But they are often conflated (which I suspect you already realize). Sometimes they are conflated by the person espousing the hate, because they unfairly blur the distinction. And sometimes they are conflated by those being castigated, because they are also unfairly blurring the distinction.
Meaning, yes, some people hate Israel because they are anti-Semitic.
And, yes, some people claim that a criticism of Israel, or an Israeli person, is anti-Semitic, even though the ire has nothing to do with their religion.
It’s certainly logically possible for a person to hate “all Israelis” without hating “all Jews.” But let’s be real: in the Venn diagram of those two populations, the “hates all Israelis” circle is entirely inside the “hates all Jews” circle.
And also, the “upset with actions Israel takes” circle is largely disjoint from both of those, and includes a lot of Israelis, Jews, and Jewish Israelis.
The frustration for many in the camp, however, is when we are told that it is antisemitism that we are speaking.
I’m not an antisemite. My mom was Jewish, so technically I am too (A Rabbi told me so). I’ve attended many a Seder. I’ve known hundreds of Jewish people, and had good relationships with dozens.
But Israel is committing war crimes, its prime minister is a criminal, and I think the war with Iran is a reckless campaign that won’t end well.
It should be easy to raise those criticisms without being suspected of bigotry. But it’s not.
I don’t have @Moriarty’s ethnic cred, but I share his attitude.
When criticism of the actions of the Israeli government of the day is considered “proof positive” of anti-Semitism, something very important is lost from the debate. Lots of excluded middle going on there.
And yes, there are insincere bad actors whose motivations for criticising the Israeli government are rooted in ethnic hatred.
I don’t hate America or all Americans. But I sure have a lot of negative things to say about the US government of the moment. If those two ideas cannot be kept separate in the minds of intellectually honest people, we’re all doomed to an endless cycle of misattributed anger and ever hotter animosity growing to unthinking hate.
Because it is a microstep to go from “We are deporting you because you criticize Israel, which means you are anti-Jew” to “We are deporting/banishing you because you criticize the U.S. which means you are anti-American”.
Please, tell us more!
Also, would you prefer Jew hater?
Because, as I said up-thread, you went from wanting to attack Israel directly to attacking Jews so what are we supposed to conclude?
I think context matters - I was pretty clearly referring to Israel and supporters of Israel. I mean, yeah, it’s a Jewish state, as it was conceived and created (through violence, I would add). I can’t change facts, no matter how much you want me to. I wasn’t referring to all Jews the world over.
As I said, it’s a Jewish state. That I cannot change.
Did we or did we not have a US Senator in an interview this week talk about a duty to protect Israel? Because God or something? Surely he’s not the only Senator/Congressman, either. Inaccurate interpretations of Genesis aside, that’s a common justification for our defense of Israel.
My posting history is short and limited but I challenge you or anyone to find a thread/post in which I insult the Jewish faith (aside from my general skepticism of all religion). I’m pretty sure any ‘antisemitism’ on my part is in the context of Israel/Zionism/AIPAC.