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The Times Argus, April 29, 2003

Anti-Semitism Charges Ridiculous

By James Brooks

Enrique Bueno ("Distortions are the tools of bigots", Apr. 12) accuses Mark Hage of "bigotry", "anti-Semitism", "lies", and "hatred". Like anyone privileged to know Mark, I know this is utter nonsense. There is some kind of hatred here, but it's not in Mark's heart, nor his letter.

Mr. Bueno says the story of 90 Peruvian "Indians" converted to Judaism by the Israeli Chief Rabbinate and flown to Israel to live in a settlement in the Palestinian West Bank is an "anecdotal fallacy". But it's absolutely true. He can read it in the July 22, 2002 edition of Ha'aretz ("Coming Home").

Phyllis Boltax ("Hage knows not of what he talks", Apr. 12) says Mark has an "extremist anti-Zionist animus". Sounds bad, but it's just code for "opposes the ideology of Zionism." You know, demonize your opponent.

Ms. Boltax correctly notes the Peruvians practiced a homegrown Judaism before the Israeli rabbis arrived, and they sought conversion. She doesn't mention that the rabbis refused to convert anyone who would not agree to "immigrate to Israel immediately", nor that some Peruvians were dropped in the settlement of Tapuah, Gush Etzion, an extremist enclave of Kahane "party" fanatics.

The Peruvians are learning Hebrew, but they've already got Zionism down cold. One said, "The idea that there are Palestinians here at all is a lie. The Palestinian people never existed...I am sure that Jews kill Arabs only for self-defense and justice, but Arabs do it because they like to kill."

Only Jews can be citizens of Israel. But the proportion of Jews to non-Jews is steadily declining. Israelis call this the "demographic crisis". Zionism needs more Jews to complete the takeover of Palestine. The Israeli government (through the Rabbinate and the Jewish Agency) works to find Jews in other countries and get them to immigrate. New arrivals are paid handsome stipends, and get full permanent welfare if they move to the settlements. This effort has included the doctored immigration of over 200,000 non-Jewish Russians as "Jews". Ethiopian Jews are a source of endless debate; are they really Jews, and do we want them? Recently Sharon, a true Zionist, ordered the immigration of 80,000 more Ethiopians.

But Israel is not a colony, nor a theocracy, and Zionism, though it denies the basic human rights of the Arab residents of this land, is not a fundamentally racist proposition. If you can swallow all that, you might avoid being called an anti-Semite. Ridiculous, ain't it?

James Brooks
Worcester, VT