It’s too easy (and unworkable) only to point fingers at others
Every group and community needs to do their own cleanup.
It’s not enough to say, ‘They are not OK, but I am.’ They need you. And we Jews are too busy defending ourselves and too easily outnumbered.
Christians blame the Muslims, and Muslims blame the Christians, and the Left blames the Right, and the Right blames the Left, minorities blame the masses, and the masses blame minorities, and the media blames the Jews.
Not the People
The people are not the problem. The only issue is their dedication to bigoted ideology and a tenacious fight against facts, truth, and nuance.
Christians
It is great to meet Christians for Jews. And clearly, they love being with us too. But we need them to challenge classical Antisemitic, politically anti-Zionist, and religious anti-Judaist Christians. You don’t seriously think unbelievers could sort them out or that they’ll shape up spontaneously?
Jews are not helped by claims that ‘People who hate Jews can’t be Christian,’ or ‘I’m not sure I’m a Christian, so I don’t feel responsible.’
The UN
It is wonderful to meet pro-Jewish and pro-Israel politicians. And clearly, they love being with us too. But we need them to challenge anti-Israel, Antisemitic, and anti-Zionist dictatorships. You don’t seriously think their residents could sort them out or that they’ll shape up spontaneously?
Jews are not helped by claims that ‘Most countries are anti-Israel, so what do you want from us, so don’t hold me responsible.’
Muslims
It is wonderful to meet Muslims for Jews. And clearly, they love being with us too. But we need them to challenge all classical Antisemitic, politically anti-Zionist, and religious anti-Jewish Muslims. You don’t seriously think unbelievers could sort them out or that they’ll shape up spontaneously?
Jews are not helped by claims that ‘It’s in the Koran so there is nothing we can do.’ There are Muslim scholars who disagree,’ so do feel responsible.
The Left
It is wonderful to meet left-wingers enthusiastic about Israel and Jews. And clearly, they love being with us too. But we need them to challenge all Marxist-Leninist Antisemitism and anti-Zionism. You don’t seriously think the Right could sort them out or that they’ll shape up spontaneously?
Jews are not helped by claims that ‘Some left-wing Jews agree themselves, so what do you want from us?’ I want you to expose the lying and bigotry.
LGBTQ
It is wonderful to meet LGBTQs who love Jews, Judaism, and Israel. And clearly, they love being with us too. But we need them to challenge all the anti-pink-washing, religion-hating LGBTQs. You don’t seriously think Straights could sort them out or that they’ll shape up spontaneously?
Jews are not helped by claims that ‘Some LGBTQ Jews agree themselves, so what do you want from us?’ I want you to expose the lying and bigotry.
The Media
It is wonderful to meet journalists with a warm heart for Israel, Jews, and truth. And clearly, they love being with us too. But we need them to challenge all Antisemitic and anti-Zionist media bias. You don’t seriously think readers could sort them out or that they’ll shape up spontaneously?
Jews are not helped by claims that ‘Freedom of the Press make that lies can’t be stopped.’ There is no Right to Hurt. Expose the lying and bigotry.
The Right
It is wonderful to meet right-wingers who sincerely love Israel and Jews. And clearly, they enjoy being with us too. But we need them to challenge the whole classical Antisemitic and Neo-Nazi Right. You don’t seriously think the Left could sort them out or that they’ll shape up spontaneously?
Jews are not helped by claims that ‘I’m not fundamentalist or hateful, so I don’t feel responsible.’ These racist give the Right a bad name. Stop them.
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You may find more controversial writings on Amazon or my own blog.
