The Armenian genocide of 1914-15

I have been in communique with a Turkish diplomat concerning the recent deplorable actions of President Erdogan, as well as the treatment of the Israeli basketball team, and general Turkish antisemitism. Out of the blue - unprompted by me - he sent me a long article which denied the Armenian genocide. I sent his letter to a friend, who post a Bernard Lewis video, which similarly engaged in a form of denialism. This is my response to her, and to anyone who uses Bernard Lewis as justification for the offensive denial of the Armenian genocide of 1914-15.

I understand and know Bernard Lewis's statements vis a vis the Armenian genocide. (link which discusses Lewis's opinion - please note it is a very leftist site, but it accurately depicts Lewis's positions, which I have read in books he has written) He believes that many people died, but the goal was not genocide, rather, it was protecting the Turks from the Armenians who were fifth columnists. He also claims that it was not planned on the state level, but rather was initiated on the individual level, i.e., individual Turks took it upon themselves to engage in a sort of mob mentality of killing Armenians - but no genocide was planned. Anyway, his statements have been since proven false. It has since been uncovered that Hitler actually thought of of the gas chambers at Aushwitz from the model of the more primative gas chambers during the Armenian genocide. Recent documents have been unearthed which show the actual planning that went on at the state level to engage in a Final Solution of Armenians. Now, it is true that Armenians as a people were trying to form their own state and had been fighting against the Turks. However, none of that can ever justify what was done during the Armenian genocide of 1914-15. The fact that Turkey continues to deny the simple facts of history is simply revolting. The US has acknowledged its crimes against Native Americans, and against African Americans. It is what makes us a more moral and better country than Turkey. Only by acknowledging and learning from the past can you ever hope to not repeat it.

Here are documents concerning the Armenian genocide. Another document.

I happen to find Lewis's statements abhorrent, and blaming the victim. Lewis is a good source for some things, but not everything. He also was and remains an absurd proponent for the Oslo 'peace' process, and is a denialist for the extensive amounts of historical Islamic antisemitism. He has written whole books which deny the very well documented historic Islamic antisemitism, and as such, I look at him as someone who cannot fully be trusted in his writings. He is good as a source up to a limited point only. The fact that Bernard Lewis denies the Armenian genocide is not evidence that it is acceptable for others to do so.

He is a denialist of historical Islamic antisemitism and the Armenian genocide. Please look at his works with a rather jaundiced eye, as I do.

One note to add: I believe Bernard Lewis is sadly a far better historian than the vast majority of 'Middle Eastern studies scholars.' This fact alone should send shudders down the spines of anyone who fancies majoring in 'Middle Eastern Studies' at a major university.

Iran announced it is going nuclear

Well, kind readers, the day of reckoning is coming closer...Iran has announced it is enriching uranium, and said it will not suspend this process. Evidently, some uranium has already been enriched. Feel free to read more about this right here. My prediction: the world will not do a single thing to stop Iran, and Iran WILL go fully nuclear. After the pathetic response to the British hostages...I don't see how the West will do anything other than bend down, kiss the ankles, and take it. Iran said they will kidnap more soldiers in the future, and the response of the West is "Yes yes, we will capitulate without firing a shot!" We have lost the will to fight, most recently evidenced by the House Democratic leader meeting with the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt! To sum up... Iran kidnapped soldiers, who then immediately afterwards appeared on TV and apologized for being in the way of Iranian guns. They get back to the UK and say that "fighting was not an option." (huh?) Iran says they will kidnap more soldiers, they are fighting our soldiers in Iraq as we speak, they announce they will enrich uranium, and our response is to meet with the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, and have a Khomenei imam lead the Texas state legislature in prayer. Sanctions against Iran? We can forget that, because how can we lecture Russia and China when in fact the EU is a major trading partner with Iran? Have we lost the will to fight? Are we so blinded by the almighty dollar that we are willing to put up with basically anything, even the loss of life and liberty, just for a fast buck?

That useless, feckless, terror-enabling organization

I know I have not posted, and so I have a great deal of catching up to do, including a discussion of my meeting with Elliott Abrams (deputy national security advisor), a producer from the film Obsession, my meeting with the Indian ambassador to the US about Israeli-US-Indian relations (see story about it here), as well as meeting the wife of the author of Myths and Facts about Israel (who runs the CAMERA website) I also have been meaning to write about my interpretation of the meaning of Purim and Passover... So many thoughts in my head...I have been overwhelmed! And I have retreated from blogging. But I am going to try to be better. In the meantime, I think you all should see a video compilation of what is and is not allowed to be discussed at the UN. It may or may not shock you. Long term Culture for All readers should already know that I consider the UN to be a useless, feckless, terror enabling organization that aids and abets terrorism. I believe it should be immediately disbanded and/or moved to France. Perhaps those that disagree might change their minds after watching this:

