Leave Security to the Professionals
Some New York-area rabbis are planning to bring weapons to High Holy Day services this month to guard against terrorist threats. In June, a Kentucky pastor invited his congregation members to bring their firearms to church to celebrate the Second Amendment. Do weapons belong in worship? Should clergy be armed? Do the Ten Commandments trump the Second Amendment?
The New York Post featured a banner headline last week. It read, "Go Ahead, Make My High Holiday". It tells the story of a bunch of well-intentioned knuckleheads, led by Rabbi Gary Moscowitz, a former member of the NYPD who was relieved of his duties for unspecified reasons. The group is doing "anti-terrorist training" and preparing to bring weapons to synagogue to deal with the possible threat of terrorism over Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. I am not sure which is worse -- how stupid this is, or how dangerous.
I appreciate that Rabbi Moscowitz and his followers are driven by the desire to keep themselves and their loved ones safe on the holidays, but fighting terrorists is serious business and requires more than a few hours at a firing range and time spent doing stunts borrowed from Chuck Norris movies. In fact, the degree of personal frustration and anxiety that motivates these "guardians of our holy places" is the opposite of what military training is designed to produce; i.e. a calmly disciplined soldier who is there to do a job.
Don't get me wrong. There are times when armed guards at places of worship are genuinely needed, and I have even been the one to provide such services, albeit 25 years and 40 pounds ago, when living in Israel. I even appreciate the importance of a community working with the police and other relevant agencies to provide some of their own security needs.
It's both empowering and healing for people who are threatened to take some control over a situation that threatens them. But a bunch of guys playing soldier are more like to get an innocent person killed than anything else. Not to mention the incredible psycho-pathology which their comments reveal.
These self-described protectors of the Jewish people are filled with a toxic mix of false machismo (a result of thousands of years of Jewish powerlessness), contempt for Christianity (Moscowitz mocks those who believe in turning the other check), and genuine fear of what "some" Muslims want to do to them. Since those feelings run quite deep in parts of the Jewish community, it's sad but not surprising that business is booming for Moscowitz' "training" program.
There are real security needs for synagogues and they must be met. The NYPD and other security professionals are not only capable of meeting those needs; they are the only ones who should be meeting them. If Gary Moscowitz genuinely believes that they cannot because, as he said, "they don't know the community", his time would be better spent addressing why he and his friends have so little trust in New York's finest and so much fear for their own safety in a city where Jews are safer than anywhere else in the world.
Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur are actually times of great joy, times when we reaffirm our faith in ourselves, in each other, and in the ability to start over. We should not be naïve about the real challenges we face, but neither should we use these holidays when more Jews come together than at any time of the year, to undermine that powerful message.
By
Brad Hirschfield
|
September 8, 2009; 3:56 PM ET
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Posted by: spaceship-earth | September 14, 2009 7:10 AM
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The police are busy ticketing motorists, chasing drug dealers and investigating robberies and batteries after-the-fact. Though well intentioned, police cannot be everywhere. Immediate personal security needs for myself and my family, in our home, at church or on the street, etc. will be met by myself and my family... immediately. We prefer being tried by twelve to being carried by six.
Posted by: waltonr1 | September 12, 2009 6:25 AM
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Ooooooooooooooopppppssssssssaaaa:
YES!
Leave the RELIGION to the Religious; AND
The POLITICS to the Politicians!
Ya Ya Mon!
Posted by: spaceship-earth | September 11, 2009 7:00 PM
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B R E A K i N G --- N E W S:
Osam Bin Laden is Dead; since June 2007!
Osam Bin Laden is Dead; since June 2007!
Osam Bin Laden is Dead; since June 2007!
Osam Bin Laden is Dead; since June 2007!
Osam Bin Laden is Dead; since June 2007!
Posted by: spaceship-earth | September 11, 2009 6:58 PM
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Is that real or "verbalization of gunfire"?
You fall in love love and things keep going bang http://twitpic.com/ezlay BANG! Just so the right spots get banged everything is fine. I can't see banging in a house of worship. That's just me.
Posted by: Dermitt | September 11, 2009 5:21 PM
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Since certain segments of the population now consider entering a place of worship to "kill liberals" and "abortionists" to be a good way to become a hero, maybe these rabbis have a point? I'd like to see the next nutcase that decides to shoot up a Unitarian Church, or take out an abortion provider, face an armed congegation!
Pardon me, my warrior aspect is showing again.
