What The ???

I was over at Townhall.com, trying to see what they thought about the GOP debate, when the title of an article caught my eye. It was called "What is it with Jews and guns?" and it was written by Burt Prelutsky.

Most of the article was a hackneyed GOP recitation of how wacky liberals are (he even used the term wacky). At one point, he says that ...

"We know that leftists oppose capital punishment although I, for one, have never heard a compelling argument why a person who takes one or more lives in cold blood should be spared the ultimate punishment."

I thought about mentioning that the Christian Right says every life is sacred, which is why they oppose abortion, and how that very same argument could be used for capital punishment (the Catholic Church actually opposes both abortion and capital punishment, though you'd be hard pressed to hear that from the religious right). So, either Burt thinks that the Christian opposition to abortion isn't compelling, or he can't follow simple logic.

But what really blew me away was his comments about Jews and guns.

Frankly, having given it some thought, I believe the reason that the Left hates guns so much is because of us Jews. With very few exceptions, we are terribly squeamish around firearms. The fear is totally irrational. It’s not just that we think someone will shoot us with our own gats, but that the guns, themselves, are anti-Semites, and will kill us of their own accord.

Sadly, it’s more than that. They also fear those Americans whom they most closely associate with gun ownership; namely, southern Christians.

Even though America is the most tolerant nation on earth, Jews tend to think if terrible things happened to their ancestors in 15th century Spain and 19th century Russia and 20th century Nazi Germany, it can and will happen here. It’s a form of paranoia. But it’s a very strange form. For as we all know, this is a nation of 300 million. So, wouldn’t you think a minority numbering a mere five million, and in constant fear of pogroms, would spend as much time as possible on the firing range?

The shear idiocy of this cannot be underestimated. First, as a Jew, I'm offended. I don't believe guns are anti-semitic. And I more afraid of the damage self-loathing Jews can do to my fellow Hebrews than our "gats."

Second, Jews by and large tend to live near urban centers, such as New York, Los Angeles and Miami. Those urban centers have been riddled by gun violence. Burt, bubbeleh, maybe Jews have seen the negative side of gun violence, hence their tendency to support gun control. Isn't it possible that Dianne Feinstein's efforts on gun control have more to do with Harvey Milk dying in her arms than Torquemada, eh Bert?

Finally, most Jews I know aren't worried about pogroms here in this country. To even mention this as a possibility shows a warped thinking that goes far beyond dementia. Go to a synagogue, Burt, and you'll hear about problems in Israel, the horrors in Iraq, the genocide in Darfur, and the our dying culture. But pogroms? C'mon. Burt, if you feel the need to sidle up to your right-wing buddies, blather on about tax cuts or something like that, but don't denigrate your own people for a couple of pats on the back.