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[Zenith]

See, I knew it was an apt comparison.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/wor...rvivors-warn-of-stirrings-of-neo-fascism.html

Survivors of the Holocaust have warned of the first stirrings of neo-fascism in Israel following the emergence of a Right-wing campaign to cleanse Arabs from predominantly Jewish parts of the country.

Until this month, the shadowy Lehava organisation was best known for issuing an eccentric demand in March urging Bar Refaeli, an Israeli model, not to marry Leonardo DiCaprio, the American actor, because he is a gentile.

The rabbis, some of them of senior rank, signed up to an edict issued last month that declared: "It is forbidden in the Torah to sell a house or a field in the land of Israel to a foreigner."

With its undertones reminiscent of 1930s Berlin, where Jews were relegated to second-class status and denied the right to rent German-owned properties, the pronouncement has appalled Holocaust survivors.

"As someone who suffered as a Jew and underwent the Holocaust, I remember the Nazis throwing Jews out of their apartments and city centres in order to create ghettos," said Noah Flug, the chairman of the International Association of Holocaust Survivors.

"I remember how they wrote on benches that no Jews were allowed, and of course it was prohibited to sell or rent to Jews. We thought that in our country this wouldn't happen."

As part of a campaign to "purify" the land of Israel, Lehava has also invited informants to denounce Jewish neighbours who have Arab tenants by telephoning a hotline. This week it distributed a letter from a group of rabbis' wives calling on Jewish girls not to go out with Arabs, work with them or perform national service in places where Arabs are employed.

Yet Israel's reputation of tolerance and inclusion towards its Arab minority has been tarnished. Chanting "death to the Arabs", a group of ultraorthodox Jews threw bottles and stones at a block of flats housing Arab students in the northern town of Safed. Elsewhere in the country, there have been several reported cases of Jewish gangs, one of them consisting of teenage girls, beating up Arabs on the street.

Mr Flug, who said many fellow survivors of the Holocaust had called him to express their anxiety, appealed to the Israeli government to take action against the rabbis. "Can you imagine what would happen if a Jew in Germany or Switzerland or Britain wanted to rent an apartment and neighbours or the mayor said no?" he said. "You must stop this kind of thing when it begins."

 

[speedpop]

About time some mofo stood up and stated the truth.

 

[SouthernDragon]

Thank you!

Finally!

 

[G_Berry]

Yay for religion!

 

[Trunchisholm]

Yay for religion!

Sure, being an asshole and a bigot has everything to do with religion... :-|

 

[leroy hacker]

It's very important to note: many of the rabbis who issued the letter against renting and selling are state appointed and supported. They can not be characterized as merely a fringe organization equivalent to the current American KKK.

The rabbis' wives don't have the same official status, but if someone wants to dismiss that letter as only reflecting some fringe extremists, I wonder what they have to say about the fact that Jews and Muslims can't marry in Israel.

 

[Leonidas]

Not surprising.

 

[News Bot]

Oppressed something something as oppressors.

 

[Kuro Madoushi]

Hmm...interesting comparisons.

I agree and would like to see a good response to this aside from the constant self-victimization of events 50-??? years ago to legitimize their actions.

 

[Jasup]

They don't know what they're talking about, their people weren't killed in holoc... oh...

 

[Dragon]

Sure, being an asshole and a bigot has everything to do with religion... :-|

I think one can blame religion for certain events without denouncing it as bad. Just like you can blame a small infant for cracking their head on a table even though they don't know any better.

 

[TacticalFox88]

*Dances* Hopefully this means we'll call out the dumb shit they do....

....


....

 

[Clay Davis]

Yet Israel's reputation of tolerance and inclusion towards its Arab minority has been tarnished. Chanting "death to the Arabs", a group of ultraorthodox Jews threw bottles and stones at a block of flats housing Arab students in the northern town of Safed. Elsewhere in the country, there have been several reported cases of Jewish gangs, one of them consisting of teenage girls, beating up Arabs on the street.

:/

Not surprised in the least that this hasn't received any kind of proper coverage in the West.

 

[justjohn]

The new decade is off to a good start.

 

[jett]

Goddamn anti-semites!

 

[Shao Kahn Brewing a Stew]

Fucking Wikileaks, ruining all the fun!

 

[Veidt]

Goddamn anti-semites!

Pretty much.
Just because you survived the holocaust doesn't mean that you can't be an antisemite.

 

[DarkKyo]

Fuck Israel. Seriously...

 

[Particle Physicist]

Until this month, the shadowy Lehava organisation was best known for issuing an eccentric demand in March urging Bar Refaeli, an Israeli model, not to marry Leonardo DiCaprio, the American actor, because he is a gentile.

