ANSWER vetoes Rabbi Michael Lerner

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katydid2 (27 posts) Feb-11-03, 12:22 PM (ET) ANSWER vetoes Rabbi Michael Lerner http://www.thenation.com/capitalgames/index.mhtml?bid=3&pid=385 I don't like to slam ANSWER so much, though I am glad the NYC march I'll be attending is sponsored by United for Peace. But, Lerner is a really really good guy. This isn't cool.   Alert Edit | Reply | Top

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Subject     Author     Message Date     ID    Factionalism aids the enemy... edzontar Feb-11-03 1  Workers World Party suks.They are part of the convergance norml Feb-11-03 2  I .... Trajan Feb-11-03 3  lerner is awesome wisconsinwoman Feb-11-03 4    because he's "pro-Israel" Terwilliger 02/11/2003 6  This REALLY sucks! Terwilliger Feb-11-03 5  Bad move by ANSWER Larkspur Feb-11-03 7  I hope Lerner goes anyways w4rma Feb-11-03 8  I DONT CARE MUCH Ardee Feb-11-03 9  Instead of going off half cocked about everything and annak110 Feb-12-03 10    thanks for the information... edward 02/12/2003 11        Here's more from Cockburn's Counterpunch annak110 02/15/2003 12

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edzontar (628 posts) Feb-11-03, 12:29 PM (ET) 1. Factionalism aids the enemy... I am pro-Palestinian AND pro-Israeli...I support a PEACE DEAL!!!!!! In any case, it seems both sides are wrong and should make up...solidarity against the common enemy and all that...   Remove | Alert Edit | Reply | Top

norml (198 posts) Feb-11-03, 12:36 PM (ET) 2. Workers World Party suks.They are part of the convergance of the extreem right,and the extreem left around intolerance,and totalitarianism.They came to Lincoln Nebraska to try to use Nebraska UNL NORML/HEMP when it existed.Exept for one member who was trying to impress his english department we wanted nothing to do with them,and we voted that way.They are scarry,and weird.   Remove | Alert Edit | Reply | Top

Trajan (1783 posts) Feb-11-03, 12:59 PM (ET) 3. I .... LAST EDITED ON Feb-11-03 AT 01:03 PM (ET) Am NOT a "socialist" ..... I am a socially conscious american democrat ..... I do not support strict socialism or communism ..... it can never work in our world ... I am an antiwar pacifist democrat .... who believes mankind CAN be served through a regulated system of capital, as evidenced by a VERY decent POST FDR history here in america .... it HAS worked to our collective benefit .... I am a pacifistic social democrat who does NOT support violence, either on the battlefield, or on main street .... Michael Lerner is a respected representative of the Jewish left, and he deserves a place at the table .... I am pro-palestinian, AND pro-israeli .... I am pro arab AND pro jew .... I am ANTI war ..... I side with those who DESPISE war .... AND despise the deaths of innocents .... Innocent jews, Innocent arabs, Innocent chinese, Innocent russians, Innocent americans ; .... ALL deserve a chance to live without fear ...... Yes: ..... I despise the killing of innocent human beings of ALL types .... bar none .... I will not walk with those who preach hatred and death ..... I WILL walk with anyone who does NOT preach hatred against ANY specific ethnic group, including jews, arabs, whites, blacks, asians, caucasians, semite, nonsemite .... I am a white, socially conscious american democrat who rejects war without absolute justification, and who will not stand alongside those who preach hatred against any ethnic group .... I am a white, socially conscious american democrat who rejects war without absolute justification, and who KNOWS that others of like mind number in the tens of millions here in america .... I neednt stand alongside anyone who preaches hatred of specific ethnic groups .... I will NOT walk alongside jews who preach hatred of arabs .... I will NOT walk alongside arabs who preach hatred of jews ... Hatred has NO PLACE in the peace movement ..... it is the antithesis of peace ..... Even hatred of your enemy ..... I am a socially conscious american democrat who rejects war without absolute justification, who rejects racism, who rejects hatred, and who KNOWS that others of like mind number in the tens of millions here in america .... and who feels that NO GROUP that preaches hatred against specific ethnic groups should have a place in this peace movement .... I will not walk with those who preach hatred .... yet I WILL walk ..... SURELY there are tens of millions of democrats who wish to speak out on behalf of peace, speak out against hatred, and speak out against racism, .... who are NOT socialist or communist ....... Who are regular janes and joes who wish NOTHING but a peaceful coexistence between ALL peoples of the earth .... Arent there ?????? ... We neednt associate with movements that preach hatred of specific ethnic groups, not when socially conscious democratic americans are a powerful force unto itself .... The GREATER consensus lies with us: .... the mighty middle .... not with the fringe .... " ...Arguments, like men, ... are often pretenders ... ", Plato "Men never do evil so completely and cheerfully as when they do it with religious conviction." -- Blaise Pascal "He is YOUR God, They are YOUR rules, YOU Burn in Hell." -- Ephemera Buttons and Magnets "It was, of course, a lie what you read about my religious convictions, a lie which is being systematically repeated. I do not believe in a personal God and I have never denied this but have expressed it clearly. If something is in me which can be called religious then it is the unbounded admiration for the structure of the world so far as our science can reveal it." -- Albert Einstein, Albert Einstein: The Human Side. "Blasphemy? No, it is not blasphemy. If God is as vast as that, he is above blasphemy; if He is as little as that, He is beneath it." -- Mark Twain, a Biography “The best-laid plans of mice and men Gang aft agley And leave us naught but grief and pain For promised joy.” ... Robert Burns   Remove | Alert Edit | Reply | Top

