Tikun Olam Indeed: Silverstein Deliberately Reveals My Real Identity & Blackmails Me
While I enjoyed the Sabbath, the Jewish day of rest with my family (and thus could not be online), anti-Israel blogger Richard Silverstein went ahead and revealed what he claims is my real identity, including the neighborhood in which I live. He also claims to have seen photos of my wife and kids.
http://www.richardsilverstein.com/tikun_olam/2011/12/30/aussie-dave-anonymous-no-longer/
Here is the full photo Silverstein deliberately cropped, a photo that prompted one of his commenters to say “He looks smug. Or stoned”
Just tired. And happy to play with two of my kids.
I guess Silverstein was not willing to make it that obvious he has endangered the lives of young children.
Think about it for a second. Silverstein cropped the photo on purpose to make me look less human. To not make it so obvious the extent of what he did when he published my details.
Also notice the implied threat in his post to reveal all of my personal details if I don’t act to his satisfaction.
Silverstein may think his outing me, a blogger who chose to remain anonymous because of the incendiary nature of the topics I blog, will shut me up.
He is sorely mistaken.
I am proud of my blogging and support for the people and land I love so dearly.
In fact, I am posting this as an insurance policy.
If anything happens to me or any of my family, it may mean either that the information Silverstein has already posted is too much, or he has revealed more to some of his more enthusiastic supporters.
I’d also be curious to hear what Jillian York, director for the Electronic Frontier Foundation (an organization dedicated to protecting free speech online and protecting the rights of bloggers to remain anonymous) and Silverstein supporter, has to say about this.
Silverstein may believe he has somehow ‘won” G-d knows-what with this latest post, but in fact he has proven how he represents the antithesis of Tikun Olam (Repairing/healing the world) which he claims is his mission. Someone who claims to want to make the world a better place does not out anonymous bloggers, especially knowing they have young childen.
He calls this “self-pitying nonsense.” I call it reality.
For the record, I knew something like this could happen, especially after my damning post proving Silverstein’s shoddy fact-checking. Granted, I am not thrilled about this, but I was willing to go ahead with my post anyway. And I will, G-d willing, continue to expose those like Silverstein in future and do my damndest to educate people about this conflict.
Update: If you would like to support my efforts, please consider donating to the blog. Especially if you were considering donating to the EFF.
About the Author
An Australian immigrant to Israel, Aussie Dave has been blogging since early 2003.Filed Under: Aussie Dave
He is a real scum. G-d save you, Dave. And damn kapo Dickie.
Ditto.
I don’t know if it’s going to be much of a comfort right now, but now people in Israel will know the person behind Aussie Dave to be a stalwart defender of Israel. One day, hopefully soon, this will be a position held in great honor in the country, and later celebrated in Jewish history.
By the way, the expression tikkun olam is abbreviated from tikkun olam b’malkhut Shakkai*, which means “Installing the world [to be] in the Kingdom of God.” This is done by Jews observing the 613 commandments, among which is claiming the entire Land of Israel for their exclusive sovereignty (in other words, the opposite of what Dicksilver calls for).
Shavua Tov. B’sorot Tovot.
*Really with dd instead of kk, but this is not meant to be pronounced except when reading holy writings, blessings etc. (cf. Shem Adnut.)
I hope that the safety of yourself and your family is not endangered by the actions of LimpDickie. The ‘man’ is, to use a phrase we use in the UK, a complete waste of space.
Doubtless he will stage an attack on himself in an attempt to show how badly he is persecuted. If he is an investigative journalist I’m the Pope!
Damn, you really do look like Jeff Goldblum. Well, sort of. If I squint my eyes and try really, really hard… the spitting image.
By the way you have a beautiful family. When I see the pictures, I have to remind myself that we are commanded not to covet.
Probably your children will remember you as a guy who stuck up for his family and his nation. While Dickie’s children will remember him as a nutjob.
Richard Silverstein is a hypocrite. Yawn. What else is new.
Here’s Silverstein kvetching about how I horridly used a photo of him and his kids even though they were cropped out! Oh the horror. You can send his host a DMCA Take Down notice like he did to me. He has no grounds unless he’d try to claim fair use. Then he’d really, really be a hypocrite…
Bon courage Dave, shavuah tov.
Reap what you sow?!!? Au contraire. So what–you reak!
[...] I need to reiterate Dave’s question, written in a post in response to his unveiling: “I’d also be curious to hear what Jillian York, director for the Electronic Frontier [...]
