Spot on. The generational gap in understanding is frightening. It’s clear that it is education about civics and history that is missing. It’s less clear how to achieve that in an era of social media and shockingly short attention spans.
Nice piece. I'm wondering how you escaped anti-Semitism. I'm assuming you're Jewish as am I. I grew up in a 99% Jewish neighborhood. I was close with my maternal grandfather who escaped Russian programs. I heard stories from my great grandfather as well, who seemed to deteriorate having left everything behind in Russia. I was aware of the Shoah since I was 6 or so. The country club that abutted my Girl Scout club was gentile - no Jews allowed. I was in Northern Nevada recently and, even in Reno, you notice anti-Semitism. In Los Angeles, the gravesites are separated and continue to be because they go back many generations. Most of the he jews I know here in L.A. were terrified by the Trump presidency. Some were contemplating buying guns, etc. We sensed the danger.
At the end of WWII, an unwitting world learned of two infamous locations that would soon weigh on the consciences of all succeeding generations - Auschwitz and Hiroshima. The awareness of the inhuman events that occurred within these places has presented a moral and intellectual challenge that still may seem too great to fully grasp and overcome. It seems, then, quite necessary to forthrightly educate younger generations of mankind's ofttimes ugly historical past, so that they will never doubt the truth and the suffering that was endured.
I forgot to mention how much I appreciate you bringing up a vital fact that I almost never hear mentioned—the thousands of Jews who were ejected from Arab lands, forced to leave behind virtually everything they owned.
I thank you for this timely and important article.
A few things:
1) Toward the end of your essay, you contend that the spike in antipathy, toward Jews, may signal a social breakdown of sorts just as world war two and the holocaust was presaged by mounting anti semitism in Europe in the 20’s and 30’s.
I can see at least one parallel with the Hitler era, that signals social breakdown, that no one has mentioned.
MEDIA IN THE HITLER ERA AND IT’S PARALLELS TODAY.
The Hitler era coincided with the advent of Radio (working class Euros didn’t get Radio until the 30s), which the media theorist Marshall McCluen characterized as a Hot medium, conducive to political brawls and discord. Today we suffer the deluge of debris occasioned by the dregs of the digital era and social media.
2) Anti Semitism is not only cruel and deadly. It is also amazingly stupid, as we are considered both a) Millionaires and b) communist conspirators against millionaires.
For that reason, I have often thought that anti semitism is prompted by psychopathology. I invite people to see my December 4 post on substack which hunts for the psychic causes for anti semitism. I list 9 causes of anti semitism; some of the causes you’ve heard before. Some of them are my own ideas.
Thank you for taking the time to research and write this chilling article. To add to the facts you present, I read today that Israel says it could increase the aid it sends into Gaza by 300 % (!!!) but the UN and the Red Cross refuse to work with them. Yet Israel is demonized for being inhumane. It took about three days for most of the world to come up with justifications for Hamas beheading babies and putting live babies into ovens and baking them. I feel such despair all the time.
Jews are labeled as Christ killers so everyone who loves jc can hate them. But JC probably never existed. And if he did he was a 5'5" semite with a big nose. The Queen who was the defender of the faith only prayed to an Aryan looking savior who is 6'2" with dark blonde hair and light blue eyes. If we don't expose the myth of JC hating jews won't die.
I wish I didn't "like" this as much as I have to, but it is essential, Jon.
My new obsession--and I think media should be reporting on this--is whether and where and how the Holocaust is taught in US middle and high schools. A Phila. mom said she learned it was no longer taught in her kid's private school (!) see recent Haretz article, and based on what I'm gleaning, the idea of teaching kids-including middle schoolers--about it is no longer around. My reading list for children with short attention spans: Night by Elie Wiesel (d'uh), and Survival at Auschwitz by Primo Levi, plus films such as The Pianist, The Woman in Gold, Schindler's List, Europa, Europa -- and many docs on Auschwitz. The Newsweek piece on anti-semitism in Westport was horrifying, but it seemed like the response was to bully students into not be anti-semitic, instead of teaching them WTF happened. If this subject is being taught via textbook, that should be supplemented with primary sources, and should be a major subject given what is going on. The idea that Oct. 7 was NBD because of what Israel has done in response is taking root and quite fashionable in many places.
Thank you for bringing so much to this matter. #gratitude
Invaluable! Perhaps the most important and vital Old Goats piece yet. Especially the video in German with subtitles... giving us hope and faith that humanity and sanity still exists and is insisted upon by the country that perpetrated the Holocaust. PLEASE REPOST THIS. EVERY WEEK.
There's so much in this piece... But as a mother thinking of the future unfurling before us, I was particularly undone by this stat: "One in five young Americans don’t think the Holocaust happened." How is this all going to work out if that many people can't agree on even that one overwhelming and horrific fact?
Civics education was one of Sandra Day O’Connor’s big issues. I mourn her passing.
Spot on. The generational gap in understanding is frightening. It’s clear that it is education about civics and history that is missing. It’s less clear how to achieve that in an era of social media and shockingly short attention spans.
Nice piece. I'm wondering how you escaped anti-Semitism. I'm assuming you're Jewish as am I. I grew up in a 99% Jewish neighborhood. I was close with my maternal grandfather who escaped Russian programs. I heard stories from my great grandfather as well, who seemed to deteriorate having left everything behind in Russia. I was aware of the Shoah since I was 6 or so. The country club that abutted my Girl Scout club was gentile - no Jews allowed. I was in Northern Nevada recently and, even in Reno, you notice anti-Semitism. In Los Angeles, the gravesites are separated and continue to be because they go back many generations. Most of the he jews I know here in L.A. were terrified by the Trump presidency. Some were contemplating buying guns, etc. We sensed the danger.
