Tag: bernie-sanders

The Jewish Problem of people like Bernie Sanders

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

US Senator Bernie Sanders likes to use his Jewish heritage as a way to defend himself as he attacks Jews and Israel. He uses his personal hatred of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as a way to batter Israel and put Jews in the US and around the world in danger. He chooses to tell half truths and outright lies in his frantic, yelling style in an attempt to make them true.

Earlier this week, on December 16, 2025, he chose not to sign onto a joint statement issued Monday December 15, 2025, by Jewish Senate Democrats condemning the Sydney attack with a weak excuse about an earlier statement about antisemitism. This is the essence of Bernie Sanders. Lie, yell, deflect, and spew hatred against those you dislike, all while becoming wealthy while pretending to be one of the people.

This week he issued a very troubling statement, criticizing Netanyahu who linked the terror attack in Sydney, Australia, to Australian PM Canberra’s recognition for a Palestinian state. In the statement, he made four critical claims that need to be addressed. I’m sharing my thoughts on each of them.

DISCLAIMER: I am not going down the rabbit hole of ‘is there a Palestine or Palestinian people’? That is not a helpful or useful dialogue as the people exist and that’s how they are choosing to identify. That debate only creates division and doesn’t move us towards any hope for a better future.

Claim number 1: “No, Mr. Netanyahu. Speaking out on behalf of the Palestinian people is not antisemitic.

Here his claim in correct. Speaking out on behalf of the Palestinian people is certainly not antisemitic. Ignoring how they are damaged by the Palestinian Authority (PA) and Hamas while putting all the blame on Israel is 100% antisemitic. When I visited and met with leaders of Palestinian civil society in 2019, there were a number of things that were very clear. First, they had some major issues with the Israeli government and government policies. Many of their issues I agree with. Secondly, they had no use for the PA. The corruption of the PA, the lack of elections had the people I met with who were not on the PA’s payroll united that they were useless and harmful to the Palestinian people. Endorsing a Palestinian state that wants to eliminate Israel, that doesn’t hold elections, that has a government that rewards violence and the murder of Jews, is problematic. There is a very big difference between speaking out on behalf of the Palestinian people and blaming Israel for everything. Senator Sanders blames Israel for everything.

When I ran Hillel at UF, I used to publicly wonder why I was more pro-Palestinian than those in Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP). I wanted there to be a Palestinian state with free elections. A place with a thriving Palestinian economy, Palestinian universities staffed with Palestinian professors, meeting in buildings built by Palestinian construction companies. Places that turned out Palestinian doctors and nurses that worked in Palestinian hospitals that were built by those Palestinian construction companies. And most importantly, one that lived in peace with their neighbor, Israel. People like Bernie Sanders simply want no Israel. They don’t care when Hamas murders the civilians in Gaza. They don’t care when Hamas starves the people of Gaza. They only want to blame Israel. So yes, Senator Sanders, speaking out on behalf of the Palestinian people is not antisemitic but when you do so only to blame and vilify Israel, it certainly is.

Claim Number 2: Opposing the disgraceful policies of your extremist government is not antisemitic.

Senator Sanders claims that opposing the policies of a government is not antisemitic. He is 100% correct. There is nothing wrong with opposing the policies of a government. Even in thinking and staying that they are ‘disgraceful’ or calling the government ‘extremist’. That’s the beauty of a democracy. The protests in Israel against the current government have been massive. I was able to watch one outside my hotel in Jerusalem last year. It was amazing to see. The protests were non-violent. There is absolutely nothing wrong with opposing the policies of a duly elected, democratic government. The problem is that Senator Sanders doesn’t oppose the brutal government of Hamas in Gaza. He doesn’t speak out against the government of the Palestinian Authority, elected to a 4-year term on January 9, 2005! For all of Senator Sanders outspoken worries about President Trump not leaving after his term, he supports and doesn’t criticize Mahmoud Abbas, now finishing year 20 of a 4-year term! What hypocrisy!

People like Bernie Sanders hide behind their claims of criticizing the government while actually criticizing the legitimacy of the State of Israel. All they have to do is watch as hundreds of thousands of Israelis protest against the government, peacefully. They can watch disagreements in the Knesset, read the Israeli papers that criticize the government. Instead, they allow their hatred of Bibi Netanyahu to put all Jews around the world at risk.

Claim Number 3: Condemning your genocidal war, which has killed more than 70,000 people — mostly women and children — is not antisemitic.

The facts prove that there is no genocide in Gaza. According to a recent report by President Trump, there have been 67,000 deaths in Gaza with 58,000 of them being Hamas fighters. The 67,000 number comes directly from the Gaza Ministry of Health (Hamas). This means that the civilian to combatant ratio is 0.16 to 1. Israel has consistently reported the ratio in the 1:1 or 1.5:1 ratio. The UN average, or what is permissible in every war that doesn’t involve Israel, is 9 to 1. Facts matter except when it comes to Bernie Sanders and Israel. The data also shows that most of those killed in Gaza are not women and children but are men. Once again, Bernie lies.

Hamas uses women and children as human shields. They use the sick and the elderly as human shields. None of that matters to Bernie Sanders. His hatred for Netanyahu and his hatred of Israel means that he spreads the lies about genocide, putting all Jews at risk. That is antisemitic. Spreading the genocide libel is antisemitic.

Ignoring the actual genocides ongoing in the world while lying about a fake one is antisemitic. Christians are being massacred in Nigeria for the crime of being Christian. Sudan is experiencing the world’s worst displacement crisis and one of the world’s worst hunger crises with nearly 25 million people in need of assistance. No Jews, No News.

As for the fake genocide, the population in Gaza has actually INCREASED since the start of the war. If this was a genocide, it would make it the worst attempt at genocide in history.

Claim Number 4: Demanding that your government stop bombing hospitals and starving children is not antisemitic.”

Allowing Hamas to use hospitals as military bases while condemning Israel for attacking the sites that are firing rockets and missiles at them is antisemitic. The demand should be that Hamas stop using hospitals as military sites. Their use of hospitals as military sites is a war crime. No questions about it. Except that they are doing it against Jews, which is always the exception to a crime. Bernie and his crew totally miss the target here. Hamas digs tunnels under hospitals to use them as military sites. That’s the outrage. Hamas hid hostages in hospitals, that’s the outrage. Claiming Israel and the Jews are randomly bombing hospitals is not only wrong, it puts Jews at risk around the world.

The claim of starving children is yet another lie. There are plenty of images of literal tons of food and aid being delivered to Gaza and sitting there, being undelivered, by UNRWA and the Red Cross. They refused Israel’s support in delivering the food, demanding that Hamas help them deliver the food and aid. The same Hamas that was stealing the food. The same Hamas that was selling the food on the black market. When the complaint from the people of Gaza is that the free food is too expensive, the problem is easy to see. Yet Bernie and his crew ignore the facts to once again blame the Jews.

Earlier this month, it was discovered that Hamas hid tons of baby formula to damage Israel with starvation claims. The images are damning. Yet the media ignores the truth and runs with the lies. People like Bernie run with the lies because it gets them time on TV, headlines in the paper, and helps make them rich. They don’t care about the people in Gaza, those in the hospitals being used as military bases, or the mothers who can’t feed their babies. They only care about blaming the Jews. The facts bear this out.

This isn’t to claim that Israel is blameless or perfect. This isn’t to say that criticism of Israel is automatically antisemitism. When it’s clear that Israel is being singled out, held to a different standard, the lies are getting the headlines while the truth gets buried, that is antisemitism.

