The honor and memory of 6 million Jews is not a political issue. It is not aligned to being a Man or Woman, Democrat or a Republican, Conservative or Liberal, Jew or non-Jew. It transcends race, nationality or color. As a Jew I make no apologies for this being my main focus. It does not mean I hold no importance to genocides that have taken place in other parts of the world. It does not mean I do not condemn slavery or oppression against people throughout history. It is very simply an issue of remembering the murder and devastation committed against the Jewish people. Let no one make a mistake by thinking atrocities committed against any people is of no consequence. As long as our world still allows this to happen everyone is potentially at risk. But that should not be what it takes for people to care. As human beings we can never be complacent about the suffering of others. But just as importantly, we must identify evil where it truly exists. Murderous governments still exist and in some ways are stronger today than ever before. Muslim leaders referring to Jews as pigs or dogs and speaking of the annihilation of the State of Israel is a very true reality today. So the importance of remembering goes beyond honoring the dead, it speaks to the survival of our people and moral development of the entire human race. Do we as people hold power? In joining together in decency and dare I say love, we have a far better chance than if we battle each other and let the true enemy off the hook by battling each other over theory and conjecture. If there is one advantage we have today it is that the enemy is not hiding from us, but is rather out in the open and very clear about their intention. Let our remembrance of the 6 million who perished be a lesson that helps our world survive the very real threats that exist today, and let our actions be a blessing for their memory.
Tag Archives: liberal
A Blessing For the Lost
A Citizen’s Plea
Although I write this post as a proud American, it is my belief that the strength and position of the United States of America is of great importance to the entire civilized world. Debate is a good thing and it is a cornerstone of American society. Part of the greatness of the country is the freedom of all its citizens to express themselves no matter how diametrically opposed one citizen or group may be from the other. However, the freedoms given by the founding fathers, as important as they are, do very little good if they are used a destructive force against a united society.
Let me make it clear to anyone reading this that I am not being so presumptuous to think that anyone can put a limit on the freedom of speech. Any limitations put on it destroy the very premise it was built on. So in essence, all I am doing in this post is exercising my freedom of expression with a personal plea. Let’s get it together people.
It is time to come together as a nation and stop the bitter attacks against one another. Abraham Lincoln once said, “America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves.” We are destroying ourselves. Not with differences of opinion or ideology, not with conservative or liberal stances, and not with a loyalty to the Republican or Democratic Party. We are destroying ourselves with conspiracy theories, personal attacks and vendettas, and hatred towards those who think differently than we do. Intelligent debate has been replaced by name calling and accusation. Idealism has been replaced with a corruption that has ambitious people taking advantage of weaknesses created by a modern society blinded by the desire to always find the easy way out.
I am a Social Liberal, but it is very important that I make something very clear. This is a totally non-partisan post. Those who are guilty are on all ends of the political spectrum and to say otherwise would just compound the problem and destroy any credibility this post might have. Even if one side is harsher than the other, something both sides take turns being, we are still at a stage of verbal conflict where it behooves either side, even the attacked side to take a softer stance if it creates a more unified nation. We need that right now. For despite the importance of the debates taking place in the country today, the true enemies are not domestic. There are forces such as Islamic regimes and a North Korean crazy who want to see us wiped off the map. I may be Pro Choice, but I’ll support my Pro Life fellow American against those whose intention is to murder us. And if someone opposes gay marriage, although I disagree with their viewpoint, I don’t see them as evil for standing by what they believe in. And I may have an anti-gun philosophy for the average American, but I also know that an extremely high percentage of those who are passionate about keeping their guns do not want them for the purpose of killing their fellow Americans.
My point is that even the most Conservative of civilized Americans are not my enemy, just as I am not theirs. But if we go after each other with venom and hatred we risk doing the very thing the great Abraham Lincoln warned us about, and that is destroying ourselves. As an American this is my personal plea to all those reading. Let’s not go down that road. Let’s debate the issues but never stop working together for the best possible solutions to our shared problems.
