The presence of antisemitism in these movements — even a hint of it that is left unchallenged — undermines everything progressives and liberals do on every other issue.
Thank you for looking deeply into this phenomenon. Sadly, bias and prejudice have always been and will always be with us. All of us, no matter which end of the spectrum we inhabit. Humanity could have used the wifi revolution to become more aware of and concerned about the plight of others, but no. This is human beings we’re talking about. Every one of us is insecure and lonely, feels annoyed by our lives and threatened by ‘the other’. Tribalism will always be a thing. It just happens to be more deadly when it joins with fundamentalist Islam and media frenzy. Speaking personally, I am keeping my sanity by avoiding most news and picking small battles and setting small goals that I have a modest chance of winning. One battle at a time. One day at a time.
We may judge the worth of a culture by how it treats the Jews. In my opinion, we can also judge the strength of a culture on the same basis. For what people in history have contributed so much to human endeavour in such a wide range of fields? In this context, preferring a bunch of cruel, backward Islamists over the people of Israel is the very definition of insanity. Intelligent reasons for such a bias are not easily found.
I have stopped asking myself "Why?" after reading a great book on antisemitism... I am not a religious person, but simply can't disagree that what is happening is beyond any HUMAN logic. Our prophets said it many years ago: it will never end, for various reasons, but what struck me most is "to make sure we never forget who we are". So simple, and yet... do we have any better explanations?
The tags Liberal and Progressive need to be redefined and return to what they truly mean. Today's Liberals and Progressives hold themselves to a moral superiority that they believe others do not have. The semantics game played with anti-Zionism versus anti-Semitism works to make these groups feel good about themselves, while their cries of diversity, inclusivity, racism conveniently leave out the Jews. Everything they are, they project onto those who think differently. A convenient tactic for them but obvious to those who can clearly see through it. I believe changes will come to younger Liberal and Progressive groups that will involve maturity over time and more life experiences that will have reality bite them. Adverse life experiences have a way of rudely waking people up.
The question for me is, How do you awaken someone from their illusion of being without bias and prejudice regarding Jews while NOT coming across as accusing them of something they don‘t want to be called, so without making them defensive?
It’s important to frame the Jewish antisemitism and persecution in the light of many persecuted minorities, to see the universal issues at hand. This will help people to understand the history and issues and not single it out as special, this is where I think many thinkers have gone wrong. It gives rise to compassion fatigue, these are universal human problems that we all must face.
Thank you for looking deeply into this phenomenon. Sadly, bias and prejudice have always been and will always be with us. All of us, no matter which end of the spectrum we inhabit. Humanity could have used the wifi revolution to become more aware of and concerned about the plight of others, but no. This is human beings we’re talking about. Every one of us is insecure and lonely, feels annoyed by our lives and threatened by ‘the other’. Tribalism will always be a thing. It just happens to be more deadly when it joins with fundamentalist Islam and media frenzy. Speaking personally, I am keeping my sanity by avoiding most news and picking small battles and setting small goals that I have a modest chance of winning. One battle at a time. One day at a time.
We may judge the worth of a culture by how it treats the Jews. In my opinion, we can also judge the strength of a culture on the same basis. For what people in history have contributed so much to human endeavour in such a wide range of fields? In this context, preferring a bunch of cruel, backward Islamists over the people of Israel is the very definition of insanity. Intelligent reasons for such a bias are not easily found.
I have stopped asking myself "Why?" after reading a great book on antisemitism... I am not a religious person, but simply can't disagree that what is happening is beyond any HUMAN logic. Our prophets said it many years ago: it will never end, for various reasons, but what struck me most is "to make sure we never forget who we are". So simple, and yet... do we have any better explanations?
Yes! We will necessarily fail if we seek rational explanations for irrational behaviours.
The tags Liberal and Progressive need to be redefined and return to what they truly mean. Today's Liberals and Progressives hold themselves to a moral superiority that they believe others do not have. The semantics game played with anti-Zionism versus anti-Semitism works to make these groups feel good about themselves, while their cries of diversity, inclusivity, racism conveniently leave out the Jews. Everything they are, they project onto those who think differently. A convenient tactic for them but obvious to those who can clearly see through it. I believe changes will come to younger Liberal and Progressive groups that will involve maturity over time and more life experiences that will have reality bite them. Adverse life experiences have a way of rudely waking people up.
The question for me is, How do you awaken someone from their illusion of being without bias and prejudice regarding Jews while NOT coming across as accusing them of something they don‘t want to be called, so without making them defensive?
It’s important to frame the Jewish antisemitism and persecution in the light of many persecuted minorities, to see the universal issues at hand. This will help people to understand the history and issues and not single it out as special, this is where I think many thinkers have gone wrong. It gives rise to compassion fatigue, these are universal human problems that we all must face.
Looks like the Hague is pushing the Palestinian garbage narrative, and all the garbage people on Twitter are very excited.
Please Hashem, we return. Please help us.