IrishMist said:
Chalk this up to one of those concepts that I just don't understand.
Why have the Jews been hated throughout history?? I have been doing quite a bit of reading lately, trying to get some understanding. Apparently, there are a lot reasons, yet none of them make sense, IMO.
David Duke, and his ilk... after being raised by my father, I've always felt his bigotry was based on ignorance and fear. Can that explain this conference in Iran? Can that explain their plainly stating that they want to wipe Isreal off the face of the earth?
Maybe it's a combination of both. The Iran angle is religion based, the David Duke angle is bigotry, what's that saying about politics making strange bedfellows?
Any way you look at it, I think this is a scary group, and I am afraid of what is coming from Iran.
I agree. I am also afraid that Bush wants to go to war with Iran. This would be a grave mistake IMO.
"Some years ago, my wife was a 4th grade public school teacher. She had no Jews in her class and one day told her kids that she was Jewish. One of the kids in her class formed two guns with his fingers, pointed at her and made a rat-atat-atat machine gun sound.
This 11-year-old obviously learned this thinking and behavior somewhere -- probably at home. When my wife told me this story, I asked myself, as your non-Jewish friends have asked you, Why?
Some are saying and writing that we are back to the 1930s again. Books have been written with many explanations of why Jews have always been hated. This complex problem deserves lengthy treatment. With that as a caveat, I will offer a few words of explanation.
At the root of the problem I believe is the fact that humans are insecure tribal creatures. We are easily threatened by people who are different. Since Jews appeared on the planet, we have certainly been different. We suggested the radically different (and highly disruptive) Jewish notions that there is one God and that humans are therefore inherently equal; we dress, eat and behave differently. These and other differences have confused, offended, frightened, and angered non-Jews around us.
Adding to the problem of human insecurity is widespread ignorance and misinformation about Judaism. Misconceptions run the gamut from the crazy idea that Jews have horns (based on an incorrect translation of the Bible) to the inaccurate assertion that Judaism is a race. (Judaism is a "way of life" to which anyone can convert.)
Some of these misunderstanding are innocent. Many are malicious and evil. Horrible lies about Jews have been spread by anti-Semites to ferment hatred. Also, these lies about Jews have been used for political purposes. Over centuries, in part to stay in power, the Church, monarchs, Nazis, Communists, Arab dictators and others have blamed and focused the misery of their masses on the Jews.
These lies include that Jews killed Jesus, caused The Plague, spread AIDS to non-Jewish children, want to control the world, already control banks, government and media, and drink the blood of non-Jews for Jewish holiday celebrations (this last lie - amongst others-- is currently widely circulated in the Arab world.) In the course of history, these lies have so regularly been disseminated, that they have a life of their own. Anti-Semites quote ancient anti-Semites and footnote earlier anti-Semitic writings to prove the authenticity of the lies.
On top of lies and innocent misconceptions, there is another factor that can lead to misunderstanding: Jewish etiquette can be an affront to others. I seldom see this reason mentioned, but growing up in the gentle, polite and non-Jewish Midwest of the U.S., I am sensitive to how Jewish manners differ.
Specifically I refer to the Jewish tradition that encourages dissent, arguing, standing up for what we believe in, protesting the status quo and speaking up for the powerless. I view this list with pride, but it is easy for me to see how non-Jews (especially leadership) could view this behavior as arrogant and threatening. Making this worse is the confusing idea that Jews are "the chosen people."
http://www.ujc.org/content_display.html?ArticleID=37407
