to hope to god this isn't true - Jews made to register

[softlysoftly]

www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4510688,00.html

CandyCoated, young Jews, like myself and my husband are feeling very uneasy. His family in Hungary lost thirty members in the Holocaust. We remember, we never forget.

Comic there's no apology needed.

No! I have very little Jewish connections other than friends.

Why? Should that influence my thinking?

I am in fear of history repeating itself just as much as any other sane person.

Why do you ask?

CandyCoated some middle aged Gentiles, like myself are also feeling uneasy.

We also remember. We can never forget.

Of course that should be 'very few Jewish connections'

Leaflets were given out by masked men in front of a large synagogue.
It's not clear if they are representing a significant local faction, but USA officials have quickly condemned them CNN
Obama & Kerry are trying hard to avoid clashing with Putin and they have zero interest in UK newspaper circulation.

Fucking hell this is scary and horrible

What's happening in the Ukraine is really scary, whether this is true or not.

It seems to me that Russia can take a bit at a time, as long as that bit is majority Russian.

Imagine if, for example, Irish forces took a bit of NI that was nationalist - sailed up Belfast Lough and took a bit of the Falls Road, for example. And then held a referendum with clear margins to ensure a majority.

And then moved and took a bit of County Down that was majority Nationalist.

That's how Ukraine/Russia is looking to me, though I accept I don't know the history well enough to be sure.

Ok I'm now convinced that the leaflets and posters are indeed real, so the question remains:

Are they from

• the current separatist rulers

• Russia

• A US ploy to strengthen the antiputin feeling

• some other nutty anti Semitic group

I don't actually like any of those choices though considering how on the edge we are balanced already.

Should only Jewish people be scared? I don't feel the same terror that I can only imagine one must feel from having experienced such atrocities first hand, but the idea of anyone being persecuted for their faith, or race, or anything else for that matter, fills me with great sorrow.

It is already happening in many countries all over the world, one way or another. And ethnic cleansing is part of Europe's recent history too. I don't think we should be panicking wildly but I am worried.

Even if it is "just" a hoax, it must be terrifying for Jewish people throughout Ukraine. If nothing else, what if Jewish people do register, providing their addresses, inventories of their possessions etc. and then neo-Nazi gangs turn up and rob them and attack them?! It's hardly a stretch of the imagination, for me anyway.

Sorry, I wasn't saying that only older generations are uneasy but IME, they are particularly anxious in a different way. I am very uneasy. I also wasn't saying that only Jewish people would be either.

There's details of an agreement on BBC 1 news now.

"All parties want to diffuse the crisis... they have agreed to an immediate halt to the voilence... all illegally armed groups must be disarmed..." No details about the Jewish register though.

Candy I never thought you were, sorry if my post came across like that. It was meant as an expression of solidarity.

Ah it's AIBU! ..... That's why posters are picking over spelling....

Sadly there are very few things in the news these days that shocks me but this has knocked me sideways

It is properly scarey.

Capt Nah it's ok, just wanted to clarify.

I don't think there will be an agreement. I think Russia will keep nibbling bits - the most important bits, the dockyards, the oil refineries. They will justify each by saying "the majority in this part have voted for Russia".

And the Ukrainian government are over a barrel - if they shoot "civilians" who are really Russian activists, they will lose international support.

Ethnic cleansing isn't unlikely - look what happened in the allegedly civilised European country of Yugoslavia. I think it's going to get worse.

Partial, rather than talking about ynetnews as though it were this mysterious organisation, you could have taken the ten seconds to google it and find out what it is. Ynetnews is the online English version of Israel's largest paper, Yediot Aharonot. What you won't find from google is that is generally considered quite accurate in the facts it reports.

The only open question appears to be who drafted these letters, not whether they exist. Occam's razor suggests that elaborate conspiracy theories are less likely than the apparent facts, that this was done by the forces in control of Donetsk.

Good questions, OP.

"History teaches men, that history teaches men nothing"

It does sound both undesirable and a bit fishy. According to the link, self-proclaimed pro-Russian local leader, chairman Pushilin, agrees that his organisation distributed the documents, but says it is nothing to do with him.

Just to be clear, Russia does have a considerable problem with its own neo-nazis, right-wing extremists, and nationalists. It is entirely possible that such people are active in the pro-Russian armed gangs.

The real question is whether Russia is happy to ignore the less palatable activities of some of its extremists in order to gain what they want.

It's very worrying.

Candy, I never thought you were either..my apologies if I came across as snappy. I have emailed John Kerry, hoping an end to this will happen immediately....still believes in fairies

softly

just want to clarify that in my last post I didn't mean you when I said "just a troll"

I meant the person/people who started this.