Kapo Dickie is an enemy of the Jewish people and should be treated as such. He thinks that we are all ghetto jews like him and will just listen to his demonizing Israel every day, and supporting those who wish us harm. Dickie, as you state, we are not nice people. Yom Yavoh!
“Endangering my children”? Dude, lay off the bad spy novels. Life is exciting enough without such exaggerations.
I think you might be the one living in the fantasy world.
She lives in a fantasy world where Israelis are terrorists, Palestinians are always the victims, and unicorns fart rainbows.
If Dick wants to play hardball there is nothing that can’t be found out about Dicki a whole lot more then his Address Phone numbers and photos a whole lot more just saying
OMG! What a disgusting piece of work Dickie is. I was about to email you to alert you to a comment on the previous Dickie thread by someone purporting to be Dickie, when I saw this thread.
חזק ואמץ, keep up the good work. Is it possible to complain to Dickie’s ISP about his “outing” of your identity?
Addendum to my previous post all from the public domain of course
[...] safe to say Dave knew the risks going in. That’s not to downplay what Doucheblogger™ Richard Silverstein has done, but it was always possible. Dave took competent measures to conceal his identity but not extreme [...]
…he claims is my real identity…
A bit of misdirection here, Aussie Dave?
SarahSue
You are a brave man doing brave and good work. G-d bless you and your family. Silverstein is scum. We have your back.
enough is enough
i am sure that some of dickie’s sycophants are gonna come here to gloat…..well, here is how personal info on dickie ended up getting posted on this blog
im not gonna bother linking the sites, but dickie has posted pics of his entire family on numerous public sites
additionally, because he is incapable of holding down a job, a few years back he came up with a great idea of suing his isp and put his addy and phone number in the post
so enough of his faux outrage
“What he didn’t bargain for was that somebody (not me) would be offended by his shennanigans that he outed him.”
Uhm how did this information become public again?
Who wants to bet “somebody” was Jillian York, director for the Electronic Frontier Foundation (an organization dedicated to protecting free speech online and protecting the rights of bloggers to remain anonymous)?
Way to go Dave…keep it up!
dickie paid to see the archive records of the whois
anyone can do it….
he couldve done it months ago….guess he had to beg the bread winner for the scratch
you can do the same for every unlisted phone number
prospective employers are now paying to see online records
whole thing gives me the creeps….no such thing as privacy anymore
you look like a cool chap. I wouldnt worry too much about any threats to you or your children. I just cant picture it. But you as a parent have a right to be worried.
Sorry you have to deal with this, Dave. What a petty, selfish, childish twit Dick Silverstein is. I can’t believe the standing he has with the mainstream media. But then again, he is a raging liberal and the media has its agenda.
It is most unfortunate Jillian . York had to get involved. As I wrote over at the Jawa Report (shamelessly linked below), she certainly took enough time commenting to Silverstein about the legitimacy of you faked identity, she took the time to tweet you were an asshole, and she even took the time to comment at your other post, gloating about how a blogger is fair game, but I notice not one word of condemnation for Silverstein’s obsession with outing you.
Keep the faith! Do what you have to do to keep you and yours safe. Karma is a bitch, and Silverstein will find that out soon enough.
http://mypetjawa.mu.nu/archives/210598.php
Great Blog i read it everyday
[...] The EFF or Director Jillian C. York Condemn Silverstein Now? Aussie Dave is no longer an anonymous blogger. Dick Silverstein finally achieved his desperate goal. It must be the highlight of his immature, [...]
Have nothing new to say, but wanted to add my voice to the chorus.
Uh, why are you posting photos of your kids?
You’re kind of outing them, yourself, right now.
I’m on your side on just about everything, but that’s sort of a really strange, stupid thing to do
Use your brain, dude. Think, then act.
Brad, with all due respect, I do not understand your argument.
Silverstein was the one who posted my name and location. I posted the full photo he used to illustrate how he cropped out my children in a calculated way. In other words, despite knowing I have these gorgeous young kids, he decided to potentially endanger their lives. Now I do not believe posting their actual faces endangers their lives any more than Silverstein revealing their neighborhood.
So “dude”, I thought very hard before acting. Perhaps you can think before you speak and show a little compassion.
