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Thread: The Term Neocon: Anti-Semitic?

Joined: 9/30/2007

Msg: 78 (view)

The Term Neocon: Anti-Semitic? Posted: 12/12/2007 2:32:06 PM
Anti-semitism is frighteningly prevalent in much of the world today, and from all sides of the political spectrum. Unfortunately, it seems like overt prejudice will always exist. But what really concerns me is how quick many people -- who would hate to think of themselves as racist -- are to latch onto what are essentially the old anti-Jewish cants. The neocons and their Project for the New American Century deserves to be examined, debated, and in my view thoroughly criticized. But far too often, terrifyingly often, legitimate criticism is replaced by attacks on specific neocons as Jews and for supporting Israel's right to exist. We need to look instead at what's really going on. Governments and rulers have a centuries long tradition of using Jewish men to do their dirty work. Want to raise taxes? Use a Jewish tax collector, then the anger will be directed at Jews instead of the czar, the people will exorcise their frustration with a pogrom or two and the status quo continues benefiting the government. Yes, there are neoconservatives who are Jewish and support Israel. But there are also Christian neocons who earnestly want Israel to fulfill the conditions laid out in the Book of Revelations so that Armageddon and the Rapture can happen. You know, the great end time battle when Israel is annihilated. With friends like these.... Is neocon an inherently anti-Semitic term? Not in all uses. But criticism of the neocon movement is very often accompanied by anti-Semitic remarks and allusions. That is what the OP is referring to. That so many people fail to recognize this association is what allows it to continue.

Joined: 9/30/2007

Msg: 58 (view)

Which would you chose, Lasting friendship or a relationship? Posted: 12/4/2007 4:12:07 PM
Every relationship has its own tempo and time-span, and we rarely get to choose what that will look like. Appreciate what's right for each one.

Joined: 9/30/2007

Msg: 4 (view)

What your musical development? Posted: 12/4/2007 3:55:49 PM
How much time do you have? ;-) Born four months after the Monkees, but fortunately grew up just outside of Motown. Lots of big band jazz (Ellington, Goodman, Ella, Billie) from, well, conception. 60s and 70s pop in the car, old standards on the piano. Elvis, Beatles, J5, the Temps, Martha Reeves, Gladys Knight, Marvin Gaye, Four Tops, Mersey Beat on my cherished transitor radio. 80s, alternative, esp. jangly guitars like REM and the Connells. Late 80s ventured into country/western briefly cause the pop scene was so dire. 90s, started exploring Irish and Scottish music. Discovered the library as a source. Discovered Chris Smither. Scottish led to Breton. Friend introduced me to Scandinavian, which in turn taught me how to listen to hard rock. Friend introduced me to Marta Sebestyen and Musikas, which kicked off a spree of Hungarian, Romanian, Jewish and Romani. George Harrison died and I realized that I didn't understand enough about rock guitar, which led to old blues, British blues, Bob Dylan, etc. 2002, stopped thinking "I do/don't like this music" and replaced it with "I haven't learned how to listen to this yet." Except for insipid pointless pop. 2003, moved to Scotland, can't find a Scandinavian source, have a brilliant one for lower eastern Europe. But hey, Old Blind Dogs are practically the house band.

Joined: 9/30/2007

Msg: 17 (view)

Do You Dig The Blues? Posted: 12/4/2007 3:32:11 PM
Henry Thomas, Blind Teddy Darby, Son House, Ma Rainey, Memphis Minnie. Janis Joplin, Allman Brothers Band, Derek & the Dominoes (aka EC & DA), John Mayall. Chris Smither.

Joined: 9/30/2007

Msg: 24 (view)

What the h*ll do I do...? 5 years and now what? Posted: 12/4/2007 6:58:27 AM
Zan -- After reading through your return responses in this thread, I'm impressed by your awareness and maturity in a very complicated situation. You're learning to trust yourself and to not take responsibility for what she did and continues to do. Good on you for that, it's not easy. A lot of what you describe are the classic control dynamics of an abusive relationship. Perhaps reading some of the stories from people who've lived through that will help you understand what happened a bit more. If you're inclined to do that, speak about it with your counselor. Be kind to yourself, you deserve a bit of that at last.

Joined: 9/30/2007

Msg: 347 (view)

People who just write how are you Posted: 11/26/2007 9:18:11 AM
People have different conversational styles and norms of etiquette. Relationships and friendships tend to work best when there's a reasonable match. "How are you?" doesn't match the OP's preferences, it goes well with others'. This isn't a right/wrong issue, just different ways of doing things. I think we all need to remember that a bit more.

