The Militant Atheist: Antisemitism

Our view: Anti-Semitism must be condemned May 24, 2019

Anne Brennan Metrowest Daily News

The statistics are disturbing: During the past two years, in liberal-leaning Massachusetts, the number of anti-Semitic incidents has grown to the point that we are now witnessing the highest numbers of such acts since data on hate crimes have been collected in this state.
This trend, which reflects similar rises in such crimes of all varieties across the country during the last several years, suggests that we as a people are becoming increasingly intolerant of those who look, worship or love differently than the majority do. If we have learned nothing else from history, we should understand that the response to this disturbing pattern must involve far more than silence and tacit acquiescence; we must send a clear and unmistakable message that intolerance and hatred have no place here and will not go unpunished.
A recent study, performed by the Anti-Defamation League, showed 144 anti-Semitic incidents in Massachusetts during 2018, down from 177 in 2017. Although the majority of such incidents involved vandalism, dozens included charges of harassment. Perhaps most disturbing, 97 of the incidents occurred in K-12 schools in 2017, and 59 occurred in 2018.
This does not suggest that such acts have gone completely unanswered. Local groups, such as No Place for Hate Falmouth, have organized to increase public awareness that such incidents have taken place. As the group prepared to hold its meeting late last month, the topic turned out to be disturbingly timely: Just a couple of days before, a white supremacist entered a synagogue in California and killed one member of the congregation. It was the second such attack on a synagogue in six months; in October, another white supremacist killed 11 members of a Pittsburgh synagogue in what has been reported as the deadliest attack ever on members of the Jewish faith in the United States.
Although many may prefer to see such attacks as isolated incidents, the truth is that anti-Semitism has a long and ugly history in this country, especially during periods of desegregation and civil rights advancements. In recent years, there has been an undeniable surge in such discrimination. The Anti-Defamation League recorded a 35 percent jump in anti-Semitic incidents nationwide between 2015 and 2016. In the next year, those numbers jumped an additional 60 percent.
But these statistics are not limited to the Anti-Defamation League; the Federal Bureau of Investigation released data showing that in 2016, more than half of all reported anti-religious hate crimes were anti-Semitic in nature. This despite the fact that Jews make up only 2 percent of the country’s population. Anecdotally, more and more Jews are reporting that anti-religious harassment has shifted from being rare to being commonplace.
It would be easy to lay the blame for all of this ugliness at the foot of the president, and in truth he does set a tone as he did when he said there were good people on both sides, referring to white supremacists and protestors in Charlottesville, Virginia. But the more horrifying fact is that Trump is merely providing cover to those who already believe such things; he has degraded the national discussion and rhetoric to the point that some feel emboldened to express such ignorance and hatred publicly.
This is why it is more important than ever for people of good will to speak on matters of fairness and equality; why we must not let such acts of hatred or discrimination go unpunished; why we must make sure that we are teaching our children that how someone worships, looks, or loves has nothing to do with the quality of their character. This is not only a moral responsibility; it is a responsibility for anyone who believes in the values that this country supposedly stands for.

