Friday, February 9, 2007

Shameless

I just caught this headline from Drudge:

Elie Wiesel was attacked by a Holecaust Denier

What is wrong with this world? Why do we feel it's necessary to violently assault those who hold opinions opposite to ours?

I read three of Wiesel's books in my Literature of the Holocaust class at Hollins University. I can't tell you how beautiful yet painful they were to read. Night should be required reading.

Unfortunately, the man taking credit for the attack believes differently:

In a posting Tuesday on the anti-Zionist Web site ZioPedia, a writer using the name Eric Hunt takes credit for the attack: “After ensuring no women would be traumatized by what I had to do (I had been trailing Wiesel for weeks), I stopped the elevator at the sixth floor. I pulled Wiesel out of the elevator. I said I wanted to interview him.”

Wiesel grabbed at his chest and yelled for help, according to the posting. “I told him, ‘Why don’t you want people to know the truth?’ His expression changed, and he began screaming again. …” the posting reads.Police reported that the suspect tried to force Wiesel into one of the rooms, but ran away when Wiesel started yelling.

The online posting states that the writer intended to “bring Wiesel to my hotel room where he would truthfully answer my questions regarding the fact that his non-fiction Holocaust memoir, Night, is almost entirely fictitious.” Later in the posting, the Holocaust is portrayed as a “myth.”

Elie Wiesel has gifted the world through the sharing of his experiences. He could just as easily have lived his life while doing his best to forget what he experienced. He does not deserve to be assaulted yet again. I hope that there is a special place in Hell for Eric Hunt and everyone like him. They are a pathetic lot.

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