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biophile

(1,024 posts)

4. Phobia implies fear; anti- as a prefix mostly means against

Reply to gulliver (Original post)

Sat Nov 8, 2025, 02:04 PM

Saturday

I think AntiSemitic can be all encompassing- if you are against something, you can possibly hate, merely dislike, fear or some combination of the three. It’s a spectrum of antagonistic feelings. Jew phobic would just mean Jew fearing to me. Some people are not friends of Israel but are not threatened by Jewish people or faith. Some people hate or fear Jews but love Israel as a place of their Christian faith and Armageddon ideas.
I don’t have any answers about what is the best way the characterize these feelings because there is a very broad range of feelings here. I think I would just stick with antisemitic myself.

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Highlight:

Replacing "antisemitic" with "Jew-phobic" [View all] gulliver Saturday OP

When people have attempted to muddle the meaning of antisemitic sarisataka Saturday #1

That definitely adds a forceful historic bite to it gulliver Saturday #7

Can you give an example of who and what you would consider phobic JI7 Saturday #2

Arachnophobia, agoraphobia... gulliver Saturday #11

This message was self-deleted by its author PeaceWave Saturday #12

It's definitely one pathway, fear to hate gulliver Saturday #14

But how about when it comes to Jewish people JI7 Saturday #17

This message was self-deleted by its author PeaceWave Saturday #3

Phobia implies fear; anti- as a prefix mostly means against biophile Saturday #4

This message was self-deleted by its author PeaceWave Saturday #6

I agree but it depends on the audience gulliver Saturday #9

Sounds reasonable, yes biophile Saturday #22

The term "Semite" is basically inaccurate and effectively obsolete, so why isn't "Anti-Semitic" the same ? eppur_se_muova Saturday #5

The racist definition of Semites was developed in the 1770s sarisataka Saturday #10

That's the thinking behind removing the hyphen Mosby Saturday #13

Here's my take: semite is race oriented, and jew relates to theology. RedWhiteBlueIsRacist Saturday #8

I couldn't remember what its derivation was, if I ever knew muriel_volestrangler Saturday #15

That take is incorrect sarisataka Saturday #16

I see 'shem' as the remnant of a much longer phrase that has been shortened into one syllable. RedWhiteBlueIsRacist Sunday #25

"Shem" means, roughly, "name", and can have the same implication of "reputation" as in English muriel_volestrangler Sunday #26

Semitic is a language group Mosby Saturday #20

Why? Behind the Aegis Saturday #18

I'm largely in agreement gulliver Saturday #21

Language as a weapon Behind the Aegis Saturday #23

I see antisemitism as prejudice too. gulliver Saturday #24

Those two expressions have very, very different meanings. MineralMan Saturday #19