrives as the only free, democracy which honors the rule of law. What offends Sinisterists is that America is the only nation which, as Fred Thompson has said, has spent more blood and treasure liberating people than any nation in history."
FOR THE RECORD: The idea of simply lumping everyone you don't like into a mythical "anti-you" conspiracy of evil - very much like George Bush's "Axis of Evil" - is a common ploy used by people that are too stupid or too lazy to actually educate themselves about the people they don't like. This wack job is completely and utterly oblivious to anything and everything outside of those subjective notions that he personally prefers as the article in question graphically illustrates. Why learn about facts when you can just make up crap that sounds good and gives you an good excuse to wallow in your own ignorance?
SOURCE: Bruce Walker, "The Dangerous Cocktail of Global Sinisterism," NewsByUs, 20 September 2007

WHO: Micah Lubens, a Jewish sophomore at George Washington University
WHY: "Lubens is running for president of the Residential Advisory Council [Of Fulbright Hall] and is being criticized by neighbors and house scholars for pointing out the differences between himself and Adolf Hitler in his campaign materials. He printed and hung the campaign posters Monday afternoon, prompting Jewish leaders on campus to voice their concerns. ... 'Vote for Micah Lubens for RAC President because hey he couldn't be worse than Hitler.' ... An image of Lubens, who is Jewish, is featured below the Nazi dictator - wearing a football jersey surfing Facebook on his computer. 'Anti-Semitism is unacceptable and inappropriate, and even more so when it comes from a Jewish student,' said sophomore Arielle Krieger, communications director for the Jewish Student Association. 'I think (Lubens being Jewish) even makes it worse because it provokes and encourages others.'"
FOR THE RECORD: "Lubens said students tore down most of his signs Tuesday evening. While he understands why students are offended, he thinks many are merely shocked by Hitler's image. 'I'm not saying that Hitler was a good guy. I'm saying Hitler was a bad guy and I couldn't be worse than Hitler,' Lubens said. 'It was a sick joke, I agree, but for there to be such outrage, I don't agree with that.' The University did not discipline Lubens, and nor was he disqualified from the election - which took place Wednesday. He said he is still confident he will win. The results of the election were not available by press time."
SOURCE: Eric Roper, "Hitler photo used in campaign," GWHatchet, 20 September 2007

WHO: Pluto Press and the University of Michigan for distributing Pluto books.
WHY: "Among more than four hundred Pluto publications, no single pro-Israel text appears. Instead, the University of Michigan Press provides American readers with Sara Roy's 2006 Failing Peace: Gaza and the Palestinian-Israeli Conflict, dedicated to Edward Said, a work blaming every single Olso failure on Israel. Or, For Zion's Sake: The Judeo-Christian Tradition in American Culture, an attack on Christian Zionism and 'the steadfast US commitment to the establishment of the state of Israel and to its aggressive expansion...' Or, Hamas, A Beginner's Guide, a propagandist apology so favorable it approaches a recruitment manual."
FOR THE RECORD: "Pluto Press has a proud history of publishing the very best in progressive, critical thinking across politics and the social sciences. We are an independent company based in London, with a sales and marketing office in the United States and distribution rights throughout the world. Pluto Press has always had a radical political agenda. Founded in 1969 as a publishing arm of International Socialism, the forerunner of the Socialist Workers Party in the UK, in 1979 we broke with this political affiliation and became truly independent. Today, we represent authors from a wide range of progressive political viewpoints. With over 550 titles in print, Pluto Press is one of the world's leading radical book publishers. We publish more than 70 new titles each year." Pluto Press, "About Pluto Press," Pluto Press Website, undated
SOURCE: StandWithUs, "Radical Anti-Israel Author Distributed By University of Michigan Press," StandWithUs Michigan Newsletter, August 2007

