Opinion
Innocent until proven guilty
Hanoch Daum
Published: 04.09.09, 14:56
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29 Talkbacks for this article
1. If Sharon hadn't been punished for his actions against Jews,
Olmert NEVER would ,   have been PM.   (09.04.09)
2. Dear Hanoch,Olmert is a VERY guilty man who is using people
like you to SPIN his ,   innocence.Maurie   (09.04.09)
3. No he does not deserve quiet
Ari   (09.04.09)
"once he did what he had to do, doesn’t he deserve a little quiet?" -No he does not deserve quiet. "Why are we seeing this hunt?" -Because everyone knows he is quilty. "Why are we seeing this gleeful handling of his case?" - Because olmert treated everyone with derision and now he is getting what he deserves and people are happy to watch him be punished for his evil acts. "Ehud Olmert is a private individual at this time. Doesn’t he deserve a just trial that is quiet and to-the-point?" -No, he does not. "One that will not be decided on the street?" It wont be decided by the street, rather in court, but any average person walking down the street will tell you that a PM who took cash in envelopes is a scum bag and deserves to be treated as such. Tell ehud he should go vacation with talansky in long island before he starts his prison term.
4. Would Daum say the same about Moshe Katsav
Randy ,   Tel Aviv   (09.04.09)
I don't recall seeing him write to just let him have a nice quiet trial. Double standard protecting the leftist Olmert.
5. Not In This Country
Yehuda ,   Jerusalem,Israel   (09.04.09)
As we have seen recently in regard to the religious mother accused of abusing her child, in this country you are GUILTY until proven INNOCENT.
6. ohlmert
sas ,   israel   (09.04.09)
the man is a crook, a liar, a thief, corrupt . his charming wife, aliza, is not much better. the sooner he is put behind bars the better off the country will be. he NEVER should have been PM. he simply was at the right place at the right time..................He never did anything for jerusalem as mayor. his only intetest is/was himself and his pocket.
7. Innocent until proven guilty
Salomon MOYAL BLOCH ,   Zurich, Switzerland   (09.04.09)
you hit the bull's eye. It's real problem in Israel. Your medias are condemning and lacking any neutrality. The same style has been applied in Sweden to the Israelis and then you understand. Mostly is the press 'schaqdenfreudig' jubilating about the downfall of a politician. The israeli justice system is really corrupt and doesn't work like a normal country.
8. HE'S GUILTY OF BRINGING SHAME ON THE JEWS.
Ben Avraham ,   Tel Aviv   (09.04.09)
9. I feel no pity for the ex-prime minister yet,
Robert Haymond ,   Ashdod, Israel   (09.04.09)
as the author writes, he is charged with crimes but the charges are not proven and until they are, well, he must be considered innocent. Nonetheless, I admit to reveling in the fact that he has been charged. I also admit to feeling glee that he must be feeling much pain, first, by losing his position (being pressured to step down as PM) and, second, by the sense of helplessness he must be going through as he recognizes that he will be enduring a long process of an agonizing trial. Why do I, like so many others, despise him? Well, he was a coward. He didn't see to our (Israel's) protection. He allowed the southern part of the population to undergoe barrages from Gaza militants without lifting a finger while making empty warnings. He made our humiliation possible. In addition, his own children did not enter the IDF. One, a daughter, even became an activist on behalf of Palestinians. In other words, as other Israeli parents witnessed their own children sacrafice for the country, his children benefitted. There was nothing whatsoever heroic about Olmert. I was ashamed of him as our PM and I always felt he was sleezy. So, yes, I am pleased he is suffering now. And no, he has not yet been found guilty.
10. Innocent Until Proven Guilty
David ,   Detroit USA   (09.04.09)
AMEN!!! Olmert is NOT the first. The sane has been done to many before him. Accuse, drag out an investigation, leak more accusations, gleeful prosecutory pursuit, character assassination in the media, then take a long time to decide if charges will be filed, lots more character assassination in the media and maybe one day the poor victim will come to trial. By then, the victim's life, reputation, and career is already destroyed. There has been a pattern of prosecutory abuse, broadcasted by the media partners and they have effectively destroyed the accused before they ever arrive at trial. Sickening
11. daom and olmert
marcel   (09.04.09)
How much did olmert pay daom to write this letter. All know that Olmert is innocent at this point and he may yet win acquittal. Crookery is one thing. Israelis detest him because he has no spine, was awol on combat duties, cost israel lives and deterrence in the lebanon war with his big mouth and inability to take casualties, and offered the arabs everything including right of return which is a knife in israel's back.He goes to jail or not-who cares. Look at his buddies-hirchson, ramon, zaken, messer, they are a bunch of moral cowards and fraudsters including the head of rishon tours according to the police. No, Daom, olmert is guilty of cowardice in the face of the enemy, treasonous behaviour against the israeli state. No defense lawyer can acquit him of that. And your malarky, that of barnea, verter, marcus and been will not change israel's opinion of olmert. Shiff and klein got it right when they said he was an arrogant, incompetent military coward.
