Eric Trump's ugly 'three extra shekels' attack on Bob Woodward draws accusations of anti-Semitism

[workinclasszero]

David Badash, The New Civil Rights Movement 12 SEP 2018 AT 10:26 ET

Eric Trump is lashing out at veteran Watergate journalist Bob Woodward, and his remarks are drawing accusations of anti-Semitism. Wednesday morning the president’s son charged the author of “Fear” – the latest bombshell book exposing the Trump administration as inept and corrupt – with writing it “to make 3 extra shekels.”

The shekel is both an ancient and modern-day form of currency in Israel, but it can also evoke ugly old bigoted and anti-Semitic stereotypes about Jewish people.

Link to tweet

Link to tweet

https://www.rawstory.com/2018/09/eric-trumps-ugly-three-extra-shekels-attack-bob-woodward-draws-accusations-anti-semitism/

[mahatmakanejeeves]

1. Okay, Jared, the ball's in your court. NT

[workinclasszero]

5. How about Stephen Miller?

[SamKnause]

2. Damn, I hate that entire fucking family !!!!!!

[MuseRider]

3. God these people are hateful,

low class and bigoted. People like that want to make you think they are so much better than those "others". Really? The Trump family better than who? Nobody, that is who. Disgusting assholes, every single one of them. We need to fumigate the White house and get rid of all the tacky gold crap that they have put around the place. Just like the f'king Russian Zsars. No kidding dogs are barking. That was no whistle, that was a firm tug on the leash with the threat of a lash.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

4. And Woodward isn't Jewish - dumbass Eric probably got him mixed up with Bernstein.

Which means he's not only antisemitic but stupid.

[marble falls]

6. Wrong Drumph.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

8. Oh, right. I'll fix. They're all stupid.

[marble falls]

11. I know. The only bright side is neither nitwit has any future in the news ...

after cheetolini gets an orange jump suit.

[itcfish]

10. I Didn't Think

Woodward is Jewish, not that it matters.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

13. He isn't - I assume dumb Eric got him mixed up with Bernstein - but yes, it doesn't matter.

[smirkymonkey]

39. "Ugly, racist and stupid is no way to go through life son"

What a little bastard! Chip off the old block.

[Cartoonist]

7. Wow! That was deliberate.

I liken that to the use of the word niggardly. While it's definition is plain, you have to go out of your way to use it. And there's only one reason to do so.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

12. "Niggardly" has nothing to do with the N-word.

It's etymologically unrelated. "From Middle English nigard, nygard (“miser”), from nig (“niggardly person”), possibly of Scandinavian origin; compare Old Norse hnǫggr (“miserly, stingy”). Possibly cognate to niggle (“miser”).[1] Compare German Knicker (“niggard”), knickerig (“niggardly”)." https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/niggard#English However, because of the mistaken etymology most people avoid using it. If someone does use it I wouldn't automatically assume they were dog-whistling; it would depend on both the speaker and the context.

[Cartoonist]

20. No

There are other words that are easier to use. Cheap, miserly, penny pincher. You have to deliberately choose an arcane word.

Trumpson could have used coins, dollars, bread, money, or any other word in common usage. He chose that one from his racist thesaurus.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

21. I agree. Just saying that it was only recently

that "niggardly" became a dangerous word to use. I can imagine an older, more academic sort of person using it without any bad intent. If a Trumpite used it, of course the dog whistle would be very loud. An interesting discussion of the word is here: https://www.theroot.com/no-niggardly-isn-t-the-n-word-1790874495

[Cartoonist]

32. an older, more academic sort of person

Yes, but only if they used it long ago.

Tolkien used it once in The Lord of the Rings. It was still jarring.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

33. It's a word that you'll find in older literary works,

and if a professor of English literature used it during a lecture I wouldn't bat an eye. If a Republican politician used it, however.... It's kind of unfortunate that a perfectly harmless word needs to be avoided just because it sounds like an etymologically-unrelated word that's the worst racial slur in modern English, but there it is. A person who'd use it these days (other than a professor of English literature or linguistics) is either dog-whistling or extremely naive. Fortunately there are a lot of good synonyms.

[WillowTree]

35. I've had to work to force that out of my vocabulary.

Could be because my Mother was first generation born here. The vast majority of everyone she was related to were from Norway. It was a word I heard a lot and was used correctly in the correct context when I was growing up. I get why it's best not to use it in today's environment, but still, takes a little doing to always remember.

Referencing the OP, I frankly don't see how the mere use of the word "shekels" is in any way a slur, particularly in the context in question. Looks like people looking for something to be offended by to me.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

36. Its origins are Old Norse, so maybe that's where your family got it

though the only Norwegian word I know for "stingy" is "stikkende." I guess maybe because I'm old, it's not a word I ever associated with racism (I always knew what it meant and that it had nothing to do with that other word), but I guess it's best avoided.

