I was talking to DeDo last night and was very struck by something she said. We on the Right, especially conservative bloggers, are unconsciously complicit in the celebration of the head of state. Even as we rant and rail against the White House, we invoke the name of the presi-messiah at least as often as anyone on the Left, maybe even more so. By our constant concentration on the man and with our endless repetition of his name, we too are feeding the monstrosity of his celebrity status.
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NB: When I googled "President Bush" (president for 8 years and highly controversial), I got slightly over two million results, but when I searched for the term "President Obama," there were over 35 million results, more than 17 times as much. Of course, that's a Google search; bing might be different.
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So, do you see? Even as we in the opposition lambast our narcissist in chief for craving attention, we are simultaneously giving him the attention he craves, maybe not the most positive attention, but attention nevertheless. And then we wonder why our [lack of] strategy is not successful.
Imagine if instead we starved him, didn't mention his name for a week, or a month, or a year. What if we showed no interest in The Man? Wouldn't you be fascinated to see if that didn't alarm the other half of the country, even as it shrinks?
Moreover, as DeDo pointed out to me, the threat we face is greater than one individual... the threat to our safety, security and ultimately our liberty, issues from the entire White House, not just its speech-maker.
So you'll understand if from now on BtB is conducting a little experiment. While I do wish other bloggers would join me, if you've ever tried herding cats you'll understand why there is likely to be no team effort -- especially among cantankerous conservative bloggers with their (our) tell-tale streaks of independence. Still, the invitation is open.
And for those who might fear the difficulty of becoming more disciplined in their writings -even for the sake of this bigger picture- I would ask them (and you) to consider this rabbinic commentary on the humble grogger.
.... While Haman is the villain of the Purim story, in truth, he represents far more than one regime's attempt to destroy the Jewish people. Haman is a descendent of the Jewish nation's arch enemy, the people of Amalek. Ever since the Amalakites' first unprovoked attack on the Jews... Amalek and their descendants have been identified as the classical champions of evil, and the Jewish people's existential rival.
.... The Torah assigns a particular commandment to "erase" any memory of the nation of Amalek. By making noise when Haman's name is mentioned during the Megillah reading, we are symbolically "erasing the name of Haman" and thereby blotting out the memory of Amalek.
Judaism believes in identifying evil for what it is - evil.
.... Judaism does not deny the existence of individuals with the most extreme psychological disorders, but it does assert that one need not be "sick" to carry out the most brutal and hideous of crimes. Adolf Hitler, Adolf Eichmann and the thousands of doctors, professors, farmers, teachers, barbers, receptionists, retailers, lawyers, mechanics, entrepreneurs and secretaries who made soap, lamp shades, coat stuffing and ashes out of Jews were not sick! They were just plain evil.
The gragger in the hand of a child on Purim is there to remind us how to relate to evil. Like Amalek, it must be erased. Not by labeling it as sick and psychoanalyzing it into oblivion, but by calling it what it is - evil - and dealing with it as bluntly as it would deal with us.
So you despise the evil Haman and want to see his name wiped out forever? Great! Just write Haman on a piece of masking tape, stick it to the bottom of your shoe and spend the day stamping out Haman. Or write Haman on your napkin, wipe your face or table with him and then toss him into the garbage.
Bye, bye, Haman.
And if you'd like, we can go a little deeper.
Who was Haman, and why the obsession with blotting out his name?
To understand, we have to go back to the time of Jacob our forefather. Jacob had a twin brother Esav, who was a lifelong rival -- so much so that Esav sought to kill Jacob (see Genesis 27:41).
The Midrash says that when Esav was getting old, he called in his grandson Amalek and said: "I tried to kill Jacob but was unable. Now I am entrusting you and your descendents with the important mission of annihilating Jacob's descendents -- the Jewish people. Carry out this deed for me. Be relentless and do not show mercy."
True to his mission, Amalek has historically tried to destroy the Jews. For example, in Exodus 17:8, Amalek attacked the Jews out of pure hatred -- Amalek lived in a distant land and was under no imminent threat.
So what does Amalek have to do with Purim? The Scroll of Esther (3:1) identifies Haman as the descendent of Agag, King of Amalek. Haman's desire to wipe out the Jewish people was an expression of his long-standing national tradition.
RANDOM VS. DESIGN
This conflict is much deeper than just a "sibling rivalry." Philosophically, Amalek and the Jewish people stand at two opposite ends of the spectrum.
The Talmud explains: What is the meaning of the phrase "[Amalek] happened ("karcha") upon you..." (Deut. 25:18)? The Hebrew word "karcha" literally means coincidence or happenstance. Amalek's entire philosophy is that there is no design or providence in the world. Everything is haphazard, dictated by chance, luck and fate. That's why the verse continues: "And [Amalek] did not fear God."
On the other hand, Jacob and his descendents the Jews represent conscience and morality. The world has purpose and meaning and every individual is created in the image of God. From this foundation, the Jews introduced to the world concepts like monotheism, equality for all people, and universal education. This is the essence of what the prophet describes as being a "light unto the nations" (Isaiah 42:6).
While Jacob believes that God runs the world and there is an absolute standard of morality, Esav believes that life is random -- and therefore morality is subjective.
Esav’s hatred for the message of morality actually forms the basis of all anti-Semitism . . . .
Posted by: Mannie Sherberg | Sunday, 15 November 2009 at 09:06 AM