In the broader political spectrum, Lehava may represent a tiny minority of malcontents

The provenance of Lehava -- whose Hebrew acronym stands for "Preventing Assimilation in the Holy Land" -- remains largely a mystery, although there is evidence to suggest that it comprises remnants of Kach, a far-Right movement banned in 1994. One of the only individuals publicly associated with Lehava is Baruch Marzel, a former Kach spokesman.

Sounds like a crazy fringe group.

 

[Byakuya769]

Yay for religion!

Spring-loaded asshole action.

 

[jdogmoney]

Okay, even though I'm a Militant Internet Atheist (TM), I generally think "lol, religion" comments are, at best, misplaced.

That being said, how is religion not one of the major factors here, if not the absolute biggest?

 

[Leonidas]

Sounds like a crazy fringe group.

Sounds like there are a lot to fringe groups in Israel and some of them are being inspired or lead by people who are on the payroll of the Israeli government. The term fringe doesn't apply when something becomes a normality in a society.

 

[RustyNails]

See, I knew it was an apt comparison.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/wor...rvivors-warn-of-stirrings-of-neo-fascism.html

You forgot to highlight the most telling part in your article quotes:

Yet Israel's reputation of tolerance and inclusion towards its Arab minority has been tarnished. Chanting "death to the Arabs", a group of ultraorthodox Jews threw bottles and stones at a block of flats housing Arab students in the northern town of Safed. Elsewhere in the country, there have been several reported cases of Jewish gangs, one of them consisting of teenage girls, beating up Arabs on the street.

Mr Flug, who said many fellow survivors of the Holocaust had called him to express their anxiety, appealed to the Israeli government to take action against the rabbis. "Can you imagine what would happen if a Jew in Germany or Switzerland or Britain wanted to rent an apartment and neighbours or the mayor said no?" he said. "You must stop this kind of thing when it begins."

Oppressed something something as oppressors.

Hurt people hurt people.

 

[TheKaeptain]

Goddamn anti-semites!

Where the hell is the Fio guy?

 

[Byakuya769]

Okay, even though I'm a Militant Internet Atheist (TM), I generally think "lol, religion" comments are, at best, misplaced.

That being said, how is religion not one of the major factors here, if not the absolute biggest?

Same reason it's ignored as a major factor when orthodox jews and religious arabs push for reconciliation.

 

[RustyNails]

Where the hell is the Fio guy?

In the Ban Ghetto!

 

[AlphaSnake]

Really, so now we're going to generalize and say all Jews are doing this? Did you people even read the article? It's an ultra small minority group doing this stuff, not even tied to the government.

Going by this thread's stupid ass logic, the United States is on the verge of becoming Nazi Germany, thanks to the KKK and all. Or Arab countries can be compared to Nazi Germany with how they treat non-Muslims, thanks to a minority group of idiots. Yes, let's blame the entire nation. Seriously, what a stupid fucking thread. Nazi Germany was an entire government worth millions of people in service purging millions of people, not just Jews.

This article isn't even .00001% on that scale.

 

[AlphaSnake]

Lehava may represent a tiny minority of malcontents but there is growing unease in Israel after the message about renting homes was effectively endorsed by 300 rabbis.

Reach for the stars, GAF. :lol

That's about 300 out of....100,000 Rabbis in Israel?

 

[Lazy vs Crazy]

Really, so now we're going to generalize and say all Jews are doing this? Did you people even read the article? It's an ultra small minority group doing this stuff, not even tied to the government.

Going by this thread's stupid ass logic, the United States is on the verge of becoming Nazi Germany, thanks to the KKK and all. Or Arab countries can be compared to Nazi Germany with how they treat non-Muslims, thanks to a minority group of idiots. Yes, let's blame the entire nation. Seriously, what a stupid fucking thread. Nazi Germany was an entire government worth millions of people in service purging millions of people, not just Jews.

This article isn't even .00001% on that scale.

It's happening in other places so it's ok for people in Israel to do it.

Compelling argument.

 

[Zenith]

Sounds like a crazy fringe group.

44% of people supported their call to not sell property to Arabs. Then there's the deliberate scuppering of the latest peace talks by the Finance Minister and leader of the ultra-right wing party. And someone's already mentioned how the rabbis are anything but fringe.

 

[TheHeretic]

Comparing Israel, with its faults, to Nazi Germany not only relies on the most vapid and shallow comparisons thrown around in discussion, but its pure hyperbole.

 

[ToxicAdam]

Ideologues using small fringe groups to smear their enemies and win public favor? What an interesting topic.

 

[Zenith]

Ideologues using small fringe groups to smear their enemies and win public favor? What an interesting topic.

The chairman of the International Association of Holocaust Survivors is an enemy of Israel? Interesting logic there...

 

[AlphaSnake]

It's happening in other places so it's ok for people in Israel to do it.

Compelling argument.

Oh, I said that? Where the fuck did I say that?

