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Having just read it, this sounds like a mental health issue to me. It's well outside the bounds of opinion, even a ridiculous or hateful opinion. I worry that
by version_five 5y ago
Having just read it, this sounds like a mental health issue to me. It's well outside the bounds of opinion, even a ridiculous or hateful opinion.
I worry that people are running to mock this guy because they want to portray these views as the kind of things their opponents actually think, while in reality there is clearly something wrong with him and he may need some compassion. This is not a fringe opinion, there is some problem that's causing him to behave like this.
- seattle_spring 5y agoYou do realize that a non-trivial amount of politicians have publicly made similar claims about the Jews? It's not like this is some isolated incident.
- LudwigNagasena 5y agoCan you name some politicians that claimed that the COVID-19 vaccine is part of a plot by "the Jews" to exterminate people or something similar?
- woofyman 5y agoMajore Taylor Green thought Jewish space lasers started the California fires https://nymag.com/intelligencer/amp/article/marjorie-taylor-greene-qanon-wildfires-space-laser-rothschild-execute.html https://nymag.com/intelligencer/amp/article/marjorie-taylor-...
- kthejoker2 5y agoRon DeSantis spokeswoman https://www.thedailybeast.com/florida-governors-press-secretary-christina-pushaw-walks-back-rothschild-dog-whistle-tweet-after-backlash https://www.thedailybeast.com/florida-governors-press-secret... Arizona State Senator Wendy Rogers https://www.azcentral.com/story/opinion/op-ed/laurieroberts/2021/07/20/sen-wendy-rogers-picks-up-white-supremacists-theme-song/8028670002/ https://www.azcentral.com/story/opinion/op-ed/laurieroberts/... Ohio US Senate candidate Josh Mandel https://www.haaretz.com/us-news/.premium.HIGHLIGHT-jewish-gop-senate-candidate-blames-soros-and-deep-state-for-covid-19-1.10285407 https://www.haaretz.com/us-news/.premium.HIGHLIGHT-jewish-go... https://ktxs.com/news/local/shackleford-county-gop-chairwoman-defending-meme-making-light-of-floyd-protests https://ktxs.com/news/local/shackleford-county-gop-chairwoma... And these are just the outright ones, there is plenty of this stuff at rallies and protests that help fund politicians - there are hardly any condemnations unless it's so blatant it hurts their war chest.
- q1w2 5y agoSen. Wendy Rogers's quote was not about Jews at all. It was about latino migrants (not that that's better). Ron DeSantis spokeswoman isn't, what I would call, a politician - and her quote was specifically about the Rothschild family. Although it's not clear which conspiracy theory she's refering too - many of them (while all irrational) are not anti-semitic. It also doesn't seem to be a serious comment. Your other two links are for a candidate, not an active politician. These are not good examples.
- LudwigNagasena 5y ago>Ron DeSantis spokeswoman There is no direct antisemitism, only some sort of wink-wink dog whistle accusations. >Arizona State Senator Wendy Rogers Demographic concerns are common across the world (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographic_threat https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographic_threat). There is really nothing special about it. And there are always fears of "voter importation". It is not comparable to "Jews want to exterminate others with vaccines". >Ohio US Senate candidate Josh Mandel I guess if he weren't Jewish, he would also be accused of antisemitism because he mentioned Soros? Thankfully for him he ticked the right box when he was born. And yeah, this seems to be the only person who openly articulated conspiracy theories. But again, that's your run-of-the-mill "deep state is puppeteering social movements to keep power", it doesn't look like "similar claims about the Jews".
- tomjen3 5y agoAccording to the article he believed that Jews have managed to take over the Catholic church. We are well past standard conspiracy theories here.
- colechristensen 5y agoMight also be a drug problem, stimulants can make you say/do/think weird things.
- deleted 5y ago[deleted]
- mullingitover 5y ago
- TylerE 5y agoIt really isn't. Most on the far right are very very very pro-Israel.
- trs8080 5y agocitation needed on this. most far right conspiracy theories are antisemitic because they're rooted in white supremacy. "jews will not replace us," qanon, etc.