US versus THEM

I wrote the following email to a friend of mine, when he complained that Moderate Muslims have no reason to side with America/Israel/the West in general, as America/Israel/the West in general is no better (for them) than the alternative. I wrote up a brief statement in refutation, and I hope you like it! --------- Living in America, for all its faults - and there are many faults - Muslims are treated a million times better than they are by corrupt Islamic regimes. Living in Israel, for all its faults - and there are many faults - Muslims (Arab Israelis, Bedouins), are treated a million times better than their alternative. (the horrific Hamas/Fatah 'government' of the Palestinian territories) Muslims have more civil rights in Israel than they do in the Palestinian Territories, where goons are running the show. India has its butchers from Gujarat, and that cannot be excused, and will remain forever a black mark in India's history. I am not justifying or excusing what happened, and I know that there were literal baby killers. I would justify life imprisonment for anyone responsible, and execution of anyone who raped Muslim women. (I hold rape to be a worse crime than murder, that is my personal morals, but anyway) But why did the Gujarat riots happen? They happened because of Indian government policies which were enabling Islamic terror (the catalyst being the inaction to the Godhra train mob attack), and the thought that Hindus had to take the law into their own hands. And yet that said, the life of a Muslim in India, for all its problems, is still far better than in Pakistan, or Bangladesh. The US has never resorted to such mass rioting. Neither has, amazingly enough, Israel. But my point is that the only way to prevent another dip into barbarism again (which the Gujarat riots were), there must be a movement of Muslims to condemn terror groups to the point where terror groups know they will not get any support from their fellow Muslims, and even be branded un-Islamic. (this has yet to happen) There is no moral equivalency between the US, Israel, or the West and the thugs I speak of. Remember, these are organizations who are killing more Muslims than anyone else. And life in Saudi Arabia and Iran is what it is. Lest we forget, people have been killed in Iran for the 'crime' of homosexuality, or the 'crime' of sex outside of marriage. (including a 16 year old girl, who was raped, and then hung for that 'crime') In Saudi Arabia, someone who is caught stealing a loaf of bread has his hands chopped off! Torture? They have torture down to an art form! You really feel that there is a comparison between the US and these nations? And for all the US's strengths and faults, there is no way it is smart enough to invent such divisions of Sunni and Shia. In short, I don't advocate torture or imprisonment without some sort of a hearing. I never advocated this, and I don't advocate it. But to proclaim that the American abuses of human rights is equivalent to anything in the Islamic world (hey, forget Islamic, let's include China and Russia - they are not fond of human rights there, either, and are linked with Islamists!) is simply missing the mark. I have no problem with you setting a higher standard for YOURSELF than you do others. And so certainly I hold the US to much higher human rights standards when looking at the United States individually. But when I compare the US to other countries, I am proud to be an American.

Life and Death, East v. West

I went to the funeral service of my best friend's mom, yesterday, and in addition to the funeral being a tragedy (my friend's mom, who I grew up with, died young, after suffering through cancer for years on end), it was a chance for me to go to a Hindu temple and see a service. I have never done that before. I had to take off my shoes before entering the temple and sat down on the floor, and the service was completely in Hindi. There was a great deal of chanting, as well as a fire within the temple, containing some significance. I really don't know the significance. I was struck by my complete ignorance of Hinduism and a religion and culture with a billion adherants. Of course, I likely am one step ahead of the game - I've been now to a Hindu temple, I grew up with an Indian best friend, I regularly eat Indian food and I am familiar with the traditions of an Indian family. (I also happen to find Indian men to be attractive, but, ahem) Granted, I am no expert in Hinduism, in fact I am as far from an expert as one can be. However, from what I do know of the religion, it is one of the most tolerant faiths on the planet - basically, it has no dogma. Hinduism consists of many beliefs, some of which are monotheistic, and some of which even embrace atheism. There's no death to unbelievers, and many people see Hinduism more as a lifestyle and philosophy than even as a religion. Moreover, this faith and way of life has brought the world contributions to which it is not accredited (such as creating Arabic numbers as well as revolutonizing mathematics in general, and making significant contributions to the world of music, shipmaking, and science) and currently exists in a nation, India, which is critical to the future of the world as a powerhouse contributor to the world of science, technology, and culture - as well as to the fight against global jihad. Sadly, Indian history is also rife with oppression - having been invaded multiple times - and yet somehow Indians have kept their culture and identity. And so one is left to wonder - is Western culture necessarily superior to Eastern culture, and ifso, why? Does this have anything to do with Western Judeo-Christian tradition, or is Western culture great despite said tradition? There is no objective answer to these questions, only opinion - as it is hard to measure greatness against each other. And yet here is my opinion nonetheless. To the extent that Western culture is based upon a bedrock of science, it is inseparable from Eastern culture. The very foundations of science itself were very clearly laid in the East. Muslims are incorrectly attributed with inventing modern mathematics and science, but in fact they generally were simply translators of the work of others, and retransmitted it to the world. That is not to say there were not unique contributions of Muslims to the world, but their contributions have absolutely been exaggerated. And yet, we see India still struggling to pick itself out of the Third World (with a booming economy, but still struggling), and the West is clearly leading the world. Why? How? Many would point to the Judeo-Christian spirit as enabling the West to succeed, and that THAT is what should be saved. But what of this Judeo-Christian spirit? The same spirit that brought about the Inquisition, where untold hundreds of thousands were burnt at the stake? The same spirit that contains verses in the bible stating:

