Survivor

I am taking a class on anti-Semitism in college. So expect more updates. I know people are practically wetting themselves waiting for updates here... I do feel more inspired. I might even return to YouTube and post my videos... IF I have enough time. Being in college gives me information to work with, but it reduces my time. Anyhow, you'll notice the title of the post is "Survivor". I could come up with something more clever, but I think it gets the point across nicely. What point? The fact that it's amazing I'm Jewish. My girlfriend, too. As well as at least two people in my class (gotta love those Star of David necklaces). There's even a whole Jewish Club here. Why is this so amazing? Consider the history of the Jewish people. We were expelled from our homeland. We've been the minority.. well... pretty much everywhere. When the Christians got power, the Christian leaders such as Augustine said it's okay to kill the Jews, just don't annihilate us. He made a charming cattle comparison. We shouldn't be wiped out because we are witnesses to what happened in the Old Testament, but we can definitely be slain. We are being punished by G-d, after all. Do G-d's work, kill a Jew today! ...Yeah. The point is, we Jews have never exactly been welcome. If they didn't kill or expel us, then there was forced conversions. I could imagine some Jews converting without being forced just because how difficult it is to be Jewish. Even today, there are people who are Jewish by blood only- they have no personal attachment to the religion. Oh, and there's the issue of the Jews converting people. Mostly, it has been forbidden. Even now, we don't make it easy- we wait for people to come to us, and then we make sure they really want to..
How could I forget the Holocaust? They estimate 6 millions Jews were killed, I think the number has to be bigger. Considering it all, it's amazing there are any Jews left. I don't know if I have a direct lineage from the ancient Hebrew tribes, but the luck... perseverence.. whatever it is.. of my ancestors is amazing so that I could be here, Jewish, against all the odds.

Jew Online

Strange. In real life I wear my kippah but people barely notice me. I'm compared to a ninja. (Ninja Jew is my unofficial codename). People barely even notice I'm Jewish. Sometimes they'll be sitting next to me, and strike up a conversation, and launch into a rant about Jews and Israel. I just sit there, giving them a stony glare, finally announcing my religion, and then leave. I'm not as bold a debater as I am online- then again, people aren't as vicious as they are online. I've rarely been called kike, but I get called it online so often you'd think it was my first name. (It's Kai, people. Kai.) And then all the comments I hear online about what a great thing the Holocaust was and how they'd like to do that again? Never heard it in person. Maybe it has something to do with my stature (I'm over six feet). Maybe it has to do with the fact that it's mostly 13 y/o boys and they're probably not stupid enough to approach an adult man and say that to him. If they are, well, it's Darwin Awards time. So, when online, I try to only say stuff I'd say in person. No bluffs or hiding behind a screen. Yet, I do act differently online. One noticable way I act differently is my Jewish identity. Day to day, I'm pretty mellow about it- doing what I need to do on Shabbat, wearing my kippah, avoiding bacon attacks. I don't really bring it up in conversation except with other Jews. But online, I must talk about it. I give myself screennames that make it obvious (IceJew). I add taglines onto my comments that make it obvious (Your token Jewish commenter). I even slip it into the comments themselves (Mm that looks tasty- too bad it's not kosher!). Part of it is that I'm acting as a crusader. Another part is... I like being the token Jew. There was one website that I was the token Jew at... I abandoned it.. I need to go back. But anyway, somehow I like sharing the Jewish experience with everyone. Being the token Jew. Showing we're normal. Maybe locating another Jew who's been lurking on the comment boards. On the intertubes I really want people to know that there is a Jew online.

