Davis

On June 20, I wrote an article called ÒDefending the indefensible,Ó condemning IsraelÕs attack on a humanitarian aid convoy. Martin Rubin responded with a letter to the editor published on July 4.

I am left wondering why The Enterprise published MartinÕs letter to the editor falsely claiming Rabbi Dovid Weiss is a Holocaust denier. The Enterprise was previously informed this information was false by multiple readers after Hila Zizov claimed on Jan. 7 that Rabbi Weiss was a Holocaust denier.

Common sense alone screams there is probably not a rabbi on the planet who denies the Holocaust. Joan Al-KazilyÕs Jan. 22 letter to the editor, along with my Jan. 12 letter, explained the false attack on Rabbi Weiss. The attacks are especially sad because his grandparents died at Auschwitz.

Yes, Rabbi Weiss traveled to Iran and he did so to tell conference attendees not to deny the Holocaust. His full message to Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is worth reading and is summed up with ÒYou should know that the Jewish people died, and do not try to say that it did not happen.Ó

The timing of Martin RubinÕs false information comes as I am catching up on newspapers that I missed while leading a group to visit the Holocaust Museum in Washington, D.C. Is there anything crazier than a rabbi and a Teach Peace leader being labeled as Holocaust deniers? I only want good things for the Jewish people and people everywhere.

A decade ago, Henry Kissinger used the false Holocaust-denier accusation against author Christopher Hitchens in an attempt to derail the exposure of KissingerÕs war crimes. Fortunately, people are better educated now and these ridiculous attacks fall flat.

The Enterprise has a responsibility to do basic fact-checking before publishing any letter attacking an individual or an organization and, at a minimum, should publish a correction. Neither I nor Rabbi Weiss has ever denied the Holocaust. And while I only briefly met the man in 2009, I can confidently write that we jointly call for people to obey the Ten Commandments, including, Òyou shall not bear false witness against your neighborÓ or Òmurder humanitarian aid workers.Ó

Dave Dionisi

President, Teach Peace Foundation, Davis

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