People like Bernie Sanders put my life and my family’s life at risk. What happened at Bondi Beach on the first night of Hanukkah could have happened at any Hanukkah celebration around the world. It could happen at one that my family is attending. If you doubt that, read these accountings from the past WEEK in New York, published in this NY Post article.

In just the last few days, multiple alarming episodes of open Jew-hatred have shocked New York City.

Saturday night in a tony West Village eatery, a Jewish woman asked a bigot to cool it with his noisy antisemitic language. He screamed filthy slurs at her, calling her an “ugly f–king Zionist,” insisting, “we will rid this country of f–king you.”

Monday night in Brooklyn, a pair of nasty bigots harassed Hanukkah celebrants, and yelled “F–k the Jews” on a subway platform.

Once on the train, one thug grabbed a visibly Jewish man by the throat and threatened to kill him.

Then, Tuesday afternoon in Crown Heights, an unhinged pedestrian shouted antisemitic remarks at passersby and stabbed one in the chest.

This is New York. The United States of America. 2025. I’m afraid of what 2026 will bring with people like Bernie Sanders making outlandish and false claims against Israel and the Jews. We must stop the lies now. We must hold the liars accountable for their lies that incite violence. Freedom of speech does not mean freedom from consequences. Inciting violence is a crime and that’s what Bernie Sanders continues to do. He can hate Benjamin Netanyahu all he wants. He can hate Israel all he wants. He can even hate his Jewish heritage if he wants. He isn’t entitled to incite violence against people like me and my family.

It’s time to put an end to the hate. It’s time to demand more from people like Bernie Sanders.

Bondi Beach: The end of these glory days

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

I have been writing and talking about the rise of antisemitism and Jew hatred for over a decade. In July of 2016, I co-authoried this article in the Seattle Times calling for people to stand up and speak out against antisemitism. I’ve endured ridicule from those on the far left in the Jewish community and people telling me that this is America and we are safe here.

October 7th and the more than two years following that has changed some of that ridicule as more in the Jewish community are seeing the blatent Jew hatred around the world and in America. Yet, as we as Jews have done for centuries, we continue to see ourselves as members of the society we live in first and Jews second while the rest of the world sees us as Jews first, second, and third. Whether it’s Jews like Peter Beinert and Bernie Sanders or leaders like Zohran Mamdani, Rashida Tlaib, Ilhan Omar, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, or talking heads like Tucker Carlson, Candace Owens, Joe Rogan, and Nick Fuentes, we are being battered on all sides.

On Sunday, on Bondi Beach in Australia, we reached a breaking point. Two gunman attacked a Hanukkah celebration, murdering at least 15 and wounding at least 40. The death and injury count would have been even higher if not for the bravery of one man, Ahmad Al-Ahmad, a 43-year-old Muslim man, husband and father of two, who risked his life to save others, wrestling the weapon from one of the terrorists. The video is incredible and we can watch a true hero in action.

We’ve seen things like this before. Unfortunately they are too many to even list. There was a school shooting at Brown University earlier that day. Hatred and murder go hand in hand. As a world, we have emboldened hatred of ‘the other’ and this is the result. It happens time and time again. We have seen in the LGBTQ+ community, the African American community, the Muslim community, the Sikh community, with violence against women, and any other group that somebody deems as being ‘different’ or ‘the other.’ That isn’t the breaking point I refer to.

The breaking point I refer to is all the people who chanted, agreed with, failed to condemn, defended slogans like ‘Globalize the intifada’, condemning the attacks they they helped ensure would happen. It’s the leaders of countries who, by their actions and inactions, created the environents that make this type of violence and murder a reality, now condenming it. Public Jew haters like Rashida Tlaib, posting she is ‘heartbroken’ by the very thing that she advocates for on a daily basis. Brianna Wu’s comment is what we all should be feeling.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese speaks out after the shooting while failing to take responsiblity for his inaction despite warnings that Jewish gatherings were going to be attacked. He and the Australian government actively took steps prior to the shooting to encourage Jew hatred, to fuel antisemitism, and to make Australia not safe for Jews. The day before the murderous attack at Bondi Beach, this article was published, highlighting the rise in “unprecedented anti-Jewish violence” while the government does nothing. Nothing but try to play the victim and shirk responsibilitiy after their actions and failure to act resulted in mass murder of Jews.

Comedian Michael Rappaport’s comment on Mayor Elect Mamdani’s post states exactly what I am talking about. Set the stage for violence against Jews and then when it happens, call for peace.

I’m beyond disgusted by these people who actively hate Jews, who do what they can to ensure the death of Jews, and then pretend after it happens that they are sad. I go back to the famous Maya Angelou quote. I’m tired of the two faced liars who want me dead and want me to help them murder me.

Last night was the big, public Hanukkah celebration in my town. I had been excited to go. I was excited to celebrate being Jewish publicly. The past few days, I have been feeling worn out from all my travel the past 10 weeks. North Carolina, Israel, Baltimore, Ft Myers, Tampa, DC, Seattle, Israel, Boca, and Gainesville. It has been an exhausting schedule. Yet after the Jewish massacre on Bondi Beach, after the Jew haters pretending to be sad that what they have advocated for, globalizing the intifada, policies that make Jews unsafe, I was physically ill. I simply couldn’t do it. As my grandparents used to say, ‘it just wasn’t in my kishkes” (translated from Yiddish it means “I don’t have the guts/stomach for it.”) It made me sad. But I also knew that I needed to protect myself. I stayed home, we lit the Hanukkah candles as a family, sang the blessings, and brought in Hanukkah together.

I put on my special Hanukkah pajamas – well over the top in outrageousness – but I didn’t care. The shooters on Bondi Beach, the politicians, talking heads, and even the Jews who take positions that make me not safe will not crush my Jewish soul. They won’t stop me from being Jewish, from celebrating being Jewish, and from doing my part to ensure that we continue, L’Dor V’Dor, from one generation to another as Jews.

I’ll be wearing my absurd pajamas every night during Hanukkah. I’m wearing my ridiculous Hanukkah long sleeve t-shirt today and have my absurd Hanukkah sweater to wear when I go outside. Hanukkah is about lighting the darkness. It’s about remembering that miracles do happen so embrace the darkness because we have the power to make it light. So enjoy my ridiculous picture in my ridiculous sweate and may it bring just a little more light into your life.

They no longer even try to hide their Jew hatred

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

It is official. AP has gone into business with Hezbollah and the terrorists. They have quietly defended the terrorists through inaccurate reporting and lies but no longer feel the need to do it under any pretense. They just released what used to be considered an unpublishable and unforgiveable article about how life has been difficult for terrorists who were targeted in a strategic and surgical attack to eliminate them or at least stop them from being able to be active terrorists. To AP, they are now tragic figures who’s only crime was that they wanted to murder, rape, decapitate, and ensure the genocide of the Jews. And honestly, they are only Jews so to AP, they don’t really count. After all, what is thousands of dead Jews compared to a terrorist who can’t be a terrorist to kill more Jews with his buddies or one who can’t play football any longer.  

Here was this incredible report by the Associated Press. The didn’t even try to hide their support of the terrorists.

So AP wants us to have sympathy for people like the terrorist Mahdi Sheri, who can’t play football and can’t fight for Hezbollah anymore, but writes nothing about what should have been Ariel Bibas (z’l) 6th birthday on August 6th. Somebody dedicated to murder, rape, torture, kidnapping, and real genocide gets a sympatheic piece while the brutal kidnapping and murder of a 4 year old child is ignored. Pathetic. Horrific. The American media no longer needs to hide its antisemitism and Jew hatred.

