Ian's suggestion of a new thread on this subject so here it is.
The subject phrase immediately reminded me of Noel Cowards song "The Stately Homes of England":
Our homes command extensive views
And with assistance from the Jews
We've been able to dispose of
Rows and rows and rows of
Gainsboroughs and Lawrences
And those print of Aunt Florence's
Some of which were rather rude...

(Not Googled for accuracy but that's close if not verbatim)

So, the English upper crust, mostly goyim, mostly Protestant.
posted by:
Max
online Max
Portland
  • I'm not sure I can really trust Noel Coward on this issue. It seems to me that his songs are loaded with irony. That's the point of his sense of humor.

    I was thinking of places India which not only boasts several Jewish communities (the oldest of which has been in Kerala for roughly 2,500 years) but has virtually no history of anti-Semitism. Not until the 16th century, when the Portuguese arrived in Kerala did Jews experience persecution in India (the Portuguese also persecuted Kerala's Saint Thomas Christians largely for keeping their rituals too close to Judaism.)

    That was the sort of example I was looking for. ;)
  • Let's not forget the Tibetans.
    • There was, of course, The Dalai Lama's outreach to the Jewish community to seek guidance on how to preserve Tibetan culture in their own world-wide diaspora.

      www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite

      Is there an earlier relationship?
      • China also harbored many Jews during the holocaust and is the only country that has never had one recorded anti-Semitic event ever. To bad the Tibetans and Chinese Maoists have such differences. In a book on the Chinese game of Go (Wei Qi) I am reading, the author Troy Anderson hints that learning and using the strategies of Go may help to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
        • > [Too] bad the Tibetans and Chinese Maoists have such differences.

          The Tibetans never initiated a conflict with China because China was "different."

          The problem is that Maoism is philosophically and ideologically opposed to difference-- as evidenced by a history of violent purges not just to maintain ideological purity of the party but to eliminate any vestiges of pre-Maoist Chinese civilization that cannot be safely sealed into a museum. I have spoken to many a naturalized Chinese-American who has noted that he or she was not free to appreciate the philosophical, literary, and artistic traditions of their own heritage until coming to America.

          > China also harbored many Jews during the holocaust.

          Do you have some citation of this? The Germans never had forces that far East. There were a number of Jewish refugees in China under protection of Japanese forces-- but that was in part because Japanese bureaucrats believed typical anti-Semitic canards about Jewish power, and hoped by showing good will to some Jews, they might be able to get the U.S. to agree to a truce.

          > only country that has never had one recorded anti-Semitic
          > event ever.

          See my above comment about the Jews of India.


          > Troy Anderson hints that learning and using the strategies
          > of Go may help to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

          Please explain.
          • The word "harbored" may not be precisely correct, but Shanghai did accept European Jewish refugees -- first fleeing Russian anti-Semitism and then Nazism specifically -- as well as Mizrachi Jews from Arab countries. According to a quick Google search, a Jewish community in Shanghai was first established by 1850, and ultimately reached a population of 20,000, though most subsequently emigrated to Israel or the U.S. at the end of WWII. There's a reference to a Chabad shaliach in Shanghai in 2003, but I didn't find anything more recent.

            Here's one source >> www.haruth.com/AsiaJewsShanghai.htm
          • Sir, it sounds to me like you are implying it is not bad the Tibetans and Chinese Maoists have such differences. I am not taking sides on this issue but it does seem that the Tibetans just initiated a conflict a few weeks ago. Though the Maoists have not really handled the situation in a productive manner. It is important to understand that China has many local officials and it is the ones near Tibet that are involved in alot of the problems. Much of the Government around the rest of the country does not agree with the handling of the situation. Who's to say that in the long run it will not be really auspicious for Tibet to be a part of China. Like when California became a part of the USA.

            Maybe Troy Anderson means Go can help the Israeli Palestinian conflict because it is a game where you decide who owns what territory, and the invisible hand of G-d is really the deciding factor. I'm not sure why not read the book.

            Let go of your anger and maybe we can find a solution.
            • > you are implying it is not bad the Tibetans and Chinese Maoists have such differences.

              No. I am saying that it is perfectly acceptable that people are different from one another. In addition, I am noting that the source of the conflict is that Maoists have a violent antipathy towards difference even amongst Chinese. The Tibetans are faced with a violent assault on their identity (which the Maoists see as difference from Chinese-Maoist cultural norms.)

              > the Tibetans just initiated a conflict a few weeks ago,

              Did they? Please cite your sources. The Chinese Maoists invaded and occupied their country decades ago and have made a policy of assaulting the culture, the cultural institutions, and the people of Tibet. Why are you blaming the victims?

              > I am not taking sides on this issue

              You just did.

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