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February 13, 2012
Binyamin Rose: Back to the Bunker: How a life-risking act by a Christian family during the Holocaust saved a family and built a thriving community a world away
Menachem Wecker: Business Schools Teach Real Estate Despite Troubled Housing Market
February 10, 2012
Lisa M. Krieger: Man with defibrillator demands access to his own heart's information
David G. Savage: Why activists may not be in a hurry to have High Court rule on alternative marriage
February 9, 2012
Laura McMullen: 10 Least Expensive Public Schools for Out-of-State Students
Kimberly Palmer: How to actually enjoy -- relaxing, financially -- your vacation
February 8, 2012
Warren Richey: Why momentous Prop. 8 ruling might not satisfy gay-rights groups
Menachem Wecker: Though Controversial, LL.M.'s Can Lead to Specialized Legal Jobs
The Kosher Gourmet byDana Velden: Going to the bother of making soup? You know it better be good. This CREAM OF TOMATO SOUP certainly is! And it's a cinch to make, too (Includes techinques and serving secrets)
February 7, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.: Caught off-guard? President's Super Bowl interview with Matt Lauer gives those who need a reason not to vote for him, a darn good one
Suzanne Bohan: Leaping lizards! Tiny reptiles advancing robot design
February 6, 2012
Jonathan Tobin: Iran Threatens Israel With Destruction, But the New York Times Doesn't Hear It
Jeffrey Fleishman: In newly democratic Egypt, tens of democracy activists jailed, to stand trial; their groups are 'threatening the stability of the homeland'
Julie Deardorff : Researchers say antioxidants may not be that effective and could do more harm than good
Mark Clayton: How did Anonymous hackers eavesdrop on FBI and Scotland Yard?
February 3, 2012
Edmund Sanders : Israeli official says Iran is creating missile that could reach East Coast of US
Victoria Kim: Immigrant-smuggling ring used black drivers to avoid racial profiling
February 2, 2012
Jim Carney: Wrong number call may have saved her life
Reza Kahlili : Ex-CIA spy in Iran's Revolutionary Guard: What Obama doesn't grasp about striking deals with Tehran
Tina Susman: For woodchuck rescuer, every day is Groundhog Day
February 1, 2012
Brian Bennett: US officials see increasing threat of domestic attack from Iran
Emily Brandon: How to Take Advantage of New 401(k) Fee Disclosures
January 31, 2012
January 30, 2012
Paul Richter and Ramin Mostaghim: Misreading Teheran's limits -- deadly and economically devastating as they may be -- is a risk administration, Europe seem willing to take
Suzanne Bohan: Warning: Nap-deprived tots missing more than sleep, study finds
Meg Handley: Banks Revamping Rewards Programs to Woo Customers
January 27, 2012
Caroline B. Glick: Obama: Of course I intend to prevent a nuclear holocaust . . . in a few months
Yochonon Donn: In liberal New York City, fervently-Orthodox Jews may soon be getting a district to call their own
Jeannine Stein: An inflated ego and thinking you're 'all that' doesn't just make others sick of you, it can make you ill
Katy Hopkins: New budget rules may affect how much money you get for college
January 26, 2012
Ed Koch: To the New York Times, calling for the murder of Jews by those capable of having their incitement taken seriously isn't news
Jeannine Stein: Mental illness struck one in five U.S. adults in 2010: Report
January 25, 2012
Richard Simon: House passes two bills endorsing the use of religious symbols at military memorials
Fred Weir: Putin: Multiethnic Russia cannot survive as a US-style 'melting pot'; must find its own way
Susan Johnston: 5 Sneaky Coupon Strategies Consumers Should Watch Out For
January 24, 2012
Carol Clark: The price of your soul: How your brain decides whether to 'sell out'
Caroline B. Glick: America lost most in 'Arab Spring'. Sadly, many voters still don't grasp the extent
Warren Richey: Drug criminal scores win in GPS ruling from conservative-leaning high court
Erika Bolstad: Black conservatives gather to talk about gaining strength
January 23, 2012
Melissa Dribben: Jewish voters to play a key role in Florida's Republican primary
Jordan Rau: In quest to grow, Catholic hospital system will announce this morning its break from church
Ali Safi: U.S. envoy gives Taliban terms for peace talks
January 19, 2012
January 18, 2012
January 17, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney Jr.: No-kidding red lines: U.S. response to an Iranian nuke may be bluster, but Israel's won't be
David G. Savage: They sued their principals after slandering them online --- now the cases are headed to the Supreme Court
David Francis: Where to Invest in 2012: With stocks expected to rebound, opportunity abounds for investors
January 13, 2012
Ben Lynfield: Israeli lawmakers move to annex Jewish Judea, one museum at a time
Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz: Thriving through touch: Gentle massage helps older people with low mobility improve in mind and body
January 12, 2012
Warren Richey: Landmark Supreme Court ruling a 'resounding win' for religious groups
Warren Richey: Supreme Court says no to new rule on eyewitness testimony
