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Feb 27, 2010

SETTLER RABBI STONEWALLS ON SEX ABUSE CHARGE

 


Feb. 26, 2010
Richard Silverstein

SETTLER RABBI STONEWALLS ON SEX ABUSE CHARGE

Rabbi Mordechai Elon, accused of sexual abuse

Yet another prominent Orthodox rabbi has been charged with sexual abuse. This time it is Rabbi Mordechai Elon, one of the foremost rabbinic leaders of the Israeli Orthodox movement and former rosh yeshiva at the flagship Yeshivat HaRav, where last year a Palestinian mounted an assault which left several students dead. The result was that students of the yeshiva and other far right Jews went on a rampage and tried to burn down the home of the family of the perpetrator of the attack. Elon's brother is Benny, a former MK for a far-right pro-settler party.

At one time the rabbi was so renowned he'd hoped to be named chief rabbi. Alas, that hope is all but dashed as he was charged several years ago with abusing boys at his yeshiva:

Takana, a rabbinic forum established in 2003 to clamp down on sexual misconduct by Orthodox educators, went public February 15 with allegations that Mordechai "Moti" Elon had taken advantage of his influence over male students and performed "acts at odds with sacred and moral values."

The panel later said that two people, whose complaints alleged acts from about 25 years ago, had been under 18 at the time. More recent alleged acts involved students of Elon who were 18 or older. Since its initial disclosure, the panel reports having received one more complaint of an alleged underage encounter…

What is unusual about this case is that a splinter group of the Orthodox community is taking the position that the entire prosecution is an attempt to destroy rabbinic authority and the Orthodox movement. It calls for refusal to cooperate with state authorities (or to deal with the charge through a beyt din).

Rabbi Shlomo Aviner, leading Orthodox authority on child sex abuse, himself charged with offense

One of the leaders of this group is Rabbi Shalom Aviner, rosh yeshiva of Ateret Cohanim, one of the most extreme of Israeli yeshivot. It is preparing the religious and priestly rite for establishment of the Third Temple, a development which could cause a holy war if the point is pressed too intensely. Aviner is known as an enthusiastic supporter of extremist settler politics, having called Jewish terrorist Baruch Goldstein "a saint." He declared that anti-Occupation Israelis who refuse army service should be executed.  He called settlement evacuation a 'illegal crime.'  Ironically (when you read what I'm about to tell you), Aviner has also suggested that women would be justified in killing a man who is raping them.  No word though on how they would do so unless he plans to provide them a weapon during the assault.  This advice shows the rabbi's complete ignorance of the circumstances of most rapes:

"In either word or deed, fight him off. Yell out loud so that everyone can hear you. If he touches you, slap him. If he attempts to do worse, and there is no other choice, you can kill him…yes, kill him," Rabbi Aviner wrote.

In many cases, such resistance might lead to the victim's death or severe beating.  One shudders to think what the rabbi would think of a woman who did not resist out of such fear.

Rabbi Aviner also calls for all Orthodox Jews to report any sexual abuse, which at first glance is quite an advance over the traditional approach, which has been to hush such charges up and avoid them like the plague.  But in light of what I'm about to tell you you'll find it odd that he suggests one enormous loophole:

"If the beater or the abuser is aware of his problem and is willing to receive the proper therapy, and in addition meets his commitment and goes to therapy, and is supervised by responsible elements, only in such a case there is no need to report…

So, all the abuser must do to avoid civil punishment is go to therapy.  You'll note there is no mention by Rabbi Aviner of the necessity of the abuser refraining from abusing once he is in therapy.  The reason why this distinction is important is that Aviner has become the leading defender of the non-cooperation movement regarding the Elon case:

"I am telling everybody — keep silent," the head of Jerusalem's Ateret Cohanim Yeshiva, Rabbi Shlomo Aviner, told the Forward. He said that the affair must not be allowed to undermine the rabbis' authority.

No word on how Aviner squares this approach with his earlier pronouncement urging reporting abuse to civil authorities.  Apparently, Elon's agreement to pursue counseling convinced Aviner that reporting him was a sin.  But the Takanah rabbis disagreed strongly:

The[y] were very clear about why they chose to make the sexual-abuse allegations public now, several years after they themselves were made aware of them. When they were first informed about the charges, the rabbis said, they tried unsuccessfully to persuade the complainants to go to the police. In 2006, they also approached the attorney general at the time, Menachem Mazuz, who felt unable to probe the matter without the complainants' cooperation. The current attorney general, Yehuda Weinstein, has now told police to look into the allegations.

