Election is not a choice between good and evil

In a few days we will have a choice between young and old; Keynesian trickle up, and supply side/trickle down; between a Harvard Law Magna Cum Laude and a Naval Academy legacy who graduated 894th out of a class of 899. One wants to discontinue the war in Iraq, the other wants to fight on (and on and on) until victory. Both men are honorable at their cores; this is not a Zoroastrian contest between good and evil; each has erred and is willing to admit it.

We have the opportunity, 45 years after Martin Luther King’s “I have a dream” speech to put a black man in the White House. Just think of that. In August 1963 Dr. King referred to Negroes as victims of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality, their bodies, heavy with the fatigue of travel, not being able to gain lodging in the motels of the highways and the hotels of the cities. Their basic mobility could be only from a smaller ghetto to a larger one. Their children were stripped of their selfhood and robbed of their dignity by signs stating “For Whites Only”. “We will not be satisfied,” he thundered magisterially, “until justice rolls down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream.”

That time is almost here. America now treats its African American citizens with the dignity they deserve. Hillary Clinton’s supporters were convinced that it was a woman’s turn to be president, and they were almost right. The representative of the other oppressed group won the day this time. There will be a woman president elected; it is a consummation devoutly to be wished—but apparently it’s the black man’s turn first. I can’t explain it; I don’t justify it, but it is. We cannot turn away from the opportunity to elevate America, to make King’s dream and ours, a reality.

Anticipating losing, McCain and his running mate Sarah Palin or their surrogates have begun to hurl charges at Obama. “He’s a Socialist!” In fact, he’s not, nor is it illegal. I’ve just checked the Constitution. “He’s a Muslim!” In fact, he’s not, and it’s not illegal. I’ve just checked the Constitution, again. “He attended Jeremiah Wright’s church for 20+ years!” Yes, that’s true, but it’s neither illegal nor relevant. McCain deserted his wife for his paramour 20 years ago. It doesn’t matter. What matters is the approach to the economy; what matters is inspiring hope in a forlorn nation. John McCain, for all his service to the nation, is of the past; he would have made a terrific candidate in 2000 but of the four candidates running, surely it will be he to whom America first tearfully bids heartfelt thanks for his life and career. And then we’d get Sarah Palin. She wasn’t McCane’s first choice; Lieberman was, but the party bosses reined in their maverick and so he picked Palin, a woman with whom he’d had a total of three hours of conversation. When he was forced to give in and accept the inevitable “he was furious,” according to one of his advisors as quoted in the October 27th New Yorker. “He was pissed. It wasn’t what he wanted.” It’s not what any reasonable person wants—just ask conservative columnists David Brooks, Charles Krauthammer and George Will, all of whom have rejected her as presidential. And yet if the old man wins and dies, she’s who we get.

McCain suffers from Stockholm Syndrome. In 1973 hostages taken in an aborted bank robbery, held captive for six days, actually tried to help the robbers when the police finally broke in and afterwards refused to testify against them. Back in 2000 McCain was running for the Republican Party’s nomination against Governor George Bush. After losing badly in Iowa he beat him in New Hampshire and Carl Rove’s gloves came off. The people of South Carolina were bombarded with innuendo and out-right lies that McCain had fathered an illegitimate black baby. Illogically enough he was simultaneously branded a “fag” in flyers sent to churches. In South Carolina, remember! He went down to defeat then, and what is he doing now? Adopting the techniques of his captors. Lies and innuendos, the same sort of thing that cost him 2000. A McCain rally in North Carolina began with this introduction—not by the candidate himself—“Liberals hate real Americans that work and accomplish and achieve and believe in God.” People in Ohio were told that Obama didn’t go to Hawaii to be with his ailing grandmother but to destroy evidence that he’s not really an American citizen. It’s a pity; McCain’s not a bad man; he’s just a man behaving badly. Desperation will do that to some people.

No-no's for nice Jewish boys

There are several things not suitable for nice Jewish boys. Somewhere on that list will be found becoming a tyrant, but even higher up is believing that the earth is the center of the universe because for thousands of years that’s what people knew to be true.

Take the first no-no. Americans (I use my students as exemplars) often conflate the words “tyrant” and “dictator,” an easy mistake as both are loathsome. But like so many things the terms (which go back to the ancient world) mean two very different things. Tyrant is the older term. In Ancient Athens, for example, democracy led to chaos. Parties could not agree, law and order broke down, the economy was in a state of collapse. Into this chaos emerged a man with the unfortunate name of Pisistratus (you can only begin to imagine how my students have mangled that moniker on their essay exams). He said, in effect, give me all power and I will resolve the crisis. No more duly elected officials. I will hold power indefinitely and promise that in return for you liberties I will restore law and order and improve the economy. And he came through. After seizing the reins of government he ordered building on a massive scale which beautified the city and employed the workers. His police enforced the law. Everybody was happy. Until they weren’t, and he was overthrown. But then, not content to retire to his estates, he hired a beautiful statuesque woman who rode into town on a magnificent chariot declaring herself to be the goddess Athena and demanded that Pisistratus be restored to power. Sigh; he was; the gullible were overawed, as often is the case.

A dictator does not seize power unlawfully, not in ancient Rome, anyway. There, when things were darkest, when the enemy was at the gates or the people were riotous, the Senate could appoint one person, called a dictator, to have all power for six months to resolve the crisis, at the end of which he would surrender his extraordinary power, be tried and either rewarded or punished. (In answer to your unstated question, yes, towards the end, dictators didn’t surrender their power and the Republic collapsed.)