In the article, it cites that Human rights and United Nations reports say the attack may have violated international law, calling it indiscriminate. Using the pagers assigned by a terrorists group to their terrorist members to stop the terrorists is called ‘indiscriminate’. You couldn’t make this type of stuff up. It’s time to close the UN, no longer anything close to what it was designed to be. If we, as a country, want to really believe in our ideals of humanity, we have no place for the Jew hating UN.

Then there is Mahmoud Khalil, a terrorist who led the Columbia antisemistism and Jew hatred efforts. Amazingly he says publicly that October 7th was necessary because Israel was making peace with other Arab countries and the Palestinians were being ‘left behind’. If being left behind means their rejection of every peace offer since 1948, then yes, they were left behind. Accepting a deal that acknowledges the right of Israel to exist that would create a Palestinian state isn’t acceptable so instead, their decision is to murder, rape, kidnap, and decapitate as many Jews as they possibly can. Khalil all but says that publicly and yet the world stays silent. It’s beyond obscene.

Then there is Linda Sarsour, one of the most vile antisemites around. She completely ignores the oppression of Hamas, completely ignores the freedoms of muslims who are Israeli citizens, and instead, chooses to to advocate that all Muslims must hate all Jews. According to her, the official position of the entire muslim community needs to be Jew hatred. Once again, the world stays silent. Their silence is their tacit approval of what she advocates. It’s their way to encourage Jew hatred without having to directly say it.

It’s hard to find things that go beyond those, however in today’s world, that is not only possible but probably. Amazingly, an Austrian heiress to the industrial dynasty whose company manufactured Zyklon B—the chemical used to gas Jews during the Holocaust—is set to sail on a “Freedom Flotilla” to Gaza. Her family wasn’t able to eliminate all the Jews so she is going to do her part in carrying on the family tradition of demonizing and attempting to murder the Jews. The world sees no irony. The world sees nothing wrong with this.

The UN Office for Project Services (UNOPS) came out with an incredible report that explains the food shortages in Gaza. They found that between May 19 and August 5, 2025, 88% of aid trucks collected by the UN in Gaza did not reach their intended destinations. This means that of the 2,604 trucks with food and humanitarian aid that entered Gaza, 2,309 of them were intercepted and didn’t reach the people of Gaza. In some months, the percentage of stolen aid was even higher, reaching 94% in July 2025. The report is even more damning of the UN and Hamas. Data shows that 85% of aid pallets sent to Gaza did not reach their intended recipients, with 28,000 out of 33,000 pallets looted. The more food and aid given to the UN to distribute, the more food and aid ends up with Hamas for them to feed their terrorist agenda and for them to sell on the black market to fund their terror operations.

Yet it is Israel that is blamed. Hamas is absolved of any responsibility. The UN, charged with delivering the food and aid to the people are given a free pass from their role in the lack of food for the people of Gaza. Israel, who sent the food in, who turned it over to the UN, is the who the world blames for the lack of food. It’s beyond absurd.

What makes it even worse? The Jews who side with the UN and Hamas. The Jews who use terms like genocide and war crimes when talking about Israel. The Jews who will be shocked when the Jew haters come for them because they were on the side of Hamas. This image and post on X (Twitter) puts it best, using Bernie Sanders, the ultimate Jewish Jew hater (Peter Beinart is a very close second) as the example.

If Jew haters like Bernie Sanders really cared about starving children in Gaza they would hold Hamas and the UN accountable for allowing the food and aid to be stolen and looted and not given to the people. They would hold Egypt accountable for not allowing ANY aid through their border and for not allowing the civilians (i.e. not Hamas) of Gaza to move into the Sinai where they could be safe, have plenty of food, water, medicine, and a life while Israel eliminates Hamas. The reality is they don’t care about anything other than hating Jews.

No longer can we allow this blatent Jew hatred to go unchallenged. No longer can we excuse it, especially when it comes from other Jews. It’s bad enough when the rest of the world hates us but when we decide to hate ourselves, thinking the world will love us because we helped rid the world of Jews, we are delusional. At times like this, we need to listen to Winston Churchill.

Don’t be an appeaser. Don’t allow those you know to be appeasers. When you do, in the end, we all get eaten.

It’s not safe to be Jewish in public any longer

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

I have spent the last few years writing and talking about the rise of Jew hatred. I have called out the increasing bigotry and been very vocal about the violence that was going not come if this continued. We saw it happening in Europe and I wrote and said that it was going to come to here, to the United States. We saw it in Canada and I wrote and said that it was going to come here. We saw individual assaults that were played down by the media and many in the Jewish community as ‘isolated incidents’ and I warned that it was now here and was going to get worse.

On Wednesday May 21st, two Jews, Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim, were fatally shot outside the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, D.C., after attending an American Jewish Committee (AJC) event. The media chose to call them “Israeli Embassy staffers” which is where they worked, but not why they were shot and murdered. That was because they were Jews.

Many people were suddenly shocked. They had been to AJC or other Jewish events and for the first time, they realized that it could have been them. Those of us who have been warning that this was coming took no joy in their sudden realization. Two Jews were murdered because of the lies of the media, of our politicians, of the UN, and many others. For the first time, the conversation began to shift, just a little. For the first time, Jews in America had been slapped in the face and came to recognize the danger they face just for being Jewish.

Yesterday, Sunday June 1st, a domestic terrorist, filled with hatred of Jews fueled by many of our leaders, our press, and other Jew haters, threw molotov cocktails into a peaceful rally to support freeing the hostages still held by Hamas for over 600 days. Eight victims, including a holocaust survivor, were injured with a number seriously injured. A few are in critical condition. Two to Eight in 2 weeks. Being publicly Jewish or Jewish in public has become a life threatening condition.

Yet the media continues to lie. Today’s front page of the Orlando Sentinel, above the fold, highlighted a debunked claim, an outright lie, about Israel. The claim was made by Hamas and was unsubstantiated, yet many news outlets ran with it. A day after it was debunked, it was front page of the Orlando Sentinel. What about the terrorist attack in Boulder? Molotov Cocktails being thrown into a Jewish crowd? Where was that coverage?

The proof of the lie is video evidence. It was released after the claims were made. One security footage shows what was happening at the time of the alleged Israeli attack on civilians. What was happening? People peacefully lining up to get food from the new Israel NGO, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), which has been successfully getting food to the people of Gaza. The people of Gaza receiving the food from GHF were stunned that the food was free. Since humanitarian aid has been coming into Gaza since the war began, you may wonder why they are so stunned that the food was free. It’s because the UN has allowed Hamas to take the food and Hamas has been selling the food. The complaint from the Gazan people wasn’t that there was no food, it was that the food was too expensive. That’s the free food being given as humanitarian aid. Yet the world, the media, and many of our leaders, chose to ignore this. The Free Press had a powerful article about this. I urge you to read it.

Video of what things looked like in the location of the reported Israeli shooting at the time of the alleged shooting. One problem – it’s a peaceful group of people getting their food and no shooting.

A few hours later, more video evidence was provided. This time it was footage of the shooting of Gazan people. One small problem with the lies being told that it was the IDF that murdered Gazan people. The shooter is Hamas. Our wonderful media chose not to report that either. And we wonder why people beileve the lies? It’s because the media keeps telling them. Nobody holds them accountable. Even with video evidence shown above and the video evidence below.

Video evidence of Hamas shooting and killing Gazan people. The media prefers an unverified Hamas claim to video evidence.

Where do we go from here? I was talking with a friend of mine in Denver today who said there are conversations now about whether observant Jews should walk to synagogue on Shabbat due to safety concerns. Wearing a kippah and a suit or a nice dress or outfit while walking on Saturday morning or evening is a clear indicator that you are Jewish. It’s no longer safe to do that.

