Doc's Talk: Defining Crime Against Humanity

Monday, April 08, 2013

Defining Crime Against Humanity

Yom Ha'Shoah Ve'Hagvurah Memorial Day, April 7, 2103

April 8, 2013 | Nurit Greenger

George Santayana, the Spanish- American philosopher, famously said “those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” Regrettably, in the 21^st Century, only 68 years since the allies brought Nazi Germany and Japan to submission, in Europe, the anti-Semitism poisonous snake is rearing its ugly head again. Europe has simply failed to learn from its darkest days of its much bloody history against Jews and others, much of which was stained and set up by anti-Semitism. It appears that the European continent is now condemned to repeat those same mistakes once again even if we say "Never Again".

Since WWII the nation of Israel has been under trauma. So, yes, each year we, Jews, repeat the Shoah-Holocaust story and we will repeat and tell it for eternity, as it is never enough, praying and making sure it will never happen again.

Like each year in Los Angeles, California, several hundred people, among them consuls of several countries, attended the memorial service at the Museum Of The Holocaust (LAMOTH) in Pan Pacific Park. )http://www.lamoth.org/(

The Los Angeles Museum of the Holocaust (LAMOTH)

Among the speakers were E. Randol Schoenberg, President and acting Executive Director of LAMOTH, David Segal, Israel Consul General, Los Angeles mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, Jona Goldrich, among the founders of the museum, and Theodore Bikel who also sang, in Yiddish, the Partisans' song Zog Nit Keyn Mol, meaning, 'Never Once Say it'. The keynote speaker was Ruth Klüger, a Holocaust survivor, born in 1931, who was only six years old when Hitler marched into Vienna and today a Professor Emeritus of German literature at the University of California, Irvine and the author of the bestseller weiter leben: Eine Jugend (Continue to Live. One Youth), about her childhood in the Third Reich. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ruth_Kl%C3%Bcger)

Ruth Klüger

What is to the write about such a somber event? What is to write about the mass murder the Nazi German perpetrating against the Jewish nation for no other reason but for them being Jews?

What is to the write about a world that turned its back on the Jews when they were seeking to escape the Nazis claws and find shelter outside of Nazi Europe?

The word Holocaust is a camouflage for the words Mass Murder; YES, the German Nazi nation perpetrated a mass murder of Six Million [some say even more] Jews, almost a mass murder of the entire People.

There was only one Shoah and we must not be shy to call it the worst mass crime of one type of human beings against another type of human beings, in the history of mankind.

But what is worse to know is that Hitler did not want to kill the Jews, he just did not want them living in the land he ruled. But when the world did not want them either and, at large, closed the doors of possible refuge, Hitler found the "easy" Final Solution, which was to kill the entire Jewish nation and he almost succeeded.

So when we talk about crimes against humanity, we can point fingers at many nations that, directly and indirectly, gave a hand to the Nazi Germans to perpetrate their evil deeds.

The Shoah was the amputating of the Jewish People's limbs but not their soul. One of three Jews on earth was murdered in the 4 years of the war. Miraculously, these limbs started to grow back with the establishment of the State of Israel. But the trauma is far from over and forgotten because, the Shoah is an event that is larger than life and too big not to remember. It is the defining crime against humanity.

Yes, God commanded the Jewish people to have forgiveness and mercy in their heart, but not foolishness. So I am here, as each year, to remind my fellow Jews: Stay vigilant and never forget what can happen again.

Today, when the Jewish State of Israel, the Jewish Nation's only state, is attacked by any mean possible, whether it is political, economic, via media, and cyber, lies and deception, each Jew needs to remain wary and mean when he or she say, NEVER AGAIN.

The slumber and indifference is unacceptable, for indifference begins with silence; evil begins with silence. We must speak up and tell the Shoah facts and never be shy to tell it as it was, the worst crime against humanity. Yes, Jews are part of humanity.

The history of the Shoah is the guiding light to the future, based on the evil history of the past.

