On this Holocaust Remembrance Day, I join people of all faiths across the United States, in Israel and around the world in paying tribute to all who suffered in the Shoah—a horrific crime without parallel in human history. We honor the memory of six million innocent men, women and children who were sent to their deaths simply because of their Jewish faith. We stand in awe of those who fought back, in the ghettos and in the camps, against overwhelming odds. And in the year of the 100th anniversary of the birth of Raoul Wallenberg, we are humbled by the rescuers who refused to be bystanders to evil.
On this day, and all days, we must do more than remember. We must resolve that “never again” is more than an empty slogan. As individuals, we must guard against indifference in our hearts and recognize ourselves in our fellow human beings. As societies, we must stand against ignorance and anti-Semitism, including those who try to deny the Holocaust. As nations, we must do everything we can to prevent and end atrocities in our time. This is the work I will advance when I join survivors and their families at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum on Monday. This must be the work of us all, as nations and peoples who cherish the dignity of every human being.
"This evening at sundown, members of the Jewish community here in New York and throughout the world, will begin the celebration of Hanukkah.
The 'Festival of Lights' is a commemoration of the perseverance and resilience of the Jewish people. The dedication shown by a small yet committed group loyal to their beliefs and way of life is a story that resonates through the ages and is still applicable in our modern lives. It speaks to the miraculous ability of the human spirit to endure, even when a tragic outcome seems certain.
I join with all New Yorkers in remembering the qualities honored during Hanukkah, as these same qualities have made us the Empire State, and home to a diverse array of people, talents and opportunities. We share in celebrating the willingness of all New Yorkers to come together during challenging times to create a better and stronger state for all.
I wish those celebrating Hanukkah a joyous, healthy and safe holiday season."
"As New Yorkers around the state gather with their families and friends to celebrate Rosh Hashanah, I extend my best wishes to them for a healthy and prosperous New Year.
Rosh Hashanah marks the beginning of the High Holy Days, a time for both reflection and celebration. As communities come together to rejoice in the New Year, we must also be thankful for all we have and remember those in need.
These next few days also serve as an opportunity to make sure that we as New Yorkers and global citizens commit ourselves to a better future.
On behalf of all New Yorkers, I wish all those celebrating a New Year a Shana Tova Umetukah."
Apple removed an application from its App Store on Wednesday after a Jewish human rights group and a top Israeli official said it contained anti-Semitic content and promoted violence against Israel.
The app, “The Third Intifada,” notified people of upcoming protests against Israel and also highlighted anti-Israel news and opinion from around the Web.
“We removed this app from the App Store because it violates the developer guidelines by being offensive to large groups of people,” an Apple spokesman said Wednesday evening.
The Simon Wiesenthal Center, a group dedicated to stopping anti-Semitism, put out a statement on Tuesday asking the company to “immediately withdraw its approval” of the application. The center said that its researchers had found that the app “contains anti-Israel content — articles, photographs of ‘martyrs’ and stories — and updates its users on further incitements to protest and violence.”
According to Haaretz, an Israeli newspaper, Yuli Edelstein, an Israeli minister of public affairs, also sent a letter to Apple asking for the “immediate removal” of the application from the App Store.
Apple states in its App Store policy, under section 19, which pertains to religion, culture, and ethnicity that “Apps containing references or commentary about a religious, cultural or ethnic group that are defamatory, offensive, mean-spirited or likely to expose the targeted group to harm or violence will be rejected.”
In March, Facebook removed a group, “3rd Intifada,” that was said to be promoting violence against Israel. A Facebook representative told The Jerusalem Post that the group’s page was taken down after Facebook “received repeated warnings about posts that violated our policies.
For Many Anti-Semites, Ponzi-Schemer Validates Jewish Stereotype
I’ve written numerous articles over the last three years about hate groups in America. I focused on the fact that they're beginning to express their hatred of blacks, Jews and immigrants on a frequent basis. I also noted the level of violence and number of death threats by members was rapidly increasing. This was confirmed recently in a news report on Daily Kos that indicated President Barack Obama receives at least 30 death threats a day, which is in stark contrast to his predecessors.
In my interviews with Pastor Thomas Robb, National Director of the Knights Party, U.S.A., an offshoot of the Ku Klux Klan, and radio talk show host/white supremacist Hal Turner, who is now in federal custody for allegedly calling for the killing of three federal judges, both men were quick to imply that minorities, blacks in particular, were inferior in every way to whites. While appearing on the CNN network, Turner actually stated that the country needed to “return to the days of lynching niggers” in order to deter crime. While Robb and Turner showed the utmost contempt for blacks and immigrants, no one was despised more than the “filthy Jew-bastard”.
Aldof Hitler is undoubtedly the greatest symbol of anti-Semitism and hate in the world. His view that every Jew should be beaten, gassed, raped, skinned-alive and killed is shared by many of his contemporaries, such as the Aryan Nation, the Skinheads and the Neo-Nazis. Moreover, just as Hitler did, members of these extremist groups believe the Jews are responsible for the world’s economic problems; citing their unparalleled influence, power and representation in every area of society. Having said that, I believe the arrest and conviction of former Wall Street tycoon Bernie Madoff, as well as the recent arrest of several prominent rabbis by federal agents for alleged money-laundering in New Jersey, could fuel an even greater sense of distrust and intense hatred for the Jewish people among radical groups and those who have no real understanding of the Jewish culture.
Hitler came to power by being able to convince the German people, who were also in the midst of an economic crisis, that Jews were gluttonous pigs, the root of all evil and positioning themselves to dominate both the financial markets and the world. After Madoff's dramatic and earth-shattering fall from grace, the Pastor Robbs and Hal Turners of the world were quick to point out the similarities between what was going in Germany during Hitler’s rise and the current economic crisis in the United States. For many within these fringe groups, the arrests of Madoff and the New Jersey rabbis confirmed not only everything they believed or were taught about Jews, but that the Jew's need for access and excess is the major cause of the country's economic turmoil. If you find this hard to believe, just visit “Stormfront”, the Aryan Nation or the Knights Party, U.S.A. website. What they're saying about all this will shock the hell out of you.
I've been saying for years that people must take these groups more seriously. The only time the national media or we take them seriously is when a white supremacist guns down three Pittsburgh police officers or a security guard at the Holocaust Museum in Washington, D.C. More people will lose cars, homes, jobs and damn near everything before the economy gets better. The President of the United States has said this repeatedly. But what will also happen is anger, hatred and violence will escalate among those with a deep-seated hatred for Jews, especially Jews at the head of industry. Do you have any idea what you've done, Bernie? I wonder if you even care about the wrath you've brought upon the country, particularly those of the Jewish faith. Someone once said “Jewish blood isn't cheap.” Well, Bernie, your inexcusable actions have galvanized dangerous groups that have the potential to gun down one “Jew-bastard” after another.... and line the streets with Jewish blood. When you consider your heritage, the holocaust and the fact that there are people who want Jews boiled in oil to this day, how could you be so goddamn stupid, Bernie?