I have attended many Jewish events in my life and while there was security at the venue, I walked undisturbed to my car from the venue at the end of the event. The shooting at the AJC event in DC has no longer made that safe. Walking to your parked car after a Jewish event now makes you a target. Being Jewish in public makes you a target.

A few years ago, as the rise of Jew hatred was clearly moving towards violence, I reached out to somebody I know and trust to ask if when the time came, they would hide me and my family. When I shared that, people were shocked. That reality comes a little closer every single day. When people like Bernie Sanders rail against Israel and incite people to violence and then post things like this on social media after Boulder, it’s offensive.

Bernie helped create the monsters who killed the two Jews in DC and threw the molotov cocktails in Boulder. He takes no responsibility for his part. When US Representative Rashida Tlaib still keeps up a post that has been proven to be a lie for more than 20 months after the proof, we know we are in a battle for our lives.

I spoke to a friend of mine yesterday who is physician. He glumly said to me, “I guess I have to go get my conceal carry now.” That’s the world we live in. To be Jewish and feel safe, you have to consider carrying a gun. To be Jewish and feel safe, you need to consider being armed to walk to your car, to go to the grocery store, or be anywhere in public.

The question is what are you going to do about it? Our members of Congress have issued statements but what are they going to actually do? Are they going to stay in the partisan lanes, write posts on social media, and allow (and sometimes encourage) Jew hatred or are they doing to put aside their political differences to keep us safe? Are there going to be consequences for inciting hate or are we going to allow it until the violence kills more Jews? Have we had enough or do we need to wait for the mass shooting of Jews event that will be on the horizon if we don’t act.

If you keep your head in the sand, stick with your partisan beliefs, and don’t speak out, all you have done is made yourself an easier target. I’m going to stand up, speak out and not stay silent. I’m going to do all that I can to live in a country where we don’t tolerate hate, even against Jews, who remain the only group that it is ok to publicly hate. The title of Dara Horn’s 2021 book is no longer ironic. It’s no longer acceptable

Nor is the title of David Baddiel’s 2021 book allowed to be true. Jews do count and I hope you will join me, whether you are Jewish or not, in making sure that Jews do count, that violence against Jews is not tolerated, and that Jews can once again feel safe being in public.

It’s a sad day in America when American citizens don’t feel safe being in public because of hatred and bigotry. Because our leaders and the media incite hate and then, like Bernie Sanders, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ihan Omar, Rashida Tlaib, vocal antisemites and Jew haters, try to distance themselves from the violence they helped create by issuing pithy statements on social media. It’s time to call them out. It’s time to call out the media for their lies. It’s time to stand against hate including antisemitism. Or find the person who will hide you and your family. The choice is yours.

The Hypocrisy that allows Jew hatred and murder

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

Hamas invaded Israel on October 7, 2023. They murdered 1,200 people. Kidnapped over 250 and still have 101 hostages. They fired rockets towards civilian areas, not only trying to kill Israeli citizens but on misfires, destroying the people of Gaza’s homes and killing them. Hezbollah has been firing missiles into Israel since October 7, 2023, also targeting civilians. Iran, on two occasions, has fired hundreds of rockets, including over 200 ballistic missiles on one occasion, also at Israeli civilians. Yet it is Israel that is held accountable by the world and the ICC for the death of civilians. Despite the fact that this is one of the lowest civilian to combatant mortality rates in history. Despite Israel begging Egypt to open Sinai to allow civilians to move there and be safe from attacks against Hamas. Despite Hamas using homes, hospitals, mosques, and schools as military bases and creating human shields. The hypocrisy is unbelievable and shows the blatent antisemitism in the world.

Just last week, 19 US Senators voted in favor of limiting military aid to Israel as they try to defeat the evil of Hamas, Hezbollah, and Iran. This was led by “Jewish” Senator Bernie Sanders and one of the vocal proponents of limiting this aid was Jewish Senator Jon Ossoff.

The same day that Bernie Sanders brought his bill to the Senate floor, allowed by “Jewish” Senator Chuck Schumer (who has not brough the Antisemitism Awareness Act to the Senate Floor), Rabbi Zvi Kogan (z’l) was reported missing from the UAE. It was suspected at the time that he was kidnapped by Iran.

Today we learned that the intelligence and security authorities in the United Arab Emirates located the body of Rabbi Kogan (z’l). He was murdered because he fought back against his kidnappers. Rather than let him go because the kidnapping wasn’t going well, they chose to murder him. The murder of Rabbi Kogan is a criminal antisemitic terrorist incident. The State of Israel has already publicly stated that they will act by all means and bring justice to the criminals responsible for his death. The UAE has already announced the arrest of three suspects. The power of the Abraham Accords is real. Yet despite all that Iran continues to do, there are no charges pending at the ICC against Iran. The Hamas leader charged by the ICC was already dead when they charged him. The IC didn’t charge the leaders of Hamas who recently left Qatar for Turkey. The ICC didn’t charge Turkish President Erdogan for housing these murders and terrorists.

Once again, it is only the Jews who are targeted.

I am exhausted from the hypocrisy and the lies. Today we saw rockets fired at civilians in Israel once again. We saw the attempted kidnapping and murder of Rabbi Kogan (z’l) in UAE simply because he is Jewish. And as countries around the world publicly state they will the ICC arrest warrants if Netanyahu or Gallant should visit the country (and the EU attempt to mandate every EU country do it), the realities are beyond absurd. Prosecutor Karim Kahn is far from a man of honor. He is presently under investigation for sexual misconduct. He brazenly accused Netanyahu and Gallant of “war crimes”, “deliberately depriving Gaza’s civilian population of essential goods, including food, water, electricity and medical supplies” as part of a “widespread and systematic attack against civilians.”

The absurdity of these claims should be enough for them to be invalid, yet because they are Jews, the fact that Israel delivers an average of 3,729 food trucks per month into Gaza with an average of 3,374 calories per person per day: almost double the needs of an average adult human, doesn’t matter. The food truck delivery and calorie amounts are documented in a detailed study by the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. Anybody who doesn’t want to believe it simply because it is an Israeli university study can easily verify the data using public informatio. Similar data is available regarding fuel, water, medical supplies, and all other forms of humanitarian aid, yet the lies grow and get spread by American politicians and celebrities, European governments, and world media.

Israel and the World Health Organization (WHO) just coordinated a massive polio vaccination campaign for children in Gaza. It is important to note that the children who did not get vaccinated and in fact were not even seen by the employees of WHO are the Israel child hostages. In the midst of this massive campaign, the only children deemed ineligible to receive the vaccines were the Israeli hostages. It’s clear that these are not the acts of a country attempting to harm, starve or kill civilians—in fact, it is exactly the opposite.

On top of everythign else, it is well documented, including by UN sources, that the terrorist organization Hamas and other crime affiliates habitually steal much of the humanitarian aid that enters Gaza, as well as torture and kill civilians who attempt to take aid for themselves. It is also well documented that many UNRWA employees are actually Hamas members and are intentionally diverting the aid to Hamas instead of the people. There are no sanctions against UNRWA. In fact, just after failing to stop military aid to Israel, it was “Jewish” Senator Bernie Sanders trying to have the United States return to funding UNRWA despite their clear and documented ties to Hamas, terrorism, and the theft of humanitarian aid.