WHO: Israel Shahak, "recently deceased, was professor emeritus of chemistry at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem...."
WHY: "He spent most of his career promoting naked antisemitism and his writings appear on neo-Nazi and Holocaust denial websites around the world. (Jewish antisemite may sound like an oxymoron but Shahak proved it is not.) He went beyond the simple endorsement of Arab positions, something common among other Israeli academic leftists, and also well beyond mere chic anti-Zionism. He openly hated Judaism and Jews. His writings center around the theme that Judaism is the fountain of all evil and that most of the world’s problems can ultimately be traced back to Judaism. He propounded the thesis that Judaism is a racist form of irrational anti-Gentile hatred."
FOR THE RECORD: "I am writing these lines in memoriam for my dear friend and comrade Dr. Israel Shahak, who died on July 2. His home on Bartenura Street in Jerusalem was a library of information about the human rights of the oppressed. The families of prisoners, the staff of closed and censored publications, the victims of eviction and confiscation--none were ever turned away. I have met influential "civil society" Palestinians alive today who were protected as students when Israel was a professor of chemistry at the Hebrew University; from him they learned never to generalize about Jews. And they respected him not just for his consistent stand against discrimination but also because--he never condescended to them. He detested nationalism and religion and made no secret of his contempt for the grasping Arafat entourage. But, as he once put it to me, "I will now only meet with Palestinian spokesmen when we are out of the country. I have some severe criticisms to present to them. But I cannot do this while they are living under occupation and I can 'visit' them as a privileged citizen." This apparently small point of ethical etiquette contains almost the whole dimension of what is missing from our present discourse: the element of elementary dignity and genuine mutual recognition." Christopher Hitchens, "Israel Shahak, 1933-2001," The Nation, July 12, 2001 (July 23, 2001 issue)
SOURCE: 'Anti-Racist Blog,' "Racist Prof. Joel Kovel Is Just the Tip of the Iceberg: University of Michigan Also Connected to Jew Hater Israel Shahak Through Pluto Press Agreement," Anti-Racist Blog: Exposing Anti-Semitism and Anti-Zionism on American College Campuses, 24 September 2007

WHO: The Los Angeles City Planning Commission, the Los Angeles Dept. of Building and Safety and the Hancock Park Homeowners Association
WHY: "In a move reminiscent of the cowardly sneak attack on Israel during Yom Kippur 1973; Los Angeles officials moved in on Kehillat Yavneh during the Kol Nidrei services to shut it down. City of Los Angeles officials; claiming that the congregation was violating its permit by holding services after its 8pm time limit, ordered the congregants to vacate the congregation at 8:05pm. Congregation Kehillat Yavneh which is part of the prestigious Yeshivat Yavneh has been battling archaic and arbitrary zoning regulations for years. At last count, Yavneh was permitted to hold services up until 10pm on weekdays and 8pm on weekends. With Yom Kippur; the holiest day of the Jewish calendar being celebrated this year on a rare Friday night the shock of having armed officials order its closure is nothing short of blatant anti Semitism."
FOR THE RECORD: "Rabbi Daniel Korobkin was conducting Kol Nidrei services for some 200 Orthodox worshippers at Yeshivas Yavneh last Friday, when shortly after 8 p.m. two inspectors from the Los Angeles City Department of Building and Safety walked into the lobby. One inspector told a startled congregant that the service had run past the 8 p.m. closing time and that therefore the premises had to be vacated immediately. ... The roots of the potentially explosive incident lie in a bitter eight-year-old feud in the Hancock Park neighborhood, an upscale enclave of stately homes. ... Many longtime residents, including Jewish families, resented the intrusion and feared that the prayer services would expand into a full-fledged congregation. After considerable acrimony, Yavneh and the Hancock Park Homeowners Association agreed on a municipal conditional use permit. ... The caller notified the city that on the eve of Yom Kippur the stipulated 8 p.m. closing time for services would likely be violated. The complaint was handled at the lower levels of the building and safety department as a routine matter, according to spokesman David Keim, with the result that the two inspectors showed up during the Kol Nidrei service. ... "I am not saying this is necessarily anti-Semitism, but a city department made the intentional decision that the holiest day in the Jewish calendar would be the best time to catch worshippers in a minute violation," he said. Jolene Snet, a Jewish neighbor of the school and long active in the Hancock Park Homeowners Association, was not aware of the Friday incident and labeled it unfortunate. However, she said, "I believe as a citizen that Yavneh should comply fully with the terms of the conditional use permit." Tom Tugend, "City Building & Safety inspectors briefly interrupt Kol Nidrei services at Hancock Park shul," Jewish Journal, 25 September 2007
SOURCE: "UPDATED 1:45AM EST: Exclusive to Yeshivaworld: City of Los Angeles Anti Semitism Rears Its Ugly Head During Kol Nidrei," Yeshiva World News, 23 September 2007

