ABSTRACT
Anti-Semitism shapes public opinion throughout the Arab and Islamic world and creates an atmosphere in which Jews, individually and collectively, are not considered to be fully human. The usual Arab/Muslim norm of commenting upon people, events, countries, regimes, and rulers consists in self-aggrandizing oneself and deprecating the enemy. Things that go right are of course imputed to their great civilization or their prowess, their success in undoing the plots of the enemy and so fourth; failure is always attributed to the scheming of the enemies, real or imaginary, or to some force majeure beyond one's control, or anything else that allows one to escape self-criticism. Islam and the Arabs are always the generous party, the faithful, the righteous and, conversely, the wronged, the eternal victims, in spite of their impeccable conduct. The teaching that evil originates with the Jews was the basis for much of anti-Semitism and the blood libel throughout history.
