At the event, Helena Cobban, who describes herself as "agnostic" on a two-state solution, said that blogging had "changed international relations" because now the world could get real-time reaction from the people "underneath U.S. and Israeli bombs."
Blumenthal went on to trash Elie Wiesel for speaking this past weekend at the Christians United for Israel conference in San Antonio. After mocking Pastor John Hagee, the founder of CUFI, Blumenthal said "the last time Elie Wiesel trusted someone so much it was Bernie Madoff." Wiesel admitted earlier this year that he lost "everything" he had in Madoff's ponzi scheme. The audience erupted with laughter at Blumenthal's tasteless joke.'"
Yes, Wiesel is a hypocrite the way he ignores the somber lessons he so piously teaches his audience. And yes, he is a total failure providing moral guidance to Israelis when they are so lost...But he was able to produce a book that is probably on most of the middle school reading lists in America. Written on a sixth grade reading level, Night is able to communicate an indirect argument in favor of Zionism in an easy to understand, and most important for sixth graders, concise way.
ReplyDeleteWasn't "Night" proven to have been largely a figment of Wiesel's overheated imagination?
ReplyDeleteIn any case, yes, "Night" is one of those books like "Exodus," which was practically considered a historical textbook when I was growing up. I'll never forget coming home from the library with it when I was about 12 -- my mother saw it and said "Read that trash if you want but it's nothing but a pack of lies." I was utterly astonished: It was like somebody trashing the Bible! Seriously...that's how revered that book was in America. But my mother wasn't raised in the U.S. and had (and has) no truck with Zionist propaganda.
I was lucky. I was spared a lousy read AND a Zionist bias from an early age. Thanks Mom!! ;)