Freedom: Not a Religious Concept
Every year as Passover approaches I find myself intrigued by how many Jewish people, even those relatively uninvolved in religious observance, put importance on some form of celebration of the holiday. Seeing as it is a holiday that begins with sitting around a table with friends and family, telling a story and eating, naturally it is partially due to how uncomplicated and potentially enjoyable this form of observance can actually be. However, when thinking about it this year I came to an entirely different and much deeper explanation. The attraction to Passover is that it has very little to do with religion. Passover transcends religion, inasmuch as it about something not provided by religion. That would be the basic theme of Passover, the importance of freedom.
We live in an increasingly complex society. People consider freedom to manifest itself in issues once not even considered important to humankind. In the United States, freedom now has become connected to lifestyle choices, possession of weapons, and how to treat your body. In Muslim populations, as well as ultra-religious communities everywhere, levels of freedom are often gender based, men are often provided with freedoms women are not provided with, and when not are based on first accepting the basic rules of the community. In more progressive, liberal environments, freedom is expressed by the decriminalization of things like drugs and prostitution. And in some parts of the world, freedom is still about the basic right to survive and live as the person you were born to be, without restriction from governments or dictators.
Freedom has always been the ultimate weapon. Take away someone’s freedom and the belief is that you have the ultimate control over what they do. It is the primary and justified complaint against religious leadership. The belief that impacting someone’s freedom because your belief system considers their personal choices to be wrong for society and the individual, sets up a scenario where people do exactly what is expected of them. Ironically it takes away from the freedom given by God that is very possibly the most important freedom that exists. The freedom of choice.
The truth is that no one can take that freedom away from any man or woman ever. The consequences may be dire, but the freedom remains. My grandparents, when presented with the option to accept Baptismal papers in 1943 Amsterdam, refused to accept them. Everyone, including them, knew their chances survival would be greater had they accepted them, but they made the ultimate sacrifice in choosing the freedom to live as Jews and subsequently die as Jews by refusing the papers. They let no man take away their freedom to be Jews, even though it resulted in them being murdered in Auschwitz.
The lesson to be learned is that what makes Passover so attractive is that it is truly about freedom. A freedom that no government, religious institution, or random individual can ever take from any of us. That freedom is the freedom of choice. And the reason no man can ever take it away from us is because it is a freedom given to us by God. Where religions and governments have failed all over the world is in their unwillingness to take second place to man’s freedom to decide for how he wishes to live his life. A freedom no one can ever take away and a freedom and a concept far greater than religious observance, for it is a freedom given directly to man by God. That is a freedom all men and women share equally, and the expression of that is part of what makes the celebration of Passover so attractive to so many.
Happy Passover to all who celebrate, and to those who do not, in the theme of the day I wish you a life filled with true freedom.
The Solution Starts with the Media
If there is one thing the majority of people opining since last week’s tragedy in Newtown, Ct., myself included have in common, is that we have said a lot, spoken of what we like and don’t like about the current situation, and have offered no solution to the problem. Part of this is due to the fact that many of the responses are emotional, so in essence the comments are reactions and expressions of how we feel, and since the tragedy caused so many to feel strong emotions, it is easy to understand why this is happening. In this post however, I offer my solution, conceptually if nothing else. Where does the solution lie? It lies in the middle.
Let me start by saying something that may shock those who know me well. My views have somewhat changed in the past week. As a result of speaking with people, reading articles and posts, and watching news programs, I have moved somewhat away from my extreme view of wanting to ban guns from the common citizen. I have spoken with some very good people who own guns. The country does not become a better place by taking away their guns. I have read posts on social media outlets and articles in news agencies from people who are not angry or hateful people, who feel owning a gun is important to them and give every indication of being thoughtful people who know that guns are dangerous if misused or unaccounted for. The country does not get better by taking away their guns. I watched Bill O’Reilly a few days ago, and was impressed by the insistence of a well-known Republican celebrity and gun owner admitting that there is a problem and that something needs to be done. So now there is me, someone who has in the past made the statement that I question if the American people have lost their right to bear arms, thinking that the best answer may very well be one that allows people to continue to have that right. However, they may need to make some sacrifices to help improve the chances that others don’t end up making the ultimate sacrifice. I make no claim to know the technicalities of the current gun laws, but this post will not be dealing with technicalities, instead it will be dealing with a concept that I feel is critical to our civilizations survival.