12. Give him a fair trial then a life sentence so he won't be
Bunnie Meyer ,   Los Angeles, CA USA   (09.04.09)
able to say he is Israeli's "little" Bernie Madoff. On second thought, he is Israel's little Bernie Madoff.
13. #10 Kwamee Kilpratick said all the same things you did.Yet
EVERYBODY knew ,   he was guilty.Israel   (09.04.09)
14. Rishon Tours is an open and shut case!
jane ,   London - UK   (09.04.09)
Rishon Tours doesn't depend on witnesses because all the paperwork exists. Olmert will go to jail unless he flees the country. Anyone writing in his defense is most likely getting paid for the article or is next in line for questioning. Which is Hanoch Daum? Jane
15. 10
04\09/09   (09.04.09)
100% correct!
16. I dont understand this HATRED you all GENERATE !
Benjamin ,   Singapore   (09.04.09)
face it the TORAH is full of jews who NEVER LIVED UP TO THE MARK ! THE GREAT CELEBRATED DAVID AND SOLOMON COMMITTED THE VERY ABOMINATION THAT IF FORBIDDEN ! THEY BORKE ALL THE 10 LAWS- 613 COMMANDMENTS! THE ONLY TIGHTEOUS MAN EVER LIVED ON EARTH AND THYE RECORD REMAINS CLEAR IS MY FOR FATHER AVRAHAM BEN AVINUE. SO CUT THE CRAPS, YOU IDIOTS PRASIE WHEN YOU RECEIVE THE BEST FOR VALUE, YOU CURSE AND SPIT ON THE VERY FACE THAT GAVE YOU FOOD AND SHELTER. I AM A JEW, BUT I AM VERY DISAPPOINTED WITH IDIOTS LIKE YOU HERE ! EVERY LEADERS OF ISRAEL IS NEVER GOOD FOR YOU ! YOU IDIOTS HAVE SO MUCH TO SAY ABOUT THIS AND THAT YET YOU CANT SEE THE VERY TRUTH OF YOUR BLASPHEMEY THAT YOU COMMIT EVERDAY EVERY MOMENT. HAVE SOME GRATITUDE FOR YOUR ELDERS WHO GAVE UP THEIR FREEDOM TO DEFEND YOU POSITION AS ISRALITE. EVEN HERE IN SINGAPORE PEOPLE EASILY FORGET THE HISTORY, THE PAST, THAY GET CARRIED AWAY BY PROPAGANDA AND SPIT ON TEH FA CE THAT SHOWED THEM THE WAY TOWARDS LIFE. PLEASE STOP THIS CHARATER ASSSASINATION ! YOU ARE ALL JUST JOINING THE ARABS LOBBY AND PROPAGANDA, INFCAT ALL OF YOU HERE ARE NOT ONLY ANTI-SEMETIC BUT ANTI- ESTABLISHEMENT WHEN YOU IDIOTS CAN EVEN PULL YOUR SELF TOGETHER. THIS IS JUST MY PIECE OF MIND TO YOU IDIOTS ! WHE TWO JEWS ARGUE THERE IS A THRID OPINION, BUT WHEN YOU OPEN YOUR MOUTH, ONLY BLASPHEMY YOU MAKE. BE IT KNOW BE CAUTIOUS WHEN YOU SPEAK, TELL THE TRUTH, BE FAIR, BE IMPARTIAL, BE HONEST AND BE OF GOOD COURAGE, BE POSITIVE, USE YOUR HEAD WISELY LIKE AN ISRALITE- NOT AS A JEW, THERE NO SUCH THING " JEW" ANYWHERE IN THE TORAH THAT I KNOW FORM THE DAY MY MOTHER TAUGHT B EHOLI OBEDIENCE ! YOU DONT HAEV RESPECT FOR THE ELDERS YOU DONT HAVE SLF RESPECT IN YOU OR IN YOUR FAMILY VALUES. yOU BECAME NAMELESS, HOMELESS ANS SHAMELESS UNVEILING THE NAKEDNESS OF YOUR FATHER. iT DIDNOT STOP THERE AT PROPHET NOACH. tHE UNVEILING OF NAKEDNESS CONTINUE EVEN TODAY, YOU IDIOTS STOP PERSECUTING THAT OLMERT. tHERE IS A LIMIT TO WHAT YOU SAY ! IF YOU ARE MY CHILDREN, I WOULD NOT SPARE THE SPANK ! WITHOUT APOLOGY. BENJAMIN SINGAOPRE
17. Poor olmert
alexi   (09.05.09)
Olmert has been harranged since 6 months into his office premier job. Why? Here is the list- 1) said israel is finished if PLo state not set up 2)offered golan to syria for virtually nothing 3)Empathized with nakba more than with israelis and had Tamir introduce nakba into israeli education 4) intitated hezbollah war, refused massive ground troop invasion, hesistated and hemmed and hawed costing israeli lives. 5) conceded on right of return regardless of his rejection of this characterization. 6) offered to cut israel in half with corridor gaza to west bank and offered 97% of west bank. 7) Restricted idf to 500 yards entry into gaza and did not respond to thousands of rockets of the south until he was forced to while he slept soundly in jerusalem. 8) Takes holidays in the golan and then offers it to the king of terror assad. 9) Reflexively offers to concede parts of E. jerusalem because a tractor terror incident. What can you say. He makes me sick!! This is why israelis loathe and hate him. Of course he belongs in jail along with ramon and his whole gang. His wife is a hypocrite because she knew very well indeed his doublebilling and took advantage as did his son. He needs to serve a long prison term.
