Steven Plaut
Encyclopedia
Steven Plaut is an American-born Israel
i associate professor of Business Administration at the University of Haifa
and a writer. Plaut is a member of the editorial board of the Middle East Quarterly
, a publication of the Middle East Forum
think tank.
. Plaut grew up in a Zionist and Conservative Jewish
home. In 1981, the family immigrated
to Israel.
in Philadelphia, his MA from Hebrew University of Jerusalem
and his Ph.D. in economics
from Princeton University
, specializing in international and urban economics and later in finance
and worked at the Federal Reserve Bank
. Before his professorship at the Haifa University, he taught at Oberlin College
, the Technion, UC Berkeley
, UC Irvine
, Central European University
, Tel Aviv University
, University of Nantes
, and Athens Laboratory for Business Administration.
patient at an intensive care ward. The historical novel is a series of life stories exchanged between him and another patient in the ward, an Israeli bedouin
scout.
, he has argued that Arab leaders will continue to seek the destruction of Israel through violence and terrorism
. He cites the outbreak of the Al-Aqsa Intifada
and the campaign of suicide bombings as evidence.
Plaut is critical of left wing figures such as Michael Lerner
and Norman Finkelstein
whom he describes as self-hating Jew
s and apologists for terrorism who are promoting the destruction of Israel. Plaut is opposed to what he sees as left-wing extremism in Israeli universities, and is actively involved in Isracampus,http://Isracampus.org.il a website monitoring such activity. In the Canadian Jewish Tribune
, he denounced Anarchists Against the Wall
, a group protesting the Israeli West Bank barrier
which he says is composed of "violent hooligans and anarcho-fascist thugs."
, a faculty member at the Ben-Gurion University of the Negev
Department of Politics and Government, claiming that Plaut slandered him in certain articles and alleged e-mails. In May 2006, the Israeli magistrate's court in Nazareth
ruled in favour of Gordon, and ordered Plaut to pay Gordon 80,000 shekels in compensation plus 15,000 shekels in legal fees. Both sides appeal
ed to the District Court
in Nazareth and in February 2008, the court upheld a libel judgment relating to a publication in which Plaut called Gordon a "Judenrat
Wannabe" but reduced the damages to 10,000 shekels (about $2,700) on the basis that, in the court's view, Plaut was entitled to criticize Gordon.
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
i associate professor of Business Administration at the University of Haifa
University of Haifa
The University of Haifa is a university in Haifa, Israel.The University of Haifa was founded in 1963 by Haifa mayor Abba Hushi, to operate under the academic auspices of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem....
and a writer. Plaut is a member of the editorial board of the Middle East Quarterly
Middle East Quarterly
Middle East Quarterly is a peer reviewed quarterly journal, a publication of the American conservative think tank Middle East Forum founded by Daniel Pipes in 1994. It is devoted to subjects relating to the Middle East and Islam and analyzes the region "explicitly from the viewpoint of American...
, a publication of the Middle East Forum
Middle East Forum
The Middle East Forum is an American conservative think tank founded in 1990 by Daniel Pipes, who also serves as its director. MEF became a 5013 non-profit organization in 1994...
think tank.
Biography
Steven Plaut was born in Philadelphia, where his father settled after escaping Nazi GermanyNazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
. Plaut grew up in a Zionist and Conservative Jewish
Conservative Judaism
Conservative Judaism is a modern stream of Judaism that arose out of intellectual currents in Germany in the mid-19th century and took institutional form in the United States in the early 1900s.Conservative Judaism has its roots in the school of thought known as Positive-Historical Judaism,...
home. In 1981, the family immigrated
Aliyah
Aliyah is the immigration of Jews to the Land of Israel . It is a basic tenet of Zionist ideology. The opposite action, emigration from Israel, is referred to as yerida . The return to the Holy Land has been a Jewish aspiration since the Babylonian exile...
to Israel.