MM is a prolific and creative writer and thinker, previously a daily blog contributor to the TOI. He often makes his readers laugh, mad, or assume he's nuts—close to perfect blogging. He's proud that his analytical short comments are removed both from left-wing and right-wing news sites. None of his content is generated by the new bore on the block, AI. *
As a frontier thinker, he sees things many don't yet. He's half a prophet. Half. Let's not exaggerate. Or not at all because he doesn't claim G^d talks to him. He gives him good ideas—that's all. MM doesn't believe that people observe and think in a vacuum. He, therefore, wanted a broad bio that readers interested can track a bit what (lack of) backgrounds, experiences, and educations contribute to his visions. *
This year, he will prioritize getting his unpublished books published rather than just blog posts. Next year, he hopes to focus on activism against human extinction. To find less-recent posts on a subject XXX among his over 2000 archived ones, go to the right-top corner of a Times of Israel page, click on the search icon and search "zuiden, XXX". One can find a second, wilder blog, to which one may subscribe too, here: https://mmvanzuiden.wordpress.com/ or by clicking on the globe icon next to his picture on top. *
Like most of his readers, he believes in being friendly, respectful, and loyal. However, if you think those are his absolute top priorities, you might end up disappointed. His first loyalty is to the truth. He will try to stay within the limits of democratic and Jewish law, but he won't lie to support opinions or people when don't deserve that. (Yet, we all make honest mistakes, which is just fine and does not justify losing support.) He admits that he sometimes exaggerates to make a point, which could have him come across as nasty, while in actuality, he's quite a lovely person to interact with. He holds - how Dutch - that a strong opinion doesn't imply intolerance of other views. *
Sometimes he's misunderstood because his wide and diverse field of vision seldomly fits any specialist's box. But that's exactly what some love about him. He has written a lot about Psychology (including Sexuality and Abuse), Medicine (including physical immortality), Science (including basic statistics), Politics (Israel, the US, and the Netherlands, Activism - more than leftwing or rightwing, he hopes to highlight reality), Oppression and Liberation (intersectionally, for young people, the elderly, non-Whites, women, workers, Jews, LGBTQIA+, foreigners and anyone else who's dehumanized or exploited), Integrity, Philosophy, Jews (Judaism, Zionism, Holocaust and Jewish Liberation), the Climate Crisis, Ecology and Veganism, Affairs from the news, or the Torah Portion of the Week, or new insights that suddenly befell him. *
Chronologically, his most influential teachers are his parents, Nico (natan) van Zuiden and Betty (beisye) Nieweg, Wim Kan, Mozart, Harvey Jackins, Marshal Rosenberg, Reb Shlomo Carlebach, and, lehavdil bein chayim lechayim, Rabbi Dr. Natan Lopes Cardozo, Rav Zev Leff, and Rav Meir Lubin. This short list doesn't mean to disrespect others who taught him a lot or a little. One of his rabbis calls him Mr. Innovation [Ish haChidushim]. Yet, his originalities seem to root deeply in traditional Judaism, though they may grow in unexpected directions. In fact, he claims he's modernizing nothing. Rather, mainly basing himself on the basic Hebrew Torah text, he tries to rediscover classical Jewish thought almost lost in thousands of years of stifling Gentile domination and Jewish assimilation. (He pleads for a close reading of the Torah instead of going by rough assumptions of what it would probably mean and before fleeing to Commentaries.) This, in all aspects of life, but prominently in the areas of Free Will, Activism, Homosexuality for men, and Redemption. *
He hopes that his words will inspire and inform, and disturb the comfortable and comfort the disturbed. He aims to bring a fresh perspective rather than harp on the obvious and familiar. When he can, he loves to write encyclopedic overviews. He doesn't expect his readers to agree. Rather, original minds should be disputed. In short, his main political positions are among others: anti-Trumpism, for Zionism, Intersectionality, non-violence, anti those who abuse democratic liberties, anti the fake ME peace process, for original-Orthodoxy, pro-Science, pro-Free Will, anti-blaming-the-victim, and for down-to-earth, classical optimism, and happiness. Read his blog on how he attempts to bridge any tensions between those ideas or fields. *
He is a fetal survivor of the pharmaceutical industry (https://diethylstilbestrol.co.uk/studies/des-and-psychological-health/), born in 1953 to his parents who were Dutch-Jewish Holocaust survivors who met in the largest concentration camp in the Netherlands, Westerbork. He grew up a humble listener. It took him decades to become a speaker too, and decades more to admit to being a genius. But his humility was his to keep. And so was his honesty. Bullies and con artists almost instantaneously envy and hate him. He hopes to bring new things and not just preach to the choir. *
He holds a BA in medicine (University of Amsterdam) – is half a doctor. He practices Re-evaluation Co-counseling since 1977, is not an official teacher anymore, and became a friendly, powerful therapist. He became a social activist, became religious, made Aliyah, and raised three wonderful kids. Previously, for decades, he was known to the Jerusalem Post readers as a frequent letter writer. For a couple of years, he was active in hasbara to the Dutch-speaking public. He wrote an unpublished tome about Jewish Free Will. He's a strict vegan since 2008. He's an Orthodox Jew but not a rabbi. *
His writing has been made possible by an allowance for second-generation Holocaust survivors from the Netherlands. It has been his dream since he was 38 to try to make a difference by teaching through writing. He had three times 9-out-of-10 for Dutch at his high school finals but is spending his days communicating in English and Hebrew - how ironic. G-d must have a fine sense of humor. In case you wonder - yes, he is a bit dyslectic. If you're a native English speaker and wonder why you should read from people whose English is only their second language, consider the advantage of having an original peek outside of your cultural bubble. *
To send any personal reaction to him, scroll to the top of the blog post and click Contact Me. *
His newest books you may find here: https://www.amazon.com/s?i=stripbooks&rh=p_27%3AMoshe-Mordechai%2FMaurits+van+Zuiden&s=relevancerank&text=Moshe-Mordechai%2FMaurits+van+Zuiden&ref=dp_byline_sr_book_1