The Passover story I was taught in the ultra-Orthodox yeshivas of my youth was that of a villainous Pharaoh, a heartless tyrant who ruled with an iron fist. But who were the real villains?
This is both fascinating and true. A wonderful look at the past to help comprehend the present rise of authoritarianism. Globally. It’s also just a very good read.
Thank you for this, Shalom. I was especially struck by your Exodus 1:9 citation -- wow, GRT is not a new theory at all, is it? And I was also struck by your observation that the military reactions to 9/11 and 10/7 have not made "us" safer. It made me think of news reports this morning that a Columbia U. campus rabbi has started advising some students to avoid the center of campus since, as the news report put it, the university could not "guarantee" their "safety."
Being "safe" or alleging various levels of "safety" seems a very flawed notion to me.
This is a new way to look at an ancient story. We create the societies we live in through action and apathy. Very well written and an offer of much to contemplate.... and fuel for change.
Couldn't possibly. No politician could be. Jesters were clever, and knew their leaders were fools. Chaplin: "I am only, I am still only one thing: a clown. That puts me on a higher plane than any politician."
“I confess: after 9/11, I wanted a Pharaoh here in America. Someone strong, someone heartless, someone who would protect me at all costs, and maybe spill a little blood in revenge. After the Hamas attacks of October 7th, I wanted an Israeli Pharaoh. I got my Pharaohs, and I got my blood.”
In both instances, I did not want those things. I often feel as though I have little to be truly proud of, but at least I got that right.
As has been said, all that is required for evil to triumph is for good people to stay quiet. But bad leaders certainly play a role in shaping the bad ideas and bad actions of the masses.
So, of course Bibi is a sleazy politician, a horrible leader, and badly needs to be kicked out of his job. But to lump him together with murderous and ruthless dictators or genocidal maniacs like Putin, Khameini, or SINWAR is such an absurd flattening of the landscape, it is just completely deranged and entirely disconnected from reality.
I didn't get the latest list about how many crimes and deaths officially constitute "ruthless" or "dictator," so maybe I'm wrong. But I was in Isreal this summer, marching with tens of thousands of Israelis, all of them carrying signs of his face with the words "No Dictator!" and "Get rid of the dictator!" I'll take their word for it.
I take your point, and I agree with you regarding the judicial reform protests and that Bibi needs to go. But, how many innocent people would you estimate he has had killed? Sorry, he may be an aspiring dictator, but there is a special place in hell reserved for the other three you compared him to. It is the difference between sleazy and evil.
Not sure I agree there. Seems like either side of the fence, Sinwar sure is responsible for a lot of people getting killed in Gaza. Regardless of how much the IDF attempts to minimize civilian casualties (of course, there is not reliable data regarding how many have been killed, or how many are innocent).
I'm okay with disagreeing. Either way, I appreciate your civility. And thank you for not calling me a self-hating Jew, which is where these discussions inevitably go.
Thank you for your civility, as well. (And on rereading my initial post, I apologize for falling off the civility cliff a bit at the end of it.) Shabbat shalom.
I disagree on "hardened heart" and guilt interpretation.
Actually hardened heart sometimes grants amazing clarity of vision. You know the choices, you know the costs, you still decide to pay, with yourself, or, in this case, with others-or you can decide differently.
You get no pass, why would you? You get even less of a pass. You were temporary given a (dubious) gift. What did you do with it?
Curled on the floor there with you
Pharaoh never represents the moderates which are most of us.
Exactly. And instead of blaming the people, I would rather look at the forces that support the Pharaoh. Those are the real issue.
We get the government we deserve. This just doesn't get any less true as the years go by, does it?
I don’t think the Russian people deserved Stalin. But oh yeah, if we can’t keep trump out of office, our bad.
Well I was talking about situations in which there's an actual choice..
You have the best commenters.
This is both fascinating and true. A wonderful look at the past to help comprehend the present rise of authoritarianism. Globally. It’s also just a very good read.
Sad sad sad, but so damn true.
