It’s not often that I break into my queue. Not because I am rigid- but because there often is not a special reason to say something right NOW.
Not today.
This past week demonstrated the effects of TheDonald, with his dog-whistles, with his outright lies, with his demonization of others.
First of all, let’s be clear that TheDonald can claim “clean hands” only in the strict sense of the words. After all, he didn’t pay these guys. He might not even know them.
But, his language and his actions empowers them. Any leader that has the audacity to declare that a public official who body slams a reporter is “his guy”, any leader who can equate Nazi thugs and civilians, any leader who claims that there are Islamic terrorists in the Central American March (and when confronted about this heinous lie admits there is no such data- but “there could be”)….
Yes. There is commonality between Germany in the 1930s and America in the late 2010’s. And, as such, we must decry and denounce these actions by TheDonald and his minions- and those he promotes. (It is way past time for the lying man who declared that Bret Kavanaugh deserved the right of innocence until proven guilty [a standard that NEVER applies to any job applicant; as is routinely enforced each and every day by companies across the US]- to stop his acolytes from screaming “lock her up” or “lock him up”- when investigations have proven them to be innocent. [Not so for Justice Kavanaugh, I might add.]
The 14 folks who TheDonald declares as his enemies were the ones chosen to be sent those bombs. The galling thing to me? This perpetrator (I will not publicize the idiot’s name) drove a van with markings denoting targets -crosshairs- for many of these folks. No one reported him to the authorities. [Note: It is very difficult to prosecute an American citizen who perpetrates terrorism on American soil as a terrorist. It is a vagary of our justice system.]
And, I’ll bet many of the folks who saw this terrorist are among those that call the authorities when they see “The Other” (be it Black, Brown, Jew, or Moslem) to decry their presence.
No, I’m not exaggerating. Even though I wish I were.
But, it wasn’t just that terrorist who got the green light signal from TheDonald. No, There was the man who shot two in the Kroger parking lot in Louisville when he couldn’t invade a Black Church.
And, then, this past Shabat, we had the thug who murdered 11 folks in the Tree of Life Synagogue in Squirrel Hill (Pittsburgh). [Note: The Tree of Life is another name for the Tora.] No one had previously reported him to the authorities, either. Despite his rantings and ravings that the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society (HIAS), the organization that my family(and I, of course) have been supporting for decades, needed to be stopped.
After all, HIAS has expanded it’s activities from supporting Jewish immigrants to the USA (and other lands) to include all political refugees around the world. Because, the Jews from the FSU (Former Soviet Union), the Muslim countries, Venezuela, and Argentina have almost all been banished to other lands. So, they have been rescued from their plights.
That’s why now folks from Yemen, Venezuela, conflict lands in Africa and South America receive HIAS assistance. This thug got the names of the donors and their addresses from HIAS’ acknowledgement of gifts. And, the thug could kill Jews – and his mind- hurt the immigrant cause at the same time.
And, that’s why he attacked those innocents in Pittsburgh. (He also maimed a few first-responders who were only armed with a handgun against his assault rifles.)
(I do acknowledge that FINALLY TheDonald recognized the tremendous rise in anti-Semitism that has accompanied his jingoistic cries; as he decried the Pittsburgh massacre of Jews in shul. I hoped it would persist. But, like his acknowledgement that Dr. Ford presented valid information that evaporated in 24 hours, I feared this is but another “false flag” from theDonald. Oh, wait. He already is blaming us- the Jews- for not having armed guards inside and outside the shul. Then, this never would have happened. Right. Always with the guns. Shooting. Not the regulation of guns to keep Americans safe.)
Interestingly, it seems that synagogues in Pennsylvania were not among the institutions that had police protection. (I already remarked about my shul from Charlottesville days [Congregation Beth Israel] lacked police presence when a Nazi thug with an assault weapon stood by the front entrance of the shul on that fateful Shabat morning.] My synagogue has at least one- if not two- policemen every Shabat and holiday. My old synagogue- and those others in the tri-state (ok, DC, VA and MD- where DC is not a state) area- have either police presence on foot or in a marked car.
We must commend the Pittsburgh police who came to the rescue in rapid fashion- fast enough to draw the attention of the shooter, stopping his carnage, as he went outside to confront the police- and then retreat once again inside the shul.
