Note 1: Regarding (the poison) Ivy League and the withholding of monetary donations: Please see Dr. Steven Barrer’s “Letter to the Editor” of the Philadelphia Inquirer, towards the bottom (both literally and figuratively)
Note 2: Let us continue to gather together, (this afternoon at 3:30 PM), even with all of our other priorities weighing upon us. We will remain at one hour in duration for the sake of both brevity and clarity. https://us02web.zoom.us/j/8521122430?mc_cid=9a31d20c70&mc_eid=UNIQID#success —
Please click in even if you cannot listen in . . .
Note 3: When attempting to understand what is happening in the world today, please keep in mind the “Blood Libel” which has been leveled cyclically throughout history at the Jewish people. It may appear to you as a nonsensical lie, but it is an ever-present dangerous libel and a perpetual threat to the lives of Jews and the Jewish people as a whole. And yet we thought that the Blood Libel died out as the few survivors stumbled out of Auschwitz in 1945. Silly Jews . . .
A Blood Libel doesn’t just disappear, but Jews do. Just ask the head of Hamas, he’ll tell you.
A Synopsis (below) from Rabbi Danny Gordis, President of Shalem College, Jerusalem, reporting from Israel . . . .
Holocaust imagery is now everywhere. The cartoon above, from the Shabbat edition of Makor Rishon, is brilliant. As Shabbat entered, Israel had surrounded Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, under which Hamas has built its command center and connections to the hundreds of kilometers of tunnels. The way the tunnels are portrayed in the cartoon captures much of how Israelis see the battle we’re waging. Keep this in mind: in WWII, approximately 350K Americans were killed. British losses were in the same ballpark. But 4.2M Germans will killed. No one spoke about proportionality in terms of numbers back then—they spoke about winning. To Israelis, this conflict is a replay, which is why the Holocaust imagery is so widespread.
_____________________
A Synopsis from the Prophet Malachi speaking from Jerusalem (recorded in the Haftara reading this week), through the mists of time: Malachi 1: vss 3-4
וְאֶת־עֵשָׂ֖ו שָׂנֵ֑אתִי וָאָשִׂ֤ים אֶת־הָרָיו֙ שְׁמָמָ֔ה וְאֶת־נַחֲלָת֖וֹ לְתַנּ֥וֹת מִדְבָּֽר׃
and have rejected Esau. I have made his hills a desolation, his territory a home for beasts of the desert.
כִּי־תֹאמַ֨ר אֱד֜וֹם רֻשַּׁ֗שְׁנוּ וְנָשׁוּב֙ וְנִבְנֶ֣ה חֳרָב֔וֹת כֹּ֤ה אָמַר֙ יְהֹוָ֣ה צְבָא֔וֹת הֵ֥מָּה יִבְנ֖וּ וַאֲנִ֣י אֶהֱר֑וֹס וְקָרְא֤וּ לָהֶם֙ גְּב֣וּל רִשְׁעָ֔ה וְהָעָ֛ם אֲשֶׁר־זָעַ֥ם יְהֹוָ֖ה עַד־עוֹלָֽם׃
If Edom thinks, “Though crushed, we can build the ruins again,” thus said GOD of Hosts: They may build, but I will tear it down. And so they shall be known as the region of evil, a people damned forever by GOD.
________________
Dr Steven Barrer, (also to note, President of The Lerhaus www.NewshulofAmerica.org) — Let’s see if they publish it.
_________
To the Editor:
The sub-headline in your 11/12/23 article about wealthy donors at the University of Pennsylvania is misleading, and the article itself implies that these donors are withholding their contributions in order to squelch free speech.
Nothing could be further from the truth. These donors only have one request, that the University of Pennsylvania not allow anti-Semites a forum at their institution. There were ample warnings before the Palestine Writes Literary Festival took place that it would be a sounding board for antisemites. That is exactly what happened. Additionally, there has been a rising tide of antisemitism on campuses throughout the country, Penn included, and we have seen an explosion of antisemitism since the Hamas terrorist massacre in southern Israel on October 7.
These donors simply want that to end. They have no intention of guiding the curriculum, the discourse or the research at the university. They simply want the same protection that other marginalized groups get. No one would ever allow an organization that espouses the genetic superiority of one race over another (a strongly held opinion in some circles) to have a platform at Penn. The University would never allow a public discussion as to whether women or the LGBTQ+ community deserve equal rights.
But when it comes to Jews, all bets are off. Nobody considers Jews, who only number 16 million worldwide, 0.2% of the total population, to be a minority population. A sick perception fueled by antisemitism has emerged over recent years. It says if you are an oppressor you are bad, and if you are oppressed you are good, no nuance allowed. Jews are seen as oppressors, and nothing they do can be good. Palestinians are seen as oppressed, and nothing they do can be bad. Therefore when Palestinian literary figures stand in front of a public audience at Penn and spew Jew hatred, it is acceptable.
The wealthy donors of Penn simply want this to stop. More power to them.
Steven Barrer
2154 Valley Rd.
Huntingdon Valley, PA 19006
215–680–1030
