The CUSA Witch Hunt
November 30, 2008
by Diane V. McLoughlin
It seems to me that while kids at CUSA made mistakes (Carleton University
Students' Association), the underlying intent was good. What they got for
their good intentions was a proverbial public lynching of the first order.
Students discussed whether or not their policy on charitable fund-raising
was reflective of their desire to show the world that they care about everyone.
(See: 'Disease Dropped'; Ottawa Citizen, Nov. 25, '08.)
For years, the main fund raiser had been in support of cystic fibrosis - a
dreadfully cruel disease which affects the lungs. A student had heard that
CF was a disease predominantly predisposed to attack white males.
According to Wikipedia, CF is a disease 'most common among Western
European populations and Ashkenazi Jews'. He proposed to council that
CUSA's fund raising activities ought to be more inclusive. Somehow,
across the entire breadth and depth of Canada, this saga was twisted into
an issue of discrimination against white males and ignorance of, and
contempt for, sufferers of CF.
Against the students involved, the words by too many have been harsh and
hurtful. In point of fact, the howls of protest could be heard across the
breadth and depth of the entire nation. (As but an example, see comments
following the above article.)
To all those who have expressed incendiary and destructive words against
these students I would say this: Some of us actually agree with, and believe
that, the words 'never again' mean something. They have always meant
something from the beginning of the history of Man. Do Unto Others As You
Would Have Done Unto You; or, in the vernacular, don't do bad sh*t to no
one.
(Admission: I am currently reading Mark Mazower's far too illuminating
book, 'Hitler's Empire - How the Nazis Ruled Europe'. I am not sleeping
well. My mood is foul; my patience, thin.)
The ability to ignore the obvious good intent of these young members of
CUSA conjures up visions of self-righteous apes dragging students out by
their hair to nail them on crosses. The cross was a device used to great
effect by the Romans to terrorize people into submission.
In the discussion is the underlying threat of the accusation of Antisemitism
being leveled against these students. This charge has been made openly
on right-wing local radio over the past few days. The accusation is that as a
greater than average number of Ashkenazi Jews are susceptible to cystic
fibrosis, then the students' motivation for changing their charity drive focus to
include other types of charities might be Antisemitic in nature.
The charge of Antisemitism is a weapon used to terrorize people into
submission. It is an attempt, by some, to intimidate people from bravely
discussing, or examining critically, the activities of the State of Israel and her
supporters.
The ways in which this club is now being wielded strikes at more and more
innocent bystanders - but that is the nature of terrorism - the more random
the violence the more effective it is.
I find it particularly interesting that our attention is diverted to the activities of
a couple of university kids here on local campus, while I hear not a peep
about a catastrophe of epic proportions unfolding as I write: One and a half
million men, women and children in Gaza, right now, are being starved
deliberately, immorally and effectively by Israel. Half the population of Gaza,
half!, are children. This complete lock-down of Gaza has been in effect for
twenty-six days now.
Rather than an extreme yet isolated military action, the children suffer effects
such as anemia, malnutrition, stunted growth and other horrors of long-term
deprivation caused by Israel's pitiless eighteen-month long military siege.
Israel's military attacks are ceaseless.
Israel blames Gaza's attempts at self-defense as morally justifying the
siege.
Collective punishment is a crime against humanity. It is justified by a
mindset that is racist. The test is that the perpetrators wouldn't choose such
a sentence for crimes caused by their own people. Israel would not destroy
the lives of all the Jews who lived in a house if they believed there might be
one Jew who committed a crime dwelling within.
I will respond proactively to the howls of protest that Israel is simply
defending herself. Israel has never demonstrated a sincere desire for a
peace agreement with the Palestinians. Israel has not for one day abided by
ceasefires or any other device designed to bring peace. Hamas itself has
had peace proposals on the table for years.
Israel's treatment of the Palestinians is racist. Israel's actions are designed
to ethnically cleanse the Palestinians off of Palestinian lands. This is so,
even though a majority of American and Israeli Jews want peace with the
Palestinians.
It is ironic that there are now historians coming around to the view that many
Palestinians might in fact be direct descendants of Jews. For evidence one
is not sure whether we need look any further than to the fact that both sides
are identically committed to their survival in the face of long suffering. Such
suffering reduces the hope that people might take a chance on peace.
From a handful of Carleton U. kids trying to figure out how they want to do
charity drives, to the nature of evil, war and peace - it is all tied together in
this saga.
Religion has always had the confounding aspect that it can cloud our view to
the truly righteous path or it can help us to see.