Dave, I don’t care if Wikipedia doesn’t consider you to be a reliable source, you’ll always be a reliable source for me. Apparently when I tried to edit Dickie’s Wikipedia page, his defenders came out of the woodwork and tried to cut me down, claiming you aren’t “reliable” enough, and that blogs citing you aren’t “reliable” enough either. I know that the mainstream media won’t cover Dickie’s fall, as either it isn’t important enough to them or they’re covering for a butt-buddy, but it also seems to me that WP wants nothing short of an obituary for “reliability”, because that’s the only possible MSM source they might ever get. I want to smear him with the truth so badly, but WP is acting as fascistically as Dickie. Ugh, can a Zionist ever get a word in edgewise in the real world these days?
This is unbelievable!
Richard is evil and an idiot.
how else to call someone that wants to make you harm?
Take care Dave, you and you family.
Have a great 2012.
Cheers, Gaia.
Heard a shuir for Shabbat that says everything comes from G-d and it’s all for the good. We have to look at our trials as Yosef did and ask: sold or sent? I believe G-d will protect you because you are His schilach here, His messenger for all of us. You and your beautiful family are in my prayers daily. Keep up your amazing work.
dave greetings.
like so many of us i also think, it’s a great shame that this has happened to you.
iscoooooool,has and does give us a great place not only to comment and add our views, but a meeting place where i quite oftern hook up not only to read your posts but to see who is around,giving us all the chance to have our say without the fear, that because our views may not always meet yours or other readers we would be cut off or given a ban iscooool is freedom of speech and a light in the darkness when away from home as i am so much.
i am an israeli a zionist and proud of it,i’m also proud to carry the name soloman passed down from father to first son longer than time it’s self and as proud as i am of my first name i am also so very proud of you for not only the work you do but for the home you have given so many of us who enjoy returning to your pages so many times,unlike other bloggs who do not deserve the time of day,also my bad spelling and not so good punctuation does not get any bad marks here.
noted by an american friend next to me.
re-blogging as of yet i have not my-self had time to look at it but(onecoolsitebloggingtips.com)blogging real name or pseudonym seems to give an idea of why it’s may-be best to be invisable.
my very best wishes.soloman.
He may have “outed” you. But, you made him look like a complete idiot and total @sshole.
You know, Dave, I wasn’t at all aware you were blogging incognito. I seem to know your name and what you look like. But maybe we met at a blog meet, way back in antiquity. I don’t think you really need to be why worried of being harmed for your views, especially not here in Israel.
Easy for me to say. I blogged incognito myself, way back when, but that was because of the terms of my employment. And it wasn’t particularly difficult to uncover me if anyone wanted to (and a few did).
In my experience, narcissists can be very nasty, especially when exposed and ridiculed, and are best ignored. By engaging
one you feed in him a sick, desparate need for attention.
Aussie Dave,
As I said, I’m on our side, politically and otherwise.
But, you are the one who, for some weird reason, decided to post a private photo of your children.
This makes no sense.
Why are you posting their photo? Why not remove it? You are choosing to “out” them yourself, for some weird reason.
All the best,
Brad
I explained why I include them in the photo I posted. So people understand who Silverstein wilfully chose to endanger by revealing my name AND neighborhood (while he shouldn’t have done either, he needn’t have done the latter). Plus people can also see an example of the children he endangers every time he tries to undermine Israel.
You claim that posting the pic cropped without your kids was malicious, but what would your response have been if he posted the picture uncropped with your kids included?
I expect you would have been even more angry (at least I know I would be) that he posted images of minors without permission.
Admittedly that it’s offensive to out your identity online either way, you really think it’s worse that he cropped out your kids? Or do you think that if he cropped out your kids he should have also posted an explanation that he did so and what the full context was?
My response would be the same. He chose to reveal my identity and location (to neighborhood level), knowing full well I have young children. Thus he was willing to possibly imperil their safety.
And knowing how dishonest Silverstein is, I do not accept he wanted to protect my kids’ privacy. I honestly believe he did not want to paint me in any sympathetic light. If he truly did not want to endanger my kids he would not have exposed my location (of course he should not have revealed my other personal details either).
The lack of an explanation about his cropping the photo is not the issue.
He cropped your children out, to protect their privacy.
You are choosing to expose them and violate their privacy.
Strange stuff
You can delete my posts. I won’t be offended. I’m on your side. I just don’t get the above part at all.
Brad, I don’t delete comments just because I disagree with them. You may have me mistaken for someone else.
I encourage diversity of opinion and discussion on here. Unless comments are hateful, abusive or otherwise don’t fall within the comment rules, they remain.
P.S. Richard Silverstein is complete TRASH.
As is MJ Rosenberg.