By now you recognize these terrorists- the Florida bomb-maker, the Louisville shooter, the Pennsylvania machine gunner, the Virginian neoNazi all telegraphed their intentions- and we turned away. But, we have been attacked more often by such American terrorists than those who espouse “sharia law” or hail from “the Middle East” about whom TheDonald and his minions scream from their pulpits, their radio waves, and their websites.
As such, it is incumbent upon us to realize that when “they” post pictures of our leaders in crosshairs, when “they” say kill the Jews, when “they” vow Jews will not replace us, when “they” worry about an invasion of 4000 starving, unarmed refugees who are coming to request asylum (it is American policy that asylum must be sought at the borders- not at an embassy), such folks are not dismissed as cranks. We cannot relegate their statements as harmless rants or that they are simply blowing off steam. These are the signals that these folks intend to terrorize Americans, to do others bodily harm. We must report them and their missives to the FBI and to the State Police.
And, in that vein, I will report tomorrow about the anti-Semitism that is a growing problem in DC. (Yes, this is a follow-up to a previous post.)
And what did I get yesterday but an email with a video, explaining why we need a wall. No, I didn’t open it. If we don’t vote against this bullying and hate on November 6, we are in extreme peril.
It’s amazing to me that these folks worry about a wall (that won’t work- and will never be paid for by Mexico)- instead of building up our infrastructure- roads, bridges, schools, etc.
OMG Roy, that is so true, we need infrastructure bad in SC. Everyone blames the other as to why the roads are the way they are and the schools are so overcrowded. I’m beginning to think I wouldn’t see anything good anymore in my lifetime.
It’s time that we get Congress to devote resources for our infrastructure!
As an immigrant to Canada from the Netherlands the election of the D is incomprehensible to me. His verbiage is disgusting. His name calling of others is reprehensible and he most certainly is the cause of people loosing their inhibitions and just do and say as they please. I would never in a million years talk about other people the way he does and I am just a mere citizen. I taught my son to have respect for others regardless how low they are on the “totem pole”. In G-d’s eyes were are all equal….(even the D I wonder…..oiveh! What a bad bad bad example he sets. And how is it even possible that there are Americans who are well educated and who have experienced adversity still support this idiot? As an outsider I really, truly do not understand your country. Is the US from a planet which has not been discovered yet….? The scary things is that all of this hatred, this disgusting rhetoric, this dictatorship-like approach is spilling over into other countries. Who would have thought 10 years ago that we needed to worry about being subjected to anti-semitism. I certainly didn’t. I thought living in North America was safe. I am probably wrong….
I grew up with anti-Semitism. Even though it was in a New York City suburb. And, I encountered it when I traversed the South- and lived in Central Virginia. But, it had been attenuating until folks like TheDonald began his attack on Obama, which began to provide cover for folks like David Duke and the alt-right to spew their hatred in public. Which found the deeply hidden recesses in many other peoples’ souls and afforded them the opportunity to join the hatred wagons.
And, now, those feelings are throughout Europe and South America, too.
Not a good prognosis, Jessica!
No, you are right, not a good prognosis. We live in scary times, again….. I remember what my country looked like many years after WWII. My parents NEVER spoke about the war. We grew up with kindness and compassion for others. I have tried to pass this on to my son. I am quite anxious about what the future will hold. These days there are times when I actually take off my Magen David… who would have thought 10 years ago that I would do that. Sometimes I don’t want anybody to know that I am Jewish. Especially in the Toronto area with loads and loads of immigrants from countries like Iran….. I have always proudly shown my Jewishness, today less so…. Perhaps this is wrong, I don’t know.
It is all we can do- I’m thrilled that my children have grown with such feelings imbedded in their souls.
I’ve responded with a piece off line for you, Jessica.
Standing Up is Definitely what we all need to do. Terrorists are terrorists, no matter where they are from or what the color of their skin..
and it is so sad that we live in a world where we need armed guards in places of worship (i would understand security needed for any valuables or donations in such places but here it is for protecting those who come to worship, who come for peace of mind)
I am absolutely in agreement with you, Vidya.
And, I’m more annoyed that so many folks only think terrorist are “over there” or of a “darker shade of pale”- despite that the data shows it’s the White folks here that are the problem.