Monday, April 22, 2013

UNIVERSALISM VERSUS REALITY

This blog may seem like it's about religion, it's really not meant to be. I prefer to think it's really about politics.  So review this one in your mind after you've read the whole thing.

It's pretty well accepted that there has been antisemitism against the Jews in European countries. In one period, from the late 1700's to the mid 1800's, there was a decline in the antisemitism. Although living isolated lives, Jews were pretty much allowed to assimilate into society in general.  After the mid 1800's antisemitism  flared up again. Certain Jews decided on different methods of dealing with the antisemitism.

One of the ways was to assimilate, another way was to move towards the West and yet another way was to become even further isolated from the general community.

Jews lived primarily in ghetto type areas between the Polish Austrian corridor and into Russia, three, four five six million of them,   The return of antisemitism made it apparent to many that the traditional Jew was not easily going to be able to assimilate into European society.  Following a more orthodox route just made the antisemitism worse. Therefore several millions of the Jews that lived by Rabbinic Talmudic law instead of traditional government law moved West.

Changing their names, changing their clothes, attempting to assimilate did little to accelerate their integration into European society.  Since they weren't going to be easily accepted as Jews there developed the concept of Zionism.  Jews should live in a place where you could be Jewish ultimately resolving into the creation of the Jewish nation state.

We live in a world where China, Russia, India, United States, North Korea, Pakistan, Britain, France, etc. have atomic weapons.  Some series of circumstances has allowed this to be the acceptable norm.

In France a law has been passed that Muslims cannot wear their traditional clothing.  In England, Muslims have been attempting to live, some may say by overly influencing British society, in any case not really integrating into the system.  Imagine a large number of Muslim men and women walking around the United States compared to just a large amount of people,  What is it about the large Muslim walking people that could attract all the negative reaction?

As the Jew could not find equal acceptability in Europe, there is no question that the Muslim finds integration, especially in Muslim clothing, especially difficult anywhere but in a Muslim country.

So what we are really saying is if you come here or there, you by in large become like us.  We are not going to become like you, you are going to become like us, otherwise stay where you were.

This flies in the face of logic.  The entire concept of the European Union is no borders, no passports, a common currency and court system and the universality of man, but in practice the nations have not accepted the universal paradigm facing a billion Muslims.

The problem with Israel is not that its a Jewish country, it's that it is a secular country.

The Muslims in general are not interested in a universal world.  The Ayatollah is interested that the Mahdee for Islam appear to reset the mistakes of Judaism and Christianity.  Israel is a threat because it really doesn't want to be religious, it wants to be universal and secular.  Many Americans want to be Judeo-Christians and Europeans seem to want to be everything but Muslim.

So as the Jews, since they really could not integrate, went west and west and west.  The Muslims, being of so many people, don't have many reasons to retreat.  Unfortunately we have very little reason to deny them what they really want and stand on a thin thread of power politics destined to retreat unless the other powers of the world line up in unison once and for all against nuclear proliferation and terrrorism, no matter what has to be done to prevent it.   

Monday, April 1, 2013

GUNS AND GANGS...CHICAGO'S LEGACY? (ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED 2/22/13)

THE COUNTRY WILL ARM MORE AND MORE UNTIL THE TRUTH IS TOLD...TODAY'S HEADLIINES FROM NBC CHICAGO...HUNDREDS OF TEENS MOB PEDESTRIANS IN THE LOOP

Here is the link:

http://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/Hundreds-of-Teens-Mob-Pedestrians-in-the-Loop-200755191.html200755191.html


Rahm Emanuel, the former Chief of Staff for the Obama administration was elected Mayor of
Chicago.  One of his major campaign pledges was to enforce gun control more strictly.

What has Emanuel really done to clean up this town?  Since his election the murder rate and crime in Chicago has become front page news and he has been ineffective in confronting the gangs and the criminal element in the minority population.

Vice President Biden decides to visit Newton Connecticut to discuss gun control.  Why doesn't he go to Chicago, the town where gun violence is out of control, and discuss his agenda.

This is typical for members of the Obama administration.  Significant problems like guns, unemployment and the Middle East get lots of rhetoric.  Judge for yourself whether they get results.

They travel to a small town in Connecticut to speak on gun control but avoid confronting the urban areas and people responsible for a disproportionate amount of gun related murders and crimes...




 

Shepard Osherow. All Rights Reserved