Posted on 08/15/2010 6:03:42 AM PDT by maggief
For most of my adult life I have pondered the seemingly unanswerable, "Why do American Jews go against their own self interests by always voting for Democrats?" American Jews, in contrast to their insignificant population numbers are significantly at the heart and core of American intellectualism, professionalism, and most importantly, entrepreneurism, the engines that drive our capitalist economy. And yet, election after election, these supposedly smart, super achievers vote almost en bloc for Democrats. No group but blacks votes more in lock-step with Democrats than Jews, but blacks can in no way match the social accomplishments of American Jews.
As the decades have passed, the question has become even more baffling as the leftist elements of the Democrat Party, that is, most of it, have become increasingly hostile to Israel and even to American Jewry. We look at election results and we shake our heads, wondering what on earth can these people be thinking when they continue to elect those who bear them such ill will?
True, Jews have always been at the forefront of civil rights issues particularly as those issues regard blacks. But what then do we see in the form of reciprocation from so-called black leaders if it is not growing expressions of anti-Semitism that were they to be espoused by a white of any faith, would be universally condemned. Yet within that black community, so strenuously supported by the Jews, lies a glowing, growing coal of embryonic anti-Semitism which is ripe for fanning into flames of exploitation by Muslim activists.
What brings all this to mind is our President and his predilection (minus his bifurcated blather buddy) for speaking his mind before he engages it. Barack Hussein Obama's clearly stated support for the construction of a mosque at the site of 9/11, Ground Zero, surely must have jolted a few thousand more Jewish liberals into a sense of awakening reality they have long ignored. That is, to borrow from Osama bin Laden, they just may be backing the wrong horse.
To get back to the premise of the title, should that sort of awakening occur among liberal Jews, and should they shift their slavish financial support from Democrats to a more reasoned support of conservative American politicians, we could well see a significant swing of the political pendulum returning America to the sort of sensible, even-handed, middle-of-the-road governance its citizens favor. Even a small shift of that heavy Jewish financial backing to the GOP could well serve to bring Democrats to their senses, enough at least to step back from the abyss, at the bottom of which lie so many failed Marxist dreams and states, and possibly America.
Of course, if their liberal gag reflex absolutely prevents supporting Republicans, America's Jews could shift some of that Democrat Party funding to the many synagogue building funds in Syria, Jordan, Egypt, Pakistan, Iraq, Iran, Indonesia and most especially, Saudi Arabia.
Take your pick...
It wasn’t just anti-conservatism, it was a sort of an anti-country-club thing. There was a time when republicans had an image of country clubs which Jews were not allowed into, cigars, golf, poker parties, banking and railroad board meetings, and that sort of thing.
When the socialist party is getting 38% of a group’s vote in the United States, then I would say that group is a little more than anti-country club, Democrat would have sufficed for that.
The fact is that it is a perfect uninterrupted record, so to try and come up with excuses doesn’t work, pre depression, post depression, pre Hitler, post Hitler, pre war, post war, pre Reagan, post Reagan, pre 1960s, post 1960s, pre Israel, post Israel, nothing changes their vote, so no explanations about a temporary period mean anything. It is a pattern carved into stone.
Karl Marx,Lazar Kaganovich, Leon Trotsky,Béla Kun and Kurt Eisner were all Jews.
But it must be pointed out that they were not Observant Jews.
Communism is a hell of a drug.
I’ve spent a lot of time wondering why a large number of Jews vote for candidates that are so lefty.
Having grown up in a 50/50 Gentile/Jewish neighborhood and taught at a Judaic pre-school, I’ve had plenty of opportunities to learn and observe. Conservative [political, not religious] friends are disgusted so many of their coreligionists were blinded by the Won and continue to see the world with rose-tinted glasses.
Yes, a lot of Jewish immigrants to the US in the early 20th century were lefty. But why???
My conclusion is after centuries of various persecutions and laws prohibiting Jews from owning land and many types of businesses, etc.; a communal aspect to their society evolved as the best means to ensure the survival of their people. It seems it also created a very strong cultural identity, which exists to this day even amongst so-called ‘secular’ Jews.