Jesus said unto them [the Jews], If God were you Father, ye would love me: for I proceeded forth and came from God; neither came I myself, but he sent me. Why do ye not understand my speech? Even because ye cannot hear my word. Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it. And because I tell you the truth, ye believe me not. (John 8:41-45)

Of course, that is Christian-confined New Testemant text - there is also text that is universal across Judaism and Christianity, in the Old Testemant.

If you hear that in one of the towns which Yahweh your God has given you for a home, there are men, scoundrels from your own stock, who have led their fellow-citizens astray, saying, "Let us go and serve other gods," hitherto unknown to you, it is your duty to look into the matter, examine it, and inquire most carefully. If it is proved and confirmed that such a hateful thing has taken place among you, you must put inhabitants of that town to the sword; you must lay it under the curse of destruction--the town and everything in it. You must pile up all its loot in the public square and burn the town and all its loot, offering it all to Yahweh and your God. It is to be a ruin for all time and never rebuilt. (Deuteronomy 13:12-16)

This sort of dogma is not what encourages innovation, science, and progress. This sort of dogma is what encouraged the Middle Ages, ignorance, and persecution. So why is it that the West is worth saving? Simple. The West has had a Protestant Reformation and an Enlightenment, and religion, for all its faults, is left to the background of life, rather than at the very center of life that it currently holds in the Muslim world. In short, it is secularism that has made science, progress, and the Western way of life possible. It is this tradition that is worth saving. Why was India prevented from being an economic powerhouse all these years? I would argue that in India's case, it was the fact that it was conquered by the Muslims, and then the British, and in a colonial state for centuries on end. This is not proof of India's cultural inferiority, or the inferiority of Hinduism. Actually, as mentioned, India is currently booming. So what is it about Western culture that is worth saving? There is a good argument to be made that while many of the elements are certainly found within Judeo-Christian norms, many pillars in this foundation are also found further east, in the science and tolerance of Hinduism and in India. The West that produced Handel's Messiah also produced the Inquisition. The West that produced the ceiling of the Vatican also condemned Galileo as a heretic (and did not recant this condemnation until 1992). Certainly, it cannot be denied that some of the greatest works of art and music were commissioned by the Church. And yet, how many works were burned? How many works were declared heresies? Why is that always ignored, in the glorification of Western culture? How is it that the West currently embraces democracy and freedom? Where in the bible does it speak of democracy? Answer: nowhere. Certainly, there is the famous quote "Give unto Ceasar that which is Ceasar's, give unto God that which is God's," HOWEVER, that is hardly a call for democratic/republican self-rule. It also hardly says "Thou shall not have a religious government." Rather, it says that if there is a non-Christian government, Christians should respect it. (and even this is absent in Islam!) Indeed, the very calls of eternal damnation to those who disobey the letter of the bibical law practically necessitate a Christian government that can act as mommy and daddy for the population, policing the souls of its inhabitants. So why are explicitly Christian governments generally absent from the West? Simple: the years of the Inquisition and Holy Wars have taken their toll, and for the most part, the West learned its lesson, and no longer seeks to impose the 'will of God' via the sword. I am a proponent of Western culture specifically because it was able to overcome its barbarous past, and embrace the values of tolerance and secularism. Such values are what are behind the very foundation of the United States - Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof - and behind the modern advances in science, medicine, technology, and civil liberties. We are more free now than we ever have been, and yet this has less to do with any principles seen in the bible, much more to do with Greek tradition that was rediscovered by the West, as well as Solomonic principles of tolerance and government that are part of Jewish tradition and culture - but in many ways contradict the faith (Solomon allowed idols within the Holy Temple, and even built temples for other faiths!). Lest we forget, the founders of the United States were deists, as were the Enlightenment thinkers who were advocating democracy/republican rule. To sum this up: we are not fighting a war of Christianity v. Islam. That war was fought during the era of the Crusades, and in many ways led to a stalemate. The war being fought in the world right now is one of civilization against barbarism. Make no mistake about it: barbarism is not limited to Islam, however, the Christian world, unlike the Muslim world, underwent a Protestant Reformation, and more importantly, no longer is advocating bibical literalism. This is not a war of Christ v. Muhammad. The Hindus, Buddhists, Jews, Daoists, Confuscists, atheists, and even secular Muslims are all in this fight together with Christians. This is a war of reason v. unreason, science v. dogma, progress v. regression. Religion may be motivating many to fight, and yet unless the Christian fundies succeed in recreating a modern Inquisition and religious state in the West, that ship has sailed. This war being fought is a very old war, and the war against Islamofascism (aka barbarism) is but a new front on the age old war of reason versus unreason. Make no mistake about it: many atheists are themselves quite unreasonable. Their hatred for Christianity obscures them to the threat of Islamofascism, and often causes them to aid and abet those who actually wishes to destroy them. (see: Chomsky, Michael Moore, etc) They are the modern useful idiots. But this war against reason is being fought on many fronts. Lest we forget, Pat Buchanan believes Western culture may not be worth saving as it is not religious enough (and admires the Muslims for their religiousity), as does Jimmy Carter. These are deeply religious Christians. Then there are the "Jesus Campers," who seek to replace the Constitution with the bible. All these people are aiding and abeting the war on reason in their own way. In this war on reason, it is clear that the #1 threat are Islamists. However, we cannot confuse this as a new Crusade, even if the religious right and certainly Islamists see it as such. This is rather a fight to save civilization from un-civilivizing effects of barbarism. Period.

