Making a Joke of "Jewish Space Laser" Minimizes Marjorie Taylor Greene's Anti-Semitism

Jonathan Chait of New York Magazine unveiled a 2018 social media post from Georgia Republican Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene in which she claimed California wildfires were caused by "Jewish space lasers" funded by the Rothschilds and Pacific Gas & Electric for the purpose of building high speed rail.

Twitter has reacted with humor:

Marc E. Elias: "Whoever borrowed my secret Jewish space laser, please return it. I need it for something tomorrow."

Frank Luntz: "Does anyone have a spare set of keys I can borrow for the Jewish space laser? I left mine back in D.C."

Ruth Marcus: "This Jewish space laser thing makes no sense to me. Because, as every Jewish mother knows, you could put an eye out with that."

Now I realize that Greene's statement is so absurd that one can make the case that it warrants an equally absurd response. Yet in so doing I believe that making a joke of "Jewish Space Laser" has the effect of minimizing Greene's anti-Semitism. If you put aside Greene's turn of phrase, we are left with someone who just over two years ago was promoting a Jewish conspiracy and is now a member of Congress and her status is on the rise in the Republican Party.

Let me put it another way. No one was laughing at Greene yesterday when video was unveiled of her confronting and following Parkland shooting survivor David Hogg on the streets of Washington, D.C. in the same year in which she promoted an anti-Semitic conspiracy theory.

Anti-Semitism is no laughing matter. But treating it as such leaves people with the impression that it is something not to be taken seriously and gives people permission to express anti-Semitic views without fear of social reprisal. This will ultimately have the effect of normalizing anti-Semitism in America.