When I arrived in the United States in 1978 as a political refugee from a socialist country, I never thought America would attempt to destroy itself from within with the radical neo-Marxist ideology (i.e., critical race theory, white privilege doctrine, systemic racism, and Black Lives Matter) and the new progressive bumper stickers — “systemic fixing” and “collective justice.”
I certainly did not expect the public comments last month from State of Alaska Representative, and former history teacher in Juneau, Sara Hannan (D-Juneau). Speaking on the House Floor, she suggested that Nazi’s experiments on Jews during the World War II somehow benefited science and humanity.
My grandfather, Roman Umansky, was brutally killed by Nazis in 1941 in Kiev, Ukraine. I never met my grandfather and many of my uncles and aunts. Nearly 25% of my family were executed by Nazi’s experiments, or on the battlefields, and six million Jews (50% of the entire Jewish nation) were executed by Nazis in the six years of the war.
I am puzzled and astonished, how a former history teacher could make such an offensive and inappropriate statement? Why were Alaska’s Jewish communities silent? Why didn’t they condemn Hannan’s ridiculous statement?
They certainly were vocal when Anchorage Mayor Dave Bronson, Oct. 1, made a much less offensive statement by comparing a mask mandate with the Holocaust. He later issued the following statement: “I understand that we should not trivialize or compare what happened during the Holocaust to a mask mandate and I want to apologize for any perception that my statements support or compare what happened to the Jewish people in Nazi Germany, that was one of the most evil and darkest times in our world’s history.”
On August 25, 2020, the Juneau Assembly passed an ordinance creating a Systemic Racism Review Committee to investigate institutional racism in Juneau, including possible institutional anti-Semitic occurrences in Juneau. To my knowledge, the committee had no success in uncovering institutional racism and anti-Semitism in Juneau. Perhaps Sara Hannan’s offensive statement on the House Floor could be a good first project for the committee.
My close friend, in our private correspondence, had this to say about Rep. Hannan’s comments about Nazis experiments on Jews:
ALASKA WATCHMAN DIRECT TO YOUR INBOX
“Not at all surprising, given that she [Rep. Hannan] is a Democrat politician. Same goes on at the national level with Jewish leaders and the Democrats. So, you need to ask yourself, what is the basis for the continuing alliance of the Jews with the Democrats. Is it just a historic thing? Or is there something continuing? And what was the historic connection to begin with? Maybe you already know the answer to that one; I don’t. But the Democrats, especially the far–left side, are not only turning their backs on the Jews today (both American and Israel), but are actively accusing them of being racists and intolerant of Palestinians and Arabs. The left is overtly active in trying to cut all American aid and support of Israel and shift it to the Palestinians instead. Even “centrist” Democrats are embracing Islam and are silent on the anti–Jew/Israel demands from the left. If I were a Jew, I’d certainly wonder about what’s going on and why; and I’d certainly question my being a Democrat if that’s what I was.”
Several weeks ago (sometime in the early/mid-October), I was removed from the Juneau Jewish Congregation Sukkat Shalom online group; the administrators have not provided me with a reason of my removal from the group; and I will not ask. I suspect it was done because of my writing for the conservative newspapers and blogs on essential and controversial issues facing our nation. Well, so much for tolerance, freedom of speech and inclusiveness by my fellow Americans at Sukkat Shalom — true hypocrisy at its finest!
Again, my close friend, in our private correspondence, observed it as follows:
“As for your “friends” at the Juneau Jewish Congregation – I think it is an amazing example of how even well–educated and intelligent people can be so blind to their own hypocrisy as long as it fits with the thoughts of the whole group. I’m sure that virtually ALL those people consider themselves and each other as very liberal, open–minded people who value free speech and independent thinking very much. Yet, not only have they excluded you for entirely the opposite of that reason (i.e., they disagree with your thinking and you saying what you think), they apparently are not even aware of how hypocritical they are in doing so! If these well–educated, critical thinkers and leaders of their communities (certainly in their own minds they are) can behave like that so easily, it is really disturbing to realize how easy it must be for less critically thinking people. Yet another example that George Orwell’s dystopia is not such an improbable future at all.”
The cry of the poor is not always just. The best revenge against hypocrites is living well, to prove them wrong.
The views expressed here are those of the author.
9 Comments
Great essay. I was a Christmas temp – the quintessential Christmas temp always needing and willing to work. When I took myself out of a certain queue and placed myself in a more excelling position the former hierarchy chased me to my new digs and had a hissy fit. So funny. Some of these relationships are beneath rationale.
Well, she had a point. Whether that point offends you or not is moot. What she said is true. The means don’t always justify the end, but that doesn’t mean there have not been a myriad of inadvertent benefits to mankind from the workings of evil minds. She was not justifying the Nazi regime, she only said a lot was learned from what they did and some of what was learned was long-term beneficial. Ask anyone who has survived hypothermia or freezing. Where do you think the early scientific research on that was conducted? It was a research project conducted on unwilling participants by evil people, but something of benefit came of it. That’s what she was implying I believe. A bit hypocritical to complain about the PC bullies and then engage in the same tactics when you hear something said that you don’t like.
To Freedom: Scientists, especially medical professionals, learned a great deal from torturing innocent people during the Medieval time. Well, let’s call it scientific experiments.
Great article. I really enjoyed reading your stories and experiences. I also wandered what is going on in the Jewish community after all the sufferings of the past.
Thanks
Rich
While Ben Shapiro is an Orthodox Jew. I wonder if Orthodox Jews are more likely conservative. I wonder if the Alaskan Jewish community are politically aligned with the liberalism of the Democratic or Liberalism of the Republican party? So when a Liberal says something antisemitic they can’t say anything cause that’s their friend. While someone like Bronson, Save Anchorage group, and Eastman say something sounding antisemitic easier to criticize and attack and correct your politically perceived enemy than to correct a friend saying and doing something wrong.
The cry of the poor is not always just. The best revenge against hypocrites is living well, to prove them wrong.
So right, Live a God fearing life, love your neighbors, your children your enemies etc.
Be Kind But stand your Ground
“Eight (unrelated) stars of gold on a sea of blue…”
When you believe that someone holding an opposing view tells you something about their motivations for holding that view, you have likely mistaken the condition of both their heart and yours, for God alone knows the condition of the human heart (1 Kings 8:39, 1 Chronicles 28:9, 1 Samuel 16:7, Psalm 44:21, Jeremiah 17:9, Revelation 2:22).
In answer to the question in your title, when one is committed to the sanctity of collectivism, that which furthers the transfer of political power to the Left is always to be praised, and that which obstructs that transfer is always to be criticized. For some, it is just that simple.
Historically, the main reason leftism is radicalized in America today, and accelerating among our youth, is because young people of the post–Vietnam war generation had never experienced economic hardship and/or oppression by a totalitarian regime; they have been intensely subjected to political correctness, wants, and irrational and wasteful handouts instead of hand–up.
Far–left progressives are not as they think of themselves—liberal or open minded. In fact, they are illiberal and intolerant deflationists—i.e., I am going to serve you a ball of soup once a month at your place, as long as you don’t crash into my ocean–front home to ask for a real substantive help for your well–being.
Far–left progressivism is now a religion to some groups; and they possess the typical zeal and emotional attachment to a far-left dogma—socialism and neo-Marxism—which blinds them to having a rational and open mind. Indeed, they are hypocritical fools!
American leftism—true hypocrisy at its finest!