I came up with my “solution” after going through a thought process brought on by a combination of factors. One factor was the attempt by lunatic organizations and the Iranian government to somehow connect Jews and even Israeli military to the shootings in Newton, Ct. It’s so insane that it’s gotten very little play outside the inner circles of those who fabricated the stories, but enough that many of us have heard it.
The next thing I considered was the situation between Israel, the Palestinians, and the rest of the Arab and Muslim world. All reports indicate that tensions are now rising in the West Bank and that radical organizations are trying to get another Intifada started. The key and extremely important word there is “radical”.
I also read about those so-called religious leaders and organizations that blame the tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary on the lack of God in the school and in our society, implying, sometimes saying outright that it is our behavior as people going away from God that caused this and other tragedies to happen, even those not caused by man directly, such as Hurricane Sandy.
The final thing that helped me come to my conclusion was the frustration of a good friend who, after looking at many of these issues, concluded that there appears to be no way to solve any of them. This was coming from an otherwise positive individual who was feeling tremendous frustration at the apparent futility of any of the answers provided by anyone out there with any influence.
So what is the answer? The answer lies in marginalizing extremists. Over the past week I have seen a very clear distinction, on both sides of the political spectrum, between those who attack policy and those who attack people. Those who without provocation attack the people who do not agree with them are always extremists in one way or another, while those who attack the issues are sometimes extremists, often not extremists, and generally not the problem. Although I believe that the influence by their leadership has caused a large percentage of Muslims to at best dislike Jews and Israel and be people who would not mourn the loss of Jewish life, I absolutely believe that the majority do not want to murder anyone, including Jews. I am confident that the majority of gun enthusiasts find making America a safer place to live just as important an issue as those who push for stricter gun laws. In fact, it needs to be said, in fairness, that many gun owners feel this way because they in fact do not feel safe without one. This means that although stricter gun laws may be important, they need to go hand in hand with finding ways to make citizens feel safer.
So how do we go about marginalizing extremists? We call on, actually we demand help from the media. The Mayans may or not be correct about the date, but unless we do something dramatic, they have a really good chance at being correct about the outcome. Except at this rate the world is headed more towards catastrophic implosions than cosmic explosions. Here is my call to the media and why I feel the answer lies in the major media outlets working together. Most people hold views that fall in a safe zone somewhere between the far right and the far left. By safe zone I mean a place where even if they are clearly Liberal or clearly Conservative, they are not dangerous people. I also believe that even if a network like FOX News has a Conservative agenda, and MSNBC has a Liberal agenda, they both agree on the issues that have the greatest impact on our survival. Neither advocates terrorist activity, mass murder, or outright bigotry. These networks have enormous influence worldwide, and if they took it on themselves to work together in discussing the issues they do agree on, they might be able to impact society towards a middle of the road mentality. In fact I feel that on a daily basis the major networks should coordinate a simulcast for at least one hour where they discuss the issues they agree upon regarding our safety, health, and basic ethics, and leave the harsher philosophical battles for the rest of the day. Imagine Rachel Maddow, Anderson Cooper, and Bill O’Reilly on the same broadcast, shown on all 3 of these networks discussing the heroics of the schoolteachers of Sandy Hook, Ct., or condemning terrorist who blow up buses or kill dozens in roadside bombings. They can discuss their feelings on the specifics of gun control laws on any other broadcast, but if they got together for one hour a day and spoke of ways to improve mental health or identify potential murderers, imagine the good they could do.
There has been much talk this past week on the need of our society to change its mindset. I believe everyone agrees with this in one way or another. However, with all the time being wasted on blaming the extremists on both sides, we may be missing out on a great opportunity to begin the shift towards a more civilized world. I don’t lay the blame on the media, but I do think that it has an unprecedented opportunity and responsibility to marginalize the radicals and extremists who either are only concerned about their own personal or agenda or are so far gone they no longer care about anything important.
