We've heard that Tony Judt died today, the historian and writer/speaker, after a long illness, ALS. A giant, is all I can think right now, someone of tremendous intellectual confidence who followed such a worldly and erudite path that when the Israel/Palestine issue came front and center in political life ten years ago knew what he thought and wasn't afraid to say it. A leader, who made it so much easier for the rest of us to tag along.
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a true giant and much loved. good bye tony, i will always remember you and your honest bravery.
One of the men who taught me to think harder. Just: do more thinking. Do more mind-checking. And stand upright.
Thanks, Tony.
Very Sad. But he made his mark.
Tony, your influence is only starting to be felt. A giant among men.
Short Interview with Tony Judt.
link to youtube.com
Condolences to his family, friends and admirers.
I hope you can learn something from this honnest person because people are sick of your cowardice Israel’s apologists!
That cheap shot was unnecessary.
What the hell is your problem? It didn’t cost much, and it apparently hit home. Don’t you like a bargain?
And putting the phony quote “fuck ‘em all” towards the Jews in Phil’s mouth isn’t a cheap shot?
Ziocaine amnesia. They wake up each day and forget what they said yesterday.
And that little jag to the outhouse when you said the Palestinians lost their rights when the Zionists kicked them out, and the Jews gained “native” status as anchor babies? That wasn’t a cheap shot?
Yes Witty, no one can be offended, you chill with Abbie Hoffman and recorded “left-wing audiobooks”. What boner fidos you got pal.
Hey, his black nanny remembers him fondly.
the junior high school tag team strikes! Watch out!
unfortunately… badly cut… but interesting what he had to say… regarding his meeting with a Senator in a Paris hotel.
The Israeli Lobby – A Danger To The World – Banned Documentary (4/5)
link to youtube.com
The senator said that many in congress know the truth about Israel but will not speak out–if a senator told the truth in public he’d get at most 10 senators to support him, and the truthful senator would never again be able to get any needed support for any actions he or she took to help his home constitutency. Zionist money talks, ideals walk.
And most forbidden of all is to tell that truth.
Comfort and condolences to those who loved Tony Judt. A spirit and a man of courage, one to be proud of.
Go well umfundisi.
RIP
It’s just a terrible, terrible loss.
An inspiration to many, and a hope for others
What sad news.
His memory will be cherished by many admiring strangers as the many, many personal friends that he made over the years.
A tremendous loss
So sad.
Today, the world may have lost Tony Judt, but his body of work lives on.
loss for all of those who seeks ethical clarity in complex issues.
Tony Judt was wise AND courageous. I never got to know him personally but I read three of his books: Postwar, Reappraisals, and The Burden of Responsibility. All three books profoundly influenced me, especially the first two of these books. In fact, I’m reading Postwar(for the fourth time right now). To me, what distinguished Tony Judt from many others whom I respect is his courage, a remarkably rare attribute these days. He is in my personal pantheon of “greats” with Chomsky, Said, Carter, and Hass.
Tony Judt was a clear and powerful voice. We’ll miss him.
Anything that I say will not really do justice to the character and work of Mr. Judt, a man that I greatly admire and hence my real struggle for words. I second most of what was said here already and add that I really appreciated his mind and manner of communication, in the face of great odds. His sense of justice was clear, his appeal to the right course of action unwavering, and he delivered it with no respect of persons. It is the result of having a world view which truly embraces the entire world, that I find extremely rare, an acceptance of all upon the basis of common humanity. How he fiercely rushed to the side of the wounded, because it was the right thing to do, as amply expressed in this following video –
TONY JUDT ON ACADEMIC FREEDOM, AND MUCH MORE
How I wished we could have rushed in and rescue him from his recent agony and plight, but we do not have the means – and as we approached him, he reminded us to be brave and to do what was right, to do our duty.
I am grieving. There are few I admired as much as Tony Judd. Loss of tremendous intelect and remarkable clarity of vision.
Sorry about autocorrect. Judt.