Our view: Anti-Semitism must be condemned	May 24, 2019
Anne Brennan	Metrowest Daily News
The statistics are disturbing: During the past two years, in liberal-leaning Massachusetts, the number of anti-Semitic incidents has grown to the point that we are now witnessing the highest numbers of such acts since data on hate crimes have been collected in this state. This trend, which reflects similar rises in such crimes of all varieties across the country during the last several years, suggests that we as a people are becoming increasingly intolerant of those who look, worship or love differently than the majority do. If we have learned nothing else from history, we should understand that the response to this disturbing pattern must involve far more than silence and tacit acquiescence; we must send a clear and unmistakable message that intolerance and hatred have no place here and will not go unpunished. A recent study, performed by the Anti-Defamation League, showed 144 anti-Semitic incidents in Massachusetts during 2018, down from 177 in 2017. Although the majority of such incidents involved vandalism, dozens included charges of harassment. Perhaps most disturbing, 97 of the incidents occurred in K-12 schools in 2017, and 59 occurred in 2018. This does not suggest that such acts have gone completely unanswered. Local groups, such as No Place for Hate Falmouth, have organized to increase public awareness that such incidents have taken place. As the group prepared to hold its meeting late last month, the topic turned out to be disturbingly timely: Just a couple of days before, a white supremacist entered a synagogue in California and killed one member of the congregation. It was the second such attack on a synagogue in six months; in October, another white supremacist killed 11 members of a Pittsburgh synagogue in what has been reported as the deadliest attack ever on members of the Jewish faith in the United States. Although many may prefer to see such attacks as isolated incidents, the truth is that anti-Semitism has a long and ugly history in this country, especially during periods of desegregation and civil rights advancements. In recent years, there has been an undeniable surge in such discrimination. The Anti-Defamation League recorded a 35 percent jump in anti-Semitic incidents nationwide between 2015 and 2016. In the next year, those numbers jumped an additional 60 percent. But these statistics are not limited to the Anti-Defamation League; the Federal Bureau of Investigation released data showing that in 2016, more than half of all reported anti-religious hate crimes were anti-Semitic in nature. This despite the fact that Jews make up only 2 percent of the country’s population. Anecdotally, more and more Jews are reporting that anti-religious harassment has shifted from being rare to being commonplace. It would be easy to lay the blame for all of this ugliness at the foot of the president, and in truth he does set a tone as he did when he said there were good people on both sides, referring to white supremacists and protestors in Charlottesville, Virginia. But the more horrifying fact is that Trump is merely providing cover to those who already believe such things; he has degraded the national discussion and rhetoric to the point that some feel emboldened to express such ignorance and hatred publicly. This is why it is more important than ever for people of good will to speak on matters of fairness and equality; why we must not let such acts of hatred or discrimination go unpunished; why we must make sure that we are teaching our children that how someone worships, looks, or loves has nothing to do with the quality of their character. This is not only a moral responsibility; it is a responsibility for anyone who believes in the values that this country supposedly stands for.

Letter: Confronting terrorism May 27, 2019

Scott Dixon, Medway Metrowest Daily News

Letter: Confronting Terrorism' [May 28]
There is a cry from the left that this country needs more diversity which I find ironic considering USA is, without question, the most diverse country in the world. Unless you are a full-blooded Native American you are descended from immigrants. Immigrants are from every corner of the world, every language, every religion and every philosophy.
One of the cornerstones of the foundation of this country is freedom of religion. Today in this country there are members of Congress who support anti-Semitic rhetoric. These congresswomen support The Muslim Brotherhood an anti-Semitic and anti-Israel organization. In short they support terrorism.
The Democratic leadership stands by and does nothing. The Jewish people are the bravest, most highly educated, most productive and most peaceful of any faith in our country. They have been persecuted more severely and longer than any people in the world. To have political leaders in this country stand by and allow this type of behavior to continue is unacceptable. It has been said, and I paraphrase, for evil to exist all it takes is for good men/women to stand by and do nothing. If the Democratic leadership allows this to continue, it will grow. Make no mistake that these congresswomen are testing the water. So far they like what they see.
Scott Dixon
Medway

Letter: Confronting terrorism	May 27, 2019
Scott Dixon, Medway	Metrowest Daily News
Letter: Confronting Terrorism' [May 28] There is a cry from the left that this country needs more diversity which I find ironic considering USA is, without question, the most diverse country in the world. Unless you are a full-blooded Native American you are descended from immigrants. Immigrants are from every corner of the world, every language, every religion and every philosophy. One of the cornerstones of the foundation of this country is freedom of religion. Today in this country there are members of Congress who support anti-Semitic rhetoric. These congresswomen support The Muslim Brotherhood an anti-Semitic and anti-Israel organization. In short they support terrorism. The Democratic leadership stands by and does nothing. The Jewish people are the bravest, most highly educated, most productive and most peaceful of any faith in our country. They have been persecuted more severely and longer than any people in the world. To have political leaders in this country stand by and allow this type of behavior to continue is unacceptable. It has been said, and I paraphrase, for evil to exist all it takes is for good men/women to stand by and do nothing. If the Democratic leadership allows this to continue, it will grow. Make no mistake that these congresswomen are testing the water. So far they like what they see. Scott Dixon Medway

