Starting from everyday hostility this paper moves to the differences between ideas and xenophobic prejudices. A clinical vignette leads to a discussion of orthodoxy and fundamentalism and the general human tendency to regard certain other people as “my own team” different to others. This is further emphasized in the image of immigrants, where latent hatred is easily aroused; this is especially true in the case of everyday myths and prejudices in antisemitism, where the “perverse” thoughts and regressive group dynamics are involved to a great extent. The combination of authoritarian socialization and an undemocratic view of society is deadly. So is our never-ending tendency to fall back on splitting and projection of unwanted sides of ourselves. Sufficiently safe people in well-organized groups with democratically elected, non-sadistic leaders do not commit violent crimes based on prejudices and fantasies of revenge.