The point I made was that the post is filled with absurd propaganda and hyperbole that normally shouldn't be worth two shits to anyone with half a brain. The fact of the matter is that there is a minority of batshit people (religious or not) like those in the news article no matter what part of the world you're in.

 

[Sapiens]

This news would make Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper's face explode.

Srsly, he has a big, mysterious boner for Isreal.

http://www.ctv.ca/CTVNews/QPeriod/20101108/harper-israel-101108/

 

[movie_club]

Pretty much.
Just because you survived the holocaust doesn't mean that you can't be an antisemite.

:lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol

im pretty sure jett was being sarcastic....

 

[Omiee]

well about fucking time somebody said this shit, if i ever said this shit to somebody here they would think im a member of a terorist group.
have they even seen the large walls israel has build around places where arabs live, as if to contain them like animals in a zoo.
but hey nothing that can be done about it, america will protect israel till the end of time.

 

[ToxicAdam]

The chairman of the International Association of Holocaust Survivors is an enemy of Israel? Interesting logic there...

:lol


You are incapable of turning off your hyperbole. I said no such thing, yet you immediately jump to the furthest interpretation of my meaning. You can be under the same flag and still have (ideological) "enemies" in your own nation. I know you are trying to fan the flames of this thread, but let's keep it dialed down to 7.

 

[Leonidas]

Oh, I said that? Where the fuck did I say that?

The point I made was that the post is filled with absurd propaganda and hyperbole that normally shouldn't be worth two shits to anyone with half a brain. The fact of the matter is that there is a minority of batshit people (religious or not) like those in the news article no matter what part of the world you're in.

you're not reading the thread

44% of people supported their call to not sell property to Arabs. Then there's the deliberate scuppering of the latest peace talks by the Finance Minister and leader of the ultra-right wing party. And someone's already mentioned how the rabbis are anything but fringe.

^^^^^^^^^^

 

[Leonidas]

:lol


You are incapable of turning off your hyperbole. I said no such thing, yet you immediately jump to the furthest interpretation of my meaning. You can be under the same flag and still have (ideological) "enemies" in your own nation. I know you are trying to fan the flames of this thread, but let's keep it dialed down to 7.

You're acting as if you weren't the one who used the word enemies.

 

[Veidt]

:lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol

im pretty sure jett was being sarcastic....

But I was being sarcastic too..

I guess sarcasm within another sarcasm, doesn't really work.:lol

 

[AlphaSnake]

you're not reading the thread

^^^^^^^^^^

I'd like to see the source of this.

 

[Leonidas]

I'd like to see the source of this.

http://www.haaretz.com/news/nationa...forbidding-rentals-to-arabs-in-safed-1.333825

 

[Arde5643]

heil sieg Zion?

 

[leroy hacker]

Really, so now we're going to generalize and say all Jews are doing this?

Who said all Jews are doing this?

It's an ultra small minority group doing this stuff, not even tied to the government.

Many of these rabbis are state appointed and salaried chief rabbis.

 

[AlphaSnake]

http://www.haaretz.com/news/nationa...forbidding-rentals-to-arabs-in-safed-1.333825

My problems with polls like these are that they gauge a reaction from an Israeli University and Palestinian research facility. The sample is likely small and not very indicative of both the Israeli and Palestinian populations (age, cultures, denominations, financial status, marital status, etc.).

My point still stands, this is just a vocal minority making noise as they do everywhere else in the world. And for whatever it's worth, I hate religion.

 

[Leonidas]

My problems with polls like these are that they gauge a reaction from an Israeli University and Palestinian research facility. The sample is likely small and not very indicative of both the Israeli and Palestinian populations (age, cultures, denominations, financial status, marital status, etc.).

My point still stands, this is just a vocal minority making noise as they do everywhere else in the world. And for whatever it's worth, I hate religion.

Your point doesn't stand because you dismiss any evidence that doesn't agree with your point.

 

[Kad5]

My problems with polls like these are that they gauge a reaction from an Israeli University and Palestinian research facility. The sample is likely small and not very indicative of both the Israeli and Palestinian populations (age, cultures, denominations, financial status, marital status, etc.).

My point still stands, this is just a vocal minority making noise as they do everywhere else in the world. And for whatever it's worth, I hate religion.

As mentioned previously the rabbis are state-appointed.

 

[Tears For Fears]

While I would say something appropriate for this topic, I fear being banned for coming off a little to strong. I shall say we agree to disagree.

 

[leroidys]

Okay, even though I'm a Militant Internet Atheist (TM), I generally think "lol, religion" comments are, at best, misplaced.

That being said, how is religion not one of the major factors here, if not the absolute biggest?

Kind of, but it's not that simple. The crazy thing about the arab palestinian conflict is of course that they are basically the same peoples, it's more of an internecine war when looked at from a genetic perspective. So of course what sets them apart is their self identification as complete groups, in this case religion plays a large part in the national identity of course, but it is not simply an innate function of religion.