Why is it controversial to question Jews? (Palestinian, middle east, Israeli)

[Michelle234]

I have done a lot of reading on this particular topic. I find it interesting that people can lose their careers/livelihood for simply questioning the backgrounds of 'Jews.' Helen Thomas (a noted/well respected journalist) lost everything, after she made the following comments:


Helen Thomas Asserts Israeli Jews Not Semites - YouTube

Why is it wrong to question 'Jews' regarding their purported Semitic background? By all accounts they look completely Eastern European/Slavic, so I'm confused as to why it's disrespectful to question the validity of their semitic background.

[HistorianDude]

Well there is this thing called 2000 years of brutal and bloody Christian persecution of Jews culminating in the Holocaust. But other than that? No idea.

[Vascodagama]

Originally Posted by Michelle234

I have done a lot of reading on this particular topic. I find it interesting that people can lose their careers/livelihood for simply questioning the backgrounds of 'Jews.' Helen Thomas (a noted/well respected journalist) lost everything, after she made the following comments:


Helen Thomas Asserts Israeli Jews Not Semites - YouTube

Why is it wrong to question 'Jews' regarding their purported Semitic background? By all accounts they look completely Eastern European/Slavic, so I'm confused as to why it's disrespectful to question the validity of their semitic background.

You should ask her employer why they fired her. Society did not fire her. If she was supposed to be an unbiased journalist then making a biased public statement like that probably crossed the line in the eyes of her employer.

If I say something my employer did not like and I was told not to say it then they could fire me.

[subsound]

She didn't ask where they were from, she told them to get the hell out and go back to where she seems to think they are from.

Especially since the original quote was said directly to a camera during a Jewish cultural gathering.

I know old people are sometimes hard to understand, but she's fairly clear and this is simply willful ignorance.

I mean, she was over 18 when Hitler came to power and why Israel exists in the first place...hell she probably remembers the first world war.

[desertdetroiter]

I don't care whether Jews are semites or not. Don't know why Helen Thomas would care either.

I do care that if a person doesn't like a bad bowl of Matzo ball soup, then they're considered a Jew Hater, and a virulent anti-semite, and an advocate of the destruction of Israel.

Funny thing is, it's not the Jews that do this for the most part, but conservative Christian Gentiles that go around accusing everyone of this stuff.

[crbcrbrgv]

It's fine to question Jews. I'm Jewish myself. Ask any question you'd like.

Acting like Helen Thomas did? Not fine.

[Swampmonster]

Originally Posted by desertdetroiter

I don't care whether Jews are semites or not. Don't know why Helen Thomas would care either.

I do care that if a person doesn't like a bad bowl of Matzo ball soup, then they're considered a Jew Hater, and a virulent anti-semite, and an advocate of the destruction of Israel.

Funny thing is, it's not the Jews that do this for the most part, but conservative Christian Gentiles that go around accusing everyone of this stuff.

Exactly...the RWNJs feel THEY are the mouth piece for the Jewish people.

[Kkaos2]

Originally Posted by desertdetroiter

I don't care whether Jews are semites or not. Don't know why Helen Thomas would care either.

I do care that if a person doesn't like a bad bowl of Matzo ball soup, then they're considered a Jew Hater, and a virulent anti-semite, and an advocate of the destruction of Israel.

Funny thing is, it's not the Jews that do this for the most part, but conservative Christian Gentiles that go around accusing everyone of this stuff.

But showing up at a Tea Party makes you racist, right? Double standards.

Dear old Helen is a vicious anti-Semite and there's no two ways about it.

I do agree that anti-Semitism accusations are thrown around more than they should be. But in Helen's case, it is absolutely accurate. If she'd made the same comments about blacks or Muslims she'd also have been fired. This isn't the first time she's been videotaped making comments like that. Given her position as a high profile journalist and the prominence of the Middle East in the news, there's no way she could pass herself off as an objective reporter on the national scene.

[Ohiogirl81]

Helen Thomas -- as much as I respect her reporting and her career -- crossed the line that every good reporter should avoid: stating an opinion based on emotion instead of fact.

All reporters have opinions; that's human nature. However, most know to keep their opinions to themselves while in public, or at the very least be able to back up that opinion upon cold hard facts.

[Michelle234]

Originally Posted by desertdetroiter

I don't care whether Jews are semites or not. Don't know why Helen Thomas would care either.

I do care that if a person doesn't like a bad bowl of Matzo ball soup, then they're considered a Jew Hater, and a virulent anti-semite, and an advocate of the destruction of Israel.

Funny thing is, it's not the Jews that do this for the most part, but conservative Christian Gentiles that go around accusing everyone of this stuff.

Well the Semite argument is important, after all, if they are not Semites, what claim do they have to Israel? This is the million dollar question. Remember, England proclaimed that the Palestinian territory belongs to 'jews.' 'Jews' from all over Europe migrated to the Palestinian territory and proclaimed that it was their land, due to their 'Jewish' background.