"Are you stating that since he says some of the Left are anti-semites, that if you show that one was not you have demonstrated anything?"

No, I was just annoyed at the way Martin use "Socialist" as an insult and I was hoping to yank his chain a little, since he claims to be so fond of chain-yanking.

After all, it was a socialist that gave us the Pledge of Allegiance that The Right (to use a vague label) is so fond of. And in my grandfather's day they were pushing outrageous things like the 8-hour day which I am fond of, though many bosses are trying to get rid of it now.
All those dams that Roosevelt had built during the depression were considered Socialism by hard-line capitalists - they even endorsed by that pinko Woody G.- but now the Republicans around here love them dearly.

But all that explanation is not as much fun as telling Martin that my Socialist grandfather was a better man than him. He's not moved by reasonable explanations anyway.

My later rant, about vagueness, was more aimed at the other posters here. Including myself; we're all wasting our time discussing loosely defined words and hoping to convert the stubborn.

After all, even if there are bigots on the Left I'm still in favor of Social Security, same as Martin stays Jewish even though there are bigoted Jews. As he should.

clint