Wednesday, September 17, 2014

"Jewish group chides Biden for using 'offensive' term"

"Vice President Joe Biden "should have been more careful" in a speech when he used a term that some consider anti-Semitic, the national director of the Anti-Defamation League said Tuesday."
"That's one of the things that he finds was most in need when he was over there in Iraq for a year," Biden said, "that people would come to him and talk about what was happening to them at home in terms of foreclosures, in terms of bad loans that were being...I mean these Shylocks who took advantage of, um, these women and men while overseas."

ADL National Director Abraham Foxman issued a mild reprimand later Tuesday.

The name "Shylock" derives from the name of the antagonist in Shakespeare's "Merchant of Venice." Shylock, a Jew, was a ruthless moneylender in the play, and he's remembered for demanding a "pound of flesh" from the merchant Antonio if he failed to repay a loan.

"Shylock represents the medieval stereotype about Jews and remains an offensive characterization to this day," Foxman said. "The vice president should have been more careful."
All in all, it was a "good thing" that it was VP Biden that suffered the slip of the tongue and not someone higher up the food chain, someone like former VP Cheney.

22 comments:

Eric the Fruit Bat said...

In my opinion, what he said was actually quite offensive, the term "Shylock" so silly it takes out most of the sting.

"I mean these [Jews] who took advantage of, um, these women and men while overseas."

See what I mean?

Calypso Facto said...

Joe always gets a pass: Not guilty by reason of mental infirmity.

Shouting Thomas said...

Watch out!

The Dems are starting to push again for subprime mortgages, along with another prosecutorial jihad against "redlining."

What could possibly go wrong?

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

The outrage mob, always on the look out, has so much on it plate right now, they cant afford to be distracted.

The NFL, the big fish, requires their full attention.


Unknown said...

Biden is a gaffe machine.

He is a total moron and yet the media and the late night comics won't touch him.

Biden makes Dan Quale look like a genius.

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

For the record, I used the worf "mob" as in "mob rule" not in the derogatory term associated with the hard working outstanding Italian American community.

I'm just saying.

The Dude said...

Don't be a bitter Klingon!

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

Oh yea, the NFL shakedown is on.

Unknown said...

I am a bitter Klingon.

Mitch H. said...

Really? Shylocks? Has someone been letting Slow Joe watch Boardwalk Empire again?

KCFleming said...

What are the offended Jews going to do, vote Republican?
Pffft.

They're going to get their Democrat anti-Semitic shit sandwich, and they're gonna like it.

Eric the Fruit Bat said...

The weird thing about Biden is, if you prick him, he does not bleed.

ricpic said...

All Foxman succeeds in doing is to get Jews lumped together with the perpetually offended professional blacks, homosexuals and feminists, in the eyes of the reasonable majority.

The Dude said...

Huh, and all this time I thought he was a role model. Who knew that was an offensive characterization? Pound of flesh sounds about right to me - and these days, it seems like customers could spare a lot more than a pound.

Amartel said...

No big deal, a mere slip of the tongue, so long as it's a Democrat saying the word. Now, now kids: Let's be a little more careful throwing obvious Jewish stereotypes around. In fairness, a "Shylock" could be a greedy grasping medieval moneylender who's Christian or Muslim or Hindu or even Buddhist...

Amartel said...

IT's like when the left calls someone an "Uncle Tom." That could totally be referring to an Asian or Caucasian!

Amartel said...

"The weird thing about Biden is, if you prick him, he does not bleed."

The Biden is made out of play-doh covered in margarine and customized with alarming teefs and distinguished silver hairs.

The Dude said...

...all of which were transplanted from his back.

ken in tx said...

At least he did say these people were 'gyped' by these shylocks.

rcocean said...

I always love the word "chid". Its less than "Criticize" and more than "remonstrated".

English is full of nuance.

rcocean said...

And hey, if "Shylock" was good enough for Shakespeare, its good enough for Joe Biden.

Why is it that Joe Biden is the first in his family ever to go a university? Why is it that my wife... is the first in her family to ever go to college? Is it because our fathers and mothers were not bright? ...Is it because they didn't work hard? My ancestors who worked in the coal mines of northeast Pennsylvania and would come after 12 hours and play football for four hours? It's because they didn't have a platform on which to stand."

rcocean said...

You know the real reason? Its because Joe Biden was the eldest son.