Jews and money: the myths and the reality : the myths and the reality

Examines Jewish participation in American banking, publishing, broadcasting, business, and organized crime, and clarifies misconceptions about the economic position of American Jews There are myths that suggest that Jews own and control just about everything. In fact, in 1974 the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General George S. Brown, remarked, "The Jews own, you know, the banks in the country, the newspapers. Just look at where the Jewish money is." Gerald Krefetz decided to do exactly that. In this book, he digs right into a subject that has traditionally been steeped in secrecy - and he breaks it wide open. He examines the myths and the half-truths, the facts and the fictions, and he tells us, for the first time, just where the Jewish money is and where it is not. The connection between Jews and money has been apparent for a thousand years. From the Rothschilds to Edgar Bronfman to Milton Friedman, Jews have made their mark in the economic world. In fact, Jews make up nearly a fifth of all the very rich in America. Gerald Krefetz traces this drive to succeed to a survival instinct, and he examines the attitudes toward it throughout the world. He sets out to quell the misconceptions, and along the way he raises and answers such questions as: How many of the nation's millionaires are Jewish? How does their wealth compare with that of non-Jews? What are the ten most prominent Jewish fortunes? Why are Jews, as a group, wealthier than other Americans? While Jews are generally thought to be successful, the extent and range of their wealth has never before been fully documented. After years of research in the world of Jews and their money in banking, industry, communications, medicine, the law, the arts, and even crime, Gerald Krefetz presents statistics and anecdotes, contemporary and historical - and he names names.