As US newcomers residing in oft self-segregated neighborhoods [much like other newcomer ‘groups’] the communal aspect to the society continued to the benefit of the greater group. There was still an ‘exclusionary’ aspect from the upper gentile classes, which continued to foster a group identity amongst the excluded. For example: While Jews could own property and any business in the US, some neighborhoods, clubs, and golf courses were still ‘No Jews Allowed’ zones until the 60’s! During the days of segregation, I am sure many Jews were even more sympathetic to the injustice of segregating blacks as they had first hand experience with a more benign, but still prejudicial segregation of their people.
Other groups experienced bigotry, such as the Italians and Irish and other followers of the Catholic faith, but as gentiles, it seems the effects of time made it easier to ‘blend’ in and the collectivist mindset morphed into more of the ‘gentile’ collectivism as new comers moved out of their city locations into the suburbs.
Each ‘group’ had it’s own rules, many unwritten, and I suspect a level of social shame was heaped on those who strayed.
The problem is, not everyone included in newly ‘expanded’ 20th c. ‘Great Society’ Socialist utopia thinks the same way. Witness the puzzlement of Swedes about newcomers who don’t act in ways that value the same things as ethic Swedes. Instead of working ‘collectively’ on a local level for the betterment of the community, the idea of taking $$$ from others and ‘redistributing’ it is the new alternative to leveling the playing field. Creating a stable society utilizing this ‘new-collectivism’ has become prevalent in both the US and Europe.
Gentile middle America has had it’s own societal ‘rules’ and behavior that benefited the group at large, in a more Objectivist way: Keep your property value up by cutting your grass and trim the bushes/trees regularly and do NOT- under any circumstances- allow old equipment or cars to sit on your property. Benefit future generations by volunteering in your community: scouts, PTA, etc. The volunteerism provided benefits to the community at large without taxpayer redistributive efforts. Effective and thrifty!
The philosophy of local involvement across a broader group is not universally embraced by newcomers and if it is, the activity may be directed within a smaller group or community.
What the redistributionist’s don’t understand is that mandatory taking of earnings deprives the giver of the pleasure of direct involvement. It is also horribly inefficient and an open invitation to graft. Furthermore, when done on a local level, folks figure out pretty quickly who is abusing the system and can sort things out- not so with Federal redistribution. Federal bureaucracy is without accountability, with a primary responsibility to spend everything so more can be demanded, regardless of true need or qualitative outcome.
In conclusion, the transition of a collectivist mindset by like-minded individuals, so crucial for survival of communities has become warped beyond recognition when ‘legislated’ as the quality of collectivism is only as good as the values of each individual community member AND when there is a reasonable, timely means of ‘socially penalizing’ abusers. Yet, wealthy political donors, which includes a fair amount of Jewish people, believe that a good outcome can still be attained even though the means of attaining said ‘good’ has changed from an individual effort which benefits the collective to a collectivist effort which benefits a select ‘few’ individuals who have the appropriate ‘meta-tag’ and connections to obtain the forced largess given by others.
Just my two cents worth.
Those guys were only utopian idealists who believed in non-coercive socialism. The people who really made it happen were Marx, Blum, Bernstein, Luxemburg and, of course, Lenin and Trotsky, and that was highly coercive, as is the contemporary socialism of Obama, et al in the US.
No argument. Though I doubt that Arafat was Jewish (joke).
But it must be pointed out that they were not Observant Jews.
Communism is a hell of a drug.
As I stated, because of the very nature of the Jewish soul, Jews who reject Torah do more damage than any non-Jew possibly could.
Those guys were only utopian idealists who believed in non-coercive socialism.
Likewise, no one was forced to live on qubbutzim.
The people who really made it happen were Marx, Blum, Bernstein, Luxemburg and, of course, Lenin and Trotsky, and that was highly coercive, as is the contemporary socialism of Obama, et al in the US.
Though for some reason the Far Left sees itself as "libertarian," "anti-statist," and "anti-coercion." No, they really do. They want the government to control everything and everyone, but they're "against the state."