Iran launches a 'Holocaust conferece;' bans dissenting voices; PM of the Palestinian Authority in Iran; Israeli MKs show rare sign of unity

Today is a historic day. In the face of a Holocaust conference in Iran, the likes of which the world has never seen, Israeli MKs, including the Arab Israeli MKs, are showing a rare sign of unity, to condemn this conference. It is sad that it takes such extreme circumstances to show unity, but it is welcome to see all sides of the Israeli political spectrum agree on something: that the Iranian 'conference' is a threat. It is also notable that Ishmail Haniyeh (PM of the Palestinian Authority) is now in Iran, preaching a jihad against Israel (saying there will never be recognition of it), while Arab Israeli MKs are decrying this 'conference.' It shows where Hamas really stands - with Iran and its Holocaust denying regime. (not that that is a shocka!) (as a side note, Iran repaid Haniyeh with a pledge of $250 million) First of all, I want to backtrack and note that this is NOT a true 'conference.' Only Holocaust deniers need attend, as well as vile anti-semitic Jews such as the Neturei Karta. A Palestinian who runs a Holocaust memorial museum in Nazareth was barred entry into Iran. Do not buy into the lie that this is about free speech. IT IS NOT. It is about hate speech and attempting to prove that all Jews are liars and that Israel should be wiped from the sea. In essence, Ahmedinajad is saying Israel exists due to the Holocaust, which is itself a lie, so as such, Israel needs to be wiped out. Secondly, and this is most important...the conference represents an attack upon civilization itself. This sounds rather extreme, but hear me out. The Holocaust is a proven fact. Survivors are alive today, and a trip to Auschwitz easily proves the existence of gas chambers. This 'conference' is, more than anything else, an attack on history. It is an attack on the facts, and an attempt to delegitimize them. This 'conference' says: "Hey world! We make up our own history!" And the scary, the truly frightening thing about it is, that this 'conference' is occurring while survivors are dying out. In twenty years, there will be almost no survivors left - but there will be the records of this 'conference.' And you will suddenly see it become acceptable to question the existence of the Holocaust. It will be en vogue, and not just in the lunatic fringe. I would not be surprised if, in sixty years, there is a conference that says 9/11 did not happen - it was invented to make people sympathetic for Americans. Already there are 9/11 'truthers' who say Bush/Israel/Mossad/the boogeyman was behind 9/11. Already there are people who say the moon landing was fake. This 'conference' is an attack on knowledge and an attack on the written, oral, and video record. It says there is no truth, it is all opinion, all shades of gray. And if it is all opinion, then all opinions are legitimate. If I want to say that Saddam Hussein does not exist and never did, I am free to, because you see, all opinions are of equal weight. That is the true danger of this 'conference' and the Ahmedinjad regime. I fear for the future, and the concept of any objective truth. If everything is up for debate, then nothing exists, and the foundation of society itself starts to crumble.