Non-Orthodox Rabbi Howard Cooper’s Act of Bad Faith

Yonathan, your delusion that a rabid hysteric like you can discomfort The Guardian is.......well..... give me a little time, I'll think of something.

simonson, know how to spell "changing" yet?

As are the brain-dead antisemitic cowards marking down every sane comment.

tchyangin ?

chaingin ?

chayngeen ?

Amber help me out here. What chance does a humble 2 GSCE (GRADE D ) hick like me have, in the face of a ferocious intellectual onslaught from an American University of Edinburgh post graduate ( in her wildest dreams ) like you, have ?

Because they sit where they keep their brains.

Why do you specify non-Orthodox rabbi??

I grew up at the shul where Howard Cooper works and, while I disagree with a lot of what he says, it is simply untrue to say either that he is a moron or a windbag. He is highly intelligent and thoughtful, if sometimes rather portentous in how he speaks.

His article is fairly reasonable and uncontroversial. He is challenging Jews to respond to developments in Egypt with hope, not fear, and placing this challenge in the context of Judaism. This basic idea of Judaism, as essentially striving for justice, is surely not one that many Jews will challenge. He doesn't talk about good Jews and bad Jews, he doesn't even talk about support for Israel. He talks about Jews being true to (his understanding of) Judaism.

You can say that he is naive, that he is condescending (which he is), that his ideas don't fit with realpolitik. But why the vitriol? And why accuse him of exploiting his position?? He is stating what he believes as a rabbi, which, as a far as I understand it, is a rabbi's job.

It's neither reasonable nor uncontroversial. He is criticising Israelis for worrying about the safety of themselves and their children first, and about internal politics in Egypt second. And he is doing it from his safe and comfortable position in Finchley. That makes him demonstrably a moron and a self-righteous windbag.

simonson, did you mean to write GSCE?

The answer is - not much.

Yoni1 - what is your definition of a moron?? Someone who disagrees with you?? You may not like the rabbi's views, but he is not a moron. I don't agree with much of what Peter Hitchens writes, but he isn't a moron.

Simonson, Yonathan is not a rabid hysteric and I can prove it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SBH6XONDpes&feature=player_embedded

Iceberg, I explained why he is a moron. Sorry you are unable to follow this.

Yoni1 - apology accepted. It must be the subtle sophistication of your argument that I have trouble with.

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