John Fauber : Statins found to raise diabetes risk in postmenopausal women
Katy Hopkins : Consider This Before You Pay for an Online Degree
The Kosher Gourmet by Joseph Erdos: This mushroom and barley soup has an intense -- almost nutty -- flavor that mixes robust with Middle East. It has creaminess without cream
January 11, 2012
Shari Roan: Millions of atrial fibrillation sufferers at risk for devastating, but preventable, stroke
Tom Hussain: Pakistan -- recipient of more than $21 billion in civilian and military aid -- speeds pursuit of Iranian pipeline, defying US
David G. Savage: High court signals it won't be loosening TV's 'indecency' rules
Stephen Ceasar: Oklahoma's Islamic law amendment can't go into effect, court rules
January 10, 2012
Reza Kahlili: From an ex-CIA spy: US must exploit new split in Iran's Revolutionary Guard
Karen Kaplan: Study: Nicotine replacement products ineffective when used in real-life situations
January 9, 2012
Michael Doyle: Put through legal hell over dream home, couple fought back hard --- all the way to Supreme Court
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Jewish World Review
August 13, 2003
/ 15 Menachem-Av, 5763
The cynical manipulation of Hitler's legacy for political purposes
By
Zev Chafets
http://www.jewishworldreview.com |
I want to say something about the accusations that California
gubernatorial candidate Arnold Schwarzenegger is how to put it? too
Austrian.
But before I do, I need to make something clear about my attitude
toward Austria: I don't like it.
All my life I have endeavored to avoid Austrian products (not hard if
you're not into beer and cookies). I've never visited the place and don't
intend to.
My aim isn't to singlehandedly destroy the Austrian tourist industry.
It's just that hanging out with Adolf Hitler's countrymen isn't my idea of
a relaxing vacation.
I'd probably dislike Austria no matter what kind of country it became
after World War II. But the modern version strikes me as an
unnecessarily nasty place. Decades after Germany took responsibility
for the crimes of the Nazis, Austria still falsely portrays itself as Hitler's
victim instead of his enthusiastic supporter.
The country seems to have a passion for louses. In the 1970s, Austrian
Chancellor Bruno Kreisky was a prominent supporter of Yasser Arafat
and other Arab terrorists. More recently, the neofascist Freedom Party
has been a member in good standing of Austria's coalition government.
That party's leader is Jorg Haider, an admirer of Hitler and friend of
Saddam Hussein's.
Before Haider, there was Kurt Waldheim. The fact that the former UN
secretary general was a Nazi war criminal didn't deter the Austrians
from electing him president in 1986.
Which brings me back to Arnold. Since announcing his candidacy on
the Jay Leno show, he has become the object of a campaign to smear
him as a Nazi sympathizer. The paint comes mostly from "Arnold: An
Unauthorized Biography," written by Wendy Leigh and published in
1990.
Waldheim is the brush.
According to Leigh, Schwarzenegger is close to Waldheim so close, in
fact, that he invited the ex-Nazi to his Hyannis Port, Mass., wedding to
Kennedy cousin Maria Shriver. Waldheim thoughtfully didn't show up,
but he did send a gaudy gift. This reportedly prompted Arnold to
declare his love (and Maria's) for Herr Waldheim.
This friendship forms the basis of a politically motivated gambit to
disqualify Arnold from political office. Slate's Timothy Noah summed
up the campaign nicely: "If Schwarzenegger doesn't renounce
Waldheim in a highly public way, he can forget about ever becoming
governor of California."
Really?
Schwarzenegger was born in 1947. He has lived most of his life in the
United States. True, his father was a Nazi police official in the old
country, but that isn't Arnold's fault. In fact, it was Arnold who outed
the old man by asking the Los Angeles based Simon Wiesenthal Center
to investigate his father's past.
Schwarzenegger himself is a strong supporter of Israel and a generous
contributor to Jewish causes. For this he has been declared kosher by
no less a hardliner than the head of the Wiesenthal Center, Rabbi
Marvin Heir.
Don't get me wrong. I'm not an Arnold fan. I've never liked his movies
or his cheesy public persona. I also don't care who becomes the next
governor of California. To me, it's like the debate over gay bishops in
the Episcopal Church interesting, but not my problem.
What I do care about is the cynical manipulation of Hitler's legacy for
political purposes. Casting Schwarzenegger as a Nazi sympathizer for
the greater good of Gov. Gray Davis or any of the other candidates is a
crime against human memory.
By trivializing evil, California's Holocaust impliers become, wittingly or
not, allies and accomplices of the Holocaust deniers.
Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in Washington and in the media consider "must reading."
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JWR contributor Zev Chafets is a columnist for The New York Daily News. Comment by clicking here.
© 2003, New York Daily News
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