The Anti-Defamation League has condemned the Allentown-based rock band Poker Face as xenophobic and anti-Semitic in light of its loose connection with a group of Christian militants arrested last month. One of the songs by Poker Face, a staple for two decades on the Lehigh Valley music scene, has been featured in a training video used by Hutaree, the Michigan-based Christian militia.
Paul Topete, singer and guitarist for the four-man band, dismissed the comments by the Anti-Defamation League, which he said has a history of "character assassinations."
"It is the last gasp of a dying group of liars and thieves whose lies are coming home to roost," he said in an e-mail interview.
Topete said he does not condone Hutaree's alleged behavior and the band's interaction with the group is limited to granting permission to use a song.
But the ADL -- which says on its website that it was "founded in 1913 to stop the defamation of the Jewish people and to secure justice and fair treatment to all" -- said the band advocates an anti-government and anti-immigration ideology.
Barry Morrison, ADL regional director for eastern Pennsylvania, said the band's extreme positions are dangerous because it could influence younger fans.
"The rhetoric being fed to them through the violence of these songs are pretty violent," he said.
Topete, the ADL claims, has expressed anti-Semitic views and maintains affiliations with Holocaust deniers, militia figures and conspiracy theorists.
Topete said he is opposed to illegal immigration, but not all immigrants and he opposes not government, but government corruption.
"Is Poker Face anti-Semitic? No. But we do hate liars and criminals," he said. "According to the definition of anti-Semitic, it means one who hates Jews. But we have several Jewish friends in America and Israel who support the band."
Morrison points to forum posts on Poker Face's website in which Topete refers to the Holocaust as "the Holohaux" and the "largest scam ever played on humanity."
Topete also had several posts about conspiracy theories related to the Sept. 11 terror attacks. In a July 2009 post titled "Israel did 9/11, ALL THE PROOF IN THE WORLD," he wrote, "Of course the Zionazis and their JudeoMASON brethren pulled this crime off. Who else could do it?"
Topete said he does not deny the Holocaust occurred, but that the forum posts are simply meant to generate discussion about matters others consider taboo.
"We don't fear where the truth might lead us," Topete said. "We love the truth. Remember, only lies need laws to support it."
Nine members of Hutaree were arrested last month for allegedly plotting to shoot a police officer then plant homemade bombs at his police funeral and kill even more officers.
The websites for Hutaree and Poker Face both contain links leading back to each other's pages.
Topete said Hutree was asked to provide a link to Poker Face's site in exchange for using the song, but that he has had no interaction with the group or any knowledge about its activities.
However, Topete said he is reserving judgment on the group until due process can determine if members are guilty of charges and he "does continue to consider government duplicity."
http://www.roguegovernment.com/Anti-Defamation_League_calls_Allentown_rock_band_Poker_Face_xenophobic%2C_anti-Semitic_after_Hutaree_militia_connections_revealed/20732/0/17/17/Y/M.html