Israeli Jews to American Jews: "You're bad jews"

[HVC]

http://www.thestar.com/news/world/article/1096003--why-these-israeli-ads-are-offending-some-north-americans?bn=1

Informative videos made by the government don't typically become YouTube hits.

But a series sponsored by Israeli officials that appears to contrast Israeli Jews with their counterparts in North America raised eyebrows this week after being noted on the website of The Jewish Channel.

The ads, which have been viewed tens of thousands of times each on YouTube, are part of an official campaign by the Netanyahu government's Ministry of Immigrant Absorption to convince Israelis living abroad to come back home.

One ad in Hebrew features a Skype conversation during Chanukah between a child in America and her grandparents in Israel. When the elderly couple ask her what holiday it is, the girl answers, "Christmas!"

Another shows a young Jewish woman, "Dafna," reading sadly about Israel's memorial day for fallen soldiers online, while her boyfriend (clearly American, possibly Jewish as well) pays no attention.

"I don't think I have ever seen a demonstration of Israeli contempt for American Jews as obvious as these ads," Atlantic national correspondent Jeffrey Goldberg wrote this week. "These government-sponsored ads suggest that it is impossible for Jews to remain Jewish in America."

Sarah Barmak

Seige, your brethern are judging you

[crazy canuck]

Not sure the Israeli government has thought out the consequences of losing the Jewish vote within American politics. 

Be careful what you wish for.  If all those voters move to Israel who is going to be left to vote for politicians friendly to the Israeli cause in the US.

[Admiral Yi]

Jews try to lay guilt trip.  Stop the presses.

[The Minsky Moment]

The government is so deep into their Faustian bargain with American evangelicals, they could care less what the blowback is.  American Jews, being Jews, are a PITA to deal with - always asking questions, raising issues, providing unwated advice.  The evangelicals are more numerous and less demanding (except that part about wanting Armageddon to engulf the entire state - but most are not in an immediate rush on that).

[DGuller]

Interestingly enough, the ultra-Orthodox Jews living in Brooklyn think the same thing about Israeli Jews.

[fhdz]

Jews try to lay guilt trip.  Stop the presses.

[Valmy]

Not sure the Israeli government has thought out the consequences of losing the Jewish vote within American politics. 

Be careful what you wish for.  If all those voters move to Israel who is going to be left to vote for politicians friendly to the Israeli cause in the US.

You really think support for Israel here is driven by Jews?  LOL

[Habbaku]

they could care less

[Razgovory]

The government is so deep into their Faustian bargain with American evangelicals, they could care less what the blowback is.  American Jews, being Jews, are a PITA to deal with - always asking questions, raising issues, providing unwated advice.  The evangelicals are more numerous and less demanding (except that part about wanting Armageddon to engulf the entire state - but most are not in an immediate rush on that).

The current Israeli government is bonkers.

[Valmy]

The current Israeli government is bonkers.

All this time in the Middle East is rubbing off on them.

[crazy canuck]

Not sure the Israeli government has thought out the consequences of losing the Jewish vote within American politics. 

Be careful what you wish for.  If all those voters move to Israel who is going to be left to vote for politicians friendly to the Israeli cause in the US.

You really think support for Israel here is driven by Jews?  LOL

Maybe not all support - as JR said there are a lot of Christians in the US hoping for the end times and see Israel as the way to bring it on.  But doesnt it stand to reason that the Jewish vote in some parts of the country is also important to at least some politicians?

[Darth Wagtaros]

The government is so deep into their Faustian bargain with American evangelicals, they could care less what the blowback is.

If they can care less they aren't totally far gone correct??

[Maximus]

They have to counter the influx of Russian Jews somehow.

[Valmy]

Maybe not all support - as JR said there are a lot of Christians in the US hoping for the end times and see Israel as the way to bring it on.  But doesnt it stand to reason that the Jewish vote in some parts of the country is also important to at least some politicians?

In what part of the country is the Jewish vote really significant enough to be that big of a deal?  They are less than 2% of the population and further their largest populations are in the most populous states.  Besides they overwhelmingly vote Democrat and it is not like the Republicans are anti-Israel.

[DGuller]

Maybe not all support - as JR said there are a lot of Christians in the US hoping for the end times and see Israel as the way to bring it on.  But doesnt it stand to reason that the Jewish vote in some parts of the country is also important to at least some politicians?

Maybe in New York or in Florida, but an ideologically divided group of about 5 million in a country of 300 million is not exactly a block with unlimited power.