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February 13, 2012
Binyamin Rose: Back to the Bunker: How a life-risking act by a Christian family during the Holocaust saved a family and built a thriving community a world away
Menachem Wecker: Business Schools Teach Real Estate Despite Troubled Housing Market
February 10, 2012
Lisa M. Krieger: Man with defibrillator demands access to his own heart's information
David G. Savage: Why activists may not be in a hurry to have High Court rule on alternative marriage
February 9, 2012
Laura McMullen: 10 Least Expensive Public Schools for Out-of-State Students
Kimberly Palmer: How to actually enjoy -- relaxing, financially -- your vacation
February 8, 2012
Warren Richey: Why momentous Prop. 8 ruling might not satisfy gay-rights groups
Menachem Wecker: Though Controversial, LL.M.'s Can Lead to Specialized Legal Jobs
The Kosher Gourmet byDana Velden: Going to the bother of making soup? You know it better be good. This CREAM OF TOMATO SOUP certainly is! And it's a cinch to make, too (Includes techinques and serving secrets)
February 7, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.: Caught off-guard? President's Super Bowl interview with Matt Lauer gives those who need a reason not to vote for him, a darn good one
Suzanne Bohan: Leaping lizards! Tiny reptiles advancing robot design
February 6, 2012
Jonathan Tobin: Iran Threatens Israel With Destruction, But the New York Times Doesn't Hear It
Jeffrey Fleishman: In newly democratic Egypt, tens of democracy activists jailed, to stand trial; their groups are 'threatening the stability of the homeland'
Julie Deardorff : Researchers say antioxidants may not be that effective and could do more harm than good
Mark Clayton: How did Anonymous hackers eavesdrop on FBI and Scotland Yard?
February 3, 2012
Edmund Sanders : Israeli official says Iran is creating missile that could reach East Coast of US
Victoria Kim: Immigrant-smuggling ring used black drivers to avoid racial profiling
February 2, 2012
Jim Carney: Wrong number call may have saved her life
Reza Kahlili : Ex-CIA spy in Iran's Revolutionary Guard: What Obama doesn't grasp about striking deals with Tehran
Tina Susman: For woodchuck rescuer, every day is Groundhog Day
February 1, 2012
Brian Bennett: US officials see increasing threat of domestic attack from Iran
Emily Brandon: How to Take Advantage of New 401(k) Fee Disclosures
January 31, 2012
January 30, 2012
Paul Richter and Ramin Mostaghim: Misreading Teheran's limits -- deadly and economically devastating as they may be -- is a risk administration, Europe seem willing to take
Suzanne Bohan: Warning: Nap-deprived tots missing more than sleep, study finds
Meg Handley: Banks Revamping Rewards Programs to Woo Customers
January 27, 2012
Caroline B. Glick: Obama: Of course I intend to prevent a nuclear holocaust . . . in a few months
Yochonon Donn: In liberal New York City, fervently-Orthodox Jews may soon be getting a district to call their own
Jeannine Stein: An inflated ego and thinking you're 'all that' doesn't just make others sick of you, it can make you ill
Katy Hopkins: New budget rules may affect how much money you get for college
January 26, 2012
Ed Koch: To the New York Times, calling for the murder of Jews by those capable of having their incitement taken seriously isn't news
Jeannine Stein: Mental illness struck one in five U.S. adults in 2010: Report
January 25, 2012
Richard Simon: House passes two bills endorsing the use of religious symbols at military memorials
Fred Weir: Putin: Multiethnic Russia cannot survive as a US-style 'melting pot'; must find its own way
Susan Johnston: 5 Sneaky Coupon Strategies Consumers Should Watch Out For
January 24, 2012
Carol Clark: The price of your soul: How your brain decides whether to 'sell out'
Caroline B. Glick: America lost most in 'Arab Spring'. Sadly, many voters still don't grasp the extent
Warren Richey: Drug criminal scores win in GPS ruling from conservative-leaning high court
Erika Bolstad: Black conservatives gather to talk about gaining strength
January 23, 2012
Melissa Dribben: Jewish voters to play a key role in Florida's Republican primary
Jordan Rau: In quest to grow, Catholic hospital system will announce this morning its break from church
Ali Safi: U.S. envoy gives Taliban terms for peace talks
January 19, 2012
January 18, 2012
January 17, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney Jr.: No-kidding red lines: U.S. response to an Iranian nuke may be bluster, but Israel's won't be
David G. Savage: They sued their principals after slandering them online --- now the cases are headed to the Supreme Court
David Francis: Where to Invest in 2012: With stocks expected to rebound, opportunity abounds for investors
January 13, 2012
Ben Lynfield: Israeli lawmakers move to annex Jewish Judea, one museum at a time
Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz: Thriving through touch: Gentle massage helps older people with low mobility improve in mind and body
January 12, 2012
Warren Richey: Landmark Supreme Court ruling a 'resounding win' for religious groups
Warren Richey: Supreme Court says no to new rule on eyewitness testimony
John Fauber : Statins found to raise diabetes risk in postmenopausal women