WHO: John Mearsheimer, Stephen Walt, and Jimmy Carter
WHY: Mearsheimer and Walt for writing the new book, "The Israel Lobby" and former president Carter for writing "Palestine Peace Not Apartheid"
FOR THE RECORD: There is nothing even vaguely anti-Jewish about either of these books. The Mearsheimer-Walt book is just a factual portrayal (extensively documented throughout) of the Israel lobby in the United States and its influence and the Carter book is just a personal reflection on the Israel/Palestine issue. Neither of which are even anti-Zionist, much less anti-Semitic by any objective standard.
SOURCE: Anne Liebermann, "Whatever shall we do about Walt & Mearsheimer? cont'd," Boker Tov Boulder, 24 September 2007,

WHO: People who call themselves "Progressive" and most Democrats
WHY: Not much detail is given, but apparently the comments of Rep. Jim Moran (see last week) is the example: "In February of 2006 I wrote multiple articles warning the American Jewish community to wake up and realize that support for Israel was dwindling within the Democratic Party and blatant anti-Semitism was prevalent amongst the Progressive wing of the Party. A year and half later the term Progressive is now synonymous with anti-Semite, but the Democratic Party leadership may have woken up to the fact that they need to begin condemning the "blame the Jews" rhetoric stemming amongst some of their members."
FOR THE RECORD: This is just Right-wing slander without even the slightest pretense to reality.
SOURCE: 'Paulie,' "Democrats blast one of their own...finally!," Paulies Point, 21 September 2007

WHO: Fictional "Ferengi" from the "Star Trek" franchise, various monsters from "Star Wars: The Phantom Menace" movie, and maybe George Lucas?
WHY: "Today I mentioned offhand that I always thought the Ferengi were a Jewish caricature. My (Jewish) co-worker told me he had never considered that, never considered that the grubby, short, big nosed, big eared, money obsessed merchants could possibly be considered offensive. ... I wrote a paper in college about this same issue, what I feel is unconscious racism. ... A hook-nosed, conniving merchant/ slave trader. And what's more, he kind of SOUNDS Jewish. You half-expect him to start complaining about his mother. ... "
FOR THE RECORD: We're not overly concerned with defending the character of completely fictional space monsters.
SOURCE: Idea of Progress, "Racist? Ignorant?," The Idea of Progress, 20 September 2007,

WHO: Julio Pino, Associate Professor of History at Kent State University, Ohio, specializing in Latin American History.
WHY: "Pino is a Muslim extremist who advocates the mass murder of Jews while drawing a paycheck from the hard-working people of the great state of Ohio."
FOR THE RECORD: "A Kent State University faculty member accused of authoring an anti-American Web site said Thursday he 'absolutely' does not support jihad, even though his photo and writings by him appear on the site. ... He joined Kent in 1992 after receiving a doctorate at the University of California at Los Angeles. He converted to Islam in 2000. He received tenure -- a coveted academic appointment that in essence means lifetime employment -- several years ago for significant research and professional activities. ... 'He's a good professor,' said Chris Sutherland, a senior from Cuyahoga Falls. 'He's got a broad outlook, and he seems to know what he's talking about. He's funny, goofy.' Bill Hammerstorm, a senior from Hudson, said he was 'completely surprised' to see Pino linked to a jihadist Web site. 'It doesn't seem like it would be him,' he said. In a media release, KSU officials did not comment directly on the clamor to dismiss Pino. 'As any employer, when deciding whether an employee should be terminated, we have a responsibility to follow proper processes,' the release said." Staff Writer, "Kent State denies ties to jihadi site," Akron Beacon Journal, 1 March 2007
SOURCE: Mike Adams, "Pino 911," FrontPage Magazine, 26 September 2007

