Dr. Brenner’s intervention led to a spirited exchange of communication involving the administration of both our schools and several key figures prominent in the quest for 911. One of the letters from this exchange is published on the web site of Montreal 911 Truth, a very significant source of alternative news during this era when the mainstream media is dominated by so many PR flaks.

I have recently seen a TV piece done by Paula Zahn at CNN where she conflated any questioning of the 911 Cover Up Scam with “anti-Semitism.” In my view the indiscriminate use of this powerful word to advance anti-Muslim war propaganda does a terrible injustice to all of us, but especially to liberal Jews and to the memory of the terrible crimes committed by right-wing regimes in the Holocaust.

A brief survey of the press releases put out by the Harper Conservatives on the Hughes affair reveals truly astonishing examples of hate speech aimed at preempting legitimate political debate in the course of a Canadian election. Where do our mainstream political pundits stand on this gross violation of civility at such a crucial juncture in our life as a nation? To resort to a cliche, their silence has been deafening.

Harper and his henchmen belong way out on the political margins with the likes of the white supremacists and anti-Quebec zealots here in Alberta that started the xenophobic political movement this Calgarian currently leads. The so-called “Conservative Party” was founded in a breach of contract with David Orchard. The Fraudulent Merger Party has remained a sketchy bunch ever since. From the timing of this election to the Cadman affair to their myriad involvements with the organized criminals swirling around Julie Couillard, the so-called Conservatives have played fast and loose with the rule of law in spite of Can West Global’s effort to spruce up and market this radical bunch.

In all my years of watching Canadian politics I don’t remember seeing anything like the so-called Conservative Party’s unrelenting character assassination aimed month after month at savaging Stephane Dion. Unfortunately Dion gave into the rhetorical blackmail to which he was subjected with plenty of help from the Winnipeg-based war propagandists at Can West Global.

The effect of all the cowardice, negligence, opportunism and strategic silence in high places has been to make the extremists around Harper appear as if they are at the centre-right of Canada’s political culture. On the other hand those who actually do represent the kinder, more gentle face of Canadian politics have been assigned to martyrdom or commentary as reported in excellent, though little read venues like Paul S. Graham’s blog.

Let’s try to hold Can West Global, the CBC, the robotic Globe and Mail, and the next Parliament of Canada accountable for their tragic or maybe even treasonable ineptitude. These institutions and others have failed to safeguard and live up to even the minimal standards of civility and honesty necessary for meaningful debate in the degraded and debased Canadian election campaign of 2008.

Keep up the good work.

Anthony J. Hall

What bothers me about this story is simply that the growing trend of using the idea of antisemitism as a way to discredit causes or movements is dangerous three-fold: It is often used to discredit valid political activities for the public good; it reduces the credibility of legitimate allegation of antisemtism; it can credit antisemitic sentiments among though falsely accused (self-fulling accusations).

The area of society where the conflation of antisemitism is the most concerning to me is not 9/11, but an entirely different social question that has affected me personally. I am one of a small but growing number of Canadian that questions the ethic of neonatal male circumcision, a procedure currently not recommended by the Canadian Paediatric Association and others. I believe that it is a human rights abuse and cannot be justified as a religious practice.

Furthermore, I am one of the few people that have questioned how the religious importance of circumcision in Western culture via Judaism, Islam and Christianity has influenced its history of medicalization and general cultural acceptability!

Many people, including myself and medical professions have been accused falsely of antisemitism for having this view. Some have even been attacked physically. I of course question how anyone can take any claims of circumcision’s alleged benefits seriously knowing that experts can spout them with impunity while people critical of the procedure are under so much political pressure to be silent. Its amazing that even despite this culture that so many medical professionals have come out recently against it!

So whether its with the lives of our boys in the Afghanistan, or with our boy’s foreskins, we pay the price dearly whenever anyone makes a statement of antisemitism inappropriately.

I am sure that Lesley Hughes and US Green candidate Cynthia McKinnon are not antisemitic, and both have suffered by that allegation in their professional careers. Similar smear campaigns have occurred to discredit anti-globalization and more recently, anti-SPP groups. Unfortunately, these movements tend to attract different groups and individuals who have conflicting agendas for pursuing their goals.