Is there a cultural/political difference between wealthy Jews and WASPs today?

I was watching Curb Your Enthusiasm in this scene

where Larry and his wife has to act WASPy to get into a mostly WASP country club because he got kicked out of his old Jewish one. The historical context is that WASPs held all of the power in elite institutions pre-WWII and post WWII Jews began their ascendence to power and today the elite positions in American heavily dominated by Jews. However, from that video, there still seems to be a cultural difference. Jews seem to be more urban and progressive, centered in NYC and WASPs seem to be Republican and concentrate in New England. Even though both groups hold elite power there still seems to be a cultural shift. Thoughts?

25 Comments
 

Both of these stereotypes aren't true. It's amusing, after having grown up in a major east coast city where most of my friends were of some ethnic origin-i.e. not wasp, including Italian, Irish, eastern and very much Jewish-we never gave a thought about it. As an Irish American (by many generations) I had more friend where I could say "oy veh" And we could just laugh and we still do.

 
Dingdong08

Both of these stereotypes aren't true. It's amusing, after having grown up in a major east coast city where most of my friends were of some ethnic origin-i.e. not wasp, including Italian, Irish, eastern and very much Jewish-we never gave a thought about it. As an Irish American (by many generations) I had more friend where I could say "oy veh" And we could just laugh and we still do.

I've always thought that Jews were liberal and WASPs as country club republicans. Jews played a huge role if not all of it in the liberalization of U.S. that started in the 60's.
 
ltohang Dingdong08:

Both of these stereotypes aren't true. It's amusing, after having grown up in a major east coast city where most of my friends were of some ethnic origin-i.e. not wasp, including Italian, Irish, eastern and very much Jewish-we never gave a thought about it. As an Irish American (by many generations) I had more friend where I could say "oy veh" And we could just laugh and we still do.

I've always thought that Jews were liberal and WASPs as country club republicans. Jews played a huge role if not all of it in the liberalization of U.S. that started in the 60's.

Jews are responsible for the civil rights movement of the 1960s, who knew? Learn something new every day.
 
OpsDude

50 years ago there was a difference, now they pretty much act the same aside from the holidays they celebrate (and among younger ones in NYC, they are all pretty much non-religious anyways).

Then why do they still self-segregate? i.e. in the video. Country clubs, fraternities, etc.
 
community OpsDude:

50 years ago there was a difference, now they pretty much act the same aside from the holidays they celebrate (and among younger ones in NYC, they are all pretty much non-religious anyways).

Then why do they still self-segregate? i.e. in the video. Country clubs, fraternities, etc.

I went to a school that was 33% jewish, maybe 1% of them joined a jewish frat. You're extrapolating way too much on a minorty of individuals.

 

Jewish men have less skin in the game.

Those who can, do. Those who can't, post threads about how to do it on WSO.
 
SSits

Jewish men have less skin in the game.

Haha, I think that holds true for the majority of Americans.

People demand freedom of speech as a compensation for freedom of thought which they seldom use.
 
Best Response
Anihilist SSits:

Jewish men have less skin in the game.

Haha, I think that holds true for the majority of Americans.

It is funny you mentioned this. While the practice of circumcision remains prevalent throughout most of the U.S over the past 30 years, the percentage has really fallen off the cliff in the Western States to well below 40% of all newborn male infants. San Francisco in particular actually tried to implement a law banning circumcision all together. It is good to know that us enlightened west coast hippies have gained better appreciation of the human body and taken a stance against senseless body mutilation vis a vis the hicks in the heartland and back east :=)
Too late for second-guessing Too late to go back to sleep.
 

"WASPs seem to be Republican and concentrate in New England." I didn't know there are that many Republicans left in New England. Read The Great Gatsby (or just watch the movie, Leo was pretty good in that one) if you want to get a sense of the historical divide between the WASP and the noveau riche Jews and Catholics. In this day and age the old guard WASP establishment is practically non-existent--as exhibit A see current composition of Supreme Court Justices, and many families that used to be the stalwarts of WASP powers in America have since been diluted away or morphed into something else--- like the Bushes.

Too late for second-guessing Too late to go back to sleep.
 

Im disgusted that the OP is dumb enough to try and gain cultural understandings from a show that exists solely for the ridicule of stereotypes.

Follow the shit your fellow monkeys say @shitWSOsays Life is hard, it's even harder when you're stupid - John Wayne
 

Careful guys. You're going to end up having somewhere in here talking about the health benefits of circumcision, most likely the lower risk of contracting AIDS - a clear and significant benefit if you are the sort of incredibly sensible man who goes around sticking your unprotected junk into a large variety of people.

Those who can, do. Those who can't, post threads about how to do it on WSO.
 

While there have been a variety of non-black groups that have been mistreated throughout history in addition to the Jews (Italians, Indians, Koreans, etc), the Jews have risen to the ranks of country clubs and investment bank executives while the other groups are still running pizzerias, Kwik-E-Marts, and dry cleaners respectively.

Side note, definitely get cut...don't be weird.

 

Hey man only Indians I see running "kwik-e-marts" (what is this, the simpsons?) are, understandably, new immigrants. There's probably a reasonable explanation why Jewish people (as some have stated) control parts/majority of wall street (as someone pointed out they're historically known as bankers).

Side note - ..."the ranks of country clubs" - lol, really?

I'm starting to agree with the people who say these race threads are retarded. Work hard and worry about your god-damn-self. AKA don't turn into one of those youtube nuts blaming his lack of success at the illuminati.

 

Aut aut consequuntur iure est non. Qui consequatur rem voluptate illum iure voluptatem a rerum. Aut unde nam ea enim aut omnis aliquid. Explicabo qui modi optio alias provident voluptate voluptas voluptatem.

Debitis ea eligendi dolores architecto quibusdam vitae. Harum dolores qui reprehenderit est voluptatem harum excepturi. Magni qui accusantium ipsum recusandae quibusdam temporibus illum. Consectetur aut dolorem non numquam dolore repudiandae voluptas. Odit eveniet repellendus voluptatem suscipit maiores. Omnis laboriosam illum corporis necessitatibus praesentium. Pariatur maiores consectetur quia harum asperiores aut rerum ipsa.

 

Quis non quis et voluptatem vel. Quisquam officiis beatae laudantium explicabo aspernatur blanditiis totam. Quia occaecati laudantium nisi perferendis expedita qui. Et hic voluptas officiis sint. Sit eligendi illo ut non rerum. Possimus accusantium culpa voluptatibus voluptatem.

Ipsum aspernatur quis nisi cum omnis. Provident occaecati voluptatem modi nihil et non ex. Tenetur qui quia ut qui earum.

Those who can, do. Those who can't, post threads about how to do it on WSO.

Career Advancement Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.8%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.2%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Morgan Stanley 01 98.8%
  • Evercore 01 98.2%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.6%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Evercore No 98.8%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.2%
  • JPMorgan No 97.7%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (14) $434
  • Associates (43) $259
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (13) $156
  • 1st Year Analyst (75) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (67) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
3
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
4
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
5
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
6
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
7
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
8
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
9
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
10
Jamoldo's picture
Jamoldo
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”