What specifically did Einstein have in mind when he called the Israeli Freedom Party fascistic?
Upvote:12
Copies of the letter to the New York Times, dated 2 December 1948 are easy enough to find online. It is worth noting that Einstein was not the only signatory to the letter, although his is naturally the name that commentators choose to quote.
The paragraph quoted by Lustig itself contains part of the answer to your question:
Among the most disturbing political phenomena of our times is the emergence in the newly created state of Israel of the "Freedom Party" (Tnuat Haherut), a political party closely akin in its organization, methods, political philosophy and social appeal to the Nazi and Fascist parties. It was formed out of the membership and following of the former Irgun Zvai Leumi, a terrorist, right-wing, chauvinist organization in Palestine.
- (my emphasis)
Later in the letter, the authors are more explicit:
The public avowals of Begin's party are no guide whatever to its actual character. Today they speak of freedom, democracy and anti-imperialism, whereas until recently they openly preached the doctrine of the Fascist state. It is in its actions that the terrorist party betrays its real character; from its past actions we can judge what it may be expected to do in the future.
- (my emphasis)
then going on to say:
The discrepancies between the bold claims now being made by Begin and his party, and their record of past performance in Palestine bear the imprint of no ordinary political party. This is the unmistakable stamp of a Fascist party for whom terrorism (against Jews, Arabs, and British alike), and misrepresentation are means, and a "Leader State" is the goal.
- (my emphasis)
The full list of signatories to the letter were:
- ISIDORE ABRAMOWITZ,
- HANNAH ARENDT,
- ABRAHAM BRICK,
- RABBI JESSURUN CARDOZO,
- ALBERT EINSTEIN,
- HERMAN EISEN, M.D.,
- HAYIM FINEMAN,
- M. GALLEN, M.D.,
- H.H. HARRIS,
- ZELIG S. HARRIS,
- SIDNEY HOOK,
- FRED KARUSH,
- BRURIA KAUFMAN,
- IRMA L. LINDHEIM,
- NACHMAN MAISEL,
- SEYMOUR MELMAN,
- MYER D. MENDELSON, M.D.,
- HARRY M. OSLINSKY,
- SAMUEL PITLICK,
- FRITZ ROHRLICH,
- LOUIS P. ROCKER,
- RUTH SAGIS,
- ITZHAK SANKOWSKY,
- I.J. SHOENBERG,
- SAMUEL SHUMAN,
- M. SINGER,
- IRMA WOLFE,
- STEFAN WOLFE.
More post
- 📝 Was there a social stigma for British born/living in India prior to WW2/Indian independence?
- 📝 Did Franco really ask "Why? Are they going somewhere?"
- 📝 Did Hannibal start the Second Punic War prematurely?
- 📝 When and where was the first time moveable bridge?
- 📝 Why didn't Roman emperors have harems?
- 📝 Would the USA staying out of WWI have prevented WWII?
- 📝 The origin of symbols used for transferring information over large distances
- 📝 What's the Ancient Egyptian phrase/word for “Royal Road of Life”? And how would it have been spelt?
- 📝 How did the South USA become more overtly Christian than the North?
- 📝 How did people acquire things in the pre-Roman Celtic world?
- 📝 What did a WW2 fighter cost?
- 📝 How were de jure lands determined during the Middle Ages in Western Europe?
- 📝 How was Enguerrand VII de Coucy able to keep his allegiance to both king of England and France during the Hundred Years War?
- 📝 Is the story of Peter Niers brutal execution authentic?
- 📝 What is a "tar shower?"
- 📝 How much time did people have to take shelter during the Blitz in 1940-41?
- 📝 When Napoleonic wars happened?
- 📝 Why were the 8th Route Army better at fighting the Japanese than the Nationalists were?
- 📝 How would ancient Greeks have exercised?
- 📝 Why did no one take Siberia over before the Russians, and how did they do it?
- 📝 Why didn't the Allies attack Germany from the South?
- 📝 What led to the romantic perception of the Mayan civilization?
- 📝 Why was compulsory vaccination abandoned in the UK?
- 📝 How could wells back in the day work?
- 📝 Why did France support the Confederacy in the Civil War?
- 📝 How exactly were the titles of the Roman emperors passed on to their heirs
- 📝 What was the income tax rate in the UK during WWI and WWII?
- 📝 Was Frederick II of Hohenstaufen really a medieval Dr. Mengele?
- 📝 The diversity of human eating utensils
- 📝 Did monotheistic religions play a role in shaping the belief that political power should be in the hands of an all powerful monarch?
Source: stackoverflow.com
Search Posts
Related post
- 📝 What specifically did Einstein have in mind when he called the Israeli Freedom Party fascistic?
- 📝 What alternate north-south supply routes did the Soviet Union have when the Volga and Stalingrad were under attack?
- 📝 What advantages did Catholic missionaries to the Indians have over Protestant missionaries in old Oregon Country?
- 📝 What effect did the Attack on Mers-el-Kébir have on Great Britain's international relations during WW2?
- 📝 What reasons did the Confederacy have for believing they would have a quick victory?
- 📝 What did other European powers say when Portugal and Spain signed the Treaty of Tordesillas?
- 📝 What did the top minds of the late 17th century have to say about Salem witch trials?
- 📝 Did Hitler make the right decision for Germany when he called off Operation Zitadelle (during the Battle of Kursk)?
- 📝 What effect did the Bronze Age collapse have on India?
- 📝 What mistake did abbot [Jacques?] Delille make when eating an egg at the Court of Louis XVI?
- 📝 What treatment did Allied Jewish POWs get when captured by the Germans?
- 📝 What route did the Hindenburg take when traveling from Germany to the U.S.?
- 📝 What effect did awareness of devastating bombing at home have on the fighting spirit of German troops on the Eastern front?
- 📝 What did Ben Franklin mean when he said "The sun of liberty is set; you must light up the candle of industry & economy"?
- 📝 What did the Baltic Fleet do in Reval in 1904 and when was it there?
- 📝 What role did the media have in the outcome of the "Arab Spring" revolt in Tunisia?
- 📝 How did the Dutch East India Company (VOC) have so much revenue when they only control small part of Indonesia?
- 📝 What impact did the Seven Years War have on the American Revolution?
- 📝 What impact did Trotsky's armoured train have on the Russian civil war?
- 📝 Did Americans in the later half of the 18th-century have more freedom in choosing a partner?
- 📝 What effect did the Mafia have during World War 2?
- 📝 At what point did the United States have a truly federal army?
- 📝 What defenses did Lee leave behind when the Army of Northern Virginia left for Gettysburg?
- 📝 What literary or philosophical works did the ancient Egyptians have that have influenced ancient civilizations or the modern word?
- 📝 What did sectionalism have to do with the American civil war?
- 📝 When did the <input> tag come about, and in what web browser?
- 📝 What access did people in the Warsaw pact countries have to Western television and radio?
- 📝 What rights did women have in Switzerland in the first few years of the 20th century?
- 📝 What intelligence successes did the Axis have in WW2?
- 📝 What kind of heating did Moscow have in the early Soviet Union (1917 - 1930)?