- CamperBob2 5y agoBecause of Dominionist Christian theology, yes. Not because of any love or respect for Judaism or ethnic Jews.
- zozbot234 5y agoThe Bible tells all of us as Christians to respect Jews as the Chosen People in the Old Covenant with God (HaShem), which indeed remains fully valid as to them-- and Judaism as the way they've chosen to worship Him. This is absolutely scriptural, and valid theology. By definition, people who don't love and respect Jews are falling far short of genuine Christianity.
- mullingitover 5y agoThe far right is a pretty splintered group, and when you look even a little to the right of principled centrists you quickly get into serious horseshoe political theory territory. The 'Bush republicans' are very pro-Israel, but the 'election was stolen, covid is a conspiracy' post-Trump republicans aren't from that generation and aren't nearly as rational.
- ars 5y ago
- olliej 5y agoNah, it's fairly standard anti-semitism. It's not remotely outside the normal bounds.
- simplestats 5y agoIt's not like he was caught by a hot mike or something. This guy widely sent out an emotional email to politicans and others pleading them to consider his "discovery". This in a world where you are advised to never say "you guys".
- olliej 5y agoI'm not sure what you're trying to say here?
- TulliusCicero 5y agoPlenty of otherwise intelligent people have believed in conspiratorial nonsense through history. Especially when that nonsense was about Jews.
- macilacilove 5y ago[flagged]
- neilv 5y agoYeah, my guess would be mental illness. We can say "what person is saying is very wrong" simultaneous with tryign to point that person towards medical care. Mocking someone for bad behavior could have some upside (e.g., maybe it discourages them and others from doing the same). But if we imagine mocking someone with a debilitating illness, that image of ourselves should make us reconsider.
- toss1 5y agoIf it is a mental health issue, then that issue affects a very substantial double-digit percentage of the population, something approximating the count of vax refusers. They don't believe in the same nuttery, but they do subscribe to one of the many flavors of anti-science aggression. What is most fascinating and frightening is that there are many who, rather than understand that the world has serious random phenomena, or at least phenomena that are not yet fully explained (or the explanation is beyond their understanding), would choose to instead of believing scientists who spend their entire lives trying to sort it out, instead believe that there is some evil cabal of people responsible for the misery in their lives.
- raxxorrax 5y agoThis is generalization without substance is very likely part of the road that lead him develop such believes. There are cabals among scientists that need to be questioned. On fossil fuel, tobacco, medical topics and a lot of other issues. Germany had a lot of science on why Jews are inferior. Even scientists have an agency that does not have to align with public interest. Your comment suggests blind faith which is certainly not a good idea. > cabal of people responsible for the misery in their lives conservatives, liberals, rock musicians, the church, homosexuals...
- toss1 5y agoThe generalization has a lot of substance, I'm just trying to be general in order to avoid political flamewars here on HN. I'm referring to the set of right-wingers who are going down the Qanon rathole, and their like in cult-like evangelical groups who are so willfully ignorant as to insist on believing easily disproven conspiracy theories such as flat-earth, chemtrails, antivaxxers, Big Lie, etc. I am absolutely not expecting any kind of blind faith in science, but an understanding of science. I'm talking about genuine debate, not anti-science aggression with the goal of destroying the notion that truth can be known. Voltaire got it right long ago: "Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities." Those people who willfully ignore science for conspiracy theory, etc. are the targets of the leaders of that political wing and other media and online manipulators -- they are being happily led to believe absurdities, and will commit atrocities. One example was exactly one year ago today. There is no reason to expect it will be the last or the least.
- q1w2 5y agoDoes anyone have a link to the original email. I hate reading articles that just take snippets and add their outrage commentary.
- fundad 5y agoYeah it’s here http://Newsmax.com http://Newsmax.com
- q1w2 5y agoI do not see it anywhere on that site. Perhaps the search doesn't work. Can you link it directly?
- fundad 5y agoWrong link, here http://nextdoor.com http://nextdoor.com You need to log in and you can read embarrassing problematic screeds
- q1w2 5y agoWhat does nextdoor have to do with this? Are you just posting random urls?