Miriam Segal Speaks (r)

[strider@xxxxxxxxxxx]

/* Written 10:06 AM  Jul  8, 1994 by HanoverJ@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx in igc:bitl.seasia */
To clarify an ill-conceived point in C-Wallace's response:

First of all, the Germans did not support Hitler because they felt that the
Jews were money hungry.  In a country where morale, standards, and life is
so low, yet pride is so high, any fool who could talk could have lead the
country (and one did).  Hitler began working on the drunks in pubs and
preached against a people that were not present in those bars to defend
themselves.  The Jews were an easy target.  They were the businessmen who
were determined to  work hard to maintain their standards.  Success is
always resented.  The Nazis followed Hitler because most of them had fought
for Germany in WWI and experienced defeat.  They couldn't believe that the
powerful Germans lost a war...it must be someone from the inside who
undermined them...of course...it was the Jews.  The perception of Jews being
money hungry wasn't a factor.  It was only a feeble attempt at justification
after the fact.

As far as where the perception comes from, back in biblical times the Jews
never worshiped statues as all the other "subjects" under a ruler did.  One
punishment was to make the Jews tax collectors.  This was a job that would
separate the clans and send them all over the territory.  If they were
jumped by outlaws, no big deal, it was just a Jew.  However, if they came
back with less than their quota, their family was put to death.  This is
where the idea of money hungry came from.

Finally, "Never Again"  does not mean that Jews will never again allow
atrocities to happen.  As is evident by Israel's posturing, Jews around the
world do not claim to be the eternal white knight atop a glorious steed, nor
do we expect to viewed as such.  Never again means that never again will
Jews allow themselves to be destroyed without a fight.  Never again will an
oppressor find an easy target in Jews too scared to fight for their lives.
Never again will Jews rely on anyone else to protect and rescue them.  The
holocaust proved that if the Jews were to survive, they could only rely on
themselves.  The cry "Never Again" is a warning to all who dare repeat
history that they will meet an armed people willing to die fighting rather
than die peacefully.

Take caution my friend in throwing around your generalities and certainly
don't levy the burden of clearing the Jewish perception on the shoulders of
the Jews.  Never judge a people on the basis of an individual's actions.
 ----------
To: Multiple recipients of list SEASIA-L
Subject: Re: Miriam Segal Speaks
Date: Friday, July 08, 1994 9:20AM

    Bottom Line: Miriam Segal is making money in Burma. Miriam Segal
    wants to continue to make money in Burma. Atrocities? What
    Atrocities!?
     It seems her family's Nazi holocaust experiences have only served
    to harden her heart against the sufferings of others, which she
    surely must know are occuring.
     The same things she's saying of Burma today could have been said
    of Nazi Germany. Germans saw Hitler as doing great good for the
    country. "We didn't know Jews (among them no doubt members of
    Miriam Segal's family) were being killed. We're not guilty."
     Let it be known that this very attitude of caring only about
    money is what the Germans perceived to be the Jewish way, and is
    what threw their support to Hitler in the first place. If "Never
    Again" is to become a reality, then that perception of Jews by the
    rest of the world must also go away, and the only way that is
    going to go away is for people to show by their actions that it
    isn't true. Miriam Segal's public speech is just her waving a
    banner which says "It Is True! It Is True!"