There will never be justice for 6Million murdered Jews, among them 1.5Million children who did not even exactly know what to be a Jew meant and for sure did not understand why Germans, in uniform decorated in the Swastika badges hated them so much, so they hunted them in order to kill them.

There will never be real justice for the 6Million innocent dead Jews. Give a voice to the voiceless.

Remember Never to Forget!

***

The song 'Zog Nit Keyn Mol', Yiddish: זאָג ניט קיין מאָל, also referred to as Partizaner Lid or, the Partisans' song, was written in 1943 by Hirsh Glick, a young Jewish inmate of the Vilna Ghetto. The song is considered the anthem of the Holocaust survivors and is sung in memorial services around the world.

The title means "Never Once Say it", has derived from the first line of the song, "Never say that you are going on the final road." During WWII, "Zog Nit Keynmol" was adopted by a number of Jewish partisans' groups operating in eastern Europe. It became a symbol of resistance against Nazi Germany's persecution of the Jews and the Shoah.

Hirsch was inspired to write the song by news of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising and the song needs to become the second anthem of the Jewish people after Ha'Tikvah: Never say you are going on your final road, as you did not, and you have become a free nation in your own, ancient country, Israel.

Chava Alberstein - ZOG NIT KAYN'MOL - Jewish Partisan's Anthem - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-wgYnYSg3Zs

And

Partisan Song sung by Annie Lederhendler - http://blip.tv/yiddish-book-center-video/partisan-song-sung-by-annie-lederhendler-6098040

---

Partizaner Lid or, the Partisans' Song (http://www.zemereshet.co.il/song.asp?id=162(

Original Yiddish

זאָג נישט קיינמאָל!

זאָג ניט קיין מאָל, אַז דו גייסט דעם לעצטן וועג,

כאָטש הימלען בלײַענע פֿאַרשטעלן בלויע טעג.

קומען וועט נאָך אונדזער אויסגעבענקטע שעה

ס׳וועט אַ פּויק טאָן אונדזער טראָט: מיר זײַנען דאָ

פֿון גרינעם פּאַלמען-לאַנד ביז ווייַטן לאַנד פֿון שניי,

מיר קומען אָן מיט אונדזער פּייַן, מיט אונדזער וויי,

און וווּ געפֿאַלן איז אַ שפּריץ פֿון אונדזער בלוט,

שפּראָצן וועט דאָרט אונדזער גבֿורה אונדזער מוט.

ס'וועט די מאָרגן-זון באַגילדן אונדז דעם הייַנט,

און דער נעכטן וועט פֿאַרשווינדן מיטן פֿייַנט,

נאָר אויב פֿאַרזאַמען וועט די זון אין דעם קאַיאָר-

ווי אַ פּאַראָל זאָל גיין דאָס ליד פֿון דור צו דור.

דאָס ליד געשריבן איז מיט בלוט און ניט מיט בליי,

ס'איז ניט קיין לידל פֿון אַ פֿויגל אויף דער פֿרייַ,

דאָס האָט אַ פֿאָלק צווישן פֿאַלנדיקע ווענט

דאָס ליד געזונגען מיט נאַגאַנעס אין די הענט.

טאָ זאָג ניט קיינמאָל אַז דו גייסט דעם לעצטן וועג,

כאָטש הימלען בלייענע פֿאַרשטעלן בלויע טעג.

קומען וועט נאָך אונדזער אויסגעבענקטע שעה –

ס'וועט אַ פּויק טאָן אונדזער טראָט – מיר זייַנען דאָ!

English version

Never say you are going on your final road,

Although leadened skies block out blue days,

Our longed-for hour will yet come

Our step will beat out - we are here!

From a land of green palm trees to the white land of snow

We arrive with our pain, with our woe,

Wherever a spurt of our blood fell,
On that spot shall spurt forth our courage and our spirit.

The morning sun will brighten our day

And yesterday will disappear with our foe.

But if the sun delays to rise at dawn,

Then let this song be a password for generations to come.

This song is written with our blood, not with lead,

It is not a song of a free bird flying overhead.

