Here I is!
O-tay, let's take a lil' look at this so-called list...
1.
Self-reliance. If we accept that the Jews have been a historically persecuted and oppressed group, their success in this country (and in Israel) can be, in part, attributed to an attitude that to get ahead, one cannot expect others to help them get there. While other groups tend to look for handouts or special programs to aid in their rise from poverty and oppression, the Jews have adopted an ethic of hard work, education, and networking within their own group to escape second-class status. A sense of ingenuity plays in as well. Israel is geographically small and essentially located in a desert, yet has been able to develop agribusiness, for example, that not only allows them to be nearly self-sufficient, but also an exporter of produce to Europe and elsewhere.
--Well, the success of Israel, at least is a case of MASSIVE UNABATED WELFARE HANDOUTS. How much? Over $100 Billion in the past fifty years--and that's just the over-the-counter cash.
As for the "agri-business" of Israel, this has proven a cruel and tragic bust. There simply isn't enough water. Not even close, and tremendous damage has been rendered to the region's delicate ecosystem. While currently a vibrant high-tech sector has been developed in Tel Aviv, Israel's economy has always been based on WEAPONS--and they'll sell to ANYONE.
2.
Pride. Tied into self-reliance. A reluctance to accept handouts or help from others until the situation becomes desperate, and a desire to be seen as self-made.
--See above. As for Jews in America, the NUMBER ONE recipient of Affirmative Action benefits has been Jewish women. Did you know that?
3.
Self-deprecation. While Jews (many of them, anyway) take their faith seriously and consider it an integral part of their everyday lives, they don’t take it so seriously that they become unable to laugh at, and make fun of, themselves. While this may be a defense mechanism, it also frees their minds to pursue paths to success, rather than wallow in self-pity and hatred toward others.
--While indeed the vast majority of Jews are secular--and make up the leadership in many anti-war, anti-"free-trade" agendas, as well as groups opposing Israeli policies--the Israelis, anyway, clearly feel--and act--as though international law does not apply to them. Why? Because of the ESSENTIAL tenet in their..uh, Tribal Charter, maintains a "Chosen People" quality to them that simply allows ANYTHING. You know, like 300 ILLEGAL NUCLEAR WEAPONS (with full delivery systems).
4.
Humor. You mentioned their disproportionate numbers in the entertainment industry. While they are represented in the drama and music arenas, they are better known as being comedians. Of course, self-deprecation plays a large role in this, as does using humor to shield themselves from the ridicule of others, and the pain of their history.
--Uh..this supposes that Jerry Seinfeld and his laugh-track are funny. Now Victor Borge is funny, but was Milton Berle really "funny"? Woody Allen? Tom Green? Who cares?
5.
Revenge. It is said that there is no better form of revenge than success. Rather than simply whine and cry about all the bad things that have befallen them throughout history, they have chosen to get revenge by supervising, overseeing, and making money from the descendants of those who did the oppressing.
--Well, revenge is certainly the defining characteristic of the Old Testament tribal god--and all the gruesome stories of that book. However, one might also consider that the primary message of the Talmud is to pillage and loot the "goyim" as well as one can. It's disgusting but it's right there.
6.
Refusal to accept a victim mentality. The Jews are not a group to collectively cry, “Woe is me!” They pick themselves up off the ground, and move on without looking for pity. They don’t look for or use excuses to explain lack of opportunity.
--This is of course patantly ludicrous, as Jews have made an industry of Holocaust Reminders. Movies, plays, books, museums, pamphlets, and a steady parade of PBS documentaries insure that the crimes of the Germans will live forever--and serve to justify or assuage any current crimes and atrocities being carried out by Israel.
7.
Fear of failing to meet expectations. You mentioned the family unit, which often places much pressure on children to succeed. The stereotype of the Jewish mother pushing young Sheldon to become a doctor or a lawyer isn’t off the mark, and the sense of not wanting to let down, or worse yet, of shaming the family, serves as a strong motivator to succeed.
--While it's true that there are an inordinate number of ball-busting harping yentas driving their sons and daughters into emotional damage--and this is the REAL reason for the tremendous rate of "out-marriage" by Jewish men--it's still basically a stereotype .
8.
Openness to new ideas. Two things come to mind here. One is an episode of
The Simpsons in which Maggie is thought to have a genius IQ. The head of the private school into which Homer and Marge are trying to have her enrolled says something to the effect of, “She has the highest IQ I’ve ever seen in a Christian!” The other is when I was taking a college philosophy class, in which the first instruction from the professor was to “check your religious beliefs at the door.” When the subject of discussion turned to Rene Descartes, it was acknowledged that while he was unquestionably a brilliant man, he was limited in his ability to accept new ideas because he was a devout Catholic. While Jews are certainly also bound by religious beliefs, they seem to me to be more willing to set them aside in order to accept new ideas than the more devout among the Christians and Muslims. (This might be the weakest of the arguments in this list.)
--Yer right, let's skip this one.
9.
Playing to strengths. For whatever reasons, as you mentioned, there seems to be disproportionate numbers of Jews in the entertainment industry, as well as in finance, medicine, and law, to name but a few areas where they seem to thrive. This has been the case for more than a generation or two, so it seems they have followed the advice that encourages individuals (or a group, in this case) to “find something you’re good at, then do it.”
--Sure, and if you can't get into the field--let's say because of discrimination--then you go into CRIME. For example, a small but very ambitious group of Jewish attornies in the 1940's carefully stole hundreds of millions of dollars in property and assets from the Japanese Americans interned during WWII. Perhaps if these guys hadn't been denied entrance to the traditional legal world, they wouldn't have become rapacious thieves. Who knows?
10.
Assimilation. While they adhere to their culture and take pride in their differences from the “mainstream Christian” American society in which they live, they don’t isolate themselves or emphasize those differences. Rather, they blend in and try to contribute in a positive manner to their society, becoming one with, rather than separate from, those who make up the majority.
--Interesting, but when we see the "Jewish Owned" movie/television industry pumping out "The Ten Commandments" every year like a ritual, well this isn't assimilating, it's SUBSUMING. Look at the Christer judge in Georgia insisting--defying the U.S. law he's pledged to uphold--that the Ten Commandments be displayed outside his courthouse. Ever wonder why the U.S. is the ONLY non-muslim nation to practice circumcision on a fairly regular basis? That's SUBSUMPTION. And really, what's a Christer except a converted Jew? Don't they believe in the Old Testament as well as their New doctrine, etc?
Bottom line, Jews are just like anyone else. If prosecuted and forced to bind together--just like the Italians, Irish, Chinese--they will succeed in America. Sometimes legally, sometimes not.
What's the difference? It should be pretty fucking obvious to anyone that the fact of the Christer cult having spread its bloody tentacles through the history of Western culture has insured that the Jews--regardless of the occasional backlash persecution--enjoy a latant but telling deep-seated sort of veneration among the Christer headspace. Why else would a simplistic Christer like Harry Truman have signed off so readily on the apartheid state in the making, Israel, in 1948? It's obviously proven a dreadful idea, fomenting nothing but strife, bloodshed, and American shame ever since. But don't blame the Jews. It's the Christers, stupid!
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