And then, today, after some of the leadership of the United States and those in the incoming administration were vocal about sanctions against the ICC, their spokesperson at the United Nations came out with a public statement that the arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Galant could be revoked if Israel demonstrates a credible and thorough national investigation into the allegations. Since we already have the facts needed to disprove the allegations, what investigation is needed? It shows the power of standing up to Jew hatred. It shows that antisemitism can die in the light and when people stand up and speak out. It shows the power of peace through strength. It also shows the ICC is illegitimate

Talking about Jew hatred and antisemitism, two Israeli tourists in Townsville, Australia, were insulted and threatened by the owner of this store simply because they were Jewish. “Get the fuck out of my store! I don’t give a fuck about Israel but I do care about the fact that you’re a dirty, filthy Jew.” At least she didn’t try to hide it behind Israel and openly showed her bigotry and hatred. This video shows everybody what we face. I think the people who need to see it the most are the Jews who pretend it isn’t real and doesn’t happen. The Jews who excuse the behavior and try to blame it on us.

It’s why we must fight. It’s why we can’t stay silent. It’s why we can’t allow the lies to continue to be told unchallenged. The lies are what people believe. The lies are what ensure our destruction. Our fighting against it is what saves us. Don’t sit back and allow the hypocrisy of Jew hatred to win. Your voice matters. Your circle of influence matters. You matter. Take action now.

The lies of Bernie Sanders and others cost us all

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

On Wednesday November 20th, Senator Bernie Sanders brought to the floor of the U.S. Senate a vote to block the sale of tank rounds to Israel. Senator Sanders actually had the gall to stand on the Senate floor and blatently tell lies to the American people. He said Israel is intentionally starving civilians in Gaza, pointing to the picture behind him — promoted by Hamas propaganda outlet Al Jazeera — as evidence. The truth?? The boy in the picture, Fadi, has cystic fibrosis and requires advanced medical support. Israel facilitated his exit from Gaza to a US hospital where he received the care he needed. Israel is surging more aid into Gaza than international organizations are able to handle. There is currently a backlog of approximately 850 trucks worth of aid inside Gaza waiting to be distributed. Sanders also accused Israel of preventing a ceasefire/hostage deal when the U.S. has reiterated time and time again that it is Hamas, not Israel, that has rejected offer after offer after offer. Why should anybody be surprised that Bernie would lie to Americans. It’s what he does best.

His efforts failed miserably, once again. This time the vote was 79-19, overwhelming suppport for Israel. Now that his effort to abandon American hostages and support terrorists have failed, let’s talk about Senator Sanders and a few other Senators who either voted for this antisemitic, anti-American, anti-American hostages in Gaza attempt to harm our ally, Israel, or those who allowed it to happen. Let’s also look at some Senators who took very vocal stands against this horrible idea so we can compare and contrast.

Senator Bernie Sanders (D-VM)

Bernie Sanders has made a career of ‘public service’. From 1981 through today, that has been his only job. From Mayor of Burlington to a member of U.S. House of Representatives, to the U.S. Senate, government jobs have been his career. A noble effort many might say. Yet somehow he managed to own three homes, a row house in Capitol Hill, a house in Burlington’s New North End neighborhood, and a lakefront summer home in North Hero. Not too shabby on a public servant’s salary. He has a reported net worth of over $3 million dollars, one of the 1% he rails against. He gets the special health insurance offered only to members of Congress while pushing medicare for all for the rest. He speaks one thing and acts personally another way. The definition of a hypocrite.

In addition, he has a personal hate for Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Rather than the war being one of Israel’s survival, he calls it “Netanyahu’s savage war”. Instead of focusing on the hostages in Gaza including Americans, he repeats the Hamas/Iranian lies and overstates what it happening. He defends those who followed the terrorists on October 7th to loot and steal, calling them innocent. He defended the rioters and looters after George Floyd’s murder, comparing them to the uprising in China after Tianamen Square in 1989 yet doesn’t see any justice with Israel fighting back after 1200 people were murdered in a violent invasion on October 7th and more than 250 people taken hostage, with 101 remaining hostages 400+ days later.

Bernie Sanders pretends to be one of the people and for the people but has shown he is really all for himself, all for his ego, all for gaining and keeping his own power. If he cared about people he would have spent the last 400 days fighting for the release of the hostages. Fighting for the surrender of Hamas to end military action. Fighting for justice. Instead, he fights for his hate of Netanyahu and his “Jewish” upbringing which resents. History will remember him for his hatred, hypocrisy, and not kindly.

Senator John Fetterman (D-PA)

Senator Fetterman has been one of the most vocal supporters of Israel and the Jewish people. He understands the fight against evil that is ongoing. He understands you must defeat evil, you cannot negotiate with it nor can you allow it to fester as it only returns stronger.

In his office, he keeps posters of the hostages held in Gaza as a permanent reminder of what matters to him, people. He advocates on behalf of the hostages, their families, and all of those harmed by the actions of Hamas on October 7th. He never forgets that it is Iran who is behind this and that they are the core threat, a threat to not just Israel but to America.

Senator Fetterman has taken on Bernie Sanders directly and publicly disagreeing with him. He calls him out. After the pager attack which devastated Hezbollah and is directly leading to an opportunity for a lasting peace today, Bernie Sanders once again lies and blames Netanyahu for blocking peace when it has been proven over and over again that it has been Hamas and Hezbollah. When asked if there is anything at all he agrees with his colleague on in this regard, Senator Fetterman is crystal clear on what he thinks, believes, and stands for.

Senator Fetterman shows morals, ethics, and values. He stands clearly for what he believes. There is a moral clarity he exudes that is missing from people like…..

Senator Reverend Raphael Wernock (D-GA)

Senator Reverend Raphael Warnock is a man of God. He has dedicated his life improving the world. This makes both his vote and his silence about his vote even more disappointing and troubling. As a man of God, Senator Warnock knows the difference between good and evil. As an American he knows how important getting back American hostages are yet has been silent on those still held in Gaza. He has been on the wrong side of issues like going into Rafa, where the leadership of Hamas was hiding and where tunnels into Egypt were discovered. These tunnels were how rockets and weapons were getting into Gaza to attack Israel. He called going into Rafah “morally unjustifiable” when the facts now show it was the only moral thing to do.

As a man of faith, Senator Reverend Warnock is about love, kindness, and peace, except when it comes to Israel. The rest of the world deserves to live in peace but not Israel. The citizens of the world deserve safety and security, but not Israel. On Wednesday he voted in favor of withholding the weapons needed to defeat evil and worst of all, he has remained silent about his vote. He hasn’t come out with a statement explaining his vote. He hasn’t spoken publicly about his position and rationale behind it. Perhaps the fact that he just won a new 6 year term to the Senate makes him think he doesn’t need to be accountable. As a man of God, he knows better. He knows he is always held accountable for his actions. It saddens me to see somebody who has spent his life devoted to preaching the gospel, to sharing about love and kindness, act in such a different manner publicly and then hide from his actions. Perhaps he thinks this new 6 year term means he isn’t accountable. The rest of us know differently.

Georgia State Representative Esther Panitch (D)

In order to be honest and fair, I must disclose that Representative Panitch is married to a childhood friend, I am childhood friends with her brother-in-law, and I took her sister-in-law to my high school senior prom. Representative Panitch is the only Jewish member of the Georgia House of Representatives. She is outspoken in her support of protecting Jews, fighting antisemitism, and support of Israel. She also speaks out against all hatred and bigotry and is somebody who isn’t afraid to speak her mind and live by her core values, morals, and ethics. Before the vote, Representative Panitch publicly urged both of her Georgia Senators to vote no on the bill. When they both voted in favor of it, she had no problem speaking out publicly about her disappointment. Unlike Senator Warnock, who still remains silent about his vote, Representative Panitch issued this powerful and impressive statement.

She shows that it isn’t impossible to be an elected official and hold true to your morals, ethics, and values. It does take courage and I salute her for doing so.