Even worse are Max Blumenthal and Phil Weiss/Mondoweiss
(Though, both Silverstein and Rosenberg activately promote Max and Mondoweiss)
Giant pile of garbage, these people
This is a criminal matter and should be reported to the police. Blackmail is blackmail.
The problem is jurisdiction. It’s a case of a person of one nationality in that first country making threats against a person of a second nationality living in that second country. Israeli police cannot arrest Silverstein for extortion, but neither can Seattle police arrest him for making threats against a foreign national residing on foreign soil. The problem then becomes a gigantic State Department mess.
am i allowed to say these things.
well iv’e just had a quick run round the web and it does seem that mr.silverstein is getting quite a back lashing here and there, even though his supporters are fully entitled to their views on his behalf to me it seems that more has gone against him than for him,i noticed that the ever jew hating chayma who no longer sports a picture is as badly informed as ever and is at this moment proberly still on her hands and knees in front of mr.silverstein.
i also noticed what i think was(brad)on another site and if so brad you are correct in what you said about that site and it’s writing you are much bettet staying here as your base.
the point that mr.silversteins manure filled pages of anti israeli/jewish hate receives readers/pro comments proves in some way that people who hate need some-where to meet and his so called writing thrives on stiring the pot in any way he can,iscoooool on the other hand is leaps and bounds ahead and promotes the facts as they are,against the facts according to silverstein who is all to ready to remove you or tell you to remove your-self if he does not like your comments,so brad your comments are here not removed and your opinions and freedom of speech still remain entact.
so dave you have now gone global and infact are proberly at more of an advantage over hacks than you were before.
Links to the backlash?
benjamin h.greetings.
well you will have seen the comments related to mr.silversteins previously bad reporting and the various un-truiths he tells and has told you will also have seen the flack he has taken for not checking his facts and the excuses he makes for his bad reporting also the joke he has made of him-self for falling for a hoax.
some of his own readers have made comment as to the tactics he has employed as far as dave is concerned one if i remember has infact removed him as a friend and other you will see are not that impressed with him.
he is shown on occupied palestine for the fool he is and cif watch/honest reporting/harry place all carry this story to mention just a few.
mr.silverststeins mention that he thinks his readers are better inforem/edjucated than those on iscooool just goes to show what a smug person he thinks him-self to be his reporting is based on a couple of stories he/his followers call breaking news and for the most are missleading the reader and in many cases have been shown to be false as for his so called leads/from goverment insiders i sujjest to you that this is all in his mind and is most likely to be scraps thrown to him by the tea lady again un-checked by mr.silverstein.
Dave, wouldn’t worry about little dickie – he’s clearly a twit (“I know your address”) – what a first class idiot. Keep up the good work, whatever your real identity, it doesn’t make any difference, it’s what you say that counts.
I’ve read both your articles on this subject and the recent ones on Silverstein’s site. Is he telling the truth when he says you published his and his family’s details? I assume it is verifiable. If so, then what did you expect?? I can’t understand what you’re complaining about. Please enlighten me.
I may need to publish a post on this but for now let me be clear:
1. I have never posted Silverstein’s address or phone number.
2. Some commenters have in the past posted links to this information left online by Silvertein and, on at least one occasion, posted it in the comment itself.
3. Since:
- this information has been left openly online by Silverstein himself
- he never emailed me to delete the comments
- no-one ever threatened to use this information to harm him
- I do not check each and every comment on my site
I did not summarily delete such comments.
In contrast:
4. I have stayed anonymous online unlike Silverstein
5. Silverstein knew I wanted to remain anonymous out of security concerns
6. He nevertheless published private details about me not readily accessible (his reader has to pay money to access archived WHOIS information which I honestly did not know existed online; I have paid money to my domain provider to keep these details private but evidently did not do so in 2004)
6. He did not post my name and photo only; he also posted the name of the neighborhood in which I live
7. He implicitly threatened to publish other details if I don’t act to his satisfaction
There is no moral equivalence here. Silverstein set out to harm me because I take him to task for his anti-Israel posts. He was hurt by my post exposing his shoddy fact-checking, so had a reader publish my personal details.
Richard Silverstein recommends the pro bono or reduced fee legal services of Online Media Legal Network to defend the rights of bloggers.
http://www.richardsilverstein.com/tikun_olam/2011/08/19/court-dismisses-neuwirth-libel-claim/
Further to my post below — in contrast to you, the amount of personal information that Mr. Silverstein has published on the web about himself is really quite amazing. If he now wishes to pursue a more anonymous existence, it seems to me that he has a fair bit of work ahead of him, as so much of it is so widely disseminated.