Joined: 9/30/2007

Msg: 107 (view)

Is it really that difficult to find a suitable partner? Posted: 11/19/2007 11:00:23 AM
If you (the OP or anyone else) want to analyze relationship difficulties in terms of societal changes, it's vital to include more than you list. Those prepackaged meals provide calories but little of the nutrients our bodies and brains need to function correctly. So what do we get? Anxiety, depression, stress, exhaustion, irritability, anger, weepiness, forgetfulness, diabetes, heart problems, weight problems, and so on. If we ate better, we'd also be able to love better. And then there's advertising and our 'entertainment.' That's all about creating artificial needs, stressing us out and telling us over and over again that whatever we have isn't good enough. And that crisis is what keeps the plot-line going. In that sort of psychological climate, how on earth are we ever going to realize that we don't actually need anything more? Contentment doesn't sell goods, dissatisfaction does. And our relationships are just collateral damage to that process.

Joined: 9/30/2007

Msg: 74 (view)

Dumped because my children are of mixed racial heritage Posted: 11/16/2007 7:51:27 AM
Back to Dawn's original question: Your best approach will depend on the level of racism in your region. If it's bad, and you're likely to encounter this sort of thing over and over again, then for your own sanity, you'll probably need to state it up front to weed out the jerks. But for a lot of people, it's no big deal. If you're meeting these folks, then don't make a big deal of it yourself. One man was a jerk to you, but he was just one man. When people break up, they tend to grab some tangential aspect and give that as the reason. Occasionally, it actually bears a passing resemblance to the truth. %-)

Joined: 9/30/2007

Msg: 10 (view)

Ireland and Scotland - woman traveling single? Posted: 11/16/2007 3:23:10 AM
Most U.S. Americans will be astonished by the places in Scotland you can get to via public transport. Not everywhere, but far more than a holiday's worth. Plenty of small hotels, B&Bs and hostels. They'll have info on bus, train and ferry schedules. All that info is also on the net, so it's easy enough to plan from home. And there are lots of pretty wee towns on train lines, remnants of Victorian-era holidaying, and often in gorgeous countryside. In my experience, it's far easier to travel that way if you don't know the country than all of the bother of renting and fueling a car. The long history of standing against the English left nearly all of Scotland's castles in a bad way. Most of the restorations turned them into 19th/early 20th century country manors. There are ruins all over, particularly along the coasts. Dunnottar Castle, near Stonehaven (NE, below Aberdeen), is one of the most interesting. Of the restorations, Eilean Donan (west coast, above Glasgow) is supremely picturesque. http://www.dunnottarcastle.co.uk/ http://www.eileandonancastle.com/ If you like cities, Edinburgh is a must. On the other coast, the Highland landscape is amazing. You have to be in it to get a real sense of the space and the role it's played in Scottish history.

Joined: 9/30/2007

Msg: 18 (view)

The Traveling Wilburys Posted: 11/15/2007 4:02:31 PM
"The whole experience was just some of the best days of my life really. I think it probably was for us all. The thing I guess that would be hardest for people to understand is what good friends we were. It really had very little to do with combining a bunch of famous people. It was a bunch of friends that just happened to be really good at making music." Tom Petty http://www.milkandcookies.com/link/78770/detail/ Mutual respect, enjoyment and playing off of each other are usually at the centre of music. This whole ego thing is an aberration, part of the A&R market-share driven shift away from making music in the kitchen with your friends. The Wilburys succeeded, in part, because they gave that back to us for a moment. But they're not alone. That kind of thing happens all the time in jazz and trad scenes. Real musicians thrive on good company.

Joined: 9/30/2007

Msg: 124 (view)

I don't do separated... Posted: 11/4/2007 7:28:44 AM
Yes, you are biased. You're making a lot of assumptions about an individual and the state of his psyche based, not even on your own experience, but on your imagination, and apparently your religion. Just be aware that that's what your doing. Your choices speak only about you.

Joined: 9/30/2007

Msg: 12 (view)

just got a slap in the face... Posted: 10/23/2007 5:51:51 AM
Sounds like you've been fortunate enough not to have gotten dumped too many times. As someone who has, perhaps a few of my observations might help. It's normal to take all of that hurt and emotion and center it around one aspect. Psychologically, it's a way of saying 'I can handle this, it just hurts this much because of x.' But it usually really does just hurt that much. But focusing on that one aspect can feed the hurt and prolong it. The best way through it is to acknowledge and accept that it's rough. And that it will ease soon enough. The truth is that people routinely lie during break-ups. Often they're not even sure of all the reasons themselves at the time, let alone have the self-awareness to talk about them cogently during a painful conversation. Perhaps she did lie, but probably she was as honest with you as she could be at that time. What you don't need right now is to see her status changes and news feeds on Facebook. Somewhere in your settings is a place to control what comes through on the news feed. Or you may even want to take it a step further and either use Facebook less or de-friend her temporarily. Trust me, it's brutal trying to get over someone who's been a part of your daily life when you don't have the space to get used to the new reality. Hang in there. After the world ends a few times, your brain starts to learn that it keeps on going. Best of luck. -hug-

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