Senator Jon Ossoff (D-GA)

Senator Ossoff, who ran on his Jewish credentials, voted against what most of his constituents wanted and in favor of terrorists. In his explanation, he chooses to cited what President Reagan did in 1982. He neglects the changes that Israel was invaded, 1200 people murdered, over 250 people taken hostage, 101 remaining hostages for over 400 days including Americans. He neglects the nonstop bombing of Israel from Gaza and Lebanon, the two missile attacks from Iran including the second comprised of over 300 ballistic missiles. He cites the Hamas (Iranian) propoganda about massive civilian deaths even when the facts show the UN/Red Cross acceptable ratio is 9 civilians for every 1 combatant in urban warfare and Israel is close to a 1 civilian for every 1 combatant ratio. He pretends that Israel is not in a fight for her life, for her existance, against a genocidal Iranian regime. He becomes the latest in line to be willing to sacrifice the Jewish people on behalf of his masters. He thinks that somehow, his efforts will keep him safe when they come for all the Jews, forgetting the lessons throughout history that they come for all of us, even those who thought we were one of them.

Senator Ossoff talks about violent uprising but doesn’t mention Turkey and the Kurds. He doesn’t mention Syria. He doesn’t mention China. He conveniently forgets what happened in Minneapolis, Seattle, Portland and other cities after the George Floyd murder. The riots. The violence. The destruction. He chooses to continue the blood libel against the Jews by targeting Israel.

In all honesty, I have never been a fan of his. After seeing his vote and listening to this speech, the only word that comes to mind is disgrace.

President Joe Biden

There has been a lot of criticism of President Biden when it comes to his support of Israel. This week, President Biden was clear where he stood. His staff advocated against the anti-Israel Senate resolutions, and held firm to his proposed weapons sales to Israel even as 19 of Democrats took a stand against him. He ensure the United States vetoed a UN Security Council resolution that called for an “immediate, unconditional and permanent ceasefire” yet didn’t say anything about the release of all hostages in Gaza. On a day when 19 Democratic Senators voted to halt sales of certain arms to Israel, President Biden stood firm, not only against them but in support of Israel on the world State. Ambassador Robert Wood, the U.S. alternate permanent representative to the U.N. told the UN Security council, “Simply put, this resolution would’ve sent a dangerous message to Hamas: There’s no need to come back to the negotiating table.” My only question for President Biden is where was this 400 days ago? 350 days ago? 300 days ago? This show of leadership makes a statement to the world that the United States stands against evil, against terrorism, and demands the freeing of the hostages.

Senator Chuck Schumer

Senator Chuck Schumer likes to cloak himself in his Jewish identity and pretend to be a force for supporting Israel and the Jewish people. That’s the image he has of himself and that he tries to portray. The truth is showing itself to be just the opposite.

Last month, a House of Representatives report was released that showed Chuck Schumer quietly advised Columbia leaders to ignore criticism of campus antisemitism. Unlike Representative Elise Stefanik who chose to take on the Jew hatred from the Ivy leagues schools like Columbia and other campuses around the country, Senator Schumer enabled the leadership of Columbia to continue their antisemitic behavior.

That hasn’t been enough for Senator Schumer. He refused to bring the Antisemitism Awareness Act to floor of the U.S. Senate for a vote after it passed the U.S. House of Representatives. He continues to block it from a vote, which would pass, and protect Jewish students on college campuses from rising antisemitism. This has been Senator Schumer’s decision and his alone. He has the power to bring it to a vote yet refuses to do so. Every day, as antisemitism rages on college campuses, it is Senator Schumer who bears the responsibility for failing to take action.

Yesterday, Senator Schumer did allow a bill to come to the floor of the U.S. Senate. This was the bill by Senator Bernie Sanders to block arms sales to Israel. This self-created icon of the Jewish people, this self proclaimed defender of Israel, chooses not to protect Jewish students on American campuses while encouraging America to stop providing vital military aid to Israel. You may argue that he voted against the bill and it was his job to allow it on the Senate floor, however that falls flat when you consider he chose not to bring the Antisemitism Awareness Act to the floor. He picks and chooses what comes to the floor, as every leader of the Senate does. These two choices show us who he really is and what he really stands for. It’s not for the Jewish people and it’s not for Israel. It is for Chuck Schumer.

So, is anybody surprised that hours after more than 30% of the Democrats in the Senate voted to suspend weapon sales to Israel that the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued the arrest warrants for Prime Minister Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Gallant? The world watches America to see where we lean. Do we exhibit strength or weakness. Do we defend our allies or do we let them hang alone? Our current leaders won’t bring the Antisemitism Awareness Act to the floor but will bring a bill to stop arms sales to Israel to the floor. That sent a clear message to the ICC that if they are going to issue the arrest warrants, they better do it while this government is still in charge.

The same thought process is happening with the leadership of Hezbollah and Hamas. Reports today came out that Hezbollah is willing to agree to the US peace proposal “with comments”. We don’t know what those comments are yet, but they know that any chance they have of getting what they want only exists with this weak leadership in place. Details of the potential ceasefire arrangement are emerging: The Lebanese Army would take primary responsibility for preventing Hezbollah’s return to southern Lebanon. If Israel detects Hezbollah attempting to rebuild infrastructure, it would notify the Lebanese Army through U.S. channels to take action. Should the Lebanese Army fail to respond, Israel would retain the right to act directly, particularly against immediate threats such as attack preparations or weapons shipments.

The proposed agreement would allow Lebanese civilians to return to their damaged villages, with Israel forgoing a formal security zone in southern Lebanon. While UNIFIL peacekeepers would maintain a presence, Israeli officials don’t view them as crucial to enforcing Hezbollah’s removal. Instead, Israel plans to maintain operational flexibility to counter any Hezbollah presence through direct action or coordination with Lebanese forces via U.S. mediation.

Hezbollah knows this is the best it will get and are scrambling while a weak U.S. government is in place to keep as much as they can.

Hamas reportedly wants to advance a hostage deal, and no longer demands an IDF withdrawal from Gaza . Instead they seek a temporary truce that would be followed by renewed military operations. This isn’t because diplomacy has worked. This is because they have seen the strength of Israel. They know that a new government is coming in January that won’t tolerate their lies. They are grasping at whatever they can. Imagine if our government would have exuded strength 400 days ago. 300 days ago. 200 days ago. We could have been at this point then. The hostages could all be home. Thousands of lives could have been saved.

This is the price we pay for letting the lies of Bernie Sanders, Rashida Tlaib, Ilhan Omar, AOC, Cori Bush, and Jamaal Bowman grow and spread. This is the price we pay for allowing the lies of Hamas and Hezbollah to be reported as fact. This is the price we pay for not living up to our values and morals. Strong support for Israel from the beginning and throughout could have brought this to a close hundreds of days ago with thousands of lives saved. Instead, we allowed the hatred of small minded leaders to overwhelm us. I thank Senator Fetterman, President Biden (at times), GA Representative Panitch, and all those who won’t tolerate the lies.

I have intentionally focused only on Democrats in this piece because it was 19 Democrates who voted for the bill with 32 voting against it. There are nearly twice as many Democrats who stood for good over evil. The 19 who chose evil need to be called out. There are many others that are not Democrats that join with the 32 who chose good over evil. I want to end with my second favorite Marco Rubio video of all time (my favorite is him wishing my son Evan a happy Bar Mitzvah and giving him a charge to be a responsible and good adult). We need more people to speak up like Senator Fetterman does and like Senator Rubio does here. It’s not that hard. It takes morals, ethics, and courage. We need to demand more from all of our leaders. We have some that show us we can get it. Let’s not settle for less.

