Another letter from a reader of the Arlington Heights Daily Herald

Here's another letter from a reader of the Arlington heights Daily Herald that really makes no sense. But, I run it anyway followed by my column, which the reader probably did not read. (Some people just Hate Arabs and Iranians and no matter what you write, reasoned or not, they will attack you.)

Is it just me, or does Ray Hanania write in generalities and neglect to give specifics regarding his positions for a reason?

(HANANIA: I only get 540 words to write one column each month and although they are very detailed, you have to really read to understand in order to understand.)

Is there a society in the universe which at some level is not biased toward something? Believing is not enough to indict an entire society, which he himself is part of, of bias toward a group he belongs to. Specifics are required, not anecdotal but examples on the same scale which he accuses our society.

Has Mahmoud Ahmadinejad recanted his statement, reported by CNN in December of 2005, that the Holocaust was a myth or was that one of the translation problems that he writes of but provides no example of?

(HANANIA: I don't know if the listener ever really heard Ahmadinejad or just the so-called translations from CNN and MEMRI, which is the source of much political motivated improper translations which are intended to undermine truth and advance Israel. I watched Ahmadinejad on live television at Columbia and he SAID that he believed the Holocaust occured and that 5 million Jews -- not 6 million -- were murdered by the Nazis. Yet, why won't the reader accept what he says? Well, because it doesn't fit his agenda of what he wants to believe. And I provide a very specific example, but again, the writer is not interested in truth.)

Was Ahmadinejad translated incorrectly by everyone when he states that Israel should be wiped off the map?

(HANANIA: No. Ahmadinejad explained what he meant, that ALL of the Palestinians of 1948 including the Christians and Muslims had a right to vote to decide their future but that vote was denied to them by the United Nations which partitioned Palestine into two states against the will of the majority population. Again, the reader really doesn't care about facts, only namecalling.)

Is the professor, mentioned in Mr. Hanania's piece, Norman Finkelstein, late of DePaul University? Who became, according to provost's memo, dated June 26, 2007, both orally and physically threatening to fellow faculty members after he was denied tenure?

(HANANIA: The reader ignores my point of course, which is that Finklestein, who is Jewish, was not targeted because of what happened AFTER the controversy, but because of false allegations made against him that provoked the controversy. Again, the reader only wants to address what is convenient to his bias rather than to the truth. Finklestein NEVER denied the Holocaust, but that doesn't matter apparently.)

As for free speech, Mr. Hanania seems to think that free speech encompasses a right not to be disagreed with when one is being outlandish. There is a right to free speech in the United States, but words do have consequences. To think that statements should not be challenged is to deny the responsibility of free speech, not oppress it.

(HANANIA: Free speech does not mean people can lie or manipulate the truth as this read does. And the consequences are that his claims are pure hogwash and lies, a part of a campaign of hatred and bias intended to deny Arabs and Muslims the right to challenge the lies perpetrated in the news media. I write ONE column each month in the Daily Herald and it is partnered with the mandatory Pro-Israel view of a rightwing extremist. There is no other voice like mine in the country. And that is what the reader is most upset about that I have been given an opportunity to express views he dislikes and it bothers him. Far more people support my views but fear writing because of the campaigns of hatred and attack that are directed and them and at me.)

Don Parker
Glenview

END

A final thought from me:

The real issue here is not whether or not Iran did or did not do something threatening to the United STates but rather that he is a critic of Israel and that's what this reader can't tolerate. If the issue and concern is about the safety of the United States, why is all the public debate about Iran's views and policies towards Israel?

-- Ray Hanania