[RockRaven]

9. 9 out of 10 Americans, hell even 9 of 10 Deplorables, don't have the word shekel in their lexicon

nor would it occur to them to use it in an insult or joke.

It says a lot about where his thoughts are at in general that THIS is the image or metaphor which comes to mind.

[marble falls]

23. Maybe nimrod was thinking "30 pieces of silver"?

[Cracklin Charlie]

14. Screw you, racist!

Mr. Woodward gonna bring home a LOT MORE than 3 sheckles! Jealous.

You’ll be lucky if you only get shackles.

[grumpyduck]

15. I wish the juniors would just shut the hell up

What would have happened if other presidents' kids had been so public?

[peekaloo]

16. Nazi version of The Smothers Brothers

always trying to out asshole each other for Daddy's love yet Daddy probably despises both of them equally.

[marble falls]

24. Jebus, what a thought ... I'ma going to stand out on the deck for a minute ... gotta lighter?

[peekaloo]

27. *snort*

[Stuart G]

17. Stupid is what stupid is...Clearly Erick has joined the stupid club, and the antisemetic club, and

the idiot club...all at once.. He too cannot keep his mouth shut....All in the family.....

[OnDoutside]

18. A dumbass like him wouldn't just say "shekels", instead of say, "bucks".

[Stuart G]

19. Well, do you think Eric will apologize for this?..Odds please?..let's see...........

one in ten million ...no, not great enough...one in ten billion that Erick will apologize

................that is it.!!!!!!!!!!

[Behind the Aegis]

22. The defense will be that Woodward isn't Jewish,

Therefore, it can't be anti-Semitic. I have seen that excuse used repeatedly. Or, some of his best friends are Jews (including his sister), that is a very popular excuse, and not just with the right. Perhaps, he will apologize and say, "I meant to say he was getting his pound of flesh"; that will surely excuse it away for many. Anti-semitism is neve rout of vogue, and this administration has made sure it is coming more into the light than ever.

[gratuitous]

25. You're probably right

Rather than admit that Eric fucked up and didn't know Woodward isn't Jewish, he'll turn it around to make himself out to be the REAL victim of anti-Semitism.

What's of interest to me is anyone in the Trump family getting bent out of shape because someone is trying to make some extra coin. That whole fam damily is ever in hot pursuit of an extra dollar, even if they have to defraud their own customers (Trump University) or cheat their vendors (too many to count).

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

30. The Trump family, Daddy especially, hate it when anyone makes money from something

that involves them. In this case Woodward is profiting from a book that is critical of Trump, which drives them especially crazy. They hate criticism anyhow, and the fact that Woodward will sell a lot of books and make money is just killing them.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

26. That's no defense, of course.

The context is pretty obvious. And my own theory is that Eric is dumb enough to have mixed up Woodward and Bernstein, who is Jewish; and in that case the use of the word is obviously and intentionally anti-Semitic.

[bronxiteforever]

28. This +1

[unblock]

31. that almost makes it worse.

maligning jews when there isn't even a jew around to malign?

[Behind the Aegis]

41. Almost.

Of course, it is quite typical, and is almost as bad as those who can't muster up disgust about the attack without bringing up how other Jews should or shouldn't respond. When it comes to anti-Semitism, some just can't help themselves; it is low-lying fruit. To be quite honest, I am actually a bit surprised that people even caught it, much less reacted to it. So, progress...I guess.

[backscatter712]

29. As opposed to the 30 pieces of silver the Trump family prefers in compensation...

[PatSeg]

34. Bob Woodward is 75 years old

He is the recipient of almost every major American journalism award, has written or co-authored eighteen nonfiction books, and has written about every administration since Nixon. Why wouldn't he write about the Trump administration Eric? In the meantime, I don't think Woodward is all that concerned about money.

Of course, the Trump family is not the most well read family, so Eric probably has no idea how many books Woodward has written or how successful and respected he is. Just because the Trumps live in a tabloid based world, they assume everyone else does as well.

[no_hypocrisy]

37. And has either Ivanka and/or her husband spit back what a blatant Antisemite

Eric is?

[Cousin Dupree]

38. If they talk like this on tv,what do they say to each other in their private lairs under bridges?

[steve2470]

40. keep talking Eric, oh and next time, be sure to do the Hitler salute

Stupid little Neo-Nazi he is.

[spanone]

42. father don passed his 'virtues' on to his children

fuck this 'first' family

[Dawson Leery]

43. The Trump family has an affinity for Nazis.

This campaign season is going to be a Klan Rally on the right.

[workinclasszero]

45. Shitler said there were good Nazis and KKK terrorists

at Cville after they murdered an innocent girl.

So yeah, hate runs in the family. Trumps daddy was a klansman terrorist too.

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

44. That's what it sounds like to me.

Not even a dog whistle, more like a foghorn.