Stymied on the law-enforcement front, Takana rabbis said they demanded in 2006 that Elon cease face-to-face teaching, counseling and other rabbinic activities; he agreed. That year, he retired from his post at Yeshivat HaKotel and moved to the Galilee. But the forum rabbis say that Elon failed to honor his commitment, leaving them, according to a statement they released, with "no other way to protect the public from possible future harm" than by going public. The final straw was that the forum believed he had resumed counseling young men on sexual matters.

This points out the weakness of the Takana Forum.  It is entirely voluntary with the only threat or sanction the rabbis can use being public exposure.  Rabbi Elon has exposed this weakness and Rabbi Aviner is further undermining it.  What he doesn't realize is that he is harming Israeli Orthodox Judaism far more by endorsing impunity than a civil prosecution of Elon would.

Why might Aviner take such a position?  Well, it turns out he's likely to have his own sexual skeletons rattling in his closet.  Several websites whose goal is to track and report Jewish sexual abuse report Aviner himself has been accused of improprities with women he has counseled:

Back in 2002, serious allegations were made against Rabbi Shlomo Aviner of sexually harassing women both verbally and physically.

…In 2005, two women accused the Aviner of creating emotionally intimate relationships with them. These relationships included his expressions of his love for them during regular late-night phone conversations, extracting details from them of their sexuality and promoting an unhealthy emotional dependence on him.

Like in many other cases, those who tried to speak out where shunned and made to look as if they were crazy.

One wonders what the good rabbi would say if he sexually abused the women, would they have the right to kill him?  You can see how insane the situation is.

What's "crazy" is a religious community that bestows any respect on one of its leaders accused of the very crimes about which he makes moral pronouncements.  Only in such an insular environment can such a person not be viewed as hopelessly self-interested and suffering from an insurmountable conflict.

Not to mention that Aviner should be an embarrassment to his allies in the settler extremist movement.  Yes, the man is innocent till proven guilty.  But does that mean he needs to placed on a pedestal and his views about Baruch Goldstein or sexual abuse need to be honored as if they were halacha l'Moshe mi'Sinai ("the law according to Moses on Sinai")?

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Harvard Prof. Urges Genocide as Final Solution of Palestinian Problem

 

Mossad's Latest Blunder: The Dubai Assassination
Gwynne Dyer 

... The Dubai police say they are now "99 percent if not 100 percent sure" that [Israel's] Mossad was behind the murder, and most Western governments assume the same. Four Western governments are especially angry: Britain, France, Germany and Ireland, whose passports were used in the operation. Israel will doubtless promise once more never to do that again, and the fuss will eventually die down ... Many Israelis think they don't need to worry about this because everyone hates them anyway, but the wiser ones realise that the state's security and prosperity still depend heavily on the goodwill of Western countries. Actions like the Dubai operation, when they become public, erode that goodwill. But the wiser Israelis are not currently in the majority. 


The Mastermind Behind Mossad's Murder War 
The Sunday Times (Britain) 

... Mossad is now deeply embarrassed. Its use of the identities of British, French, German and Irish nationals as cover for agents to carry out the hit has angered western governments. In the ensuing diplomatic fall-out, sources close to Mossad said yesterday that it had suspended similar operations in the Middle East, mainly because of fear that heightened security would put its agents at greater risk. Dagan's job is also on the line. However, few believe that Mossad will give up the secret war it has long waged against Israel's enemies. 


Americans Concerned About Falling US Influence as China's Grows 
The Washington Post 

Facing high unemployment and a difficult economy, most Americans think the United States will have a smaller role in the world economy in the coming years, and many believe that while the 20th century may have been the "American Century," the 21st century will belong to China. 


Harvard Prof. Urges Genocide as Final Solution of Palestinian Problem 
M. J. Rosenberg - Huffington Post 

This has to be seen to be believed. Dr. Martin Kramer, a fellow at Harvard's National Security Studies Program, has posted a speech he delivered two weeks ago in Israel in which he urged solving the Palestinian refugee problem by population control, that is "stopping pro-natal subsidies to Palestinians with refugee status." In other words, starve the Palestinians so they don't have babies and, he seems to be saying, starving the babies so they don't grow up. That will help reduce the terrorist threat by preventing Palestinian babies from becoming "superfluous young men." It is, Kramer says, those "superfluous young men" who become radicals. 


Zionist Group Urges Donors and Student to Avoid UC Irvine
The Associated Press 

After months of growing tension between Jewish and Muslim students at the University of California, Irvine, the Zionist Organization of America is asking potential students to apply elsewhere and donors to stop sending contributions. The New York-based organization lambasted Chancellor Michael Drake in a statement Tuesday for not condemning anti-Semitic speech on campus and enabling a years-long history of "bigotry, discrimination and the violation of civil rights" by the school's Muslim Student Union. 


