Year End Reflections, Part VIII (IT'S TOO DAMN MUCH!)

You're damn right I'm angry.  I want every decent person to be angry.  What's the difference between these two shooters in Australia killing Jews at a Hanukkah celebration vs Hamas shooting Jews at an outdoor concert in Israel on October 7 vs the Nazis in Germany lining up Jewish people and shooting them dead?  There is no difference.  They all decided that shooting, murdering, human beings was acceptable - as long as they happen to be Jewish.  

Think it can't happen here?  Not in the USA?  Well then wake up!  On 10/27/18, at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh, 11 people were murdered, and others were injured.  On 4/27/19, at the Chabad synagogue in Poway, California, one person was killed and others were injured.  How about the 5/21/25 murder of two young Jewish employees of the Israeli embassy, in Washington, D.C.  Or the 6/1/25 firebombing of a peaceful demonstration in Boulder, Colorado, for the Israeli hostages being held by Hamas. 

Let's not forget the 4/13/25 targeting of a sitting Jewish Governor, Josh Shapiro, of Pennsylvania, whose home was firebombed.  Need more recent attacks?  On 12/17/25 (aka yesterday), a Jewish man was stabbed in the chest in the Crown Heights section of Brooklyn.  Crown Heights is also the location of the worldwide headquarters of Chabad.  

Also recently, a Jewish woman dining at a restaurant in the West Village in Manhattan was screamed at by an antisemitic Jew-hater with this:  you "ugly fucking Zionist."  And:  "we will rid this country of fucking you."  (Might have been "fucking Jews.")  Another couple of angry hate-filled guys yelled at some young Jews on the subway:  "Fuck the Jews."  One of these evil bastards grabbed one of the Jewish guys by the throat and said "I'll kill you."  

So, yes, this is all part of what "globalize the intifada" looks like.  But Zohran Mamdani, the Mayor-elect of New York City, the largest and most important city in the country, cannot bring himself to condemn a phrase (globalize the intifada) which means kill Jews wherever you find them.  

We have already seen the Islamization of much of Western Europe.  Now we are seeing it in America.  It is time, no - way past time, for everyone to speak out against these radical Islamists.  Everyone means everyone - Democrats, Republicans, Christians, Jews, and Muslims who also detest these murderers.  Otherwise, we won't have a country left.  Because the Leftists, and an increasing number of Democrats, support these terrorists.  

As the spokesperson for the Australia-Israel Jewish Affairs Council said:  "It started with hate speech."  Hate speech may be protected by the First Amendment, but that does not mean it should not be condemned.  And those who either use such language or host those who do - should all be condemned.  When something is tolerated, you will get more of it.  And eventually those words turn into violence, as we have seen time and again.     

  

Year End Reflections, Part VII (Is It Enough Yet?)

On Sunday at 3am I woke up, needing to use the bathroom.  I took my phone with me.  Partly to play this word game my younger daughter got me hooked on, and partly to check my news feed - a habit I've had since October 7, 2023.  As is happening all too frequently nowadays, I saw there was another terrorist attack on the Jewish people.  A father and son duo decided it would be a good idea to kill as many Jews as possible on Bondi Beach, just outside Sydney in Australia.  Jews who were celebrating the first night of the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah. 

It's a small world for Jews.  My Rabbi's wife is from Sydney, and still has family there.  In checking in with the Rabbi that morning, he let me know that his wife's Aunt and Uncle were at the beach celebrating Hanukkah, but were able to hide behind a van in order to protect themselves from the shooters.  As the day progressed, I read that 15 people were murdered and another 40 were injured.  

Many of us have seen the video of the hero of the day, Ahmed al Ahmed, who snuck up on one of the shooters from behind and was able to disarm him from the rifle he was using.  Mr. Ahmed was not armed himself.  But he knew right from wrong, and was determined to do the right thing.  I wish him a speedy and complete recovery.  A Jewish billionaire, Bill Ackman, wanted to help Mr. Ahmed, and quickly donated $100,000 to a GoFundMe account.  For which he was instantly criticized with comments such as:  "That's pocket change for him.  Should have been much more."  And maybe he will donate more.  Maybe his donation will move others to donate.  But some people will never be satisfied. 

The victims of this terrorist attack ranged in age from 10 to 87.  The victims included a Holocaust survivor and one of the Chabad Rabbis.  One thousand people were said to have attended what should have been a joyous celebration of Hanukkah.  

Writing an Op-Ed in the New York Post, Miranda Devine observed:  "In the two years since the Hamas attack on Israel, synagogues in Sydney have been firebombed, Kosher restaurants vandalized, cars outside Jewish homes torched, and rancid antisemitic graffiti has become ubiquitous along the Bondi promenade:  'Kill Jews' is the mantra.  Every weekend for at least two years downtown Sydney is shut down by Palestinian protests."  At one of these protests, maybe more, was "the Sydney Mayor, the former state Premier, labor members of Parliament and assorted local celebrities."  The labor party is like the Democrat Party here.  And celebrities, I guess, are the same everywhere - mostly leftists.

Let's not forget that the Australian Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese, joined other foolish Western leaders in giving recognition to a non-existent Palestinian state at the UNGA in September.  In 2024, the Australian Foreign Minister made his way to Gaza, but couldn't manage to make his way to Israel to see what happened there on October 7.  

A spokesperson for the Australia-Israel Jewish Affairs Council said it best.  After explaining that they warned the government that something like this was going to happen, here is what that spokesperson said:  "It started with hate speech.  Then graffiti.  Then public demonstrations.  Then firebombing synagogues, preschools, people's homes, people's cars.  And now murder."  

This is yet another example of what "globalize the intifada" looks like.