Oh No Jew Di'nt!
Hear about those two South Carolina GOP officials who wrote that op-ed defending Senator Jim DeMint? Oh, man, with friends like these.
If you haven't read it yet, here's the opener by Edwin O. Merwin, Jr. and James S. Ulmer, Jr.:
Recently your newspaper published a letter from state Rep. Bakari Sellers attacking U.S. Sen. Jim DeMint and his opposition to congressional earmarks. There is a saying that the Jews who are wealthy got that way not by watching dollars, but instead by taking care of the pennies and the dollars taking care of themselves.
That can't really be a saying, can it? I mean, with that tortured sentence structure? A cursory search of the internets reveals that it was apparently Ben Franklin who said the actual phrase that Merwin and Ulmer think they're quoting: "Take care of the pennies and the dollars will take care of themselves." But, as you can see, no Jews mentioned. Let's keep digging...
Seems Lord Chesterfield used the phrase in a letter to his son in 1747. "Take care of the Pence, for the pounds will take care of themselves." No Jews mentioned here either. Drat. Can never find an anti-Semite when you need one (Ed. Note: this is not actually a true statement).
If William Safire were still alive he would surely remind his compatriots in political rightery that George Bernard Shaw wrote, in Pygmalion, "Take care of the pence and the pounds will take care of themselves is as true of personal habits as of money." No Jew here either. But, then again, Shaw also said that most of the victims of the concentration camps had died of overcrowding, so maybe he had Jews on his mind.
Merwin and Ulmer are perpetrating an old and insidious form of anti-Semitism that points a crooked finger at the Jews who apparently only care about money. Deny it if you want, but that's the subtext of this so-called "saying" that the firm of Merwin and Ulmer have invented (they do sound like a Jewish accounting firm, don't they?).
When I was ten years old, some kids gathered around me in the schoolyard and threw pennies at me. They yelled, "Pick up the penny, Jewboy." I was confused because I didn't know what that meant. Another kid told me that it means that Jews like money. Still confused, I answered, "Doesn't everyone?"
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Q: How was copper wire invented?
A: Two Republicans fighting over a penny.
How do you like that stereotype Mr. Republican?
Saying that Jews watch their pennies and the dollars take care of themselves is a bad thing? Geez I wld think any person of wealth wld wear that statement like a badge of honor. I wld love to hear people say that about me. The Jews in this country have figured it out and that is why they are so deservedly successful. They stress education and building wealth and there is nothing wrong with that is it? I understand the historical bigotry for Jews and money but thats the bigots prblm not the Jews. Our media is too sensitive when it comes to statements about Jews.
Thanks for letting your inner bigot shine. Talking about supposedly penny pinching Jews is no different than talking about supposedly lazy, watermelon and fried chicken eating blacks. I suppose you don't have a problem with that stereotype either.
Meant to say Franken bill... oops
That's a pretty funny typo in a comment on an Anti-Semitism article. :)
And 30 republicans voted AGAINST the Frankel bill and FOR women not being able to sue/fight the contractors/companies if rape occurs.... what a group a' guys!
If Jews pay an inordinate amount of attention to money matters, I said ...if , as the statement is by no means settled as being true, it is because of Christians and the persecution of Jews during the Middle Ages and later. The Jews had to amass money as the only way to protect themselves. They could usually buy their way out of danger.
In the dark past, most Europeans made their living through agriculture. A few joined guilds and became artisans. In most places, Jews were not allowed to own land or join guilds, so they became money lenders and bankers. Thus in the eyes of Jew-hating gentiles, the Jews were seen as preoccupied with the acquisition of money. It was a Catch-22 situation. We hate you so we will deprive you of most opportunities. Now we hate you because you love handling and amassing money. So persecution and blind hatred is really at the center of the false perception of Jews as being stingy or in love with money. However, I've never heard about Jews buying their way out of danger in the Middle Ages. Could you provide some examples? BTW, the concept of Jews in the here and now paying an inordinate amount of attention to money matters is most definitely settled as being FALSE. Jews pay exactly the same amount of attention to money as everybody else does and only an anti-semite would suggest otherwise.
