Anti-Semitism on the rise A few comments about the following LA Times story are in order. First, the ADL is not all that objective, it is an advocacy group and openly seeks information that supports the views of its mostly Jewish constituency. This is not a bad thing, it is normal for any advocacy group. But it does mean that their "facts" may not always be kosher --so to speak. However, the ADL seems to have a point -for a reason it cannot admit, because much of its constituency identifies with the political Left. Hence one important reason for an increase in anti-Semitic incidents is the increase of Leftism in some populations, especially the college-age crowd and everyone ( well, a lot of people ) associated with academia. Not sure how best to address this problem. But no secret that most Jews ( most of whom don't believe in Jewish religion ) are somewhere on the political Left., a legacy of a time when most Jews were really on the Left, with a large % of registered Socialists of various stripes, and a significant %, mostly in the NYC area, who were Communists. In those years the Left was STRONGLY opposed to anti-Semitism, and most anti-Semitism was on the Right. Well, guess what ? Most anti-Semitism is now on the Left. Yet Jews. for the most part, still cannot accept the facts for what they are. This is a classic example of what psychologists call "denial." Everyone seems to be susceptible to the phenomenon. This just happens to be the Jewish version .I will leave it to others to point out the Christian version or the Hindu version or some other ethnic version of their choice. The point is that this is real, and the point is also that anti-Semitism is on the rise. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ The other thing to say is that the article uses the word "swastika" as if there was only one possible meaning, the Nazi meaning. To say the least, I strongly object to this kind of exclusive association. It shows ignorance and also shows bias . I will never forget an incident in Las Cruces, New Mexico, in 1983. The new rabbi in town went into a hissy fit about the name of the NM State University yearbook, then called "The Swastika," as it had been since 1907. It did not matter that the people of Las Cruces, like many or most other folks in NM where old American swastika traditions still live on, or local Native American Indians , or Hindus, wanted the yearbook to keep its name. The only thing that mattered to the rabbi was how Jews felt about the symbol. No-one else counted, that was his attitude. And, it has been my experience, with some notable exceptions, this is fairly common among Jews. Maybe understandable, but justifiable in the world of 2010 ? Not hardly. Exactly how does that sort of outlook not generate resentment ? Anyway, given the over-representation of Jews in the news business, which is hardly some sort of military secret, this kind of stigmatization of the swastika continues, year after year, long after it should have been relegated to oblivion. Very unfortunate and very sad. My opinion, anyway Billy ===================================================== Anti-Semitism in California on the rise, Anti-Defamation League says By Mitchell Landsberg Los Angeles Times Staff Writer July 27, 2010
The Anti-Defamation League reported a sharp uptick in anti-Semitic incidents in California last year, many of them involving taunts, threats and insults by adolescents and teenagers. In one typical example, a Jewish middle school teacher in Los Angeles found swastikas drawn on her classroom door and a note, also featuring swastikas, that read, "You're next." "These are not necessarily kids who are filled with hatred in their hearts and mean to be malicious," said Amanda Susskind, regional director for the organization. But she said the trend was still troubling and may reflect the pervasiveness of hate speech on the Internet She also blamed the broader increase in anti-Semitic incidents, some of them violent, on the confluence of three events: the election of President Obama, the recession and the Israeli incursion into the _Gaza Strip_ (http://www.latimes.com/topic/intl/gaza-strip-PLGEOREG0000028.topic) . Combined, she said, they had emboldened extremists and led to a coarsening of the tone of national debate. She added that the arrest and conviction of rogue financier _Bernard Madoff_ (http://www.latimes.com/topic/economy-business-finance/finance/bernard-madoff-PEBSL00014862.topic) , who is Jewish, contributed to a lot of anti-Semitic "chatter." The ADL report, issued Tuesday morning, is somewhat at odds with a report on hate crime issued last week by California Atty. Gen. _Jerry Brown_ (http://www.latimes.com/topic/politics/jerry-brown-PEPLT007547.topic) . That report showed that crimes motivated by anti-Semitism declined in 2009, as did crimes motivated by hatred against other religious and ethnic groups. Susskind said the ADL was monitoring a much broader range of incidents, many of which are not crimes. She also noted that Brown's report found that 76% of the hate crimes motivated by religious bias were against Jews. Muslims were next, at 6%. Although the ADL found that anti-Semitic acts in California had increased by 20% for the second straight year, the organization found that anti-Semitic acts nationally had declined from 1,352 in 2008 to 1,211 last year. However, it noted that it had raised the bar in some regions for what counted as anti-Semitism -- for example, including reports of swastikas only when they were clearly aimed at Jews. In California, Susskind said, the ADL had already been applying the stricter standards after finding that swastikas sometimes reflected hatred for groups other than Jews and sometimes had no apparent meaning as symbols of hate. -- Centroids: The Center of the Radical Centrist Community <[email protected]> Google Group: http://groups.google.com/group/RadicalCentrism Radical Centrism website and blog: http://RadicalCentrism.org