A Country of Serfs Ruled by Oligarchs
Paul Craig Roberts 

... The problems of the American economy are too great to be reached by traditional policies. Large numbers of middle class American jobs have been moved offshore: manufacturing, industrial and professional service jobs. When the jobs are moved offshore, consumer incomes and U.S. GDP go with them. So many jobs have been moved abroad that there has been no growth in U.S. real incomes in the 21st century, except for the incomes of the super rich who collect multi-million dollar bonuses for moving U.S. jobs offshore. 


Conspiracy Theories, History, and The State
Jeff Riggenbach 


On conspiracy theories, the impact of historical revisionism during the 1920s and 1930s, the role of Harry Elmer Barnes, and more. Audio recording of talk by a libertarian journalist, author, and educator. Runtime: 22 mins. 



I Am Israel 
Video 


Anti-Zionist video, made by Jihane Al Quds in Sept. 2009. Now available in a range of languages. Text by Hashem Said, an officer in the UW Palestinian student group Hayaat. Runtime: 6:27 mins. 



Liquidating the Empire 
Patrick J. Buchanan 

... We spend more on defense than the next 10 nations combined. Our Navy exceeds in firepower the next 13 navies combined. We have 100,000 troops in Iraq, 100,000 in Afghanistan or headed there, 28,000 in Korea, over 35,000 in Japan and 50,000 in Germany. By the Department of Defense's "Base Structure Report," there are 716 U.S. bases in 38 countries ... Is it not absurd to borrow hundreds of billion annually from China -- to defend Asia from China? Is it not a symptom of senility to borrow from all over the world in order to defend that world? 


Grandson of Israeli Prime Minister Rejects Zionism 
The Palestine Telegraph (Britain) 

"Murderous blood flows in Israeli arteries," says the grandson of former Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin. Avindav Begin, who is also the son of the current Likud Knesset member Benny Begin, refuses to stand during the Israeli national anthem "Hatikva" and participates in protests against the Apartheid Wall. He does not see himself as a Jew or a Zionist ... 


New Issue of `Inconvenient History' Now Online 
Inconvenient History 

The new Spring 2010 issue of "Inconvenient History," a serious online "Journal for Free Historical Inquiry," is now available. Contents include: An analysis by Thomas Dalton of Joseph Goebbels' statements and diary remarks about Jews and Germany's Jewish policy; Paul Grubach on the non-Jewish stake in supporting Holocaust mythology; Joseph Bishop's consideration of the US atomic bombings of Japan as war crimes; Richard Widmann's review of David Irving's prison memoir. 


Eva Braun: Hitler's Devoted Companion 
The Observer (Britain) 

For decades she has been seen as a decorative companion to Adolf Hitler, an apolitical "dumb blonde" whose attentions served as an occasional diversion for the Führer. But the first academic biography of Eva Braun draws a different picture of the dictator's long-standing girlfriend, claiming historians have hugely underestimated the role she played in his life. Berlin historian Heike Görtemaker reveals her as a politically committed woman who won Hitler's affections, enjoyed a healthy sex life with him, sympathised with Nazi politics and gave him psychological support. Görtemaker spent three years researching her book, Eva Braun: Life With Hitler, due out this month. 


Eva Braun: Hitler's Devoted Partner
BBC News 

Interview with Heike Gortemaker, author of the much-discussed new book, Eva Braun: Life with Hitler. Runtime: 4:06 mins. The woman who was Hitler's lover, companion and wife has been portrayed for decades dismissively as an uninteresting, dumb blonde. This new book says that Eva Braun was anything but passive, and that historians have greatly underestimated her role in the German leader's life. 


Zionist Group Protests Romanian Film at Berlin Festival 
Der Spiegel (Germany) 

The Elie Wiesel National Institute for the Study of the Holocaust in Romania has protested against the inclusion of a Romanian film about anti-communist partisans in the Berlinale festival program. They say the main character was fascist and anti-Semitic ... The Romanian film "Portrait of the Young Man as a Fighter," which deals with anti-communist partisans in post-World War II Romania, has been accused of glossing over the anti-Semitism of its main character. 


Third Reich Film `Jew Suess' in Focus at Berlin Festival 
Agence France Presse 

A big-budget German movie about the Nazis' most successful propaganda picture and the pact with the devil sealed by its lead actor premiered to boos Thursday at the Berlin Film Festival. "Jew Suess - Rise and Fall" by Oskar Roehler tells the true story of a little-known actor who is offered the lead role in the main anti-Semitic smear film commissioned by propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels. The new picture had been one of the most eagerly awaited at this year's Berlinale but a press preview drew scornful howls as the credits rolled. 