WHO: Noam Chomsky, joined the staff of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1955 and in 1961 was appointed full professor in the Department of Modern Languages and Linguistics (now the Department of Linguistics and Philosophy.) From 1966 to 1976 he held the Ferrari P. Ward Professorship of Modern Languages and Linguistics. In 1976 he was appointed Institute Professor. Professor Chomsky has received honorary degrees from University of London, University of Chicago, Loyola University of Chicago, Swarthmore College, Delhi University, Bard College, University of Massachusetts, University of Pennsylvania, Georgetown University, Amherst College, Cambridge University, University of Buenos Aires, McGill University, Universitat Rovira I Virgili, Tarragona, Columbia University, University of Connecticut, Scuola Normale Superiore, Pisa, University of Western Ontario, University of Toronto, Harvard University, University of Calcutta, and Universidad Nacional De Colombia. He is a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the National Academy of Science. In addition, he is a member of other professional and learned societies in the United States and abroad, and is a recipient of the Distinguished Scientific Contribution Award of the American Psychological Association, the Kyoto Prize in Basic Sciences, the Helmholtz Medal, the Dorothy Eldridge Peacemaker Award, the Ben Franklin Medal in Computer and Cognitive Science, and others. Chomsky has written and lectured widely on linguistics, philosophy, intellectual history, contemporary issues, international affairs and U.S. foreign policy.
WHY: "Noam Chomsky, the discredited linguistics professor at MIT, is one of the worst anti-Semites on earth. Son of a Jewish Hebrew teacher, Chomsky is a dogmatic Stalinist who hates Jews, Israel and the United States. ... He endorses terror attacks against Jews. He leads the campaign of support for Neo-Nazi Norman Finkelstein. ..."
FOR THE RECORD: "Alongside his career as a linguist, Chomsky has been active in left-wing politics. In 1965 he organized a citizen's committee to publicize tax refusal in protest to the war in Vietnam; four years later he published his first book on politics American Power and the New Mandarins. By the 1980's he had become both the most distinguished figure of American linguistics and one of the most influential left-wing critics of American foreign policy. He has been extremely prolific as a writer: his web-site in 2003 listed 33 book publications in linguistics (broadly construed), and although the individuation of his political books is complicated, their number definitely exceeds 40. According to a 1992 tabulation of sources from the previous 12 years in the Arts and Humanities Citation Index, Chomsky was the most frequently-cited person alive, and one of the eight most frequently-cited authors of all time. Chomsky's intellectual life had been divided between his work in linguistics and his political activism, philosophy coming as a distant third. Nonetheless, his influence among analytic philosophers has been enormous due to three factors. First, Chomsky contributed substantially to a major methodological shift in the human sciences, turning away from the prevailing empiricism of the middle of the twentieth century: behaviorism in psychology, structuralism in linguistics and positivism in philosophy. Second, his groundbreaking books on syntax (Chomsky (1957, 1965)) laid a conceptual foundation for a new, cognitivist approach to linguistics and provided philosophers with a new framework for thinking about human language and the mind. And finally, he has persistently defended his views against all takers, engaging in important debates with many of the major figures in analytic philosophy (Tyler Burge, Donald Davidson, Michael Dummett, Saul Kripke, Thomas Nagel, Hilary Putnam, Willard Van Orman Quine, John Searle, to cite a few) throughout his career." In Ernest LePore (ed.), Dictionary of Modern American Philosophers, 1860-1960, Bristol, 2004
SOURCE: Steven Plaut, "Chomsky and the Jewish er I mean Gilmore Girl Problem," Back to Sanity (Arutz Sheva), 26 September 2007