"Two Republicans walk into a bar..."
Apparently, if you are not White, Baptist and Republican, you are fair game in the South. And these politicians will be reelected by...White, Baptist Republicans. It will take a few more generations for these people to realize that they are not the center of the universe.
And it will be a mind-shattering experience.........
Wow, how can these guys, in such a "prestigious" position, be so stupid as to even utter such nonsense - much less have it PUBLISHED? I tell my 11 year olds every day; stay young - children are much smarter than adults.
The GOP's Motto: Equal Opportunity Offenders.
We offend indisciminately, without regard to race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, age, disability, marital status, or health condition.
Nailed it. And they love doing it. We offend zealously.
Well, there you have it, folks: more creepiness/stupidity from South Carolina! There must be something wrong with that state, seeing as to how they've given us Mark Sanford, Jim DeMint, Joe Wilson, and now this.
first of all, "kids say the darndest things"
i bet i can now say they have lost the Jewish vote!
The republicans seem to be cursed with "Tin Ears." How much judgment (10%?) do you think it take NOT to make such a stupid inflammatory statement. It's lucky for us that they are not in charge. They are totally incompetent.
I would not not dumb this sort of mentality entirely upon Rs and Southerners when it comes to making such comments.
One day at a meeting, a woman I worked with said, "the biggest problem I have are these folks who dailly try to Jew me down regarding their charges."
As I sat there waiting for reactions from a room full of African American's, people of color, immigrants,-nothing was said until I did and made it clear I had no interest in tollerating such racist commentary and called it right on the spot. I was not only disgusted with this woman but with the rest in the room who sat their and thought nothing and/or enough of it to say a word.
The fact the owners were Jamaican and of Jewish decent made it that much more disturbing/puzzling. I asked those in the meeting if they would have remainded silent if this woman had used the N-word?
There is an "acceptance" on a certain level by some when such comments are made about people of Jewish decent that I have always found strange.
On this site which would def. be considered liberal and left, some of the comments regarding Jews are simply vile.
This is a perfect example of a silent/unspoken/"acceptable" racsim that exists towards Jews.
The rest of the people probably just wanted to be done with the meeting (which doesn't sound too charming) and get the heck out of there. You could have then pulled the woman aside and expressed your displeasure over her statement.
It's possible that the others were just using good manners by not inflaming her faux pas or taking the meeting off topic.
Maybe, maybe not but fail to beieve that allowing someone in a work place to use such lanquage is not only unacceptable but is just cause for termination.
Seems to be ill manored to allow someone to get away with that without calling it on the spot.
Had she used a slur that involved the N-word-doubt the room full of African Americans wd. have let it slide or waited to pull her aside.
dif. tactics for dif. folks but wd. do it again as I did.
That is why this type of behavior cannot be tolerated. No off color jokes are okay to slide by and certainly no "good-old-boy" humor.
Perhaps they thought the same thing as you, but didn't say anything because they thought it would be inappropriate. I remember a Miss Manners kind of advice column where the etiquette authority said you wouldn't call someone on that type of comment, but try to steer the conversation in another direction and then bring it up with the person later. I didn't agree with her. I figure if you're going to be offensive in public, then someone is with in their rights to put you in your place. Some people are so stupid that they don't realize the phrase they are repeating is racist. I guess it is better to be stupid than hateful, if you had to pick one.
The problem for the poor Republicans is that most of them can't recognize racism if it bites them on the nose. They have been buried in it so long that they remain clueless to the signs.
It's as if they have been asleep since desegregation and they wake up and go about interacting as if nothing has changed. Back then people would say "I'm not prejudiced, I just don't like (pick a race other than white). They have learned that one can no longer be so ouvert, but even sometimes (see topic of article) even this escapes them.
"Jew him down" would be at least one old phrase for bargaining. Probably not PC now -- and that Miss South Carolina-esque tortured sentence cannot be passed off as a phrase.
I always thought the phrase was "Drew Him down" as in I drew him down in price, I later learned that it was in fact "Jew him down" and I was horrified. Such an offensive term, no confusion in "N" Word Rich though.
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