RWJs (Yet Another Political Rant)

As I mentioned previously, I spend some time in Yahoo Chat rooms. The two rooms I frequent most are Jewish Chat 2 and Politics Chat 10. I highly advice anyone with a modicum of derech eretz to avoid the Jewish Rooms of Yahoo Chat. It is a drek-fest of the highest order, and that even when there are no Moslems, no Neo-Nazis, or evangelical Christians around, the backbiting and childish insults among the Jews themselves are intolerable. The sickening things said in this room I wouldn’t repeat when alone in the dark, let alone speak aloud to another human being. Yet, many of these crass, low, and despicable individuals assume the mantle of morality, justice and the American Way, taking their politics to the furthest extreme right as possible, all the while preaching moral fortitude while hating on other Jews (and Gentiles) with some serious venom. Hypocrisy abounds. I can always tell what person’s political affiliation just by the tone and use of his/her language. Those who seem to profess the strongest beliefs in God, country, and good over evil seem to display the most evil tendencies themselves.

Shakespeare Had It ‘Right’

The funny part about these people is what you’d expect to find in their lives and don’t. The Shakespearian dictum of “Me thinks he doth protest too much” applies well here. Few of the dozens of these RWJs are truly religious, have attended yeshiva, speak Hebrew or Yiddish, and only a few actually go to shul or are married to a Jew. I guess we do what we can, and when we don’t do anything of substance to show our true convictions, we just shout them at the top our lungs, irrespective of whether or not they make any sense at all in light of our own conduct. That’s classic lip service for you. I have argument after argument with some of these idiots over Jewish subjects. They will tell goyim something about Judaism and be dead wrong about it, yet insist, in spite of their lack of yeshiva education or inability to actually read the language, that their position is of course authentically Jewish, and I, being the Heretic, couldn’t possibly know what I’m talking about.

The bigger question is why these Jews support the right wing. Is it devout allegiance to Israel? Do they believe that the policies of the Likud or Kach are the best possible solution to bring Peace? Maybe some actually know a bit about Israeli politics, but I bet the 90% they don’t know about ever enters their minds. They forget that the many founders of Israel were Leftists, and that being a Leftist does not make one anti-Israel or anti-Jewish. Yet, they cannot or will not consider either history or common sense when forming their opinions. If they would keep these uneducated guesses to themselves it would not be so bad, but they assume a position of authority and speak with conviction, which makes even the shallowest of arguments somewhat enticing to the unknowing plebian.

“He Knows Not What He Does”

If you tell one of these RWJs that the Rabbis of the Talmud supported price controls, wage controls, labor unions, workers rights, and various social programs, they will call you a liar. Why? Because they have never picked up a Gemara, and even if they had they couldn’t read it even if they managed to hold it right side up. How would they know what the Rabbis said? They can only disagree because of their own shallow opinion and not because it is based in anything factual. These RWJs are not following an unbroken chain of Jewish Tradition, not through their lip service to it nor in their own personal lives.

The issue can’t be moral either. I don’t see these Jews aligning themselves with the Christian Right because they share moral values. These Jews don’t have moral values based on Biblical teachings, and in fact, few of them know the Torah well enough to know what its morality and ethic really is. I will listen patiently while one of the RWJs tells me about what God thinks and, once he finishes, I will gently show him chapter and verse where the Torah says exactly the opposite of what the right wing wants to promote. That won’t stop the person from saying I’m wrong either, because the real issue is not the issue, rather the need for Mr. or Ms. RWJ to be right about everything all the time. Besides, these people, as I mentioned before, don’t live the lives they preach, so morality can’t be the issue here. They are nothing more than insipid little control freaks who prefer siding with a deluded majority, regardless of fact, rather than having their own opinions. Doesn’t it seem strange that God all of the sudden agrees so much with GW Bush? Or with them?