Leadership? More examples of it lacking

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

Leadership is a word often used but infrequently actually occurring in today’s world. We have seen that this week between the United States election, the firing of Defense Minister Gallant in Israel and his replacement with somebody without military leadership experience, and the continued failure of the United Nations and the International Red Cross among many others. At the end, I have a reminder of what leadership looks like.

I’m not here to criticize or applaud the election of Donald Trump or the defeat of Kamala Harris. The American people voted and made their decision. The bigger question that is being discussed is about leadership and understanding what the American people have been asking for. I have heard too many people say they were voting AGAINST Donald Trump or Kamala Harris. Very rarely have I heard people talk about the policies of either candidate that inspire them. True leaders don’t inspire by creating fear of the other, yet that’s what both candidates did in this election. I wish that this would stop now that the election is over, however it continues and may even be increasing.

Representative Bernie Sanders, who pretends to be for the people as he has become wealthy as a U.S. Congressman and owns multiple homes, included the following in his statement after the election. “Today, despite strong opposition from a majority of Americans, we continue to spend billions funding the extremist Netanyahu government’s all out war against the Palestinian people which has led to the horrific humanitarian disaster of mass malnutrition and the starvation of thousands of children.” He continues to tell lies, as the majority of American’s support Israel’s fight against terrorism and to defend themselves. He conveniently ignores that it was Hamas and many Gazan people who invaded and attacked Israel on October 7th, murdering 1,200 people and taking hostages that remain in captivity for almost 400 days now. He chooses to pretend that Hamas and Hezbollah are not firing rockets every single day at civilians in Israel. He spews hatred while pretending to care about the common people. He continues to think he knows best from his ivory tower and elitist positions rather than listen to what regular Americans are saying and have been asking for.

Compare the words of the elitist Bernie Sanders, to the words of American Radio host Charlamagne The God. “I know today Democrats are going to be looking for someone to blame. Let me be the first to tell you it’s not just one thing. I personally feel like Donald Trump speaks to people’s grievances better than Democrats do. I know people are going to talk about misinformation and the dumbing down of society. I understand a of that, but you don’t have to be intelligent to know you can’t pay your bills. You don’t have to be intelligent to know you can’t afford groceries.”

Radio host Charlamagne The God

Once again, we see that common sense isn’t so common. The words of Charlamagne The God are clear and basic. People want to live in peace. They want to pay their bills, afford groceries and housing, and have the freedom to live their life the way they want. This is no different in America than it is in Israel. We just saw how unhappy and upset America is with the results of this election. We see how unhappy Israeli’s are with their leadership. The protests there only grew larger with the firing of Defense Minister Gallant and replacing him with Israel Katz, a man who has had no command experience and left the IDF in 1973, more than 50 years ago. The move has everybody confused as to what Bibi is doing to secure the safety of Israel.

Bibi and Gallant – Israel questions the direction without Gallant

Let’s move on to the United Nations, a corrupt and evil institution. There was a time that the UN stood for good in the world but those days are long gone. The UN has become an organization that is deeply antisemitic and openly flaunts its Jew hatred. Francesca Albanese, The UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian Territory is an open antisemite who hates Israel. She regularly lies about what is happening and who is responsible. She should have been fired a long time ago, but António Guterres, the ninth Secretary-General of the United Nations, refuses to take any action and hold her accountable. UNRWA has been proven to be tied closely to Hamas as their employees not only participated in the October 7th attacks, they also have hidden hostages and been found to be leaders of Hamas.

Released hostage Mia Schem addressed the UN this week. Her words are a powerful indictment of the organization. “Just be human” shouldn’t be a plea to an organization that says that is what it is all about Listen to her words, let your heart break, feel the anger build, and understand just how bad leadership is and maybe begin to understand a little more about the challenge we face not just in America and Israel but in the entire world.

Mia Schem addressing the UN

It’s not just the hostages in Gaza that are being ignored by the world. Have you heard of Ahoo Daryaei? She stood up against the oppressive Iranian regime in such a bold and brave way and has since disappeared. There is no outrage. Where are the women’s rights organizations who have been so outspoken during the US election? They are silent. Israeli women don’t matter. Iranian women don’t matter. Women all over the world who are being held captive, abused, sex traded, or married off as children don’t matter to these groups. I shake my head at the horrors that occur and their silence. Listen to my friend Fleur Hassan Nahoum tell Ahoo’s story with the video of what she did.

Fleur Hassan Nahoum tells the story of Ahoo Daryei. Let’s all pray for her safety.

It didn’t used to be like this. As we move forward after the election, I was reminded of the powerful letter left by President George H.W. Bush to incoming President Bill Clinton. An example of leadership.

8 years later, as President Clinton was preparing the leave the White House, he left a similar letter to incoming Presdent George W. Bush. Leadership is about caring for the mission, caring for the people that you lead. It’s not about ego.

8 years later, President George W. Bush wrote yet another letter to incoming President Barack Obama expressing his wishes for a successful Presidency, wishing him well and sharing some advice.

All three are instances of leadership, of country over party, of caring more for the office and the American people than any personall animosity. It’s no wonder that you see the three of them together in pictures. See their smiles. It doesn’t look fake.

When he was alive, you would see George H.W. Bush along with Presidents Carter, George W Bush, Clinton, and Obama together. Unified Hard to imagine today. It makes me sad to see where we have fallen.

We can only hope that as we move forward into this next era of leadership, we can return to the days of real leaders. People who put the mission ahead of their own ego. Leaders who listen to the needs of their constiutents and act for their best interests, not personal ones. I’m not optimistic but will hope to be surprised and grateful that’s what we get. The United States, Israel, and the world need more. We need better. We need leaders more than ever.

Frustrations with the war against Hamas

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

Every day I wake up and the war between Hamas and Israel is continuing.  The hostages remain in the tunnels in captivity.  Some are dead, some being sexually abused, some being physically abused.  None getting needed medication.  Iran continues to provide resources to Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthi’s in Yemen. 

I never thought I would say this, but I wish the world was silent about all of this.  “Why?” you may ask.  Because rather than condemn the terrorists of Hamas who still have American hostages among those they kidnapped, instead of condemning Iran, instead of demanding that the Houthi’s and Hezbollah stop firing rockets at Israel, the world condemns Israel for fighting for survival. 

I wish I could say it was just the non-Jewish world.  Our history as a people, for thousands of years, has us as our own worst enemies.  Facing persecution, facing death, facing evil, we have a history of defending those who persecute and kill us, those who are evil, all while condemning ourselves.  I don’t know why we do this.  I wish I knew.  I wish I could figure out a way to stop it.  Just like in Germany, we defend those who hate us all the way into the gas chambers.

I am amazed at those who call this war genocide.  The definition of genocide is, “the deliberate killing of a large number of people from a particular nation or ethnic group with the aim of destroying that nation or group.”  It is clear that is not what Israel is doing.  How do we know this?  First because according to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS), the Palestinian population has increased about 10 times since the War of Independence in 1948.  Even more recently, according to the PCBS, displacement of more than 200,000 Palestinians, with the majority of them to the Palestinian country of Jordan, after the 1967 war, the Palestinian world population was 14 million by the end of 2022.  This means that the number of Palestinians in the world has doubled since 1967.  That goes against the definition of genocide.   Secondly, during this current war, if Israel wanted to destroy the Palestinian people in Gaza, they could have just bombed the entire country and killed all the people there in a matter of days.  Instead, they have chosen to be more surgical in their efforts, doing their best to avoid civilian casualties whenever possible.   Once again, you do not attempt destroy a nation or group of people by doing all you can to save civilians.