All of the allegedly sensitive information discussed here, for example, was easily findable through a Google search for “richard silverstein seattle -blog -blogger -tikun -site:richardsilverstein.com”. Others will likely have had the same experience. This dispute now only surprises me more.
I think you should publish a post clarifying this. I’m sure I’m not the only one under the impression you struck first.
Yes,I will publish a clarifying post when I get the time. But I hope in the meantime, my comment above clarified the situation for you.
Visiting out of interest on the whole anonymity thing, not the political positions of those involved in this dispute. I am a long-time EFF fan, and I must say that I am somewhat stunned by Jillian York’s repeated comments and attempts to justify her position in all of this. The heart of her current “this is all I will say” blog posting is this:
That the EFF’s Director of International Freedom of Expression’s understanding of anonymity is that shallow is alarming. The belief in a simple binary between absolutely public and absolutely private information — that if something has ever been revealed anywhere to anyone, it is no different that it be revealed everywhere to everyone — is the kind of facile distinction that has long been anathema to any sophisticated understanding of how privacy works and how to protect it.
Ms. York is more than entitled to her personal views, quite obviously. But when her personal views bear directly on the policy area which she leads at the EFF, and belay a fundamental misunderstanding of that policy area, one must ask if there isn’t something wrong going on. Certainly this colours my view of the EFF’s standing.
I don’t understand why anybody here would be surprised by Jillian York. She is a radical antizionist leftest that writes for the Guardian and Al Jazeera. Dickhead is her kindred spirit. She is never going to go against him.
Forgive me for re-posting, but this is worth seeing again:
“…A report indicates that a warrant has been issued for the arrest of Richard Silverstein should he set foot in Israel (link in Hebrew) (Hat Tip: Jameel). According to the report, Silverstein is wanted for aiding the enemy and the warrant may have been issued as far back as a year ago. The warrant is apparently a result of Silverstein’s connections with convicted American translator Shamai Leibowitz.
This story is plausible, but I don’t know why Silverstein would ever want to come here in the first place. He would be subjected to intense hostility if anyone on the Right found out he was here.”
From Israel Matzav:
http://israelmatzav.blogspot.com/2012/01/report-silverstein-persona-non-grata-in.html#links
I’m not clear why he thinks your neighborhood is a big secret. You’ve revealed it here a couple of times (my fault, actually). So it didn’t prove anything.
Since we spend a lot of time in that general area, one of my favorite places, (Wish I had a job near there. Wish I could afford it.) I’ve asked people (for myself) if they knew an Autrailian named Dave, but no luck.
Well, I wish you the best, to you and your family.
Why are you begging for money when everyone here knows that you make money on the side bl*wing Israeli soldiers. We’ve all seen the photo of you circulating on the net for the last 6 months, going down on a guy in uniform. Aussie Dave, you make me physically sick.
Now that you’ve been outed, everyone can see you for the scum that you are.
Walk it off, Adolf
Anyway, Dave, I’m on your side and wish you the best.
Myself and everyone I know wants Israel to be safe, and if Palestinians are ever going to get a state it will be on most (not all, but MOST) of the West Bank, and the Gaza Strip.
A bunch of fake peace activists (who are really just anti-Israel hate activists) ignore all the wars and terrorism against Israel and twist everything into blaming Israel, because they THEMSELVES want Israel to cease to exist as a Jewish state. These nutcases push the “one-state solution” and are “destroy Israel” activists, not peace activists
As for Richard Silverstein, I have no idea what he really wants, but all I know is it appears his entire existence is based around trying to twist everything into Israel-bashing, looney garbage
Take care!
” This story is plausible, but I don’t know why Silverstein would ever want to come here in the first place. He would be subjected to intense hostility if anyone on the Right found out he was here.” ”
Not just from the Right haver .
Dave , I have been watching all of this unfold , I cant comment on Silverstein’s blog because he banned me but my sympathy lies with you .
This guy has crossed so many red lines , the first for me was when he called all Israelis racists the second when he published details of our sons from the elite units .
What goes around comes around Dave, my advice to you would be relax dont loose sleep over him , he aint worth it .
תודה אחי
תודה אחי
you are welcome bro
if you ever need any help in bringing this piece of garbage, who has the audacity to think that he speaks for the Israeli Left, to his knees …you know where to find me .
[...] as Richard (Dickie) Silverstein, feeling that such use does a grave injustice to the said product. Details. Related Posts29 December 2011 – Iran, Israel Palestine Conflict, Lebanon » US Middle East [...]