wisconsinwoman (27 posts) Feb-11-03, 02:38 PM (ET) 4. lerner is awesome okay, i haven't read the nation story yet, but i'm a bit puzzled as to why lerner is vetoed. he's a good guy!   Remove | Alert Edit | Reply | Top

Terwilliger (5846 posts) Feb-11-03, 02:42 PM (ET) Reply to post #4 6. because he's "pro-Israel" I can only hope for revolution Leftist Whatever browser home: www.cannabisnews.com weekday news: www.prorev.com/indexa.htm Americans for Safe Access: www.safeaccessnow.org history: A People's History of the United States by Howard Zinn (excerpt at http://www.english.upenn.edu/~afilreis/50s/zinn-chap16.html)   Remove | Alert Edit | Reply | Top

Terwilliger (5846 posts) Feb-11-03, 02:41 PM (ET) 5. This REALLY sucks! ANSWER shouldn't be suppressing Michael Lerner! LET LERNER SPEAK! LET LERNER SPEAK! LET LERNER SPEAK! LET LERNER SPEAK! LET LERNER SPEAK! LET LERNER SPEAK! LET LERNER SPEAK! LET LERNER SPEAK! LET LERNER SPEAK! LET LERNER SPEAK! LET LERNER SPEAK! LET LERNER SPEAK! LET LERNER SPEAK! LET LERNER SPEAK! LET LERNER SPEAK! LET LERNER SPEAK! LET LERNER SPEAK! LET LERNER SPEAK! LET LERNER SPEAK! LET LERNER SPEAK! LET LERNER SPEAK! LET LERNER SPEAK! I can only hope for revolution Leftist Whatever browser home: www.cannabisnews.com weekday news: www.prorev.com/indexa.htm Americans for Safe Access: www.safeaccessnow.org history: A People's History of the United States by Howard Zinn (excerpt at http://www.english.upenn.edu/~afilreis/50s/zinn-chap16.html)   Remove | Alert Edit | Reply | Top

Larkspur (1115 posts) Feb-11-03, 04:35 PM (ET) 7. Bad move by ANSWER Rabbi Lerner is respected by American Muslims because he does question Israels' brutal policies towards the Palestinians. He is pro-Israel, but unlike Lieberman, his love for Israel does not blind him to Israel's abuses. I respect Lerner a lot. "Mankind must put an end to war, or war will put an end to mankind." John F. Kennedy. (Sen. Joe Lieberman) can campaign against electronic video violence while being in favor of actual military violence -- which hurts a lot more than any game -- and get no credit for it. Dennis Horgan, Hartford Courant columnist, Dec. 22, 2002 "Lieberman may be a committed Orthodox Jew in his personal practice, but in his role as a public spokesperson he has gone far away from the best aspects of the Jewish tradition. He has none of that prophetic voice that leads Jews to criticize our own Jewish community and Israel in the name of Torah values. He has none of that Jewish sensitivity to the oppressed that would place their needs above the needs of the wealthy." Rabbi Michael Lerner Feminism is the radial notion that WOMEN are People. Women must constantly engage in acts of subversion if they pursue goals that are not stereotypically feminine ones. Carolyn M. Morell, "Unwomanly Conduct: The Challenge of Intentional Childlessness"   Remove | Alert Edit | Reply | Top

w4rma (3899 posts) Feb-11-03, 04:51 PM (ET) 8. I hope Lerner goes anyways I'd bet that most of the folks there would prohibit ANSWER from enforcing that veto. And then he could be heard by the folks there. -Rick http://www.rickswarehouse.com/   Remove | Alert Edit | Reply | Top