Money Is Thicker Than Blood

Many of these RWJs have done quite well for themselves financially. Therefore, the inherent association of the Left with the confiscation of property, loss of civil rights, wage limits, etc., without knowing the differences between the various leftwing ideals, or recognizing that their own politic advocates the very things they hate most. The argument is ALWAYS a monetary one. Right wing Jewish loonies might care about Israel, Kashrus, and social issues, but their primary concern is the selfish preservation of maintaining the status quo at all costs to ensure their own financial successes. The common people can be easily whipped into any and all kinds of heinous acts based on the ‘preservation’ of some ambiguous way or quality of life that exists only for a small segment of the population but somehow, in their imaginations, manages to benefit and encompasses all. Simply put, RWJs are defending their own greed, becoming as amoral as the RWC to which they so fanatically shackle themselves. It is a fear-based response to an illusion.

Bedfellows without Condoms

Lastly, do these RWJs know with whom they are joining forces? Are they not aware that the Evangelical Christian Dominionists are the very same RWCs that fund the Messianic Movement? “Politics makes strange bedfellows” they say, but this is crazy! We should align ourselves with those who still, 2000 years later, blame us for killing their man-god? Do the RWJs not realize the true motive of the RWCs support of Israel, or how fickle that support really is? Is it enough to make such an alliance only because the Moslem has become a common enemy in light of 9-11 and the ‘war’ on terror? What sort of payback will be expected in gratitude for their support? Does anyone believe that Christians back Israel out of the goodness of their hearts? And when this ‘Islamic Menace” has been dealt with, who do they think is going to be next on the RWC chopping block? The RWJs better hope that the world doesn’t ever run out of Pot-Smokers, Darwinists, Homosexuals, or Communists.

Any allegiance with the RWCs is a dangerous game. These are people driven by their Pastors, Reverends, and Priests, and not by any legal, political, or social ideal. They want a Christian nation and nothing less. GW Bush said that “God told me to invade Iraq”, and these people believe it! This same RWC loony President has enacted more attacks on civil liberties than Stalin. Did God tell him to do that, too? As Marquis de Lafayette so prophetically declared “If the liberties of the American people are ever destroyed, it will fall by the hands of the clergy.” It seems the faithful are always willing trying their hand at tyranny in the name of God.

An ‘Aye’ For An Eye

Some RWJs are just vengeful people and feel that and ‘eye for an eye’ is the epitome of ethical behavior. Gandhi said, “If everyone took an eye for an eye, we would all be walking around half-blinded.” RWCs, even though their Bible calls for ‘turning the other cheek’ are among the most venomous prosecutors of vengeance on the planet. The psychological disorder that causes a person to cry out for blood as a response to every wrong committed only serves to continue the cycle of violence and keep old wounds from ever healing. As Francis Bacon commented, “This is certain, that a man that studies revenge keeps his own wounds green, which would otherwise heal and do well.” It is probable that the desire for war and battle reflects an inner need, on the individual’s part, for chaos, victimhood, and drama. Our collective Jewish and maybe personal histories have been ones of deep pain and sorrow, but there comes a time that we have stop praying for our enemies to suffer or die, and grow up.

Choose Wisely

No one tells me how to choose my friends, and I am damned sure not going to let anyone tell me how to pick my enemies either. The enemy of my enemy is does NOT automatically become my friend. History has shown those alliances to be short-lived and, inevitably, they become a contentious and rather tenuous confederation. As a liberal/progressive, I have some issues with fellow leftists, too, don’t ever follow them blindly, and do speak out against them when I feel they are off-base or unprincipled. Siding with an idea that you don’t like just to stand in the winner’s circle seems a very hollow victory to me. Let’s just be more careful as to which wagon we are hitching our horses to, because the fellow driving the wagon might have some very different ideas about what direction to travel.

There is a story that illustrates the wisdom of carefully choosing or avoiding alliances. A reporter once asked then-PM Menachem Begin during the Iran-Iraq conflict which side he favored in the struggle. Begin’s pithy and typically Jewish answer was “I wish them both success.” Sometimes it is better to stay on the sidelines than to promote one of your enemies over the other, let alone join forces with either of them.