Thank you for this, Shalom. I was especially struck by your Exodus 1:9 citation -- wow, GRT is not a new theory at all, is it? And I was also struck by your observation that the military reactions to 9/11 and 10/7 have not made "us" safer. It made me think of news reports this morning that a Columbia U. campus rabbi has started advising some students to avoid the center of campus since, as the news report put it, the university could not "guarantee" their "safety."
Being "safe" or alleging various levels of "safety" seems a very flawed notion to me.
As ever, it is so. Made me remember one of my favorite lines from a favorite Poem by Christopher Fry
".....Where are you making for? It takes
So many thousand years to wake…
But will you wake, for pity’s sake?"
This is a new way to look at an ancient story. We create the societies we live in through action and apathy. Very well written and an offer of much to contemplate.... and fuel for change.
Nailed it.
My favorite of your many much-loved and shared essays. Spot on.
"The role of the Pharaoh's court jester will be played by Donald Trump."
I think he’d be Pharoah. WAY prefer he’d be jester!
Couldn't possibly. No politician could be. Jesters were clever, and knew their leaders were fools. Chaplin: "I am only, I am still only one thing: a clown. That puts me on a higher plane than any politician."
“I confess: after 9/11, I wanted a Pharaoh here in America. Someone strong, someone heartless, someone who would protect me at all costs, and maybe spill a little blood in revenge. After the Hamas attacks of October 7th, I wanted an Israeli Pharaoh. I got my Pharaohs, and I got my blood.”
In both instances, I did not want those things. I often feel as though I have little to be truly proud of, but at least I got that right.
You've got my vote, Pete.
But it requires much less effort to abdicate responsibility, wallow in fear (or is it greed?), and blame everyone else.
Appreciate the dot-connecting here, Shalom. It's not complicated, but we have a way of making it so.
As has been said, all that is required for evil to triumph is for good people to stay quiet. But bad leaders certainly play a role in shaping the bad ideas and bad actions of the masses.
So, of course Bibi is a sleazy politician, a horrible leader, and badly needs to be kicked out of his job. But to lump him together with murderous and ruthless dictators or genocidal maniacs like Putin, Khameini, or SINWAR is such an absurd flattening of the landscape, it is just completely deranged and entirely disconnected from reality.
I didn't get the latest list about how many crimes and deaths officially constitute "ruthless" or "dictator," so maybe I'm wrong. But I was in Isreal this summer, marching with tens of thousands of Israelis, all of them carrying signs of his face with the words "No Dictator!" and "Get rid of the dictator!" I'll take their word for it.
Shalom, were you all marching to protest the over the top slaughter in Gaza, or has Bibi been a dic(k)for a while?
Since his brother died, from what I can tell. But possibly before that.
I take your point, and I agree with you regarding the judicial reform protests and that Bibi needs to go. But, how many innocent people would you estimate he has had killed? Sorry, he may be an aspiring dictator, but there is a special place in hell reserved for the other three you compared him to. It is the difference between sleazy and evil.
Sure. But I suppose the line between the two has a lot to do with which side of the Gaza fence you're standing on.
Not sure I agree there. Seems like either side of the fence, Sinwar sure is responsible for a lot of people getting killed in Gaza. Regardless of how much the IDF attempts to minimize civilian casualties (of course, there is not reliable data regarding how many have been killed, or how many are innocent).
I'm okay with disagreeing. Either way, I appreciate your civility. And thank you for not calling me a self-hating Jew, which is where these discussions inevitably go.
Thank you for your civility, as well. (And on rereading my initial post, I apologize for falling off the civility cliff a bit at the end of it.) Shabbat shalom.
I disagree on "hardened heart" and guilt interpretation.
Actually hardened heart sometimes grants amazing clarity of vision. You know the choices, you know the costs, you still decide to pay, with yourself, or, in this case, with others-or you can decide differently.
You get no pass, why would you? You get even less of a pass. You were temporary given a (dubious) gift. What did you do with it?