6 ms·

As a Jew, I don't know how I should feel about articles like that these. This is blatantly racist, in a confusing era where we are to acknowledge positive diff

As a Jew, I don't know how I should feel about articles like that these. This is blatantly racist, in a confusing era where we are to acknowledge positive differences among ethnicities, and ignore negative differences. One simply cannot do both. It is fundamentally irrational to, with one hand, speak of how a certain race is superior in some way, while pretending this doesn't imply that other races are inferior in some way. Which is it? This kind of glaring contradiction drives me crazy.

jhbadger 9y ago
If people are saying Jewish humor and culture is something genetic, then that's racist. But Jewishness is a culture in addition to ethnicity. Jewish humor is an aspect of it, much like forms of humor in other cultures. Comparing styles of humor across cultures is perfectly fine.
- js8 9y ago
  I don't think your definition of racism is correct; in modern parlance, racism often includes ethnicity (not to mention that we cannot objectively, based on genetics, define race). Chauvinism would be a more fitting term, anyway. > Comparing styles of humor across cultures is perfectly fine. I also take issue with this. Humor reflects culture, and if you compare different cultures, aren't you stereotyping?
  - 0568p11xf 9y ago
    For there to be different cultures, there must be differences between them - by definition. To compare is to examine differences. If such a rudimentary line of inquiry triggers guilt about "stereotyping", then you ought to take time to examine your words more carefully. If by stereotyping you mean assuming that all Jewish people are comedic in an identical way, no one here is saying such a thing. But unless your head is buried deep in the ground, there is a much-celebrated phenomenon called Jewish humor, and interest in it by non-Jewish people is something to be celebrated, not censored.
mberning 9y ago
In the US at least it is quite fashionable to be espouse vaguely anti-white sentiments. The double standard in this regard irritates me to no end. Most people would not be OK with this were the races in question swapped.
- pfisch 9y ago
  They also don't have cartoons where the hunter gets the rabbit, or the coyote gets the roadrunner.....
anfogoat 9y ago
I've made the same observation and I'm very bothered by it. People who make positive generalisations based on ethnicity clearly have no qualms about judging individuals they know nothing about based on their ethnicity and this is a scary thought when you consider that this describes majority of people in western societies.
vasilipupkin 9y ago
Excuse me, but what you are saying is blatant nonsense. It's a fact that for a while Jewish comedians dominated the comedy scene and it's a fact that the type of humor they used ( and use today ) is unique in its own way. Examining that is not racist. Google what racist actually means.
ryanlol 9y ago
I’m very curious. If this is “blatantly racist”, where do you draw the line on “mildly racist”? Is eating Indian food racist?
- 0568p11xf 9y ago
  Sadly, according to some people (most not Indians), eating Indian food is "racist".
0568p11xf 9y ago
As a Jew, I'm embarrassed when other Jews say things like this. No! acknowledging the existence of Borscht belt comedy does NOT equate to asserting the superiority of the "Jewish Race", nor does it imply the inferiority of anyone else. Not every difference must be binned into superior or inferior, as a Nazi would do. If you don't mind my asking, are you a millennial? I ask because the peculiar worldview expressed by your comments is one I've only encountered in millennials, particularly those who attended college in the last 15 years. A great confusion has been instilled in well-meaning young people about how to regard differences among peoples. Many have accepted without argument the idea that there are no differences between any human beings, because racism. This "idea" is not even wrong, it's a non-sequitir of jumbled reasoning, so it's impossible to argue with. EDIT: after posting this, the classic joke "Ask two Jews, get three opinions" came to my mind, so there it is. If you're Jewish like me, and suffer from such a pinched PC worldview that you can't see the humor in that, then somehow you've missed out. Cheers!

jhbadger 9y ago

If people are saying Jewish humor and culture is something genetic, then that's racist. But Jewishness is a culture in addition to ethnicity. Jewish humor is an aspect of it, much like forms of humor in other cultures. Comparing styles of humor across cultures is perfectly fine.

js8 9y ago
I don't think your definition of racism is correct; in modern parlance, racism often includes ethnicity (not to mention that we cannot objectively, based on genetics, define race). Chauvinism would be a more fitting term, anyway. > Comparing styles of humor across cultures is perfectly fine. I also take issue with this. Humor reflects culture, and if you compare different cultures, aren't you stereotyping?
- 0568p11xf 9y ago
  For there to be different cultures, there must be differences between them - by definition. To compare is to examine differences. If such a rudimentary line of inquiry triggers guilt about "stereotyping", then you ought to take time to examine your words more carefully. If by stereotyping you mean assuming that all Jewish people are comedic in an identical way, no one here is saying such a thing. But unless your head is buried deep in the ground, there is a much-celebrated phenomenon called Jewish humor, and interest in it by non-Jewish people is something to be celebrated, not censored.

mberning 9y ago

In the US at least it is quite fashionable to be espouse vaguely anti-white sentiments. The double standard in this regard irritates me to no end. Most people would not be OK with this were the races in question swapped.

pfisch 9y ago
They also don't have cartoons where the hunter gets the rabbit, or the coyote gets the roadrunner.....

anfogoat 9y ago

I've made the same observation and I'm very bothered by it. People who make positive generalisations based on ethnicity clearly have no qualms about judging individuals they know nothing about based on their ethnicity and this is a scary thought when you consider that this describes majority of people in western societies.

vasilipupkin 9y ago

Excuse me, but what you are saying is blatant nonsense. It's a fact that for a while Jewish comedians dominated the comedy scene and it's a fact that the type of humor they used ( and use today ) is unique in its own way. Examining that is not racist. Google what racist actually means.

ryanlol 9y ago

I’m very curious. If this is “blatantly racist”, where do you draw the line on “mildly racist”? Is eating Indian food racist?

0568p11xf 9y ago
Sadly, according to some people (most not Indians), eating Indian food is "racist".

0568p11xf 9y ago

As a Jew, I'm embarrassed when other Jews say things like this. No! acknowledging the existence of Borscht belt comedy does NOT equate to asserting the superiority of the "Jewish Race", nor does it imply the inferiority of anyone else. Not every difference must be binned into superior or inferior, as a Nazi would do. If you don't mind my asking, are you a millennial? I ask because the peculiar worldview expressed by your comments is one I've only encountered in millennials, particularly those who attended college in the last 15 years. A great confusion has been instilled in well-meaning young people about how to regard differences among peoples. Many have accepted without argument the idea that there are no differences between any human beings, because racism. This "idea" is not even wrong, it's a non-sequitir of jumbled reasoning, so it's impossible to argue with. EDIT: after posting this, the classic joke "Ask two Jews, get three opinions" came to my mind, so there it is. If you're Jewish like me, and suffer from such a pinched PC worldview that you can't see the humor in that, then somehow you've missed out. Cheers!