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Culture War Roundup for the week of December 26, 2022

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Anti-Semitism: A few random counter-points

It's become a common 'noticing' game in alt-right spaces, to go to the early life section of the anti-white and/or pro-degeneracy figure de jour; and role the mental dice on what feels like a 50% chance of a Jewish family popping up. Kushner's allegedly subversive role in the Trump administration is thought of similarly. At the same time, I keep noticing that a similar pattern seems to have been developing for a while on the other side. Take the following data-points:

Strongest Anti-Immigration Trump Official: Steven Miller (He's now running the only Republican Super-PAC I can remember specifically attacking anti-white discrimination)

Most influential social media right-winger: Libs of Tiktok

Most radical far-right academic: Amy Wax (who invited Jared Taylor to dine with her Law school students)

Also worth mentioning: Roy Unz, Paul Gottfried, David Cole, Darren J Beattie, Amanda Milius.

It seems that the small contingent of genuinely pro-western Jews do some pretty heavy lifting. It would be interesting to look into whether there are any salient factors seperating them from the sea of their left-wing or open-borders libertarian counterparts. Amanda Milius I believe posted something about the dividing line being whether they had been settlers vs immigrants but a cursory look doesn't exactly confirm this thesis.

It's also worth noting that the Jewish counter-examples you raise have themselves far higher than average anti-Semitic views. Ron Unz, Paul Gottfried, David Cole, et al. share critiques of Jewish influence with the alt right. Ron Unz is a "Holocaust denier" and probably more anti-Semitic than than the average alt-righter, owing to his depth of knowledge. David Cole is also a Holocaust denier (although he'll try to distance himself from the term, he is one according to any mainstream authority on that label). Gottfried has been influential on the alt-right and hits many of the same criticisms of Jewish influence (i.e. in the Neo-conservative movement) and zionist hypocrisy, which are standard fare on the DR.

Jewish anti-semitism is an interesting phenomenon. It's a phenomenon the DR recognizes and appreciates, because obviously in-group criticism is going to have a greater force of credibility than an out-group criticism. But overall I would say it lends credibility to so-called "anti-semitic" views that the most "pro-western Jews" are more likely to sympathize with and agree with alt-right critiques which are called "anti-semitic."

Yes, modern orthodox Jews and traditionalist Catholics are way overrepresented among high-profile conservatives. It doesn't take much explanation, incidentally, as to why- Jews are generally a very successful bunch, and traditionalist Catholics maintain what even progressives recognize as the highest-quality nonwoke education system, and they both have obvious reasons for being on the right.

The question the alt-right is, I suspect, more interested in awakening in viewers of that particular noticing, is why Jews are so interested in progressive lunacy. Like from a statistical perspective you should expect lots and lots of Jewish DNC figures who are firmly establishment and are very important, but they prefer to give the frontseat to blacks and be most prominent in farther left groups, many of them outside the overton window?

I think that's a steelman of the "early life check" meme. Not "why are Jews so prominent", but "why are they so overrepresented among, specifically, anti-white and pro-deviancy activists, when you'd expect them to be firmly politically moderate".

and traditionalist Catholics maintain what even progressives recognize as the highest-quality nonwoke education system

I think you overestimate the proportion of traditionalist Catholics. Most Catholic schools are absolutely overran by a "woke" ideology and have been for a long, long time. Traditionalist schools are only getting off the ground now and suffer from a lack of qualified educators or downright silliness as a result of that demographic, e.g. teaching creationism.

Like from a statistical perspective you should expect lots and lots of Jewish DNC figures who are firmly establishment and are very important, but they prefer to give the frontseat to blacks and be most prominent in farther left groups, many of them outside the overton window?

I suspect the answer has to do with politics and education. To the first, you earn credit with trendsetters and opinion makers on the left if you platform people who they also support. To the second, you would naturally raise up the voices of the seemingly-oppressed if you've been taught that it's immoral for them to suffer because they don't get enough support.

If a group is generally smarter than average, of course members of that group will be represented at high levels of any endeavor.

This is more or less my take. One can see parallels with a lot of historical political movements, a disproportionate number of jews on both sides, but perhaps not when IQ/Social status is taken into account.

https://www.thejc.com/news/world/when-jews-backed-a-fascist-mussolini-king-victor-emmanel-1.451099