The other thing that amazes me is when people talk about this being the worst loss of civilian life in conflict. The facts simply don’t back that up.  According to the UN and the Red Cross, there are usually 9 civilians killed in armed conflict for every military person killed.  That means 90% of all deaths in armed conflict are civilians.  Iraq Body Count figures from 2003 to 2013 indicate that 77% of casualties were civilians. So how does the war between Hamas and Israel compare?  If we use the statistics provided by Hamas, which nobody really believes is accurate, the ratio is somewhere between 1:1 and 1.2:1.  That means Israel is 8-9 times BETTER than the world average and 7 times better than the US in Iraq.  And that’s using the numbers provided by Hamas!

Estimates put the ration at somewhere between 1.0 and 1.2 civilians per Hamas Terrorist killed in the war, far better than the normal, accepted ration of 9-1

Just this week, Israel tragically and accidentally bombed trucks from the World Central Kitchen, killing 7 of the aid workers.  It is a horrible tragedy.  There is no excuse for it.  And Israel hasn’t made any excuses.  Israel admitted it was a mistake and they were in the wrong.  They did an investigation, identified what happened, held those accountable whose actions resulted in the bombing and these deaths, and vowed to learn from this mistake.  Listen to an interview by friend Fleur Hassan- Nahoum, the Deputy Mayor of Jerusalem. She, and Israel, isn’t hiding from what happened or how awful it is.

Deputy Mayor of Jerusalem and my friend, Fleur Hassan-Nahoum, is brutally honest about the awful mistake in attacking the convoy of aid workers. This is what sets Israel apart – a willingness to admit mistakes, hold people accountable, and learn from their mistakes.

In October of 2015, the US initiated an airstrike against a Doctors Without Borders trauma center and killed at least 42 people including 14 hospital staff members and at least 24 patients.  The investigation found that human errors, fatigue, process, and equipment failures were at fault in the deadly airstrike.  US Central command said that, “These factors contributed to the ‘fog of war,’ which is the uncertainty often encountered during combat operations.”

In August of 2021, the US made a mistake and fired a hellfire missile in Kabul, accidentally killing 10 civilians, 7 of which were children.  When I was attending the Israel-American Council Summit in Austin, Texas last year, my Uber driver had recently gotten out of the military.  He was in Afghanistan during this time and during the botched withdrawal of the troops there.  The stories he told me were horrible.  The mistakes and errors made turned my stomach.  I felt terrible about how we, America, treated the people who served in Afghanistan and those who were our allies in Afghanistan.  It was understood that we messed up and made mistakes and that this happens in war. 

Every other country in the world gets the grace of making mistakes in war.  Not Israel, the Jewish nation.  Once again, Israel is held to a different standard.  I have said repeatedly that war is terrible.  We should do everything we can to avoid war. When you can’t avoid war and you must take on evil, you must defeat it.  Otherwise, evil continues to grow.  Yet in today’s world, it appears there is a desire to have more evil than Jews. 

I listen to people like Bernie Sanders and even friends who are Jewish who unfairly criticize Israel.  Where was the outrage about the nearly 620,000 people killed in the Syrian civil war?  What about the more than 375,000 people killed in the Yemen civil war between 2015 and early 2022?  The 30,000 children killed by Assad in Syria. Israel is the target because it is the Jewish state and that is antisemitism and hate.

Bernie Sanders doesn’t get it – he doesn’t understand evil, he doesn’t pay attention to the data, and despite being Jewish, he hates Jews.

We need people like Representative Ritchie Torres, who is outspoken in his support of Israel, the need to remove Hamas, and holding Hamas responsible for this war. He speaks out against conditions of aid to Israel.

Ritchie Torres on Israel (at the 1:20 mark). He is a vocal supporter of Israel and the right to defend herself and the need to eliminate Hamas.

Senator Hakeem Jeffries has spoken out loudly and clearly in support of Israel. Senator John Fetterman has been one of the most vocal supporters of Israel. He speaks out publicly about the need to remove Hamas, the fact that Hamas hides behind human shields, and the need to support Israel unconditionally.

Senator Fetterman speaks about Israel and Hamas at the 2:45 mark until the 5:20 mark. He is a very vocal supporter of Israel, the right to defend herself, and the need to eliminate Hamas.

My own Senator, Rick Scott, has been vocal about his support for Israel. He tweets daily about the hostages, never letting them fall out of our thoughts.

Senator Scott speaking powerfully in support of Israel. We need more leaders to do so.
Senator Scott is active on Twitter reminding everybody about the hostages

So now that I’ve written all this, so what? Other than venting my frustrations, anger, and disappointment, what is the point? The point is that each of us have the ability to make a difference. Each of us can learn the truth. Each of us can speak out loudly. Each of us can challenge those we know when they are spewing venom at Israel that is simply wrong and unfair. Each of us can confront those who we hear are speaking untruths, talking points without substance, and spewing hate. If you want to see how it’s done and how it is done well, watch this clip of Douglas Murray during an interview with Al Jazeera. He doesn’t let the person interviewing him get away with the lies and antisemitic comments she makes.

Douglas Murray is amazing as he takes her apart when she lies.

We can support Israel and the hostages. Wear the dogtags that say “Bring them home now” or “We will dance again” or both. Get a yellow ribbon pin and wear it. Put a piece of masking tape on your shirt every day with the number of days the hostages have been in captivity. Buy things from Israel to support their economy. Be loud and proud. The people who hate us aren’t going away. They are going to be out there spewing Jew hatred in the context of Israel at synagogues, JCCs, in the streets, at people’s homes, wherever they can be. If we hide, they win.

Rachel Goldberg, mother of hostage Hersch Goldberg Polin, started the masking tape. This was day 98. We are not past day 180.

When you are able, visit Israel. I have wanted to go since October 7th but have not because my family was worried about my safety. I love my family and was willing to wait so they felt better. I’m not willing to wait any longer. I’m going in May. You can join me if you want – it will be an amazing trip and very meaningful. I’m not sure how I will feel when I go to the site of the Nova music festival or one of the kibbutzim. I’m not sure what visiting Sderot will feel like this time – the police station, always a stop to see the rockets that were fired at them is no longer there. Being there for Yom HaZikaron and Yom Ha’atzmaut will be different this time. It will be the third time I’ve been in Israel for Israel’s memorial day and Independence Day. I already know this one will be different. I am arriving the night before the trip begins and staying two days after. I wish I could go earlier and stay even longer. I’m going on the Momentum men’s trip. Join me. If you are a woman and want to go, there is also a women’s trip and I can connect you to it so you can go.

Unlike the past, we are not powerless. We are not lambs being taken to slaughter. We have the IDF. We have Israel. We have voices and don’t have to allow the lies to be all that people hear. When people cry for a ‘Ceasefire Now’ remind them that Israel has already agreed to the ceasefire, it’s Hamas who hasn’t agreed. Don’t push Israel for a ceasefire, push Hamas. Push Qatar who houses the leaders of Hamas. And remind them that this war can end immediately if Hamas would release the hostages and surrender.

Write and call your member of Congress and your Senators. Your voice matters. Every member of Congress that I have spoken with, every Senator I have met, have said how much those calls, emails, and letters mean. You have a voice, use it. If you think it doesn’t matter or people don’t notice you are wrong. I get asked about the number on the tape or my dogtags all the time. Be inspired by Cincinnati Reds Assistant Pitching Coach Alon Leichman and his baseball glove for this season. He is making a powerful statement, “Bring them home NOW”. You can join in making that powerful statement of support and stand up to the Jew haters who want us all gone.

A powerful statement on his baseball glove

Don’t be silent. Don’t hide. Don’t allow them to win. We’ve been down that road before and it doesn’t end well for us.