When antisemitism first reared its ugly head a few years ago I told my husband I thought we should
leave the country. He wasn’t enthused about that idea. I think that’s when it occurred to me almost
all holocaust survivors and WWII veterans have
died.
You mentioned the fact that some of the protesters chanting don’t know which river and which sea they’re chanting about. That reminded me of the
mind boggling ignorance being displayed during the
pandemic. We now know most of the anti-mask wearing, anti-vaccination, horse paste eating crowd were being manipulated with disinformation and
emotion by professional operatives for a specific reason.
This may sound ludicrous, but I think there’s a connection between the ignorance proudly
displayed during the pandemic and the antisemitic protesters chanting about things they know nothing about.
All of them were/are being manipulated by
professional operatives for political gain. It may
even be the same person behind all of it. It’s
Vlad Putin who stands to gain from it. He’s
been responsible for pitting people against each other here in America and it serves his interests
to poke the hornets’ nest in the middle east.
Putin wants to annex Ukraine. He knows the U.S. sells/subsidizes weapons to Israel and he knows
the U.S. is a major supplier of weapons & ammunition to Ukraine. He’s not making any headway in Ukraine, so he stirs the hornets’ nest
in the middle east, giving republicans a plausible
reason to refuse to supply Ukraine with weapons--
because we’re supplying them to Israel and supposedly can’t afford to do both.
At the end of WWII, an unwitting world learned of two infamous locations that would soon weigh on the consciences of all succeeding generations - Auschwitz and Hiroshima. The awareness of the inhuman events that occurred within these places has presented a moral and intellectual challenge that still may seem too great to fully grasp and overcome. It seems, then, quite necessary to forthrightly educate younger generations of mankind's ofttimes ugly historical past, so that they will never doubt the truth and the suffering that was endured.
I forgot to mention how much I appreciate you bringing up a vital fact that I almost never hear mentioned—the thousands of Jews who were ejected from Arab lands, forced to leave behind virtually everything they owned.
I thank you for this timely and important article.
A few things:
1) Toward the end of your essay, you contend that the spike in antipathy, toward Jews, may signal a social breakdown of sorts just as world war two and the holocaust was presaged by mounting anti semitism in Europe in the 20’s and 30’s.
I can see at least one parallel with the Hitler era, that signals social breakdown, that no one has mentioned.
MEDIA IN THE HITLER ERA AND IT’S PARALLELS TODAY.
The Hitler era coincided with the advent of Radio (working class Euros didn’t get Radio until the 30s), which the media theorist Marshall McCluen characterized as a Hot medium, conducive to political brawls and discord. Today we suffer the deluge of debris occasioned by the dregs of the digital era and social media.
2) Anti Semitism is not only cruel and deadly. It is also amazingly stupid, as we are considered both a) Millionaires and b) communist conspirators against millionaires.
For that reason, I have often thought that anti semitism is prompted by psychopathology. I invite people to see my December 4 post on substack which hunts for the psychic causes for anti semitism. I list 9 causes of anti semitism; some of the causes you’ve heard before. Some of them are my own ideas.
Thank you for taking the time to research and write this chilling article. To add to the facts you present, I read today that Israel says it could increase the aid it sends into Gaza by 300 % (!!!) but the UN and the Red Cross refuse to work with them. Yet Israel is demonized for being inhumane. It took about three days for most of the world to come up with justifications for Hamas beheading babies and putting live babies into ovens and baking them. I feel such despair all the time.
Jews are labeled as Christ killers so everyone who loves jc can hate them. But JC probably never existed. And if he did he was a 5'5" semite with a big nose. The Queen who was the defender of the faith only prayed to an Aryan looking savior who is 6'2" with dark blonde hair and light blue eyes. If we don't expose the myth of JC hating jews won't die.
Well written article on anti-Semitism. We Shall Never Forget The Holocaust!
I wish I didn't "like" this as much as I have to, but it is essential, Jon.
My new obsession--and I think media should be reporting on this--is whether and where and how the Holocaust is taught in US middle and high schools. A Phila. mom said she learned it was no longer taught in her kid's private school (!) see recent Haretz article, and based on what I'm gleaning, the idea of teaching kids-including middle schoolers--about it is no longer around. My reading list for children with short attention spans: Night by Elie Wiesel (d'uh), and Survival at Auschwitz by Primo Levi, plus films such as The Pianist, The Woman in Gold, Schindler's List, Europa, Europa -- and many docs on Auschwitz. The Newsweek piece on anti-semitism in Westport was horrifying, but it seemed like the response was to bully students into not be anti-semitic, instead of teaching them WTF happened. If this subject is being taught via textbook, that should be supplemented with primary sources, and should be a major subject given what is going on. The idea that Oct. 7 was NBD because of what Israel has done in response is taking root and quite fashionable in many places.
Thank you for bringing so much to this matter. #gratitude
Invaluable! Perhaps the most important and vital Old Goats piece yet. Especially the video in German with subtitles... giving us hope and faith that humanity and sanity still exists and is insisted upon by the country that perpetrated the Holocaust. PLEASE REPOST THIS. EVERY WEEK.
There's so much in this piece... But as a mother thinking of the future unfurling before us, I was particularly undone by this stat: "One in five young Americans don’t think the Holocaust happened." How is this all going to work out if that many people can't agree on even that one overwhelming and horrific fact?
I did actually read the headline as "and the bubbeh of History" so had to make a rapid adjustment. Thanks for this Jonathan