Strange, that I do not believe in any religion yet if I believe in anything it is that
the righteous path is there for any of us to choose, better late, than never.
home
November 30, 2008
by Diane V. McLoughlin
It seems to me that while kids at CUSA made mistakes (Carleton University
Students' Association), the underlying intent was good. What they got for
their good intentions was a proverbial public lynching of the first order.
Students discussed whether or not their policy on charitable fund-raising
was reflective of their desire to show the world that they care about everyone.
(See: 'Disease Dropped'; Ottawa Citizen, Nov. 25, '08.)
For years, the main fund raiser had been in support of cystic fibrosis - a
dreadfully cruel disease which affects the lungs. A student had heard that
CF was a disease predominantly predisposed to attack white males.
According to Wikipedia, CF is a disease 'most common among Western
European populations and Ashkenazi Jews'. He proposed to council that
CUSA's fund raising activities ought to be more inclusive. Somehow,
across the entire breadth and depth of Canada, this saga was twisted into
an issue of discrimination against white males and ignorance of, and
contempt for, sufferers of CF.
Against the students involved, the words by too many have been harsh and
hurtful. In point of fact, the howls of protest could be heard across the
breadth and depth of the entire nation. (As but an example, see comments
following the above article.)
To all those who have expressed incendiary and destructive words against
these students I would say this: Some of us actually agree with, and believe
that, the words 'never again' mean something. They have always meant
something from the beginning of the history of Man. Do Unto Others As You
Would Have Done Unto You; or, in the vernacular, don't do bad sh*t to no
one.
(Admission: I am currently reading Mark Mazower's far too illuminating
book, 'Hitler's Empire - How the Nazis Ruled Europe'. I am not sleeping
well. My mood is foul; my patience, thin.)
The ability to ignore the obvious good intent of these young members of
CUSA conjures up visions of self-righteous apes dragging students out by
their hair to nail them on crosses. The cross was a device used to great
effect by the Romans to terrorize people into submission.
In the discussion is the underlying threat of the accusation of Antisemitism
being leveled against these students. This charge has been made openly
on right-wing local radio over the past few days. The accusation is that as a
greater than average number of Ashkenazi Jews are susceptible to cystic
fibrosis, then the students' motivation for changing their charity drive focus to
include other types of charities might be Antisemitic in nature.
The charge of Antisemitism is a weapon used to terrorize people into
submission. It is an attempt, by some, to intimidate people from bravely
discussing, or examining critically, the activities of the State of Israel and her
supporters.
The ways in which this club is now being wielded strikes at more and more
innocent bystanders - but that is the nature of terrorism - the more random
the violence the more effective it is.
I find it particularly interesting that our attention is diverted to the activities of
a couple of university kids here on local campus, while I hear not a peep
about a catastrophe of epic proportions unfolding as I write: One and a half
million men, women and children in Gaza, right now, are being starved
deliberately, immorally and effectively by Israel. Half the population of Gaza,
half!, are children. This complete lock-down of Gaza has been in effect for
twenty-six days now.
Rather than an extreme yet isolated military action, the children suffer effects
such as anemia, malnutrition, stunted growth and other horrors of long-term
deprivation caused by Israel's pitiless eighteen-month long military siege.
Israel's military attacks are ceaseless.
Israel blames Gaza's attempts at self-defense as morally justifying the
siege.
Collective punishment is a crime against humanity. It is justified by a
mindset that is racist. The test is that the perpetrators wouldn't choose such
a sentence for crimes caused by their own people. Israel would not destroy
the lives of all the Jews who lived in a house if they believed there might be
one Jew who committed a crime dwelling within.
I will respond proactively to the howls of protest that Israel is simply
defending herself. Israel has never demonstrated a sincere desire for a
peace agreement with the Palestinians. Israel has not for one day abided by
ceasefires or any other device designed to bring peace. Hamas itself has
had peace proposals on the table for years.
Israel's treatment of the Palestinians is racist. Israel's actions are designed
to ethnically cleanse the Palestinians off of Palestinian lands. This is so,
even though a majority of American and Israeli Jews want peace with the
Palestinians.
It is ironic that there are now historians coming around to the view that many
Palestinians might in fact be direct descendants of Jews. For evidence one
is not sure whether we need look any further than to the fact that both sides
are identically committed to their survival in the face of long suffering. Such
suffering reduces the hope that people might take a chance on peace.
From a handful of Carleton U. kids trying to figure out how they want to do
charity drives, to the nature of evil, war and peace - it is all tied together in
this saga.
Religion has always had the confounding aspect that it can cloud our view to
the truly righteous path or it can help us to see.
Strange, that I do not believe in any religion yet if I believe in anything it is that
the righteous path is there for any of us to choose, better late, than never.
home