Jews are being attacked and physically assaulted because… Israel or something.

We met some friends the other night, and they asked if the New York subway system was safe. They had seen reports of stabbings and people being pushed to their deaths on the tracks. I said that it was a hard question to answer – 3.6 million people travel by rail in New York every day. Let’s imagine that there are 36 or even 360 violent events per day, while statistics show “only” 16 murders during an 11-month period, even with 360 attacks, that represents 0.01 percent of the daily ridership that experienced something violent. That is almost statistically insignificant.

Estimates place the number of Jews in the world at around 15.6 million, with nearly half living in Israel. So, of the 8 million Jews living outside of the Holy Land, is life dangerous? There is no question that in the West (as opposed to, say, China), there is a significant increase in the reporting of antisemitic events, from the minor to the fatal. Just in the past week:

- A fellow was assaulted in LA near a local synagogue, with the perpetrator screaming about a free Palestine while choking the victim.

- Two Jews in Golders Green, London, were stabbed by a Muslim who was known to authorities due to prior violent activity.

- The convicted terrorist head of the Palestinian Football Association refused to shake hands with his Israeli Arab counterpart during a FIFA event.

- A famous Israeli chef, Eyal Shani, closed his Berlin restaurant after Jew-haters made its continued functioning impossible.

- Jews eating outdoors at a "kosher-style" restaurant in New York were hounded by the “intifada revolution” crowd as they tried to enjoy their food.

So, using the New York approach, the vast majority of Jews get up and go to bed without any direct antisemitic event in their lives. But this approach is flawed. I remember once, during a........

© Townhall