Amid crumbling walls, a people sang this song,

With grenades in their hands.

So, never say the road now ends for you,

Although skies of lead block out days of blue.

Our longed-for hour will yet come –

Our step will beat out - we are here!

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The IDF’s Minorities in Numbers and Pictures

In honor of IDF Diversity Week, we present diversity through numbers and pictures. Each year, more and more Muslims, Christians, Druze, Bedouin and immigrants from around the world take on the responsibility of defending Israel.

MUSLIMS:

Muslim Arab Israelis are not required to draft in the IDF, but there are many who volunteer. In 2013, there were over 200 Muslims serving in the IDF and over 300 in the reserves.

Bedouins:

Bedouins are nomadic Muslims who were in Israel when modern borders were set in place and are now considered Israeli citizens. They are not required to draft but a growing number choose to enlist. In 2012, there were over 1,400 Bedouin Muslim soldiers doing regular IDF service and almost 1,500 in the reserves.

Read more:http://www.idfblog.com/2014/02/27/truth-idf-numbers-pictures/#more-34027

Are you aware that in 2013, Middle class taxes go up-significantly?

In January of next year, the federal income tax rate for middle-class taxpayers is scheduled to rise from 25 percent to 28 percent, and the payroll tax is scheduled to rise from 13.3 percent to 15.3 percent… This drives the marginal tax rate based on the aforementioned three taxes to 48.12 percent. Add in state and local property, corporate, excise, and other state and local taxes, and the percentage of each additional dollar that is taxed hovers around 50 percent… When half of each additional dollar earned is taxed away, taxpayers experience a disincentive to start businesses or expand existing ones. This leads to fewer jobs being created.

Why is HAMAS Inside Tampa Schools?

Clare Lopez

Kelly Miliziano, who teaches history classes at Steinbrenner High School in the Tampa, Florida area apparently thinks it’s perfectly OK to invite a senior official of a HAMAS-affiliated organization into her classroom to discuss Islam with her students. According to local media reports, not only has this been going on for years, but in spite of the civil and criminal proceedings that could result from such reckless negligence, the Hillsborough County school superintendent, Mary Ellen Elia, and the chairman of the school board, Candy Olson, also expressed approval for students under their responsibility to be exposed repeatedly to guest speaker, Hassan Shibly, who is the Executive Director for the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) in the Tampa area.
More...

Did You Know... Ignoring the Call to Islam will Bring Jihad

‘Conquest through Da’wa [proselytizing] that is what we hope for. We will conquer Europe, we will conquer America! Not through sword but through Da’wa.’
-- Yousef al-Qaradawi , Muslim Brotherhood spiritual leader The Arabic word ‘Da’wa’ means the “call to Islam.” But do not think that Da’wa is the same thing as an invitation to an optional holiday event. The classical Islamic doctrine of jihad mandates that enemies must be given the opportunity to convert to Islam or pay the jizya tax before it is permissible to attack them.
Clare M. Lopez

Who is being discriminated-facts tell the truth

Religious bias

Hate crimes motivated by religious bias accounted for 1,409 offenses reported by law enforcement. A breakdown of the bias motivation of religious-bias offenses showed:

65.4 percent were anti-Jewish.
13.2 percent were anti-Islamic.
9.5 percent were anti-other religion, i.e., those not specified.
4.3 percent were anti-Catholic.
3.8 percent were anti-multiple religions, group.
3.3 percent were anti-Protestant.
0.5 percent were anti-Atheism/Agnosticism/etc.

http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/hate-crime/2010/narratives/hate-crime-2010-incidents-and-offenses.

On March 31, 1977, the Dutch newspaper Trouw published an interview

with PLO executive committee member Zahir Muhsein. Here's what he said:

"The Palestinian people does not exist. The creation of a Palestinian state is only a means for continuing our struggle against the state of Israel for our Arab unity. In reality today there is no difference between Jordanians, Palestinians, Syrians and Lebanese. Only for political and tactical reasons do we speak today about the existence of a Palestinian people, since Arab national interests demand that we posit the existence of a distinct "Palestinian people" to oppose Zionism.