18. Dear 16: This "man" has harmed the Jewish people, and
Bunnie Meyer ,   Los Angeles, CA USA   (09.05.09)
deserves to be brought to justice. This is not an observant Jew who keeps the Torah but a person who has acted as a common criminal while using the PM's office to protect himself. I would be pleased to see the Sanhedren judge him, they would be more harsh than the criminal courts.
19. #16 And if we were your children, we would fight you back.
Native Son ,   Israel   (09.04.09)
20. #16 - who did Olmert steal from?
martin ,   tel aviv - Israel   (09.05.09)
Like his friend Hirchson, Olmert stole from, Holocaust victims. Hospitals Soldiers Retarded children What you see is not "hatred" but a demand for justice. And when Olmert goes to join Hirchson in jail, you will hear car horns and happy people celebrating in the streets. Martin
21. #5 - yes we saw pictures of what she did to her child
jane ,   London - UK   (09.05.09)
after the child was taken from the mother and two weeks later. The mother is a very sick person and needs treatment as much or more that her child needed it. Do you want to compare the mother with Olmert, Hirchson and Katsav? You can if you wish because they are all very sick people. Jane
22. imdicment
colin   (09.05.09)
Guilty until proven not guilty/This famous saying applies only to the media in Israel. The leftest press are trying to put the corrupt thieving crook olmert in a favorable position.olmert will get all he deserves and will sit many years in jail to contemplate where he went wrong and got caught
23. after 10 years of his pilfering the bank vaults
looks & acts guilty ,   jerusalem bankrupt   (09.05.09)
armed our enemies to the hilt and offered to surrender most of Hashems land to those that He doesn't want here to start with. how many more acts of treachery are required for a firing squad to execute spies and traitors of this country ?
24. ohlmert
dsa ,   israel   (09.05.09)
read about ONE of his millionaire supporters in Thursday 's "THE MARKER". Joe has been wining and dining and supporting this family for a LONG time. and there is more than is what is in the aticle.
25. HERE IS THE TRUTHN PEOPLE
Mark Hinz ,   Germany   (09.05.09)
The proof is in the family properties and financial holdaings ya! How is it that Olmert and his family own such property and such financial holdings on his public salary, he never made a cent as a lawyer so look back from when he started his political career and do the math. Sharon Olmert Bibi Barak wow what a movie that would be if it were made on how poor people became filthy rich in Israeli politics. You readers are the poor mooches the peeons so learn your places keep quiet and keep your heads down when we pass. Good bye.
26. Al Capone went to jail for not paying all taxes
Alfredo ,   Chicago   (09.05.09)
though he killed 100 people
27. To Jane
Yehuda ,   Jerusalem, Israel   (09.06.09)
How do you know it was HER that did it to her child? I'm not saying innocent or guilty, but thank you for proving my point.
28. really??
observer   (09.06.09)
Innocent until proven guilty has never been a feature of Israeli society, unless the accused happens to be an ally or friend. In some legal systems the concept does not exist. In israel it is claimed to exist, but the media have a free hand as judge jury and executioner - and then after months of media coverage, the judge and jury will claim they are totally impartial. In most democracies this would be regarded as perverting the course of justice. I'm surprised though that the author is only able to come out in favour of this one case, when similar cases are still pending.
29. #21 - Jane
observer   (09.07.09)
Maybe you saw pictures, but you did not see the facts. The child in the pictures was being removed from the oncology ward where it had received chemotherapy for months. The particular medication used has known side-effects of side drastic precipitous weight-loss - up to 50% - and is not authorised for use on anyone under 8 yrs old. It was given to a 3-4 yr-old by an oncologis, not by the mother. It is a miracle that he survived. Maybe read the facts before you accuse.
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