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There's an excellent post by Matt Yglesias today, "Antisemitism in America", slowboring.com/p/antise…, that I'd like to highlight.
As in much of his work, there's more data than emotion, and a lot more light than heat. I strongly recommend it, but encapsulated, it's that there's a lot less anti-Semitism on the Left, particularly among you…
There's an excellent post by Matt Yglesias today, "Antisemitism in America", https://www.slowboring.com/p/antisemitism-in-america, that I'd like to highlight.
As in much of his work, there's more data than emotion, and a lot more light than heat. I strongly recommend it, but encapsulated, it's that there's a lot less anti-Semitism on the Left, particularly among young people, than there appears to be.
It really is necessary to distinguish between speech that is anti-Semitic in intent and speech that is anti-Semitic in effect. The negative effects of both may be deplorable and require a firm response, but those who practice the second may be much more susceptible to education than those who practice the first. Moreover, the second was predictable from "within the cohort whose entire adult life has seen no meaningful final status negotiations", but instead witnessed Right-wing Israeli governments continuously expand settlements on the land that successive UN resolutions intend for a Palestinian state.
Ripping down posters of victims kidnapped by terrorists is a despicable thing. So is chanting "From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free" and pretending to be, or choosing to be, ignorant of what the slogan really means. Individuals who commit crimes should be punished for those crimes. But before people who do not commit actual crimes are doxed as anti-Semites, before they have job offers withdrawn or their future careers permanently affected, they deserve the chance to explain as individuals whether their actions really were based on hatred of Jews, or on the universal student, especially elite school student, cocktail of ignorance, arrogance, and self-regard. Ignorance can be cured by education and research, and many people grow out of the last two on their own. Not all the people who embarrassed themselves since October 7 really deserve lifelong labels as Haters.
Very few deserve lifelong labels, period. This is one of the chief reasons why many of us have not supported what some call cancel culture; or more importantly, the expansion of statutes of limitations for crimes deep in the past. Many of us believe that where there is life there is hope, or that people can fall off their horse and have an epiphany. This does not excuse stupidity, or foolishness, at the moment so, to the extent possible, try to speak with the young, or the otherwise ill informed now, and not let them have to wait twenty years to smack their own heads and say, "What was I thinking?"
A number of years ago I received a gift of a small book of quotations/proverbs of which I am now reminded, and as best as I recall:
Four things never come back; the sped arrow, the spoken word, the past life, and the neglected opportunity.
Those that hopped on the anti-Jewish dog-pile whether due to that ignorance cocktail, arrogance, or self-regard, and who have had job offers rescinded or their names added to a "do not hire" list have learned a hard lesson with their written words that never come back. Too many today believe that it cannot happen to them, whatever the "it" might be, only to discover that it can indeed happen to them.
I read that too, and was thinking lots of people should read it...
I felt a little smarter when I finished it, and I'm grateful to anyone who can make me feel that way. It's not the first time that he has.
Yeah, I have always liked him, but, I can't afford another subscription right now so I only get to read his free stuff...we align on a lot of stuff
Absolutely the same here! I must look at my subscriptions every day and think, "can I make room for Matt Yglesias and Chris Cillizza today?" Nope. Maybe in January. 😢
Yeah, those two and Josh Barros ( do get his pod with Ken White) and the Economist I would like to also
I subscribe to the Economist -- online only -- and like it a lot, but it's expensive.
Yeah, I just get the summary , which just teases me...lol..but, it ain't cheap
Same with National Geographic, which I used to get in print, but I wasn't reading all my print magazines and the local paper so I stopped subscribing...