Academic career
Plaut received his undergraduate degree from Temple UniversityTemple University
Temple University is a comprehensive public research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Originally founded in 1884 by Dr. Russell Conwell, Temple University is among the nation's largest providers of professional education and prepares the largest body of professional...
in Philadelphia, his MA from Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Hebrew University of Jerusalem
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem ; ; abbreviated HUJI) is Israel's second-oldest university, after the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology. The Hebrew University has three campuses in Jerusalem and one in Rehovot. The world's largest Jewish studies library is located on its Edmond J...
and his Ph.D. in economics
Economics
Economics is the social science that analyzes the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. The term economics comes from the Ancient Greek from + , hence "rules of the house"...
from Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
, specializing in international and urban economics and later in finance
Finance
"Finance" is often defined simply as the management of money or “funds” management Modern finance, however, is a family of business activity that includes the origination, marketing, and management of cash and money surrogates through a variety of capital accounts, instruments, and markets created...
and worked at the Federal Reserve Bank
Federal Reserve Bank
The twelve Federal Reserve Banks form a major part of the Federal Reserve System, the central banking system of the United States. The twelve federal reserve banks together divide the nation into twelve Federal Reserve Districts, the twelve banking districts created by the Federal Reserve Act of...
. Before his professorship at the Haifa University, he taught at Oberlin College
Oberlin College
Oberlin College is a private liberal arts college in Oberlin, Ohio, noteworthy for having been the first American institution of higher learning to regularly admit female and black students. Connected to the college is the Oberlin Conservatory of Music, the oldest continuously operating...
, the Technion, UC Berkeley
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
, UC Irvine
University of California, Irvine
The University of California, Irvine , founded in 1965, is one of the ten campuses of the University of California, located in Irvine, California, USA...
, Central European University
Central European University
For other uses, see European University Central European University is a graduate-level, English-language university offering degrees in the social sciences, humanities, law, public policy, business management, environmental science, and mathematics...
, Tel Aviv University
Tel Aviv University
Tel Aviv University is a public university located in Ramat Aviv, Tel Aviv, Israel. With nearly 30,000 students, TAU is Israel's largest university.-History:...
, University of Nantes
University of Nantes
The University of Nantes is a well-known French university, located in the city of Nantes. Currently, it is attended by approximately 34,000 students. 10% of them are international students coming from 110 countries.-History:...
, and Athens Laboratory for Business Administration.
Literary career
In his 2002 book The Scout Steven Plaut describes his near-death experience as a kidney cancerKidney cancer
Kidney cancer is a type of cancer that starts in the cells in the kidney.The two most common types of kidney cancer are renal cell carcinoma and urothelial cell carcinoma of the renal pelvis...
patient at an intensive care ward. The historical novel is a series of life stories exchanged between him and another patient in the ward, an Israeli bedouin
Bedouin
The Bedouin are a part of a predominantly desert-dwelling Arab ethnic group traditionally divided into tribes or clans, known in Arabic as ..-Etymology:...
scout.
Political views
Steven Plaut is an outspoken critic of the Israeli-Arab peace process and Israel's unilateral withdrawal policy. Since the Oslo AccordsOslo Accords
The Oslo Accords, officially called the Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements or Declaration of Principles , was an attempt to resolve the ongoing Palestinian-Israeli conflict...
, he has argued that Arab leaders will continue to seek the destruction of Israel through violence and terrorism
Terrorism
Terrorism is the systematic use of terror, especially as a means of coercion. In the international community, however, terrorism has no universally agreed, legally binding, criminal law definition...
. He cites the outbreak of the Al-Aqsa Intifada
Al-Aqsa Intifada
The Second Intifada, also known as the Al-Aqsa Intifada and the Oslo War, was the second Palestinian uprising, a period of intensified Palestinian-Israeli violence, which began in late September 2000...
and the campaign of suicide bombings as evidence.