For tactical reasons, Jordan, which is a sovereign state with defined borders, cannot raise claims to Haifa and Jaffa, while as a Palestinian, I can undoubtedly demand Haifa, Jaffa, Beer-Sheva and Jerusalem. However, the moment we reclaim our right to all of Palestine, we will not wait even a minute to unite Palestine and Jordan."

In March 1977, Zahir Muhsein, a PLO executive, said:

"The Palestinian people does not exist. The creation of a Palestinian state is only a means for continuing our struggle against the state of Israel for our Arab unity. In reality today there is no difference between Jordanians, Palestinians, Syrians and Lebanese. Only for political and tactical reasons do we speak today about the existence of a Palestinian people, since Arab national interests demand that we posit the existence of a distinct Palestinian people to oppose Zionism."

"For tactical reasons, Jordan, which is a sovereign state with defined borders, cannot raise claims to Haifa and Jaffa, while as a Palestinian, I can undoubtedly demand Haifa, Jaffa, Beer-Sheva and Jerusalem. However, the moment we reclaim our right to all of Palestine, we will not wait even a minute to unite Palestine and Jordan."

The Arab Apartheid

Ben-Dror Yemini
In 1948, the Arab countries refused to accept the UN partition proposal and they launched a war of annihilation against the State of Israel which had barely been established. All precedents in this matter showed that the party that starts the war - and with a declaration of annihilation, yet - pays a price for it. Between 550,000 and 710,000 Arabs fled because of the war and a larger number of 850,000 Jews were expelled or fled from Arab countries (the "Jewish nakba").
Population exchanges and expulsions were the norm at that time, occurring in dozens of other conflict points and affecting about 52 million people. In all the population exchange precedents that occurred during or at the end of an armed conflict, there was no return of refugees to the previous region, which had turned into a new national state.
Only the Arab states acted completely differently from the rest of the world. Instead of assimilating the refugees, they crushed them despite the fact that they were their coreligionists and members of the Arab nation - instituting a regime of apartheid. So the "nakba" was not caused by the actual dispossession, which had also been experienced by tens of millions of others. The "nakba" is the story of the apartheid, oppression, abuse and denial of rights suffered by the Arab refugees at the hands of the Arab countries. (Maariv)

International Law and Military Operations in Practice - Col. Richard Kemp

"Islamist fighting groups study the international laws of armed conflict carefully and they understand it well. They know that a British or Israeli commander and his men are bound by international law and the rules of engagement that flow from it. They then do their utmost to exploit what they view as one of their enemy's main weaknesses. Their very modus operandi is built on the correct assumption that Western armies will normally abide by the rules, while these insurgents employ a deliberate policy of operating consistently outside international law. "

Lost Historical Moments

What Rabin’s last Knesset speech really said:repudiation of a Palestinian state

Rabin ruled out a fully sovereign Palestinian state :

“We view the permanent solution in the framework of State of Israel which will include most of the area of the Land of Israel as it was under the rule of the British Mandate, and alongside it a Palestinian entity which will be a home to most of the Palestinian residents living in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. We would like this to be an entity which is less than a state, and which will independently run the lives of the Palestinians under its authority.”

Rabin ruled out a total withdrawal from Judea and Samaria and thus a return to the pre-June 1967 borders :

“The borders of the State of Israel, during the permanent solution, will be beyond the lines which existed before the Six Day War. We will not return to the 4 June 1967 lines.”

Rabin ruled out withdrawing form the Jordan Valley:

“The security border of the State of Israel will be located in the Jordan Valley, in the broadest meaning of that term.”

Rabin ruled out uprooting settlement blocs, like the Gush Katif bloc in Gaza (which was subsequently uprooted by former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon):

“The establishment of blocs of settlements in Judea and Samaria, like the one in Gush Katif.

AND

Rabin ruled out removing any settlement before coming to a full peace agreement with the Palestinians:

“I want to remind you: we committed ourselves, that is, we came to an agreement, and committed ourselves before the Knesset, not to uproot a single settlement in the framework of the interim agreement, and not to hinder building for natural growth.”