Myths of the `Good Wars': Three 'Holy' Wars
Howard Zinn - Video 



A noted dissident historian presents a critical view of three wars that most Americans have long regarded as "good" or "holy": the War for Independence, the Civil War, and World War II. Runtime: 67 mins. 



Israel Is Waging A Covert War Across the Middle East
The Times (Britain) 

Israel is waging a covert assassination campaign across the Middle East in an effort to stop its key enemies co-ordinating their activities. Israeli agents have been targeting meetings between members of Hamas and the leadership of the militant Hezbollah group, and the Iranian Revolutionary Guards. They are also suspected of recent killings in Dubai, Damascus and Beirut. While Israel's Mossad spy agency has been suspected of staging assassinations across the world since the 1970s, it does not officially acknowledge or admit its activities. 


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Peace.

Michael Santomauro
Editorial Director
Call anytime: 917-974-6367
ReporterNotebook@Gmail.com
Amazon's: DEBATING THE HOLOCAUST: A New Look At Both Sides by Thomas Dalton

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Israel pressing U.S. not to send new envoy to Syria

 

The title of this story should be " Israel demands U.S. not to send new envoy to Syria."  When was the last time the U.S. ever went against Israel's orders?  Wait and see if the U.S. doesn't comply.  After all, it's Israel that runs our State Department, and it's been that way no matter who heads the State Department or who fills the White House.  That's one of the main reasons we haven't seen peace there in the past 60 years.
 
 
Last update - 11:00 27/02/2010
'Israel pressing U.S. not to send new envoy to Syria'
By Jack Khoury, Haaretz Correspondent, and Haaretz Service
Tags: Israel news, Iran, Hezbollah 
 

Israel is urging the United States to freeze its decision to send a new envoy to Syria, in the wake of this week's tripartite meeting between Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Syrian President Bashar Assad and Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, according to a report Saturday in London-based Arabic daily A-Sharq Al-Awsat.

According to the report, Defense Minister Ehud Barak and an aide to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu both made the request during meetings with U.S. officials in Washington this week.

The report added that Israeli officials made the request after witnessing Assad's public defiance of U.S. calls to curb its ties with Iran this week. Assad said his long-standing alliance with Tehran remains strong despite overtures from Washington intended to shift his loyalties. With Ahmadinejad by his side, Assad told America not to dictate relationships in the Middle East.
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"I find it strange how they talk about Middle East stability and at the same time talk about dividing two countries," Assad told reporters when asked about Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's call on Wednesday for Syria to move away from Iran. Taking a further swipe at Clinton, he said that perhaps he and Ahmadinejad had misunderstood, due to a translation error or their own limited understanding.

In a show of unity, the two signed an agreement canceling travel visas between their countries.

The report also said that Israeli officials said Syria had interpreted the appointment of a new U.S. envoy as a sign of weakness on Washington's part, and not as a decision to improve ties between the two countries.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Wednesday said that the recent decision to send an ambassador to Syria did not mean American concerns about that country have been addressed.

Speaking to lawmakers in Washington, Clinton said the nomination of career diplomat Robert Ford signaled a slight opening with Syria.

But she said the administration remained troubled by Syria's alleged support for militant groups in Iraq and elsewhere, interference in Lebanon and close relationship with Iran.
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Debating the Holocaust: A New Look At Both Sides



Peace.

Michael Santomauro
Editorial Director
Call anytime: 917-974-6367
ReporterNotebook@Gmail.com
Amazon's: DEBATING THE HOLOCAUST: A New Look At Both Sides by Thomas Dalton

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THE ARROGANCE OF JEWISH POWER

 


THE ARROGANCE OF JEWISH POWER

Zionism just doesn't give a damn! It's as simple as that. They do what they want, when they want and to whom they want to. No one has stopped them in their quest to rid the entire area of all non Jews. No one has made a move to create sanctions against the state that has violated everything sacred to humanity, including the Declaration of Human Rights. To them, it's nothing but a joke whenever there is criticism of their foul deeds.

An image appeared on many of my posts that I was forced to remove due to copyright law, it simply stated that "zionism is unhealthy for children and other living things". I would have used that for this post as well, but it is forbidden. But the message is not forbidden! Zionism is unhealthy! We know that now after almost 63 years of the most brutal occupation of another nation in the past century. We know that now after the massacre of thousands of Palestinians in the name of "fighting terrorism".

As I write this, 'Brown Shirts' are gathering at the tomb of one of the most despicable zionists to ever live here. And what is being done about this? Aside from these fascists getting police escorts and protection, NOTHING IS BEING DONE! Not here, not anywhere!

