KATHY POSNER LASHES OUT AT HELEN THOMAS
Helen ThomasVeteran White House reporter Helen Thomas was hired last week by the Virginia-based Falls Church News Press as its latest columnist. In a story on the front page of the paper and its web site, owner-editor Nicholas Benton said, “She is progressive, and following my more than eight hours of direct, one-on-one talks with her since the events of last June, I remain firmly convinced that she is neither bigoted, nor racist, nor anti-Semitic." That might seem to be a reasonable statement had not earlier in the story the newspaper not shown its obvious prejudice by this description of Thomas: “Now age 90, Thomas began her journalistic career in 1942 and has covered every U.S. president on a day-to-day basis as a White House correspondent since 1960. She declared her retirement abruptly on June 8, 2010 following a firestorm of criticism that arose from spontaneous taped comments she made the day before that some claimed to be anti-Semitic.” Claimed to be? I will remind everyone of what the “claimed to be” anti-Semitic remarks were and let the reader decide if the "claims" are valid!
(1) May 27, 2010. Rabbi David Nesenoff of RabbiLive.com was at the White House for an American Jewish heritage Celebration Day event. He spoke to Thomas as she was leaving the White House via the North Lawn Driveway.
Nesenoff: Any comments on Israel? We're asking everybody today, any comments on Israel?
Thomas: Tell them to get the hell out of Palestine.
Nesenoff: Oooh. Any better comments on Israel?
Thomas: Remember, these people are occupied and it's their land. It's not German, it's not Poland.
Nesenoff: So where should they go, what should they do?
Thomas: They go home.
Nesenoff: Where's the home?
Thomas: Poland, Germany and America and everywhere else.
Nesenoff: So you're saying the Jews go back to Poland and Germany?
Thomas: And America and everywhere else. Why push people out of there who have lived there for centuries? See?
(2) June 3, 2010. A one minute excerpt of the May 27, 2010 interview was posted on Rabbi Nesenoff's site.
(3) June 4, 2010. Thomas issued an apology on her personal web site:
“I deeply regret my comments I made last week regarding the Israelis and the Palestinians. They do not reflect my heart-felt belief that peace will come to the Middle East only when all parties recognize the need for mutual respect and tolerance. May that day come soon.”
(4) June 7, 2010. Thomas retires from writing a column for Hearst newspapers. Quite fitting because William Randolph Heart advocated for the creation of a "homeland for dispossessed or persecuted Jews."
(5) June 8, 2010. In an interview on NBC’s Today Show, President Obama called her remarks "offensive" and "out of line," and said her retirement was "the right decision."
(6) October 2010. In an interview on Ohio radio station, WMRN-AM, Thomas said that while her comments has touched a nerve, they were, “exactly what I thought.” She said she knew she would be fired because “I hit the third rail. You cannot criticize Israel in this country and survive.” She said she issued the apology because people were upset but that ultimately she "had the same feelings about Israel's aggression and brutality."
(7) December 2, 2010. Thomas told reporters at a diversity workshop in Dearborn, Michigan that the remarks she made to Nesenoff were "the truth", truth," and "I stand by it, I told the truth."
(8) December 3, 2010. The Detroit Free Press reported that she told the workshop audience in Dearborn that "Congress, the White House, and Hollywood, Wall Street are owned by the Zionists. No question, in my opinion . . . They put their money where their mouth is."
(9) January 6, 2010. Her position as a columnist for the Falls Church News Press (circulation 30,000) is announced and the owner of the paper says, “she is neither bigoted, nor racist, nor anti-Semitic.”
So are the "claims" truth or fiction? Only her Iman knows for sure.
Read more from Planet Posner here.....
(1) May 27, 2010. Rabbi David Nesenoff of RabbiLive.com was at the White House for an American Jewish heritage Celebration Day event. He spoke to Thomas as she was leaving the White House via the North Lawn Driveway.
Nesenoff: Any comments on Israel? We're asking everybody today, any comments on Israel?
Thomas: Tell them to get the hell out of Palestine.
Nesenoff: Oooh. Any better comments on Israel?
Thomas: Remember, these people are occupied and it's their land. It's not German, it's not Poland.
Nesenoff: So where should they go, what should they do?
Thomas: They go home.
Nesenoff: Where's the home?
Thomas: Poland, Germany and America and everywhere else.
Nesenoff: So you're saying the Jews go back to Poland and Germany?
Thomas: And America and everywhere else. Why push people out of there who have lived there for centuries? See?
(2) June 3, 2010. A one minute excerpt of the May 27, 2010 interview was posted on Rabbi Nesenoff's site.
(3) June 4, 2010. Thomas issued an apology on her personal web site:
“I deeply regret my comments I made last week regarding the Israelis and the Palestinians. They do not reflect my heart-felt belief that peace will come to the Middle East only when all parties recognize the need for mutual respect and tolerance. May that day come soon.”
(4) June 7, 2010. Thomas retires from writing a column for Hearst newspapers. Quite fitting because William Randolph Heart advocated for the creation of a "homeland for dispossessed or persecuted Jews."
(5) June 8, 2010. In an interview on NBC’s Today Show, President Obama called her remarks "offensive" and "out of line," and said her retirement was "the right decision."
(6) October 2010. In an interview on Ohio radio station, WMRN-AM, Thomas said that while her comments has touched a nerve, they were, “exactly what I thought.” She said she knew she would be fired because “I hit the third rail. You cannot criticize Israel in this country and survive.” She said she issued the apology because people were upset but that ultimately she "had the same feelings about Israel's aggression and brutality."
(7) December 2, 2010. Thomas told reporters at a diversity workshop in Dearborn, Michigan that the remarks she made to Nesenoff were "the truth", truth," and "I stand by it, I told the truth."
(8) December 3, 2010. The Detroit Free Press reported that she told the workshop audience in Dearborn that "Congress, the White House, and Hollywood, Wall Street are owned by the Zionists. No question, in my opinion . . . They put their money where their mouth is."
(9) January 6, 2010. Her position as a columnist for the Falls Church News Press (circulation 30,000) is announced and the owner of the paper says, “she is neither bigoted, nor racist, nor anti-Semitic.”
So are the "claims" truth or fiction? Only her Iman knows for sure.
Read more from Planet Posner here.....
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