Posted by: Athena4 | September 11, 2009 4:44 PM
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An Active Shooter (a spree murderer) is usually "finished" with his murder spree in two-to-three MINUTES. Active Shooters favor "UNARMED VICTIM ZONES". Think about it.
Police response in less than three minutes from the beginning of an "incident" is nearly impossible.
When the "bad thing" happens, those involved will be on their own to solve the problem, to live or die. That is the reality of dealing with an Active Shooter.
If more "good citizens" were armed (and trained), there would be fewer victims of criminal assaults. Ultimately, we are responsible for our personal protection, the government cannot be with us every moment and I do not want them with me every moment.
There is nothing wrong with guns in the hands of these Rabis who are trained in the use of these tools of protection.
Posted by: Karl_in_Phoenix | September 11, 2009 11:11 AM
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Carry plastic guns to go with your plastic money people. Thank God for the boredom as the detectives say. That guy sitting next to you might be a detective with a .38, so mind your manners. He's not going to announce that he has a weapon. He might just kill you though. He's not going to kill you for nothing. A hitman won't even kill you for nothing. That's $50K due to all the complications and legal risks involved. I was up in Youngstown at a bar and a guy said this is Youngstown, they won't kill you for nothing. You gotta pay.
Posted by: Dermitt | September 11, 2009 3:07 AM
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Putting the Kentucky pastor and the rabbis in the same category would be akin to uniting the Janjaweed with the National Guard. After all both are armed.
The problem of Muslim terrorist threats against synagogues, Jews in predominantly Jewish neighborhoods has been going on for decades. Frankly, people are sick, tired, and disgusted with being targeted.
A few years ago, some people, including rabbis began stating that they intended to defend themselves, and not only during the High Holy Days. They do not want their congregations to be burdened all year with the cost of paying for private security and they don't want to be under siege by police.
The synagogue I occasionally attend declined police protection this year. This resulted in a meeting with the chief, followed by two more, in which the rabbi and her committee were finally persuaded to give in.
The congregation, a gentle enough bunch, was not happy from what I hear. Enough is enough as this brilliant young rabbi declared in her email. Jews, like everyone else, have enough problems living day to day without being threatened by Muslim terrorists. However, the rabbis arming themselves is not the right way, as they very well know since the announcement was rhetoric.
We Jews, cultural and observant, need to organize, as taxpayers. We need to stage demonstrations demanding that those who threaten us be caught, tried, and jailed, if convicted. (Can you imagine what would have happened if, decades ago, Catholic and Protestant churches, neighborhoods, were threatened by Islamist extremists?) As this discussion continues within the community, I am hopeful that much stronger efforts will be made to apprehend those threatening our lives and the lives of our children right here in the US.
Now, however, Jews do NOT need rabbis speaking out in this way. We do NOT need R. Hirschfield calling the desperate names. We need rabbis to unite us. When we finally get it together, a few million of us might celebrate the High Holy days in front of New York City Hall. 2010 would be a good year to begin this new tradition.
Posted by: Farnaz1Mansouri1 | September 10, 2009 7:24 PM
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Once again I believe people are missing the point on the story about allowing guns in synagogues under restricted circumstances. Schools do drills to fight fire but the firemen ultimately will clear the situation but till they arrived people need to be prepared or know how to react in this kind of situation. Training people to respond in a terrorist attack does not mean Killing people, self defense in conceive under Jewish Law.
People need to read between the lines. Having 5 selected people in a house of workshop being trained to respond in an attack does not mean congregants are going to be shooting out of the blue. If a terrorist comes into a synagogue and starts Shooting and the police is not on the scene would you be upset if someone from your synagogue (highly trained) protects you? I also believe there is some kind of hidden anti-Semitism in the stories on the media. This story is being turn around. For a better and more balance story please watch the story that was done in NBC. Some people get shocked when they see Jewish people fighting back. This has happened to Israel in the media many times around the world, when Israel defends itself they are called” murderers”
Posted by: rfereres | September 10, 2009 1:19 PM
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But EXNUKE, if we arm all the teachers, then who is to stop the teachers from shooting innocent students?
Haven't you ever had a crazy teacher?
I have, and I am glad he did not have a gun.
Posted by: DanielintheLionsDen | September 10, 2009 11:33 AM
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Mr. Hirschfield seems to forget that "leaving security to professionals" is what got 32 people killed at VT. If the professor who was killed standing helpless in the door had been armed he MIGHT have been able to reduce the number of victims that Murder By Gun Control provided to Cho. He couldn't have possibly made it any worse than leaving it to professionals did.
Posted by: exnuke | September 10, 2009 10:53 AM
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