See my posts earlier on the Jewish soul.
how’d you like to be Irish Cattholic ??? Everyone compares you to the Kennedys’ worst characteristics (basically ALL of them).
Would that be me personally, or my people? Just kidding. I've already been made an honorary Irish Catholic more than one - usually on St. Patrick's Day, owing perhaps to my accent or more likely, my fondness for whiskey and redheads.
A polite discussion?
Someone on Free Republic calls for an open declaration of war on Jews and Judaism and you call it a "polite discussion?" Perhaps you should go to Stormfront.
You know, I think it's very fishy that all this anti-Jewish stuff is surfacing just as the Left is attacking Israel and some dim bulb Jews (not most, but some) just might be willing to reevaluate their political thinking. Yes sir, makes perfect sense. For the first time ever a dim bulb Jewish dem here or there starts to think and at that moment FR fills up with people saying "we'll never win this war unless we admit we're fighting the Jews!"
Makes perfect sense . . . if you're an infiltrator.
I'm not Jewish, btw.
It is true that most Catholics supported the Democrat party for various reasons during the period after their immigration. However for some decades there has been a fairly significant transition to the Republican Party. During the past election only a small majority of Catholic votes supported Obama. This was largely due to the small but significant number of Black Catholics, and the much larger number of Hispasnic Catholics. White, Non-Hispanic, Catholics gave a substantial majority of their votes to McCain.
Maybe, but there are still old-timey urban Irish union goons around.
Did you ever dream the day would come when I would "defend Catholicism" on FR? I'd say we should make it a holiday, but it already is for Catholics, isn't it?
This is true, but the way to do this is through observance and study of Torah. Any other way is a dead end.
Still, the iconoclastic tendency is a very important part of the Jewish soul, and it was put there by G-d. It is the Jews' task to destroy false "gxds" so the True G-d will be embraced. However, when the Jewish soul is not restrained by Torah and yir'at Shamayim (fear of Heaven) it becomes terribly destructive, smashing things left and right, good and bad, pagan and Jewish.
I know only one thing about the crazy world in which we live today: when it's all over, HaShem will reign supreme. Well, He already does, but I mean everyone will recognize that HaShem reigns supreme.
‘there are still old-timey urban Irish union goons around.’
True, but they are mostly urban, blue collar unions, and these sorts of unions are now vanishing, also Catholics are now mostly suburban, and less blue collar than in previous generations.
Yes this is the Feast of the Assumption (of Mary), one of the holidays that Catholics do not share with Protestants.
No, the qubbutzim are great, I think, but are they really socialist? Do they allow some to live off the labors of their brethren? The initial version of the Plymouth Colony was also rather like the qubbutzim, but almost died from that problem, before moving to private property.
Apart from the soft socialism of W. Europe (which is failing), modern socialism always seems to be highly coercive, from the Soviets, through the Nazis, to China and Pol Pot.
Why do Jews not reject socialism, after their experiences under National Socialism?
People who call for an open war on Jews and Judaism in the name of conservatism--and their apologists and enablers--belong on Stormfront. And I would not be in the least surprised if there were not a campaign to infiltrate conservative forums with anti-Semitism. I'm paranoid that way.
My "bag" is worshiping the Jewish G-d. Not the "American gxd," the "western gxd," the "chr*stian gxd," or any other localized national/tribal/civilizational totemic idol. HaShem's enemies are my enemies. May Mashiach come swiftly and convert or exterminate them!
You got me.
Why do Jews who don't believe in HaShem or Torah (and who believe that one day the entire human race will become extinct) worry themselves into a stroke over "Jewish survival" and a "Jewish mission?" It makes no sense, does it? Yet they do. They may not believe in HaShem or Torah, but they're "still Jews," which means (they seem to think) that they must survive for some reason or other and critique the host society.
As I keep saying, these tendencies are not bad in themselves. They were placed in the Jewish soul by G-d so Jews would conquer the world for HaShem. But when Jews reject Torah and HaShem the Jewish soul becomes terribly destructive.
oh, everybody’s Irish on Paddy’s day !!!
Not without good cause, there IS a certain Irish stereotype which might include a fondness for adult libations, with or without the redheads.
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