A Non Evil Liberal Conservative
With my cell phone causing me problems yesterday, I found myself in that unfathomable situation where without company or reading material I would be stuck on the train with nothing to do but travel. So I went to the newsstand and did something I haven’t done in quite some time. I bought a magazine. The magazine I chose was the most recent edition of Newsweek, the one with Abraham Lincoln on the cover. Reading the article made me think long and hard about the concept of civil war in these United States, what would cause it, and what the potential impact would be on our society.
By all accounts Abraham Lincoln was a great man. He dared to change one of the most significant and indecent aspects of American society. As somewhat of a news junkie I follow current events to the extent that I am able to form opinions and see patterns according to my own personal opinion. With this in mind I realize that on some level Lincoln may have been fortunate to be the right person at the right time, but with such a large segment of the population opposed to his stance that it caused enormous consequences both nationally and for him personally, Lincoln deserves his positive legacy.
But what if he were alive today? With today’s perception of what is a Democrat and Republican, it may come of a shock to the unknowing that Lincoln was a Republican president. How would he have been perceived by his party and opponents today? I understand that times change so the comparisons are questionable, but to me it brought a glaring issue to the forefront. The issue I am speaking of is the growing schism between the right and the left that leads to the use of the words Conservative and Liberal as a means to insult people. The danger in this schism is that when people are divided to this extent the people that come to forefront are often those whose agenda challenges peoples’ freedom. When that happens true evil rises accompanied by war and persecution.
Pope John Paul II was a great man. He fought against Nazi oppression, helped Jewish friends as a young man in Poland, helped bring down the Soviet empire, and lead the Catholic Church with goodness and thoughtfulness. Pope John Paul II was unquestionably a Conservative.
Steven Spielberg has directed films about the Holocaust and Slavery, given enormous amounts of money to charity, and used his voice to champion causes that support human rights everywhere. As someone who generally supports the Democratic Party and based on his public stances on social issues Steven Spielberg would most likely be categorized by most as a Liberal.
In today’s world when spoken of by the opposition, both Liberals and Conservatives are evil and the cause of all our problems. Just ask Rush Limbaugh or Janeane Garofalo. I am sure they will tell you how evil Liberals and Conservatives are respectively. If you need confirmation I am sure you can get it from the likes of Ann Coulter or Michael Moore. Just ask these people, people who naturally have no personal agenda (please recognize the sarcasm), and I am sure they will show you, in detail how Conservatives and Liberals are destroying our society. In fact, let us pretend Lincoln were alive today. We might have Rush Limbaugh show us what a traitor he is to his Conservative base and a danger to the future of all good people of the good ole US of A. If that doesn’t work for you we can have Michael Moore dig up some dirt on him and show us how he is using the hardships of a segment of our society to push his Republican agenda and unjustly seize control of the government. I’m sure the word conspiracy will be in there somewhere as well. Whatever the case may be, today that Liberal thinking Conservative would be seen as one evil war-mongering killer of the fabric of American society.
In today’s world, a world where anyone who is not like-minded is an evil Conservative or an evil Liberal, the only place to be is smack in the middle. But be careful. If you’re a Conservative who believes in a woman’s right to choose or a Liberal who believes in a tough stance on Foreign policy you’ll be thrown right back into the category of evil. But fret not. The great Abraham Lincoln will most likely be standing right beside you.
Blind Faith
Since this website is not a forum for political endorsement I will not declare my personal allegiance in the upcoming presidential election. Ask me in another forum and I will have no shame in stating my preference and speak with me one on one and I will gladly debate you, but unless I feel something is unquestionably relevant to the survival or history of the Jewish people, I will do my best to stay on point. This website, one that was set up to promote the book Jew Face, is being used to bring to light holocaust denial, holocaust mentality, anti-Semitism, and historically relevant facts as they pertain to the Holocaust and my parents’ experiences.