Ardee (1604 posts) Feb-11-03, 05:11 PM (ET) 9. I DONT CARE MUCH ANSWER,from the first SF demonstration against this war,has been difficult to work with,has attempted to put forth its own agenda first and foremost.This banning of Rabbi Lerner is regretable and petty,and in keeping with the antics of that group. But I dont care much.So Lerner will not speak,too bad.It is about the tens of thousands who will march and show the lie that all americans are in support of Bush empire building! The dissing of ANSWER is a ploy to discredit the entire peace movement,just as the constant attacks on progressive democrats,Greens and those who deplore the abysmal record of the democrats here is a ploy by the neodemocratic conservatives to discourage desertion from a party that deserted us first. We dont see things as they are, we see them as we are. Anais Nin Mere unorthodoxy or dissent from the prevailing mores is not to be condemned.The absence of such voices would be a symptom of grave illness in our society. Earl Warren I wish I could love my country and justice too. Albert Camus Every gun that is made,every warship launched,every rocket fired signifies ,in the final sense,a theft from those who hunger and are not fed,those who are cold and are not clothed.This world in arms is not spending money alone.It is spending the sweat of its laborers,the genius of its scientists,the hopes of its children.This is not a way of life at all in any true sense.Under clouds of war it is humanity hanging on a cross of iron. Dwight David Eisenhower   Remove | Alert Edit | Reply | Top

annak110 (289 posts) Feb-12-03, 06:19 PM (ET) 10. Instead of going off half cocked about everything and exploding in all directions about something most of you appear to know nothing about except for what some right-wing propagandist has told you or whose words you have received secondhand, you can research the situation. <http://www.internationalanswer.org> The following is the statement from A.N.S.W.E.R.: FOUR COALITIONS RESPOND TO MICHAEL LERNER In the last day, as anti-war forces around the country have been working together to build for this weekend's important mobilizations, we at A.N.S.W.E.R. have been taken by surprise by a campaign initiated by Michael Lerner and furthered by David Corn (a reporter for the Nation and Fox News) and others that has sought to deceive the anti-war movement and to misdirect its energies to instead focus on fraudulent claims of victimhood by Michael Lerner because he was not asked to speak at the San Francisco demonstration this Sunday. This attack has now been picked up by ultra-right, pro-war forces in an effort to defame the movement. We have heard from many who have been anguished by the false claims put forth by Lerner. The following is a statement by the four major anti-war coalitions that are co-sponsoring the San Francisco rally on Sunday, February 16 that sets the record straight. The four coalitions are Not in Our Name Project, United for Peace and Justice, the A.N.S.W.E.R. Coalition, and the Bay Area United Against War. Please post where necessary to clarify Michael Lerner's deceptions. ----------------------------- BAY AREA UNITED AGAINST WAR NOT IN OUR NAME PROJECT INTERNATIONAL A.N.S.W.E.R. COALITION UNITED FOR PEACE & JUSTICE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 11, 2003 CONTACT PERSON: Bert Knorr (510) 644-8071, (415) 307-8028 (cell) STATEMENT FROM FEBRUARY 16 ANTI-WAR COALITIONS REGARDING RABBI MICHAEL LERNER We would like to clarify the misunderstanding regarding Rabbi Michael Lerner's perception that he was "banned" from speaking at the peace rally. His charges are untrue, and we wish to set the record straight. As the Bush Administration continues its relentless drive toward war, the mass mobilizations in cities around the world on the weekend of Feb. 15-16 have taken on great significance. Millions of people are expected to demonstrate in cities around the world in what may be the last opportunity to stop a new war on Iraq before it starts. In the San Francisco Bay Area, four coalitions -- each comprised of many organizations and individuals -- have come together to sponsor a broad and united anti-war march and rally on Sunday, Feb. 16. The four coalitions -- Bay Area United Against War, Not In Our Name project, United for Peace & Justice, and the International A.N.S.W.E.R. (Act Now to Stop War & End Racism) Coalition -- have been working together successfully for the last several weeks to maximize the turnout on Feb. 16. One of the first agreements that was made between the groups organizing the Feb. 16 anti-war protest was that none of the coalitions would propose rally speakers who had publicly attacked or worked to discredit one of the coalition groups. When members of the Tikkun Community, who have actively participated in the organizing meetings for Feb. 16, suggested to Bay Area United for Peace and Justice that it propose Michael Lerner as a speaker, it was explained by members of UPJ that since he had publicly attacked A.N.S.W.E.R. in both the New York Times and Tikkun community email newsletters, his inclusion in the program would violate the agreement among the Feb. 16 organizing groups. At that time, Tikkun representatives expressed that it would not be a problem if Michael Lerner was not proposed as a speaker. It was this issue, Michael Lerner's public attacks against one of the anti-war coalitions, that resulted in his not being formally proposed as a speaker on Feb. 16. His views on Israel and Palestine had nothing to do with it. Within the anti-war movement, there is a wide spectrum of diverse and opposing views regarding Israel and Palestine, which will be expressed on Feb. 16. To reiterate, the fact that Michael Lerner was not invited to speak on Feb. 16 was not the consequence of a "veto" by the A.N.S.W.E.R. Coalition. None of the coalitions have veto power over the Feb. 16 program. We strongly abhor all forms of racism and bigotry, including anti-Semitism. At the same time, we don't believe that criticism of Israeli government policies should be labeled as anti-Semitism any more than criticism of U.S. government policy should be labeled as anti-American. On the eve of a terrible war, we call upon everyone to join together in making Feb. 15-16 a massive and powerful statement for peace and justice. We're heartened by the broad range of participation that is developing for Feb. 16, including within the Jewish community, and invite one and all to join with us in our efforts to stop the war on Iraq. Issued by: Bay Area United Against War, International A.N.S.W.E.R. (Act Now to Stop War & End Racism) Coalition, Not In Our Name Project, United for Peace and Justice   Remove | Alert Edit | Reply | Top