Letter: Re: Confronting terrorism May 31, 2019

Vicky Debarros, Medway Metrowest Daily News

Democrats believe individuals across the nation should welcome and include others to America. People associated with the left think it is necessary to welcome immigrants due to the times of suffering and need in their home countries. Democrats do not want to welcome others just for the sake of America being ¨diverse.¨ The purpose of welcoming these immigrants is to give them the opportunities that they are not always given.
While some Muslims are against the American democracy, not all Muslims are terrorists. Therefore, for one to say a person who supports those of the Muslim religion is supporting terrorism is not only stereotyping the Muslim race but ignoring the majority of nonviolent Muslims. Jewish people are indeed discriminated and deserve their rights, but so does every other race in the world. Numerous other races have been segregated for as long as mankind, and any discriminating behavior is unacceptable. Every ethnicity gives value to the country, and every ethnicity should be respected and treated with equality.
In the world today, anything to the extreme is unnecessary, and in some circumstances, disastrous. It is important to not think of political parties as trying to do evil, but trying to serve the good of the nation in their perspectives. As individuals, we should respect each others opinions, and try to understand our perspectives.
Vicky Debarros
Medway

Letter: Re: Confronting terrorism	May 31, 2019
Vicky Debarros, Medway	Metrowest Daily News
Democrats believe individuals across the nation should welcome and include others to America. People associated with the left think it is necessary to welcome immigrants due to the times of suffering and need in their home countries. Democrats do not want to welcome others just for the sake of America being ¨diverse.¨ The purpose of welcoming these immigrants is to give them the opportunities that they are not always given. While some Muslims are against the American democracy, not all Muslims are terrorists. Therefore, for one to say a person who supports those of the Muslim religion is supporting terrorism is not only stereotyping the Muslim race but ignoring the majority of nonviolent Muslims. Jewish people are indeed discriminated and deserve their rights, but so does every other race in the world. Numerous other races have been segregated for as long as mankind, and any discriminating behavior is unacceptable. Every ethnicity gives value to the country, and every ethnicity should be respected and treated with equality. In the world today, anything to the extreme is unnecessary, and in some circumstances, disastrous. It is important to not think of political parties as trying to do evil, but trying to serve the good of the nation in their perspectives. As individuals, we should respect each others opinions, and try to understand our perspectives. Vicky Debarros Medway

Anne Brennan's refusal to print my response to her rant on antisemitism is indicative that she is most likely Jewish.
Allowing others to state that the Jews are a people or that muslims are a race is stunning.
The word antisemitism is a meaningless term. Why not say anti-Jewish. The jews never talk about being pro-semitic, meaning pro-jewish, which means accepting their imaginary god.
A jew is someone who believes in the Torah. The very concept of anti-semitism cannot exist without the existence of an imaginary god. When you state you oppose anti-semitism, you are saying I believe in their imaginary god and that defines you as an idiot, unless you can show me your god.

In response to "Our view: Anti-Semitism must be condemned", the term "antisemitism" is a vague term and you really should use "anti-jewish". Jews are not a race, a people or an ethnic group, just believers in their Holy Book, the Torah, that begins with a false assertion about their non-existent god, Yahweh
In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.
I am delighted to see the Metrowest Daily News take a stand for Judaism as a religion even if the jews want me dead (Deuteronomy 13).
As long as the mainstream media protects religion as a viable institution in our society (in order to protect their readership), religion will continue to provide the artificial divisions amongst us that promote conflict, hatred, intolerance, misogyny and circumcision. The media spreads its cloak of untouchability by claiming that something is divine, holy or sacred. This protection promotes and guarantees future acts of terrorism. This opinion by the MWDN in itself will inflame religious hatred. Well done!
You can tell me a thousand times that the vast majority of muslims/christians/jews are peaceful, and I would agree with you, but after each and every terror attack, the opinions of the vast majority of muslims/christians/jews was not relevant and did not matter in any way, shape or form. Stop using it as an excuse for "good religion".
All religions have one common thread in them, and that is to kill the unbelievers. Make me a believer. Show me your god (Yahweh, Allah or Jesus).
In return, as a strict unbeliever, I am always entertained when holy people are busy killing other holy people, and I watch with amusement as mosques, temples and churches are blown up, shot up and torched.

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