Reply #64: It's a similar phenomenon [View All]

[LeftishBrit]

It's only antisemitic/Islamophobic if you regard being Jewish/Muslim/Israeli/Arab as a bad thing; but it leads to a lot of confusion, and can contribute to antisemitism/Islamophobia.

E.g. referring to some confusions that I've often encountered:

The overwhelming majority of British Muslims are *not* Arab.

Most Arab Americans are not Muslim but Christian.

Only a small number of countries practice the extremes of 'Sharia law' with stonings, etc. It is not a common feature of Arab or Muslim-majority countries.

Iran is not an 'Arab country'. Israel in fact has a considerably higher percentage of Arab citizens than Iran does.

At least half of the Israeli Jews are not of Europaean origin.

Most Jews do not live in Israel.

The Right of Return does NOT give automatic dual citizenship or right to vote to Jews in other countries. It gives Jews the right to immigrate to Israel if they so choose, but they would normally lose their citizenship in their countries of origin. There are some exceptions to the last sentence - but the number of dual Israeli/ (other country) citizens is FAR lower than is sometimes represented.

Many Jews, in Israel and elsewhere, are secular. Many religious Jews are not Orthodox.

Etc.!