edward (186 posts) Feb-12-03, 07:13 PM (ET) Reply to post #10 11. thanks for the information... Friends, David Corn is no friend of the anti-war movement. He has been writing attacks on the organizers without seeking them out for a reponse. Corn's assertion that they are something like "stinking communists" and other irrelevent accusations are similar to the tactics of his lost brethren, Christopher Hitchens. The anti-war movement's success is precisely what makes its critics so worried.   Remove | Alert Edit | Reply | Top

annak110 (289 posts) Feb-15-03, 12:52 PM (ET) Reply to post #11 12. Here's more from Cockburn's Counterpunch at <http://www.counterpunch.org/cockburn02122003.html> Michael Lerner: Should He Speak? CounterPunch's inbox is suddenly clogged with e-traffic about Michael Lerner being banned from speaking at the San Francisco rally. We got one list of protesting signatories studded with notables and miscreants, like Eric Alterman who normally spends his time deriding the antiwar protests, just like Marc Cooper, who clearly sees a "Let Lerner Speak" campaign as a good way of smearing ANSWER and NION (Not in Our Name). My initial reaction was to say to Jeffrey St Clair that any move to keep Lerner from pouring out his usual freshets of idiocy is sound by definition, but on mature consideration I counsel the organizers of the San Francisco rally to slot Lerner in at some point in the proceedings I'm quite prepared to believe that Lerner, a relentless self-promoter, has managed to piss off everybody with egocentric posturing and unity-wrecking maneuvers, and maybe his plan from the start has been to engineer a situation in which he can howl that Jew-haters have laid him low. But let the guy speak anyway. Mostly people don't listen to speeches, and if you suddenly hear Lerner's voice disturbing the harmony of the great convergence, move into a drumming circle and blot the guy out. Every now and again Lerner writes to CounterPunch asking for our support when he'd been attacked by the neocons. Tikkun has published some good stuff such as reports by Tanya Rinehart, one the best reporters and commentators in Israel. He's a flake, but on Israel, considering the mostly awful spectrum of opinion here, he's often been constructive. Look at other American-Jewish publications and you'll see what I mean. For a good exchange which excitingly revealed Lerner's distinct limitations I refer you to his debate with Salman abu-Sitta on the right of Palestinian return. Lerner and Hillary Clinton had a thing going for a brief moment, and then she, like so many others, realized that having Lerner around the place was like having a badly trained retriever, either jumping up and licking your face or making a mess in the corner. It reminds me somehow of Norman Podhoretz back in the days of Camelot, who conceived a passion for Jackie Kennedy and came to believe that somehow, against all the odds, she secretly reciprocated his yearning. Eventually, at some cocktail party he cornered her and pressed his suit. She gazed at him as though he was a centipede on her sleeve, and said icily, "Why, Mr Podhoretz, just who do you think you are?" Not long thereafter the jilted Poddy began his long trek to the right.   Remove | Alert Edit | Reply | Top

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