Keep that Jewish highway clean ya Nazi bastards!

Keep that Jewish highway clean ya Nazi bastards!

We like a bit of good mischief here at Jewlicious, especially when racist hate mongers are at the receiving end of it. Who can forget that time we “defaced” a Nazi Web site, or that other time me and Muffti joined the Delaware Klan? So I couldn’t help but chuckle when I read the other day in the New York Times, about what the Missouri Department of Transportation did after the Missouri chapter of a neo-Nazi group called the “National Socialist Movement” volunteered to clean a Missouri highway, and get official recognition for it in the form of an Adopt-a-Highway sign. See, freedom-of-speech laws prevent state officials from refusing to allow anyone from participating in an Adopt-a-Highway program where groups adopt a stretch of road and keep it clean thus saving the state money and getting a highway sign in return. So what Missouri State officials decided to do was to rename the highway after Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel, who fled Nazi Germany, became a prominent Jewish theologian and civil rights advocate in the United States and marched with Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Needless to say, the Nazis are not amused:

“I think it’s childish,” said Cynthia Keene, 38, a sergeant in the group’s Springfield unit. “If they want to have Nazis out there stomping on a Jewish-named highway, that’s their choice.”

Well, childish or not, as long as they’re not goosestepping while cleaning their half mile stretch of highway, the whole thing is pretty funny. And that’s really what’s most intriguing about this story. Who knew Missourians were funny? Who knew?

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About the author

ck

Founder and Publisher of Jewlicious, David Abitbol lives in Jerusalem with his wife, newborn daughter and toddler son. Blogging as "ck" he's been blocked on twitter by the right and the left, so he's doing something right.

16 Comments

  • OK, granted this is pretty funny. Still, it’s also a mild form of harassment. What about when the Pro-life camp wants to adopt a highway — will they rename that stretch Dr. Kevorkian Way? This will only underscore their savage point that Jews control the government. Why would we give that to them? I’d say the officials behind this had good intentions, and I as a Jew I really appreciate that. But some enterprising lawyer could make a case that this group is not receiving equal treatment.

  • What sort of equal treatment? They are not being legally mistreated – there is no violation of the Equal Protection clause. The other implied “equal treatment” might under “due process” but since they are not involved in a court case, that is irrelevant, as well.

    It might not be fair, or nice to them – but that doesn’t make it illegal in anyway.

    Oh, and there’s no endorsement of religion involved here, so they wouldn’t have a first amendment case either.

  • Well, from what I heard on the wires, Rabbi Heschel’s daughter is none too pleased with this, pretty much calling it a stupid gimmick.

  • I live in Springfield, the majority of the people in the NSA are assholes. They did however, protest our Pride this year, and we had record numbers show up, just to see the nazis.

  • LB,

    Notice I qualified my statement with “some enterprising lawyer.” The state’s actions here were not ethical, and unethical actions are often illegal. You and I might not be able to pinpoint a breach in the law, but my instincts tell me a good lawyer who was set on it could.

  • You would think these guys and Obama would get along better.I mean come on they are both Socialist ;}

  • Not sure if anyone read the whole article, but Heschel’s daughter is extremely opposed to this. She does not, in any way, believe that her father would have wanted his name to be used in such a cynical way.

  • Third comment on the site, hi all! Great blog.

    So hey, at least these nazi bastards call themselves socialists. Given I’m an American conservative fascist hater/socialist watcher, I always hate how people dont equate Nazi fascism with socialism, when they totally go together like peanut butter, banana, and honey. Mmmmmmmm….fascism, I mean peanut butter.

  • Huh? (cough, snore, cough) did somebody say food?? What’s that??? Somebody is complaining about a highway and a group of people?? Wake me when the peanut butter and bananas are ready. Good night.