The Jewish reaction to Trump's statements about Charlottesville can be viewed within the larger political arena; The overwhelming majority of Jews are Democrats, and voted for Hillary Clinton. They join those who haven't gotten over the election last November, and bash Trump as the numerous opportunities arise. That said, people marching with torches shouting Jews Will Not Replace Us leaves quite a jarring impression.
As a political conservative of the Jewish faith, I have no delusions about anti-semitism. I think that it is everywhere, just under the surface. I think that many non-Jews share the misconception that there is some secretive Jewish network, helping Jews succeed at the expense of everyone else. If such a network exists, they must have misplaced my address. These misconceptions have existed for almost two thousand years, and I choose not to blame Trump for them.
Trump's presidency has been a series of poorly worded sound bites. His background in commercial real estate development didn't require political correctness. He was suggesting that everybody who was protesting against removing a statue of Robert E. Lee wasn't evil, and that not everyone favoring its removal was pure in their intent. He was not defending Neo-Nazis, or their hatred of Jews and blacks. In our current era nothing elicits more reaction than an accusation of racism. Even Mitt Romney joined the drum-beaters this weekend. I didn't realize that he was interested in 2020.
Most of those criticizing Trump for not providing moral clarity last week would not be satisfied regardless of what he had said, or didn't say.
Anti-Semitism does still exist in America, but it is no where near the issue it was when I was growing up. The Jewish community here and in Europe knows who it needs to fear, Not Trump or his supporters, but their true enemies from the middle east. The small groups of supremacists and KKK will never have the power to be a serious threat.
ReplyDeleteMr Molovinski.
ReplyDeleteThere can be a comparison made between President Nixon and President Trump. Both were, and are viscerally hated by the same people who are still in denial of the results of last November's election. Richard Nixon flew plane after plane of supplies and munitions into Tel-Aviv during the 1973 Arab-Israeli War when the Democrats in Congress opposed every action he took and were busy trying to undermine his Presidency. We have a similar pro-Israeli president in Donald Trump, likely the strongest supporter of Israel since Nixon. President Obama could arguably be called an anti-Semite, and Hillary Clinton could never say no to the Arab money (and Russian money) flowing into the Clinton Foundation that can be considered her and Bills slush fund for bribes and influence peddling, at best.
With regards to those who find themselves in conflict with statues from the past that they find distasteful, remember that the American Civil War and World War II were fought and won a long time ago. It took hundreds of thosands of loyal American Union solders to defeat the Confederate rebels, and the combined power of millions of people in many nations to defeat the Nazis. And for sensible people, this fact militates against declaring these wars in effect all over again by attacking inanimate objects in parks and some foolish imbeciles who think they matter in our society other than to be objects of ridicule.
However for those who literally hate, and I think that word applies as it's not just political opposition, but they literally hate President Trump to the bone, the exact opposite is true. These are the fights they long for. Its bogus battlers truly need to fight someone else's old wars all over again. The hatred of the opponents of President Trump is both visceral and and deep in the souls of those who oppose him. I saw on a competing blog yesterday that the only reason that Donald Trump is President was because of the "Electoral College". Such an ignorant and spiteful statement by someone who touts himself as an intellectual, but I digress.
You see Mr Molovinski, by trying to fight these wars again, it's really the only way that these losers believe they can win.
What I can't determine is what the Democratic Party stands for? Other than to hate Donald Trump. ?
ReplyDeleteMike,
ReplyDeleteNo One! Absolutely no one voted for Trump as "moral" leader of this country. Some voted for him to fix the economy, others because he wasn't Hillary, some because in some strange way he spoke their language. Yet we still have the likes of Charlies Krauthammer droning on that the president should be the moral leader of the country. American's have been there and done that. Guess what? They didn't like the results.
So let's drop the phony worked up outrage of the anti-Trumpers on both the right and the left. We knew what we would get when we voted for him. Yes it is often ugly, but it is always far, far better than the alternative.
Everybody knew exactly what Trump was saying in his Sunday statement at Trump Tower. He was trying actually lighten the atmosphere by finding some good in each side. It backfired only because the media said it did. Put those same words in Obama's mouth and you would have had a totally different reaction. He would have been called a 'peacemaker.' That Virginia event reminded me of Kent State. A routine demonstration turns into a violent riot (started by Commie liberals). A car backfires and a few poorly trained (by the State of Ohio) National Guardsmen fire on the rioters who were throwing rocks and bottles at them. A few innocent (we are told to believe) kids are killed; and what did the media do? They (including Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young) blame NIXON. Sound familiar?
ReplyDeletePoorly trained national guardsmen were sent to a college campus with loaded weapons. Nuts. America learned a lesson from that day, tear gas, water cannons, pepper spray...whatever, but no more loaded weapons to part time soldiers. Sadly the popular counter culture seized the moment and ran with it. The media was a tiny part of the problem back then compared to the major role they play as henchmen for the Democratic Party. Unfortunately for them, people are now understanding how the media has played them in the past and are revolting. Anymore it is fair to assume, they can say and report what they/the media want, an increasing portion of the population no longer believes a word they say.
ReplyDeleteAnti-Semitism started with the later authors of the Gospels. In the beginning, Jesus was an event wholly within Judaism; it was not especially scandalous that a young Jewish radical went about proclaiming himself the Messiah, ambiguously calling himself “the son of Man,” and quarreling with the rabbis about aspects of the law. But, it was another thing entirely to claim — as Paul did — that Jesus came to earth to wash away an original sin contracted by humans in Eden; that this Jesus was crucified by the Romans, was buried, and rose from the dead; and that he would soon come again, in a rescue mission that would usher in a new eternal kingdom. In place of the intimate, familial struggle of the Jews and their God, Paul invoked a strict theology of sin and salvation. Thus, the hatred & fury of the later church leaders & authors toward the Jews. Once Christianity became the Imperial religion of the Empire, institutional Anti-Semitism had the force of law & government. Hence, the irony, that Christians became those who elevated one Jew to be God and then took perverse pleasure in persecuting the remainder for centuries.
ReplyDeleteAs for Trump, the outrage is because he so obviously stated a moral equivalency exists between hate groups & anti-hate groups, when rational people realize there is none. The "media" did not make even Republicans & business leaders recoil at this.....common sense did. As for many of the Trump defenders, few of them would look out of place in a hood, in front of a burning cross, and squawking about his love for "White Jesus.
Trent,
ReplyDeleteThanks again for demonstrating just how ugly and hateful the left it.
Actually Trump did point out the immoral equivalency of the hate and racist ideology of the Nazi's and KKK and Black lives matter and Antifa, this is clearly demonstrated by Hall's rant above. We now see attacks on the apostles, and white Christians and the politics of 1st millennium Europe as the causes of racism. I suspect there will always be racist and tribal politics, but it reached its nadir under Obama in an effort to bring out voters. after this strategy failed, somehow the decision has been made to double down and maybe there will be success. The result has been the worst race relations in last 50 years.
ReplyDelete