Interesting topic Bingo
I spoke to a Hungarian (at a trade show of all places), the conversation descended into politics and sure enough, the bile against Jews emerged. But the scariest part was that the bile sounded almost
reasonable, due in no small part to the Protocols. I challenged him that the protocols were a fraud, and he denied it, saying that cannot be proven and it was still "provocative". When I challenged that such a thing, not even proven to be genuine, should hardly be permitted to cause ambivalence to the mass murder of 6 million people just because it's "provocative", he had less answers for that one. However, you can tell that they really want to say "but the Jews brought it upon themselves".
The problem with the "Protocols" is that it is obscure, therefore people regard it as an obscure problem. Slightly less obscure is a book such as, say, Mein Kampf. It's pretty black and white what that book represents. Less known, however, is that almost every regiment of the Egyptian Army in the 6-day war had copies of Mein Kampf in their possession, as if some kind of military training manual. Disturbing. Hamas and other organisations believe the protocols, but then Hamas believe that trees (except for Jewish trees) and rocks are going to dob in Jews. So, it's all about whether the Protocols fit with your pre-existent ideology.
There are those who claim that the Protocols cannot be proven to be a forgery, and further, claim their legitimacy lies in the notion that Jews have "done what the protocols predicted". These claims represent some of the biggest masterpieces of circular reasoning. Here's an example
http://sacredearth.org/CD_Image/Jew_Watch_-_The_Protocols_of_the_Elders_of_Zion_Folder.htm. Unpleasant stuff, but probably helpful for us to know so we know how to respond.
Another good analysis from the Anti-Defamation League is here:
http://www.adl.org/special_reports/protocols/protocols_intro.asp.
The Protocols are useful when someone who
hasn't heard of them bangs on about the Jewish Conspiracy etc. You can ultimately prove that their ideas originate from a fraudulent source. Good Luck!
