Are Jews On Top In Business?

Radio Record, Volume XII, Issue 25, 2 December 1938, Page 22

Are Jews On Top In Business?

Auckland Jew Thanks "Record" And Makes Observations ... War Doesn't Solve Problems, Says Reader §. Simpson and His Donkey

land): May I thank, @ through your paper, the various people for their expressions of sympathy for the persecuted Jewish people as published in the *"Reeord."’ Anti-semitism is caused by these factors:Ignorance; Prejudice; ‘Personal grievance. ‘Some time ago I talked to a man ‘who was of the opinion that the Jews were gradually gaining control of the wealth of the worl, that there were very few poor Jews. I suggested that was a short-sighted view as there were ‘a large number of Jewish people in Poland living on 8/- a week! He replied that it was noticeable that wherever there were Jews in a country, they were getting to the top of the business world. I asked, "Assuming that it was correct that the Jewish people ‘got ahead in business (and many Jews are in other parts of the world in dire poverty), would that be an excuse for anti-semitism? According to you, all Jews are wealthy, that is why they are being persecuted. Henry Ford is wealthy and not a Jew, but he is not being persecuted. The thousands of authors, poets, singers, artists who are being attacked are not wealthy. Some of the charges levelled against the Jews by their opponents are that the Jews have all the wealth, that they are all communists. Now it is obvious that the Jews cannot all be communists, L K. (Herne Bay, Auck-

when according to some people the Jews are all millionaires. No one will deny that there are wealthy Jews -and communistic Jews, but so there are wealthy Gentiles and communistic non-Jews." Jewish people don’t claim to be différent from other people-all they ask for is the right to live ‘as real people. Of course, there are many attacks made by prejudiced people which I will not dwell on now Sufficient it be that I mention a case several years ago. when someone applied for a position in an Auckland firm. Unknown to the successful applicant it was a Jewish firm. After several weeks the employee expressed his pleasure. at working with such pleasant people. One day the employer asked him had he ever worked with a Jewish firm? The reply was, "No, thank goodness." It was not until several months had passed that he found he had been talking to a Jewish employer. Now, Mr. Editor, may I again, as a Jew, sincerely thank those people for their published messages of sympathy which must be a great encouragement to all Jewish people.

Book Of Joshua Oliver (Te .Awamutu): I think all New Zealand will be with you in your sympathy for the Jews in their time of persecution and need. One wonders when the Jewish question is again prominent, how rauch truth there is in the history of the Jews as given to us as an inspired work in the Old Testament. From the time of Abraham they seem to have formed a habit of getting out of one country into

another. From Ur by devious day to Palestine, from Palestine to Egypt, from Egypt to the Desert, from the Desert back to Palestine, then from Palestine to the many lands of the earth. Their history is an unlovely one, and perhaps ‘your readers might once again read the Book of Joshua. What an unmerciful people they were, ‘Their ferocious cruelty matches anything I have ever read about, and to people who never did them any harm, or even ever saw them before. Is the Book of Joshua authentic? Did the Jews ever act in this manner? Or has something dastardly been put across us? I prefer to believe that the story about Joshua is only a braggart story, but what then about the rest of Bible history? Not Worth Living | | : B. SEAR (Hawke’s Bay): After | reading your article "Can | New Zealand Be Taken?" (‘"‘Record," November 18), I could only conclude that your appeal is to the destructive instinet of fear. It is, I believe, a psychological fact that what we fear we hate, whether it be an individual or a country. Conscicously or unconsciously your article tends to create the impres- sion ‘that -war is inevitable. Why not concentrate on removing the causes of war and .make peace inevitable? The major causes of war are Imperialism coupled with a faulty monetary system, which, in turn is the cause of poverty, because people are prevented from consuming. what. they produce,’ hence the.mad struggle for world markets. There are people who believe that their very existence depends on the control of organised violence. They believe that people’s ' ideas and opinions can be changed by violence. ‘They belieye problems can be solved by viclence in Spite’-of ‘the ‘fact that" history,’ especially the history of: the past: twenty years, proves the contrary. There are also people who believe that organised violence is

criminal, and its abolition is the crying need of civilisation. They believe there is no security in armaments and no such thing as defence for New Zealand or any other country against modern weapons. The truth is that no problem can be solved by war, neither is there any difficulty that cannot be settled in the council chamber. Ii, as your article suggests, we are to burrow underground like rats and rabbits, fit gas masks to babies and live in ‘the shadow of war by playing at black-outs, life will not be worth living even in "God’s Own Country," and our population will deserve to fall. Famous Donkey J.B. (Napier): In a very interesting contribution to the November Home Forum, J. Beever says that the caption under the photograph he found was "Murphy the Donkey, an animal that did good work in carry wounded soldiers at Gallipoli." He also states that of the three main points in question,

one was the identity of the donkey’s owner and another~--why Simpson was called Murphy. Perhaps the following may ada some light {or more mystery) to the subject. It is copied from "The Desert Column" ‘by Ion. L. Idries:, and is part of his diary kept while a trooper in the 5th Light Horse, ALF. "May 22, 1915, . .. The Infantry are quite cut up-not over their terrible losses, but because of one man-Simpson Kirkpatrick I think his name is. He was known everywhere as "Murph and ‘his Donk’ At the Landing he comtmandeerei a donkey and ever since has been coming and going from the distant firing line to the beach with wounded men. He worked night and day, plodding along unscathed under fire til) all thought he must be protected by Supernatural means. ... Yesterday. morning, I think it was, he went up the Valley and stopped by the Water Guard where he generaliy had breakfast. It wasn’t ready so he went on, calling, ‘Never mind, give me a good dinner when I come back." He never came back. Coming along the Valley holding two men to the donkey, he was shot through the heart."