Regarding the Goldstone report; The UN General Assembly approved Friday an Arab League proposal by which Secretary-Genral Ban Ki-moon will report on progress made by both Israel and the Palestinians in independent investigations of Operation Cast Lead, following the Goldstone report on the conflict.

The resolution is aimed mainly at keeping the Goldstone Report, which accuses Israel of war crimes, on the agenda. Three of the five permanent members of the Security Council – the US, Britain, and France – are opposed to its being brought before the council.

The above is an indication that not only is nothing being done, but that the West will not allow anything to be done.

Adding insult to injury 16 years to the day of one of the most brutal massacres inflicted on the Palestinian people, the Israeli Prime Minister announced his intention to add the scene of the massacre in a 'Heritage Investment Programme'. Can you imagine the outrage in the United States if the Texas School Book Depository was turned into a national shrine?

But wait...... there are 'concerns'........ let's wait and see if anything will come of them. Somehow I doubt it. These are concerns that the US taxpayers should be dealing with, it is them that will be 'footing the bill' of 107 million dollars.

Concerns over Israel heritage list

Al Ibrahimi mosque, also known as the Cave of the Patriarchs, is one of the sites on Israel's list [AFP]


The United Nations' culture and education body, Unesco, has expressed concern about Israel's plan to rehabilitate religious sites in the occupied West Bank.

Binyamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, said he intended to include the Ibrahimi Mosque, also known as the Cave of the Patriarchs, and several other contentious sites in the West Bank in a $107m heritage investment programme.

The decision sparked anger in the Islamic world and drew international criticism, as it was seen as a move to stamp Israel's authority on sites which are not recognised as Israeli under international law.

Irina Bokova, Unesco's director-general, expressed her concern at the announcement that the Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron, and Bilal bin Rabah Mosque (Rachel's Tomb) would be included in the plan, the organisation said on Friday.

The European Union (EU) also voiced concern over the decision, saying the move would not help the peace process.

Catherine Ashton, the EU's foreign-policy director, "regards the recent decision...as
detrimental to attempts to relaunch peace negotiations," her spokesman, Lutz Guellner, said in a statement.

The EU "calls on Israel to refrain from provocative acts ...recognise the importance of these religious sites to all three Abrahamic faiths and support the principle of access for all," the statement said.

'Holy land-grab'

Bashar Jaafari, Syria's ambassador to the UN, speaking on behalf of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC), also condemned the "illegality and illegitimacy" of the Israeli decision.

Mark Toner, a US state department spokesman, called Israel's heritage site list on Friday a "provocation" and an obstacle to peace.

Palestinians are calling the move an attempt to seize land and holy sites on illegally-occupied land.

Osama Hamdan, Hamas' representative in Lebanon, told Al Jazeera: "When it comes to religion, Israel has a plan in changing the nature of Islamic sites and turn them into Jewish sites in a way that serves what they call the Judaisation of the state (of Israel).

"The process of swallowing the Ibrahimi Mosque started with a request to put a candle holder inside it.

"After the massacre that took place in the mosque in 1994 by the Jewish terrorist Baruch Goldstein, they divided the mosque between them and the Palestinians. Today, they are confiscating the whole mosque. So we can see there is a pattern."

The Cave of the Patriarchs is sacred to Jews and Muslims as the traditional burial place of important religious figures.

Hebron and the shrine itself have long been flashpoints of violence in the West Bank - territory Israel's government calls by its biblical names Judea and Samaria.

Violence

Protests in Hebron on Thursday turned violent following Netanyahu's announcement about the heritage programme.

Fayyad attended prayers at the Ibrahimi Mosque to express Palestinian solidarity [AFP]


Clashes continued on Friday, with Israeli forces dispersing crowds with tear gas.

Salam Fayyad, the Palestinian prime minister, attended prayers at the tomb of Abraham on Friday, in a symbolic move to assert a Palestinian presence there after days of violence.

Speaking to reporters after prayers, Fayyad accused Israel of "annexing" it.

Israel has said that it had added the sites to a list of Jewish shrines due for restoration. It promised that Muslims would still be free to worship there.

Shimon Peres, the Israeli president, said on Friday: "There are many places that are holy to all of us so we are not monopolising.

"And in the Cave of the Monarchs, a holy site for Jews and Muslims as they call it, we even made arrangements that everybody will pray."

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Peace.

Michael Santomauro
Editorial Director
Call anytime: 917-974-6367
ReporterNotebook@Gmail.com
Amazon's: DEBATING THE HOLOCAUST: A New Look At Both Sides by Thomas Dalton

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