The New York Post has a story about a couple who was insulted at being called Jews in a Jersey Shore restaurant.

I’m afraid I really don’t understand the outrage over this. Maybe that’s because I’m not a member of any minority group and have, therefore, never really faced racism, but I don’t get why this is offensive.

I have to wonder what Mr. Stein’s grandfather would have to say about the whole thing:

“My grandfather went through all that in old-school Europe,” an angry Stein said yesterday. “But that happened more than 50 years ago. You don’t expect it to happen in 2005, especially when a lot of their money comes from our community.”

So, fifty years ago, in Europe, Mr. Stein’s grandfather had to go through something similar to what Stein’s facing here? Let’s compare, shall we? Fifty years ago, in 1945, Jews were being rounded up and thrown into incinerators. Today, in 2005, Elliot Stein went into a restaurant where the server made a note in a computer system that the order belonged to the “Jew Couple.” I’m really straining to see a comparison there, and I strongly suspect that many of Mr. Stein’s grandfather’s generation would like to punch him in the face for trying to equate the two.

I don’t imagine this is a perfect world, and I know that Jews* (and other minorities) often face a great deal of bigotry even today. I’m not sure that this particular incident provides an example of that bigotry, though, and even if it did, I think it’s unbelieveably stupid for Mr. Stein to equate this with what his grandfather went through in Europe in the first half of the 20th century.

( þ Waiter Rant )

* Judging by some of Waiter’s comments, I gather that “Jew” is apparently considered a derogatory term to some Jewish people, but I’m at a complete loss as to what the less-offensive term might be. Please be assured that I mean no offense, and I’ll happily switch to a less offensive word if you tell me what that might be.

It seems that I have to stop being so vocal about my dislike of North Carolina. The last time I visited, I left with a practically-new Mini Cooper, and now, their lawkmakers have shown signs of sanity:

RALEIGH, N.C. – North Carolina lawmakers have approved a measure that would require courts to give battered spouses something extra when they seek a restraining order — information on how to apply for a concealed weapon.

…

“We’re not interested in them shooting their abusers,” said Paul Valone, president of Grass Roots North Carolina. “We’re interested in delivering a message: When police can’t protect these people, they are capable of protecting themselves.”

Given that we’ve already established that the police aren’t responsible for your protection, I think that educating people who’ve convinced the court that they’re in danger as to how they can get a weapon to defend themselves is a wonderful idea. (Of course, educating people about how they can get a weapon and how to properly use and care for that weapon is always a good idea, in my book.)

( þ Banana Oil! )

On a different topic, I know that this story about the 8th grade students who were doing a science project on BB guns is old news, but I was re-reading the article (it was linked from the one above), and came across this quote:

“The scientific review committee does not consider science projects involving firearms to be safe for middle school students,” Degon said.

I’m sorry, but I’ve been thinking about the BB guns I’ve owned over the years, and not one of them classified as a firearm (which must, by definition, use an explosive charge to propel the ammunition). So, why was this project banned again?

A Jewish settler killed three Palestinians on Wednesday, apparently out of frustration over the pending withdrawal from the Gaza Strip.

It appears this guy was a lone gunman, and that he’s been arrested. There was another incident a while back, and that guy was torn apart by a mob at the scene. There is absolutely no reason whatsoever to believe that there is a major movement to commit violence against the Palestineans. In a situation like this one, it’s not inconceivable that a few people will be pushed past the breaking point.

That said, I hope that Israel prosecutes this guy to the fullest extent of their law, because he committed murder*. Prosecuting murderers instead of celebrating them is absolutely imperative for any society, especially one that is under the kind of scrutiny that Israel faces every day.

Of course, even if they do prosecute this man and any others like him, it’ll matter not a whit to the U.N. General Assembly, which practically passes a resolution after every suicide bomber attack in Israel to condemn the Israelis for not dying in large enough numbers.

( þ Say Anything)

* He committed murder, and he was wrong to do so. I wish I didn’t have to say that. “He committed murder” should imply the second part of that sentence, but there is a huge portion of our society (and societies around the globe) that seem to feel that murder is okay in certain circumstances, like, for example, you’re really angry at the United States or Israel and kill an American or an Israeli Jew.

Kelo v. New London: The gift that keeps on giving!

If New London succeeds on this, it makes things that much worse for property owners. Not only can the government take your property for exceedingly selfish reasons, if you fight, they can make you pay rent for the time you were fighting, and in the end, only give you what (they claim) the land was worth when you started fighting.

This is an extremely bad decision that just keeps getting worse. Makes me glad that my only property is my car.

( þ Accidental Verbosity )

The Plan: While in North Carolina visiting family, stop at the Mini dealership and testdrive a Mini Cooper S.

The Enemy: The salesman at the BMW dealership next door, which had just received their first pre-owned (1k miles) Mini Cooper S Convertible.

Needless to say, the plan didn’t survive first contact with the enemy, and what actually happened is that I ended up driving home with a almost-but-not-quite brand new Mini Cooper.