@Setanta,
Setanta wrote:
A statement such as that "the anti-semites [sic] claim we do" is dubious enough as it is, but you seem to miss the point that in speaking of Jews and Gentiles, you have already distanced two groups of people, one from the other, on a religious and an ethnic basis. People who don't think of people in terms of Jews as opposed to Gentiles are way ahead of you.
Well, since you left the Bronx at a fairly early age, you might not be aware of the alienation between the two groups in NYC. Specifically, in my opinion, secular Jews/religious Jews are held in contempt by those of an ethnocentric background, since it is part of the popular notions that Jews take over. Jews don't take over; they just wield a degree of influence, based on their economic clout. A degree of economic clout that other groups in NYC have not achieved equally, since Jews have parlayed early economic success, after taking economic risks that other NYC ethnics have shied away from, in my opini0n.
And, yes, many Jews feel most comfortable amongst a majority of Jewish friends. From a Gentile's vantage point that might be perceived as dislike. Not dislike; just preference. No more ethnocentric than the clubbishness of those students that go to pricey Parochial schools, in my opinion.