Rabin insisted on Israel retaining full security control of the borders with Egypt and Jordan, contrary to Israel’s relinquishment of the Philadelphia Corridor on the border with Egypt:

“The responsibility for external security along the borders with Egypt and Jordan, as well as control over the airspace above all of the territories and Gaza Strip maritime zone, remains in our hands.”

Correcting Oslo Myths-Part 2

3) Kuttab laments that the post-1993 Oslo process resulted in a Palestinian Authority "whose ministers and legislators are not guaranteed passage between Gaza and the West Bank ...."

Before free passage or other perquisites, PA leaders were obligated, among other things, to eliminate the terrorist infrastructure in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, end anti-Israeli, antisemitic incitement in schools, mosques, and communications media, and resolve all outstanding issues through peaceful negotiations. They met none of these commitments, sometimes bolstering terrorism and greatly increasing incitement.

4) Kuttab complains that under Oslo the PA got "lightly armed police ---- but no real sovereignty over the land or contiguity between our communities in Gaza and the West Bank."

Oslo agreements repeatedly were revised, regardless of Palestinian non-compliance, until the authorized number of police grew from 8,000 to 40,000. Though they were to be the only armed forces in the territories, Israeli estimates early in the second intifada put the number of gunmen - police, "security services," terrorists, and armed gangs - at 85,000. Their armament reportedly included not only heavy machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades, but also anti-tank and anti-aircraft missiles.

Sovereignty was to be negotiated in the envisioned 1998 "final status" talks - after a five-year period of confidence-building. Palestinian leadership chronically undermined the process. Palestinian terrorism made the 1993 - 1998 Oslo period more deadly for Israelis than the 15 years preceding it.

The United States doesn't have contiguity between the lower 48 states and Alaska and Hawaii; territorial contiguity between the West Bank and Gaza Strip - that is, through the 20 miles of Israeli territory between them - was never promised and would destroy Israeli contiguity.

5) "Palestinians have been made to endure hundreds of checkpoints in the West Bank, an eight-foot wall deep in our territories, and tight Israeli control over borders."

The security barrier is not "deep in Palestinian territories," but rather encompasses less than 8 percent of Judea and Samaria, and is mostly a fence, rarely a wall; the land in question is not "our [Palestinian] territories" but disputed territory to which, according to the authors of U.N. Security Council Resolution 242, Jews as well as Arabs have claims; and there are no international borders, only the 1949 armistice lines with Jordan. Under 242, borders remain to be negotiated. As for checkpoints - like the security barrier and "tight Israeli control" - Palestinian Arabs precipitated these measures themselves. No terrorism and there would be no fence or tight Israeli control and few checkpoints - like before the first intifada.

Correcting Some Oslo Myths

1) In Oslo "Israeli, Palestinian and other world leaders promised that ... Palestinian sovereignty would be solidified."

No, they didn't. The 1993 Declaration of Principles and subsequent Oslo agreements outlined a process by which final status negotiations about the West Bank and Gaza Strip would be reached. The process required an end to anti-Israel terrorism and incitement and a commitment to peaceful negotiations. The PA, Fatah, Hamas, Islamic Jihad, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, and other terrorist groups, sabotaged the process from the start.

2) "The reality is that, in defiance of U.N. Security Council Resolution 242, which states that it is inadmissible to occupy land by force, Palestinian territories are still under foreign military occupation."
Wrong again. Resolution 242 (1967) does note "the inadmissibility of the acquisition of territory by war." It also affirms the right of every state in the area "to live in peace with secure and recognized boundaries free from threats or acts of force." There were no "Palestinian territories." Jordan occupied the West Bank, Egypt controlled Gaza. Israel did not have "secure and recognized boundaries," so retention of some of those territories was possible under 242. Israel is not a "foreign" military occupier in the West Bank but, pending final negotiations, the lawful military administrator as a result of a successful war of self-defense.

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