Reply #45: I think that you were to a large degree right the first time! [View All]

[LeftishBrit]

I *have* come across people who equate Jews with the RW; but it's fairly unusual, possibly because it is so demonstrably untrue with regard to American Jews. Of course, all antisemitic slurs are untrue; but this is a particularly easy one to disprove. It's easy to find polls that show that Jews vote for Democrats and oppose the Iraq war in higher proportions than members of most other ethnic groups.

The idea that Jews are unpatriotic; more loyal to Israel than to America (even if they've never been to Israel); or get others to fight for them while not being prepared to sacrifice themselves is unfortunately rather commoner, and has obvious roots in right-wing propaganda, especially of the Old Right nationalist variety, currently represented by the likes of Pat Buchanan and worse types like David Duke in America, the British Nationalist Party in the UK and the National Front in France. Most such Old Right nationalists are currently opposed to the Iraq war, facilitating the cross-fertilization of the 'seeds of hate', to grow like weeds even in soil which one would have hoped was preserved against them.

This is a discussion of antisemitism; but I think closely parallel things could be said about other forms of xenophobia.