Absurdistan
The word “antisemitism” acquired magical properties in the 20th century for the same reason that the word “fascism” acquired magical properties. In both cases, they came to mean the worst thing possible. If you wanted to anathematize a political or economic idea, you found a way to compare it to fascism. If you wanted to anathematize a person, then you found a way to accuse them of antisemitism. The meanings of the words were lost in favor of their magical properties.
This has never made much sense in the American context. Fascism in its heyday never gained much of a following in the English-speaking world. There were British fascists, most famously Oswald Mosely. The Irish had the Blue Shirts, who were about hating the British more than loving fascism. Otherwise, fascism was a continental thing. After the war fascism lost whatever appeal it had for obvious reasons. Despite it not being a thing in America, the right people worry about it more than ever.
The same can be said of antisemitism. America has always been a multicultural and multiethnic society, which is the reason for the distinctive American accent. This is also why racial and ethnic prejudice has been superficial. The more like the core American you look, the less prejudice you experienced. That means blacks experienced a fair bit of prejudice, while Jews or the Irish experienced almost no prejudice. Americans have never been tribal like the rest of the world.
While fascism has remained a cartoon epithet, antisemitism does seem to be catching on in certain parts of the culture. The other day, internet gadfly Brett Weinstein noted that Hitler is making a comeback on Twitter. This was probably in response to fans of Nick Fuentes posting clips of their cult leader saying mean things about Jewish people at one his club meetings. The usual suspects took the opportunity to pretend they are the victims of this easily ignored carnival act.
Despite the absurd claims of the anti-anti-semites, talking negatively about Jewish people does seem to be on the rise. At this point, the only reason anyone has to pay attention to Nick Fuentes is his ranting about the Jews. His time in the Kanye West entourage was highlighted by him and Kanye West on the Alex Jones show praising Hitler for killing Jews. Recently he has been ministering to the black people, preaching the good news about Hitler.
Putting aside the weirdness of this, the most interesting aspect of the new antisemitism is the shallowness of it. The old school antisemites put far more time into making it into a worldview and theory of history. Mike Peinovich, formerly Mike Enoch, has used Kevin MacDonald’s books to create a political movement as well as a detailed framework for interpreting history and current events. Nick Fuentes, in contrast, is simply claiming Christ commands him to purge Jews from society.
Putting the Fuentes version next to the Peinovich version and you see that the former is dumber but reaching a broader audience than the latter. Black YouTube was perfectly fine with giving Fuentes the “N-word” pass just so he could preach the gospel about the Jews on a show debating the holocaust. In fairness, blacks have always had an uneasy relationship with Jews. Jesse Jackson’s “Himey Town” comment is an example, but it has always been in the shadows. Now it is in the open.
It is easy to dismiss the concerns of someone like Brett Weinstein because we have been hearing it for decades. No one alive today has lived in a time when the usual suspects have not been calling someone Hitler. Their cries about Fuentes and his Mexican Hitler act sound like more of the same. On the other hand, it does feel like this is different than the past. While the old school guys remain buried by the system, these new school guys are not getting the same treatment.
One reason for this is Fuentes is the digital John Stewart, who used bathos and pathos to insert subversive messages into the mainstream. Fuentes is doing the same thing but on the new digital platforms. Like his target audience, Fuentes has grown up socialized by the internet, so he is comfortable communicating in short clips, using a combination of sarcasm and seriousness to make his point. Fuentes can connect with black YouTube because they speak the same language.
There is something else going on here. While the old school antisemites were serious in their politics, hoping to create a mass movement around their message, the new school guys are anything but serious. This is Generation Clown World fully trained to live in the clown world bequeathed to them. The audience for Nick Fuentes or Fresh and Fit would be bored by someone like Kevin MacDonald. Few of them could read his books, because they lack the attention span to read a book.
It may be tempting to dismiss them for this reason, but in a world where Joe Biden is called the “leader of the free world” by people who are supposed to be respectable and sober-minded, the Nick Fuentes act is not so ridiculous. In fact, the whole livestream subculture reflects the decadence at the top. The reason the fans of Fuentes laugh at the scolds waging their finger at him is because those scolds are wearing fright wigs and big red floppy shoes.
In the end, the rise of this new brand of antisemitism is really just another turn of the wheel in a culture that is becoming increasingly absurd. A Mexican livestreamer leading a brown-black alliance against the Jews is just the next ridiculous turn of the wheel in a society that is increasingly absurd and ridiculous. The next turn of the wheel may bring Jewish crossdressers demanding the return of slavery. In Absurdistan, you can let your imagination run wild as long as you like and subscribe.
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