In New York City, of which your faithful correspondent is a native son, the people voted for term limits a few years ago. Mayors could be elected twice, then no more. Now Mayor Michael Bloomberg has announced that he will propose that the law be amended to allow current incumbents (not future ones) to seek a third term. After all, the City and the nation are in economic crises. Who better than he, financial genius that he undoubtedly is, to resolve matters? But there’s that pesky term limits law. So… Change the rules! In this way tyrants are born. Not Bloomberg, but those who follow his example. Amazingly (to me) the liberal leaning Times, the conservative Daily News and the reactionary Post support the power grab. It’s as though the goddess Athena had descended on their board rooms and told them what to write.

As to the Jew who declares that the earth is the center of the universe and defends this by pointing to all the scientific texts and philosophers who ever since Aristotle have maintained the obvious truth of this, I must confess, I made him up. I do have a colleague, however, who has made the same sort of assertion about prayer. Those who know me know that I don’t pray, exactly; I go to schul and sometimes sing, and I begin Friday nights by saying Kiddush after my wife has lit candles, but prayer? No. I figure HaShem isn’t into hypocrisy and so those who don’t believe in the efficacy of prayer shouldn’t actually pray. But my colleague insists that in the High Holy Days season is a moment for prayer (OK, no problem there) but then he continues that we can be sure of this “because our forebears told us so.” Whoa! This is proof? He also contends that prayer matters. “How can we be sure…? Again, there is a simple answer: The Torah tell us so. God… taught us how to pray for repentance and forgiveness.” Very interesting. Athena taught the Athenians how to govern themselves. Do we believe that? Aristotle and all the wise men taught us that the sun revolves around the earth. Do we believe that? Hinduism is at least as old as Judaism and in the Bhagaved Gita (ca. 500 BCE) Krishna taught Arjuna (and by extension all of us) that reincarnation and caste are the ways of the gods. Do we believe that just because it’s in the ancient holy books and taught by the Brahmins?

Let us pray: “Dear Lord, give us wisdom and not reliance.”

On Bailing out Fat Cats and other atrocities

• Golly Gee Willikers, haverim, the investment bankers who have received such tax largesse from the Bush administration, who have misdirected our economy from one that’s productive into one service-based now need us little-folk to bail them out. If we don’t we are threatened with depression on world-wide scale. $700,000,000,000. For openers—and Congress can’t ask who is to get how much? This is supposed to save their hides after they’ve flayed ours. And the money is somehow going to trickle down to those of us who had nothing to do with the melt-down but are its victims. What a country!

•The Red Sox have the second highest payroll in Major League Baseball; no wonder they ended up second in the A.L. East. Ah, but the odd thing is that the team that wound up in first has the lowest payroll in the Majors. I root for the Red Sox with more fervor than for anything else secular, but as long as the team made the playoffs I’m not unhappy that the Rays finished first. It’s a tale out of a child’s morality story. If the Old Town Team doesn’t make it to the top, I’m rooting for them—and there are two Rhode Islanders on the team. (Jews? I’m thinking not, but maybe…)

• Seven-hundred-billion-dollars? For openers?

• How come when we have a leader whose poll numbers are lower than his shoe size, who gets us embroiled in a war-of-choice which is a no-winner, and racked with scandal, we can’t just get rid of him the way Israel disposed of Olmert. Oh, I remember, our founding fathers, the same bewigged, knickers-wearing elitists who allowed slavery to continue, who created equal senators for each state (California with its population in excess of thirty-six and a half million, and Wyoming—with its population of hardly anyone, each gets two) prevented that. They were a tad afraid of democracy, you see.

• Remember the halcyon days (pre-GWB) when we wondered how best to use the trillion or so that was a surplus in the treasury?

• In its time of crises, Britain had Churchill to rally the people. In my parents’ time of economic disaster the nation had Roosevelt to inspire it. In those days there was greatness. Who do we get? Bush? What did we do that was so wrong? Why are we being punished with such blatant mediocrity?

• Oh, and then there was GWB’s plan to privatize Social Security by allowing us to invest our portion of it in the stock market? Wow, whataguy!

• It’s Yom Kippur time again. If the postal service is on the ball you will receive this on the Sabbath of Repentance. We are told that on Rosh Hashanah God inscribes the names of those to be saved and that on Yom Kippur the book is sealed. We are enjoined to ask for forgiveness of sins. Every year I make a deal with Him. I pretend that I’ll really, really, really try to be a better person, and He pretends to believe me. At least that’s the way it’s been for the past several decades and if it’s OK with Him to continue the charade, it’s OK by me too.

• Not that I don’t think government intervention is necessary. Hey, if Republicans want to transform market driven Wall Street into a People’s Republic, I’ll just sit back and enjoy the spectacle. It’s that we’ve been rushed into things before by these guys. We must invade Iraq to get to the weapons of mass destruction! We must pass the Patriot Act! We must invest 700 billion dollars! The sky is falling, the sky is falling! (Oh? Democrats want to put a cap on CEO’s salaries? Why, that’s just class warfare!) The villain here? It’s not GWB; he’s merely the current marionette. The problem goes back to the handlers of Ronnie Reagan. Government isn’t the solution, government is the problem. We have to untie the fetters that bind capitalism! We must deregulate. Well, folks, how’s that working out, exactly?

• Each year on Yom Kippur I pray in my own fashion for two things—life and health for family, friends and myself, and for belief in prayer. So far, He has granted the former and spared me the latter, and if I’m lucky, He’ll spare me again.

• The purpose of these columns over the year has been to stimulate thought and to provoke discussion. If I’ve offended I apologize; it was never my intention, though it may have been my result. Please forgive. I’ll make my amends to Him on Thursday.