This is an enormous thread and a very important one. I don't know if this article by Ron Unz has been posted here but I will post it. It is a very well written and illuminating article. Unz is himself Jewish and therefore it holds even more wieght. I read a lot at the Unz review and it is one of my favorite sites.
American Pravda: Oddities of the Jewish Religion, by Ron Unz - The Unz Review