Katy Hopkins : Consider This Before You Pay for an Online Degree
The Kosher Gourmet by Joseph Erdos: This mushroom and barley soup has an intense -- almost nutty -- flavor that mixes robust with Middle East. It has creaminess without cream
January 11, 2012
Shari Roan: Millions of atrial fibrillation sufferers at risk for devastating, but preventable, stroke
Tom Hussain: Pakistan -- recipient of more than $21 billion in civilian and military aid -- speeds pursuit of Iranian pipeline, defying US
David G. Savage: High court signals it won't be loosening TV's 'indecency' rules
Stephen Ceasar: Oklahoma's Islamic law amendment can't go into effect, court rules
January 10, 2012
Reza Kahlili: From an ex-CIA spy: US must exploit new split in Iran's Revolutionary Guard
Karen Kaplan: Study: Nicotine replacement products ineffective when used in real-life situations
January 9, 2012
Michael Doyle: Put through legal hell over dream home, couple fought back hard --- all the way to Supreme Court
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Jewish World Review
Feb. 14, 2008
8 Adar I 5768
Obama's truth sets us free
By
Michael Goodwin
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http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
As lies go, they are tiny. But because they are so blatantly false and unnecessary, they stand out as a defining moment.
"This was Patti's decision," Hillary Clinton insisted about why she booted campaign manager Patti Solis Doyle. Piling on the whoppers, Clinton later added that, contrary to clear evidence her campaign is in trouble, "I feel good about where we are."
Clinton was recorded making those ridiculous statements by news organizations around the nation, mostly without comment. None was necessary. It was just another unremarkable moment in the downhill slide of American politics. Lies, big ones and little ones, are so much a part of the landscape that we don't even take note of them anymore.
It is the sort of event that recalls the late Sen. Pat Moynihan's line about "deviancy defined down" — when the outrageous becomes routine. Moynihan was talking about how New York got used to rampant street crime and inept government, but Washington has developed its own version of the soul-sapping disease.
Then along comes Barack Obama to shatter our habit of low expectations. Win or lose, he has made a genuine contribution by redefining our political discourse. In his hands, the contest is about hope and inspiration instead of demonizing and distortion. Now that the genie is out of the bottle, it will be almost impossible to put it back in.
And not just among the throngs of young voters he has inspired. Even us graybeards, reared on the idealism of the '60s, have longed for a reason to trust our own generation with power. Instead, we got Bushes and Clintons. One gave us faith-based facts, the others gave us parsing and the definition of "is."
There are many reasons for Obama's phenomenal rise, not the least being he is a racial Rorschach test as well as a gem of a speaker. But it is the zinging content of his speeches that have shaken the country and mark him as a threat to the old order, starting with Clinton herself.
When Obama talks, as he did Tuesday in Maryland, of voters being "tricked, bamboozled, fooled and hoodwinked," he is condemning her generation. When he says voters "are tired of the politics of the past, tired of spin, tired of PR," he doesn't have to name names.
We've all known this side of the Clintons, and yet, because we accepted it, they succeeded. And because they succeeded, others copied them. The result is a disaster, with apathy and cynicism toward government our secular religion.
Hillary's little lies about her campaign remind me of the way Bill started his presidential race in 1992. In March of that year, a Daily News reporter asked him whether he had ever used drugs. Clinton answered firmly, "I have never broken the laws of my country."
Technically true, but in plain English, a lie. The desired implication — that his answer was no — was misleading because he later admitted he had smoked marijuana in London. Even then, Clinton had to suggest he was innocent, saying he never inhaled.
Fast forward 16 years to Obama. After admitting in his first book he used drugs, including marijuana, Obama was asked by a playful reporter whether he had inhaled. Obama smiled and said, "that was the point."
The topic is narrow, but the contrast is striking. And that's the point. If we can't trust pols to tell us the truth on small things, why should we trust them on big things?
We will know soon enough whether Obama's time has come and whether he can meet his own standards. But we don't have to wait for a verdict on something that transcends him. The enthusiasm he has generated already proves that politics doesn't have to be just another lie.
Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in Washington and the media consider "must-reading". Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.
Michael Goodwin is a Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist for the New York Daily News. Comment by clicking here.
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