Plaut is critical of left wing figures such as Michael Lerner
Michael Lerner (rabbi)
Michael Lerner is a political activist, the editor of Tikkun, a progressive Jewish interfaith magazine based in Berkeley, California, and the rabbi of Beyt Tikkun Synagogue of San Francisco.-Family and Education:...
and Norman Finkelstein
Norman Finkelstein
Norman Gary Finkelstein is an American political scientist, activist and author. His primary fields of research are the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the politics of the Holocaust. He is a graduate of Binghamton University and received his Ph.D in Political Science from Princeton University...
whom he describes as self-hating Jew
Self-hating Jew
Self-hating Jew is a term used to allege that a Jewish person holds antisemitic beliefs or engages in antisemitic actions. The concept gained widespread currency after Theodor Lessing's 1930 book Der Jüdische Selbsthass ; the term became "something of a key term of opprobrium in and beyond Cold...
s and apologists for terrorism who are promoting the destruction of Israel. Plaut is opposed to what he sees as left-wing extremism in Israeli universities, and is actively involved in Isracampus,http://Isracampus.org.il a website monitoring such activity. In the Canadian Jewish Tribune
The Jewish Tribune (Canada)
The Jewish Tribune is a privately owned community-based weekly Jewish newspaper published by B'nai Brith Canada.The Tribune has a circulation of 60,410 copies a week which makes it the largest Jewish weekly publication in Canada...
, he denounced Anarchists Against the Wall
Anarchists Against the Wall
Anarchists Against the Wall , sometimes called "Anarchists Against Fences" or "Jews Against Ghettos", is a direct action group composed of Israeli anarchists and anti-authoritarians who oppose the construction of the Israeli Gaza Strip barrier and Israeli West Bank barrier. The AAtW calls the West...
, a group protesting the Israeli West Bank barrier
Israeli West Bank barrier
The Israeli West Bank barrier is a separation barrier being constructed by the State of Israel along and within the West Bank. Upon completion, the barrier’s total length will be approximately...
which he says is composed of "violent hooligans and anarcho-fascist thugs."
Libel case
Plaut was sued for libel by Neve GordonNeve Gordon
Neve Gordon is a doctor of Politics and Government at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, who writes on issues relating to the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict and human rights. A third-generation Israeli, Gordon did his military service in an IDF Paratrooper unit, and suffered severe injuries in...
, a faculty member at the Ben-Gurion University of the Negev
Ben-Gurion University of the Negev
Ben-Gurion University of the Negev is a university in Beersheba, Israel, established in 1969. Ben-Gurion University of the Negev has a current enrollment of 17,400 students, and is one of Israel's fastest growing universities....
Department of Politics and Government, claiming that Plaut slandered him in certain articles and alleged e-mails. In May 2006, the Israeli magistrate's court in Nazareth
Nazareth
Nazareth is the largest city in the North District of Israel. Known as "the Arab capital of Israel," the population is made up predominantly of Palestinian Arab citizens of Israel...
ruled in favour of Gordon, and ordered Plaut to pay Gordon 80,000 shekels in compensation plus 15,000 shekels in legal fees. Both sides appeal
Appeal
An appeal is a petition for review of a case that has been decided by a court of law. The petition is made to a higher court for the purpose of overturning the lower court's decision....
ed to the District Court
District court
District courts are a category of courts which exists in several nations. These include:-Australia:District Court is the name given to the intermediate court in most Australian States. They hear indictable criminal offences excluding treason, murder and, in some States, manslaughter...
in Nazareth and in February 2008, the court upheld a libel judgment relating to a publication in which Plaut called Gordon a "Judenrat
Judenrat
Judenräte were administrative bodies during the Second World War that the Germans required Jews to form in the German occupied territory of Poland, and later in the occupied territories of the Soviet Union It is the overall term for the enforcement bodies established by the Nazi occupiers to...
Wannabe" but reduced the damages to 10,000 shekels (about $2,700) on the basis that, in the court's view, Plaut was entitled to criticize Gordon.
External links
- Filing with Israeli court
- No Holds Barred: A Frank Conversation With Steven Plaut Interview with Jason Maoz, Senior Editor, The Jewish Press (December 31, 2002)
- Jewish Press columns Articles for The Jewish Press
- FrontPage columns Articles for FrontPageMag.comFrontPageMag.comFrontPage Magazine is a conservative online political magazine, edited by David Horowitz and published by the David Horowitz Freedom Center , a non-profit organization in Los Angeles, California.-FPM Man of the Year:On January 1, 2007, FrontPage Magazine named Ignacio Ramos and Jose...
- OpinioNet columns Older collection of articles
- Karen Russo, Sacramento Union Columnist;Steve Plaut: Life in Israel is Stranger than Parody