Attacked From Without and Within

Anti-Semitism is not subtle in the world. I scanned through some political cartoons, and Jews, especially Israelis, were not always shown favorably. I'm not sure if I should feel sorry for the Palestinians, sometimes I feel they are victims, but I also think they are victims deliberately offered up by the Muslim world. I think this cartoon shows it well: http://cagle.com/news/Horsey_Pulitzer/Horsey/cartoon20020425.gif
The same cartoonists who showed Israel negatively on such topics as the evacuation of the Gaza strip showed Mel Gibson as evil for his comments about the Jews (0ften comparing him to Hitler). So either these cartoonists dislike Israel but support the Jews, or they're whores to the public opinion.
I've always debated with myself if the hatred I experience daily is because of being Jewish, or because of Israel. Well, considering that hatred of Jews is a long-standing tradition, way before Israel, it's the Jews. I think part of the problem with Israel is that we Jews finally have power, and they resent that. I think public opinion-wise, we'd be better off without Israel (because we'd be the victims), but when I say victim, I mean probably the victim of another genocide or slowly picked off by the Muslims, and our sacred sites destroyed. So, survival-wise, we wouldn't be doing so great without Israel.
Now, for everyday, average person opinion of Jews and Israel. This is all stuff I've heard personally, either online or face to face.
"The negative opinion of the Jews in the world is their fault, they're sticks in the mud and have backward beliefs" (said to me as I was sitting there wearing my kippah by a woman who continued to rag on the Jews until I finally told her I was Jewish, and she was like, "Oh. Okay". and then changed the topic).
"Any Jews celebrating Christmas are celebrating the birthday of a man they just killed."
"The Jews took Israel because they seem to think the Holocaust will happen again."
"Shut up about the Holohoax already, we don't want to hear your whining."
"The Jews are racist". (Please don't talk to my grandpa.)
"They're all Zionist vampires".
"Jews are subhuman creatures."
"I mean seriously what is up with the hate of the Jews? Jews= people."
"Jews are a funny bunch of people."
"Jews like to kill Palestinian children."
"Baby killers."
"Hahaha did I upset the Juden?"
"Antisemitism if FORBIDDEN in Islam, we recognise people of the Jewish Faith as 'People of The Book' and for many many centuries Jews and Muslims lived side by side (we even settled in Spain together and also throughout the Middle East. We respect Moses and His People. However dirty horrid Politicians cause the problems, not the Jewish people."
"Jews are terrorists."
"This Jew needs to hit the showers!" (Heard many times in different versions, but the message is the same.)
Good enough for a sampling? I included some positive ones so I wouldn't be accused of being a "sterotypical Jew"- which I've heard many times- from anti-Semites- and other Jews. Which brings me to my final section. The seige within. Jews attacking other Jews is bad, but necessary sometimes. Jews attacking other Jews is bad when a Jew is trying to defend his people, as I've done. Strangely, I occasionally get insulted suggesting I give Jews a bad name by what I'm doing. What, saying the Holocaust is bad, wishing for peace, and saying anti-Semitism is strong, and wishing for my people to be respected? Oh, how horrible of me. Sometimes I take a lighter approach to my mission, and get attacked by Jews who don't get it. But what worries me is that many Jews seem to lost sight of themselves altogether. They internalize the hate given to them constantly, it destroys their pride and knowledge of their mission, and instead focus on destroying Muslims. Which, I understand. Muslims are dangerous. But not all. They treat Muslims like we have been treated, and this destroys people's view of us. If we are the Chosen Ones, which I like to believe, but it's a dangerous belief to have, do you think G-d would want us behaving like this? We are supposed to be the example of tolerance and morality. When the Jews fall, what can humanity aspire to anymore? It is a difficult task to be accepting of all religions, to not hate mindlessly, to be the reasonable one in the room, to show compassion to all of G-d's people, but that is our task as the Chosen Ones. I want to restore Judaism to what it is supposed to be. That is my path in life. Respect, to the Jews, from the Jews, within the Jews. I hope to start some kind of revolution. It won't be us vs. the rest of humanity, it will be us vs. ourselves for the sake of humanity. Once we are the Jews we are supposed to be, the world will follow suit in finding their true selves. Within and without, I want to fix the hate.

