4 Comments

Right on target. But the damage being done is the trickle-down to those 24-year-olds.

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Thanks. Exactly - I don't dispute that the damage is being done.

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One antisemitic comment in and of itself isn't enough to make you a full-blown antisemite, but it's the kind of thing that should be nipped in the bud before it metastasizes into something much worse. (How one does that is an art more than a science. The temptation is the scream insults at the offender, but that's more likely to make them dig in further.)

I've long remembered talking about World War II (as men do) with a left-leaning friend of mine, who never before nor since showed any kind of animosity toward the Jewish people, but who made a comment to the effect that the German economy before Hitler took power really was dominated by Jews, wasn't it? These ideas are floating around out there, and they're contagious.

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Great points. You're right about more art than science here. What the best way is to respond to less overt, less intense forms of antisemitism is really a challenge. Because overstating or treating it like clear-cut antisemitism won't work. Different tactics for different degrees of antisemitism is smart.

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