Jonathan Ofir skriver på FB:
"A very interesting read from 2018, which was sent to me by a friend just now.
It speaks of the massive involvement of the Jewish mafia in USA in financing arms-shipments for the Zionist gangs in Palestine in late 1940's.
"[Haganah emissary Reuven Dafni's] meetings with Jewish mobsters kept the FBI monitoring Dafni until he left the country. In 1948, Dafni was appointed as the first Israeli consul to Los Angeles. From 1953 to 1956 he served as Israel’s consul general in New York."
"Jimmy “The Weasel” Fratianno, a top Mafia killer who later turned government informant, attended the [Irgun fundraising] party. Fratianno knew Mickey [Cohen] very well. He recalled this event being held in Slapsy Maxie’s restaurant. “The place is packed. I’ve never seen so many Jewish bookmakers and mob guys in one place in my life. They’re all there. Famous actors, producers, bigshots in the community. It’s a full house.” To start things off, Mickey Cohen pledged $25,000. “After that, forget about it. Everybody’s pledging thousands. Even the bookmakers are pledging five and ten grand. They know Mickey’s running the show and they’re going to have to pay off.”"
"...Most Jewish mobsters were willing to hazard being exposed in an illegal and risky effort to help Israel. Some did so out of ethnic loyalties. Meyer Lansky’s daughter said her father supported Israel’s fight for independence because “he could not stand back and allow the country where his own refugee grandparents were buried to be extinguished by the Arabs.” Some mobsters saw themselves as defenders of the Jews, almost biblical-like fighters. It was part of their self-image. Other commentators held that in each Jew, no matter how depraved, there existed a pintele yid, a spark of Jewishness that was never extinguished. And this motivated them to help.
Other mobsters sought respectability so as not to stigmatize their children, and thus jeopardize their chances for success in the legitimate world. Reuven Dafni, the Haganah emissary believes this is what motivated Sam Kay, the Miami gangster, to assist the Haganah. “He had a daughter of marriageable age, but she had a difficult time meeting Jewish boys because of what her father was. I think he helped us because it was a way for him to gain acceptance in the Jewish community. Once it became known that he was helping us, the Jewish community’s attitude towards him changed. His daughter began dating Jewish boys and eventually married one.”
Perhaps, helping Israel may be seen as a later version of the Jewish gangster’s tradition of protecting his neighborhood from anti-Semites. After WWII, the Jewish state symbolically came to represent the Jewish neighborhood. In defending Israel against her enemies, the Jewish gangster was still defending his people against Jew-haters."
https://www.tabletmag.com/sections/arts-letters/articles/gangsters-for-zionJonathan Ofir skriver på FB:
"A very interesting read from 2018, which was sent to me by a friend just now.
It speaks of the massive involvement of the Jewish mafia in USA in financing arms-shipments for the Zionist gangs in Palestine in late 1940's.
"[Haganah emissary Reuven Dafni's] meetings with Jewish mobsters kept the FBI monitoring Dafni until he left the country. In 1948, Dafni was appointed as the first Israeli consul to Los Angeles. From 1953 to 1956 he served as Israel’s consul general in New York."
"Jimmy “The Weasel” Fratianno, a top Mafia killer who later turned government informant, attended the [Irgun fundraising] party. Fratianno knew Mickey [Cohen] very well. He recalled this event being held in Slapsy Maxie’s restaurant. “The place is packed. I’ve never seen so many Jewish bookmakers and mob guys in one place in my life. They’re all there. Famous actors, producers, bigshots in the community. It’s a full house.” To start things off, Mickey Cohen pledged $25,000. “After that, forget about it. Everybody’s pledging thousands. Even the bookmakers are pledging five and ten grand. They know Mickey’s running the show and they’re going to have to pay off.”"
"...Most Jewish mobsters were willing to hazard being exposed in an illegal and risky effort to help Israel. Some did so out of ethnic loyalties. Meyer Lansky’s daughter said her father supported Israel’s fight for independence because “he could not stand back and allow the country where his own refugee grandparents were buried to be extinguished by the Arabs.” Some mobsters saw themselves as defenders of the Jews, almost biblical-like fighters. It was part of their self-image. Other commentators held that in each Jew, no matter how depraved, there existed a pintele yid, a spark of Jewishness that was never extinguished. And this motivated them to help.
Other mobsters sought respectability so as not to stigmatize their children, and thus jeopardize their chances for success in the legitimate world. Reuven Dafni, the Haganah emissary believes this is what motivated Sam Kay, the Miami gangster, to assist the Haganah. “He had a daughter of marriageable age, but she had a difficult time meeting Jewish boys because of what her father was. I think he helped us because it was a way for him to gain acceptance in the Jewish community. Once it became known that he was helping us, the Jewish community’s attitude towards him changed. His daughter began dating Jewish boys and eventually married one.”
Perhaps, helping Israel may be seen as a later version of the Jewish gangster’s tradition of protecting his neighborhood from anti-Semites. After WWII, the Jewish state symbolically came to represent the Jewish neighborhood. In defending Israel against her enemies, the Jewish gangster was still defending his people against Jew-haters."
https://www.tabletmag.com/sections/arts-letters/articles/gangsters-for-zion
English
