Ed Koch..unplugged.

Years ago if you had told me that I would agree with everything in a speech that Democrat Ed Koch gave, I would have laughed. But former Mayor Koch spoke on first day of Rosh Hashanah at his Synagogue and his remarks were profound and full of wisdom. Here are some snippets:

"During the service this morning an elderly man came over to me and said, "Tell the Jews how foolish they are not to appreciate how good and supportive the President has been to the Jewish community. When I look back on the Nazis and remember what they did, I know how important it is for the President to stand up for Jews and others who are being terrorized throughout the world."

I replied, "I have and I will."

More:

"President Bush needs continued strength and courage to protect our country from the Islamic terrorists who want to kill us. Their goal, as clearly stated in the words of Abu Mus'ab Al-Zarqawi, the head of al-Qaeda in Iraq before he was killed by an American bomb, is "Killing the infidels is our religion, slaughtering them is our religion, until they convert to Islam or pay us tribute." The infidels alluded to are you and I as well as other Jews, Christians (called Crusaders), Hindus and dissenting Muslims who disagree with them on religious or political issues.

I admire the strength and intelligence of Pope Benedict XVI. He understands the Muslim threats of violence against people unwilling to convert to Islam. He has called for a dialogue with the Muslim world."

Referring to Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez addressing the General Assembly of the UN as he vilified President Bush, referring to him as "the devil:"

"What offended me even more than Chavez's ludicrous remarks were the responses of the U.N. delegates. No one stood up and told Chavez that he was out of order and demanded that he stop or sit down. They should have told him he was a disgrace to the U.N. Instead they are reported to have applauded this monster and laughed with him, instead of at him. The Times reported:

"So while there was official outrage over Mr. Chavez calling Mr. Bush 'the devil,' there was also a lot of applause and giggling, from dignitaries including the president of the General Assembly herself, Haya Rashed al-Khalifa of Bahrain, who was caught chuckling from her seat on the dais behind Mr. Chavez."

And finally:

".... do you remember the Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl who was taken hostage by the terrorists in Pakistan? They paraded him on television and forced him to say, "My father is Jewish, my mother is Jewish, I am Jewish." Then they slit his throat and decapitated him with the world watching the video of the murder.

The Rabbi told us this morning that we recite very important prayers today, and we should be conscious of their special significance. I hope that some day soon we will add Daniel Pearl's words to a special prayer to be said today, as I say it now, "My father is Jewish, my mother is Jewish, I am Jewish." And I am proud."

Whenever we wonder about this fight we fight, we need to remember Daniel Pearl. He wasn't a soldier. He had no political agenda. The terrorists hated him for the same reason Hitler hated so many before...because he was Jewish.

Today Pres. Bush said that we do not create terrorism by fighting terrorism. That idea, being promoted by Democrats, that somehow not fighting terrorists will make them hate us less, is simply disproven by the past.

It was our ambivalence that allowed 9-11.

When we are tempted to give up this fight, let us remember Daniel Pearl. We stand with our Jewish friends and they stand with us. Never again will we allow others to kill innocent humans for simply who they are. Never again.


h/t Errol Phillips