Huge loss of a brilliant and a conscientious mind; A promoter of a bi-national state vision which in 2006 drew him an avalanche of the most despicable smears from the usual obnoxious crowd and earned him a sacking from the editorial board of the New Republic..He, the British Jew who early on at the age of 15 helped British Jews to migrate to Palestine and who later in the aftermath of 1967 war volunteered to serve in the IDF as a driver and a translator (well before correcting his course to talk in defense of the Palestinian cause) , was accused of “Anti-Semitism ” and Jew-hatred”, no less!!!
But that didn’t end there. Later on in 2006, the same packs of hyenas of the ADL and the AJC, successfully prevented to prevent him from public speaking in New York:
Oh bother! A whole paragraph in conclusion is missing there..Not gonna type it again, sorry..
RIP. The Lobby will not have Tony Judt to attack anymore. But, to its horror, a hundred of Tony’s intellectual acolytes will rise in his stead.
A man of decency, honesty, and intellectual integrity–a true role model.
I feel this loss like a kick to the stomach. Prof. Judt was so brave, so far ahead of his time, so fearlessly honest, unafraid to call a spade a spade (and to call out those who would stifle honest debate by insisting spades were fluffy pink hearts and excommunicating anyone who publicly disagreed).
He was so gracious when I emailed him, even though he didn’t know me, and asked about his adventures in publishing on this ‘controversial’ topic. I will never forget this kindness, which was such a morale booster when I was feeling particularly weary about the whole thing.
Rest in the peace of eternity knowing you were a great teacher on this good earth and a kind and gracious human being.
I shall remember him as a vigorous participant in the debates going on around him allowing him to triumph over his terribly disabling illness. A brave, brave man filled with a lust for the intellectual life to the very end.
If anyone is interested in working with me to organize a get-together centered on Tony Judt to discuss his life, work, and influence, please let me know via email: lohdennis@gmail.com.
It will probably have to be in October or November but I am very interested in continuing his legacy, even in a small way. It will take place in NYC.
RIP
From the LA Times obituary:
After spending a summer on a kibbutz in Israel when he was 15, Judt was active in the Jewish youth movement but turned away from the Zionists’ utopian vision when he spent several weeks as a translator after the Six-Day War in 1967. He was troubled by the insouciance of Israeli officers he worked with and later called them “right-wing thugs with anti-Arab views.”
Sincere condolences to his family and friends.
I respect the diversity of his position on Israel and the Middle East conflict, but certainly I do not agree with his conclusions. I wish therefore to give space to some critical thoughts about his views on the issue, sure that he would not have objected to a healthy dissent, the quintessence of the very idea of democracy.
link to covenant.idc.ac.il
Just how much white phosphorous constitutes healthy dissent? Just out of curiosity.
“Sincere condolences to his family and friends.”
Sincere you said? Allow me to doubt..He was a thorn in your flesh and judging from the indignant, shameless propaganda you keep spewing over here, you had no sympathy for someone like Judt..
“I wish therefore to give space to some critical thoughts about his views on the issue”
I read Benjamin Balint’s essay, and it’s a cler case of and intellectual David trying to slay a Goliath and failing miserably.
To his credit, he is civlized and thotough in researchign Judt’s work, but strangely, seems to believe that laying out Judt’s thesis is inteself a refutation. It’s a rather bizzare essay and no doubt intended to preach to the converted.
In other arguments, he demonstrated btatant dihonesty, when tried to refute the argument that a state cannot be both Jewish and democratic. He dredges up the very lame position that Israel is both because it is Jewish as a conseuqnece of the consensus of the majorit of the population, while deliberately skipping over the elephant in the room that Israel achived the majority and maintains it by ethnic cleansing.
he expects his reasders to believe that Israel’s Declaration of Independence, which promises that the state will act for the benefit of all its inhabitants, is somehow evidence that this is what Israel is doing, which is absurd.
The rest of the piece doesn’t get much better and is best described as an intellectual train wreck.
So typical of Zionists.
Certain names stick in my mind as truth-tellers on the IP conflict.
Tony Judt was undeniably at the top of the list.
When he was a youngster, Judt was one of the top organizers in the UK for the Israelis. He was a true believer. That makes his evolution into a strong critic of Israeli policy more impressive. Some of Israeli’s other critics never started off as believers in the first place.
“Intellectuals” come and go, Israel is forever!!!!!