tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29767791.post4529505166945319135..comments2023-07-09T08:47:39.465-04:00Comments on Man From Atlan: Whither goest thou, Israel?Man From Atlanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08564058987138711708noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29767791.post-65079692255690884102009-07-11T17:23:51.633-04:002009-07-11T17:23:51.633-04:00So nice talking with you again, mfa. It is seldom ...So nice talking with you again, mfa. It is seldom I meet anyone, in real life especially, with whom I can have a really stimulating conversation. With you I always get it. <br /><br />I miss lobro's conversation too. He had such perspicacity combined with humanity and wit. In fact, I miss everyone on Xymphora, including those I quarreled with. Truly I wish them well and hope they will manage to keep their wits about them as Western civilization goes down the drain.<br /><br />More later when I have the time. I will be back...Xanadunoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29767791.post-84734452210597930062009-07-11T15:56:12.324-04:002009-07-11T15:56:12.324-04:00Berkeley has chosen a path I hope will help him fi...Berkeley has chosen a path I hope will help him find peace. I wouldn't blame myself entirely for any contretemps!Man From Atlanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08564058987138711708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29767791.post-13070712873714016232009-07-11T15:50:25.561-04:002009-07-11T15:50:25.561-04:00Nah, I wouldn't consider myself a philosemite ...Nah, I wouldn't consider myself a philosemite or phobe. What my wife (or I) are by birth or background has nothing to do with who we are today: neither Jewish nor Muslim, but, Atlanian. We didn't need to invent a substitute group to belong to, and could have been a Sufi Kabbalah blend, except what we have is so much more right for us.<br />I should point out I told the Jewish community back in 1993 they would have to give up their 'Jewishness', and would like to think that in my debates and history with Shamir since 2000 I have had some small influence on his choices and decision. <br />Yes, Jews are abandoning Zionism in droves, and some, to a certain extent, their 'Jewishness' and I had to reassure my friends I didn't mean ritual and custom, because that will change over time. I just want all the Abrahamic religions to let go of their exclusivity and claim to being chosen; yes, they were, once.<br />And the path to oneness means letting go of the past, and to change.Man From Atlanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08564058987138711708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29767791.post-36968747113241764122009-07-10T19:35:10.992-04:002009-07-10T19:35:10.992-04:00I sometimes wish I could be in contact with Berkel...<b>I sometimes wish I could be in contact with Berkeley again, to whom I gave such unnecessary offence. He would have had something interesting to say on the question posed above. Ah, the golden days of Xymphora when we were young and foolish!</b>Xanadunoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29767791.post-15845964572947431172009-07-10T19:17:16.418-04:002009-07-10T19:17:16.418-04:00"I wrote of my deep connections with and love...<i>"I wrote of my deep connections with and love for the Jewish people in my 2001 article "Battle for the Soul of the Jewish People"</i><br /><br /><b>You have a Jewish wife, so naturally you would tend to be a philosemite. I wonder if you have given careful thought to the question of what a Jew actually is: whether there is such a thing as a "Jewish race" or whether it's just a culture with its roots in Judaism.<br /><br />Israel Shamir now regards himself as a Palestinian Christian, or an ex-Jew. “No one born a Jew has to remain a Jew,” he says. “The point is to liberate Jews from Jewishness, which is the enemy of mankind.” <br /><br />http://www.culturewars.com/2008/Mammon.htm <br /><br />Naturally such sentiments have made Shamir <i>persona non grata</i> in certain circles. But “more and more Israelis are coming to their senses”, he tells us, and are “deserting Judaism and Zionism in droves.”<br /><br />I wonder what you or your wife would think of this. Is it a question of: Once a Jew always a Jew. Or could your wife SHED her Jewishness if she wanted? Like Shamir and Gilad Atzmon and all those who renounce Judaism and Jewish culture?<br /><br />A complex question, I know. Please tell me your views. I confess I am a bit confused.</b>Xanadunoreply@blogger.com