Faith and the Scientist

Science. Religion. Mutually exclusive? Not if you're a philosopher. I believe in G-d. This seems incredibly ignorant to some people. I believe in evolution and that the universe is 14 billion years old. Not sure if it was created, or not. This does not rule out the existence of G-d. So G-d didn't make everything. So what? What if G-d is just a force that keeps things in balance? What if G-d is human conciousness? What if G-d is our soul? Science does not account for love, for kindness, for why people cut themselves, or how we find inner strength. Maybe the best of human nature is what G-d is. What we all aspire to be. Maybe G-d is hope. Science proves why things are created, and so rule out the role of G-d the Creator. Atheists love to call people like me ignorant for believing in G-d. I don't call them ignorant for refusing to accept the possibility G-d exists. Right now I accept G-d's existence and only debate the nature of G-d. Some days I doubt G-d's existence, but then again I doubt my own existence sometimes. Perhaps the issues for people is thinking of of G-d as an entity, a big man in the sky, when perhaps G-d is a force. There is something that physicists call the "God particle", a Higgs boson particle which gives other particles mass. Without it, we wouldn't exist, and the cosmos would look radically different. So is this G-d? A particle? perhaps. I wouldn't mind. Who even knows what G-d is, so how can you prove G-d doesn't exist? Even if G-d doesn't exist, I would still be Jewish. I will always hold my faith in morality.

Prejudice and the Personal Experience

I deal with anti-Semitism daily. It's my fault generally, I don't hide being Jewish. I mean, I should be able to be Jewish without getting picked on, but sometimes I pick fights online with people that are anti-Semitic. I don't do flaming contests, but I try to prove them wrong, and when that fails, I try to just show the world what fools they are. Sometimes it comes out of nowhere, though. My username on YouTube makes it clear I am Jewish, and sometimes when I put a comment on a video I get people replying to my comment with anti-Semitic hatred, which is not deserved by my comment. I am polite and respectful to all people, but I don't often get the same from them .

To give a more dramatic example of what I am talking about, I will tell you that I was once attacked on the street by a neo-Nazi for being Jewish. So I have lots to be afraid of. But I still try to be decent and kind to all people. Another example of prejudice comes from my own family. My grandpa is German and is a Holocaust survivor. And he's racist. He dislikes my mom because she's Indian and Japanese. He was probably hoping my dad would settle down with a nice white Jewish woman. Well, I'm Jewish, but not white. I have to wonder sometimes if he'd be more affectionate if I were white, want to visit more. Usually my race isn't a problem, just my religion, but it seems neither is really acceptable..

Introduction to Your New Blogger

Blogging... is like writing a long, perhaps unending essay. But it needs an introduction. Here I will tell you about my motivation for writing, my perspective, and give you reasons for reading this blog.

What is my perspective, in short? Well, I'm a Jewish male, 22, Canadian-American citizen from a diverse background. I consider myself a liberal, but I am not strictly so. I am a Conservative Jew, which is not the same as Reform.
Here now I will get a bit into my motivation and stance. I want to educate people on Jews and liberals. Fellow Jews have not looked upon liberals so well, and one threw the Conservative and Reform Jews together and labelled us both liberal (or lefty fundamentalists as he put it). I am not strictly liberal, more moderate, so I am not perhaps the best representation of a liberal. But I am liberal enough to give people an understanding of what one might be, and show them we're not all moonbats. And I will show people what a Jew is. Human. I will try to give people an exposure of what I think's important to notice, but I'm not a news site. However, anything I do say as fact is not pulled out of thin air. I don't lie.

This is a bit of a supplement to my YouTube site; they go together like strawberries and whipped cream (but both are good on their own!). I will be political (but not too much!) and personal (but not much), but mostly philosophical. The things I post are generally my opinions on certain things. They are based in facts and logic (my biggest strength in debating), but all embedded in my personal philosophy and interpretation.

Now, for notes: I am busy working 8 hours a day, 5 days a week (perhaps 6, but never 7!), keeping up with friends, creating art (and right now a project for another blog), and using my YouTube account. Food and sleep fit in there somewhere, but coffee is always a good substitute for both. So, don't expect multiple posts a day. I may not even post every day given my inspiration and energy level (and mood- I decided to keep my personal problems mostly out of this blog, so if I'm having issues, I will just avoid posting).
Please comment, I enjoy all comments, no matter how "stupid" you think they are! I don't expect fame, but if you pass by and something piques your interest, please leave a note! Thank you!

Shalom

This is my first post! How observant of me. I promise, I will soon post much more exciting news, but unfortunately my time is limited as soon I have to leave and take care of some things. This is my first excursion into the world of blogging, so... is everyone ready? That's right, Kai's here! Joos Unlimited forever!