So today I will speak of the upcoming election, but in a way I have not seen anywhere else till now. When 6 million people get murdered by a force as strong as the Nazis were between 1933 and 1945, there is very little criticism given to the victims. And rightly so. The innocent victims, people who were merely guilty of being born Jewish, did nothing to deserve their horrible fate. The brutality of the Nazis is well documented and needs to be continually documented so that it will never be forgotten. There is however one criticism often given to the victims as a group. This criticism is that they listened blindly and followed like sheep. Now I do not have the arrogance to make this criticism because none of us know what we would have done in this situation. However, this argument may be backed up by looking at those who did stand up and fight, or recognized what was going on and did not follow blindly. My father, Nardus Groen, was one of those people, and although he was the first to credit it to good fortune and God’s blessing, it is hard not to make an argument that his behavior lead to his survival, my mother’s survival, and the existence of their entire offspring, yours truly included.
So heading into the November election, whether you are Conservative or Liberal, love or hate President Obama, Republican or Democrat, I have one strong request from you. Use your mind. Don’t blindly follow anything. If you hate Obama, I guarantee you that some of the criticisms of your sources are either spun or fabricated, and if you love Obama I guarantee the same. Do not follow anyone like sheep. Even those you consider to be like minded. Be fair, be thoughtful, and be aware. For when you follow like sheep, you are often being lead to slaughter. And if anything can be learned from the past, it’s that independent thought is a much better road to survival than blind trust.
Where Politics has no meaning
When I stopped and realized that I had not made a new post in 3 days, the first thing I wondered was if anyone had noticed I had been a bit lazy. Once I got that thought out of my head a new thought came to me which I decided to share on here. It has to do with politics. Or the lack thereof on this site and in reaction to this site and the book Jew Face. I need to reference Facebook because it is there where it is often revealed who is Liberal and who is Conservative. So many have their issues they feel passionately about and on occasion they will express those views with an intensity that might be seen as harsh to some. What strikes me, and entirely in a positive way, is that when it comes to the subjects discussed on here, such as the Holocaust, survival, and the war on hatred and Holocaust denial, there are only positive responses. This does not surprise me in the least. What it does is highlight the fact that two people can disagree passionately on important social and economic issues and still be equally decent and caring towards their fellow-man. Social media has its flaws, but it also has the capability of revealing the common good in man regardless of their political viewpoints. Hopefully it will also help people choose their friends based on their actions, not on their political opinions.
Response to article criticizing Holland
Thank you to one of my Facebook friends for posting this article about Holland in ynetnews.com. It tackles the issue of Holocaust denial and in some of its categorizations of the Dutch made me feel compelled to respond. I hope my response gets posted, but just in case, here is a link to the original post, followed by my response.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4226056,00.html
This article was of great interest to me, particularly since on Wednesday it will be 4 weeks since the release of my book, “Jew Face: A story of love and heroism in Nazi-0ccupied Holland.”
There is no condoning the activities Dr. Gerstenfeld spoke of in Vorden and Amsterdam, but I would like to offer a slightly broader perspective. Holland is a nation of close to 17 million people, of which the majority is Catholic and Protestant. There is a growing Muslim population and an almost non-existent Jewish population. There is anti-Semitism taking place regularly in almost every nation on the planet. The problem that exists in Holland is that in an attempt to be super liberal, some Dutch citizens may show a lapse in judgment and sensitivity.
I do not believe that labeling Holland as a nation that stands out in attempting to brush away the memory of the Holocaust is a fair categorization. I also feel that some credit needs to be given to the Dutch for their overall treatment of the Jewish people. The only time in modern history where living as a Jew was uncomfortable in Holland was when the nation was under Nazi occupation. The righteousness of much of the non-Jewish Dutch population during World War II made it possible for many to survive that otherwise might not have. I also speak of this in my book and it is the reason that the website I created to discuss issues surrounding the book is called Holland’s heroes https://hollandsheroes.com/. So although I respect Dr. Gerstenfeld’s opinion and realize that he and I are likely on the same side as far as our ultimate concerns and goals, I differ strongly in his assessment of Holland.
Holland's Heroes 