Replies

Re: "If the Muslims were living next to Americans, or, say, Norwegians, then it would be those who are the terrible oppressors, not the Jews."

Re: "Not really anti-Semitism."

Sorry, Phyler, that is wildly wrong.

Northern Europe has been overwhelmed with millions of immigrant Muslims, most of them single young males.

France is 11% Muslim.

Germany, Denmark, and the UK are at least 5% Muslim.

Norway is at least 4% Muslim.

The two million (20%) Muslims living in Israel are mostly Middle Class or higher and enjoy personal liberties that Middle East Muslims can only dream about.

Bottom Line...

At least 90% of Muslims literally hate the Jewish people and desire the total destruction of Israel.

Sorry, Phyler, that is wildly wrong.

I beg to differ, in part. In the other places where there is a significant Muslim population, the Muslims do not control the political/official "government." They benefit from the economy of the non-Muslims without the guilt of not succeeding when in control. The Muslims living in Israeli-controlled portions of Israel likewise benefit from that successful economy (and are, as you said, mostly middle class).

But in Muslim controlled areas, which includes Gaza as well as Syria, etc., the economy is terrible and they have no one to blame but themselves unless there is a great and terrible conspiracy by the 'oppressors' to hold them down. Since the only side-by-side comparisons of Muslim and Western-style control are in and around Israel, that becomes the focus for their guilt and hatred.

Nonetheless, this has been going on for generations and it is certainly true that 90% of the Muslims hate the Jewish people and desire the total detruction of Israel after all that time failing in comparison. It is a bit of a chicken-and-egg thing. Back when all of this area was under Ottoman control, the Jews and Muslims were equally poor and lived alongside each other in reasonable peace. Once the Jews (Western-culture, largely Russian immigrants) gained political/government control and their economy started to do well, the contrast with all the years of Ottoman/Muslim control was too obvious to deny. It needed an explanation, and rather than accept their own failing, they transferred that guilt to hatred for the successful.

My point was that the hatred of Muslim failures for other-group success is not limited to hatred of Jews alone. It would quickly encompass any other groups of 'infidels' if they happened to have that sort of continuing proof (in side-by-side government systems) of the absolute failure of Muslim society.

This is similar to Hitler hatting the Jews. He also hated all 'lesser races' but he hated the Jews in particular because Jews in Germany were generally more successful than Aryan ethnic groups, despite living in the same economy. The comparison made Hitler/Aryans feel guilty for their own lack of success, so they transformed that guilt into hatred for Jews. (It was also financially rewarding when he confiscated all that ill-gotten - somehow or another - wealth.)

My basic point is that the hatred of Muslims for Jews is based less on actual racial distinction and more on hatred of failures for the successful. That has (chicken and egg) resulted in a focused hatred of Jews due to proximity, but the underlying hatred could and will bubble up anywhere their failure becomes undeniable.