Category — Elections

I was schmoozing with an acquaintance the other day, and the conversation’s topic was educating the youth. In the heat of the conversation I presented what I considered the principals of education, and they are; infusing the youth with passion, vision, self esteem and hope.

At the last word, my conversationalist interrupted me, and said: “Relax with your words, you’re starting to sound like Obama”.

It wasn’t the first time I heard of the term “Obama talk” i.e. a whole bunch of charismatic-flowery-feel-good words, that get you all excited and hyped up for the moment, but without solid ideas behind them. You know what I mean.

Oh yes, it’s nice to bring change and to have hope, but first and foremost a leader must have a vision, built on step-by-step methods, through which to achieve this “change”.

Take Moses for example. He had gathered the Jews “Vayakhel”, after they have gone through the “eight terrible Bush years” – the sin of the golden calf. G-d had just forgiven them, and it was time to bring the “glory” back to the nation (the nation he was once proud of).

It’s now time to present the speech, in which he will lay out his plan for rebuilding the ‘once glorious nation to which the whole world trembled’. Tell me if you were the speech writer, what would you come up with?

Most probably something like this: “Ladies and gentleman, the time has come for change. We must stop the war with the Amaleikites, instead we should sit down at the UN and work out a deal. I will end racism amongst the people, there will be the rights to those whose ancestors were Jewish, and those terrorists who wish to destroy us: all are equal!

“What we need more than ever is change! We must reverse back to our beautiful past… and to do that we need hope…”

Ok, I’ll stop the tape here, I’m sure these speeches are coming out of your ears.

Typical for leadership babble?

Not by Moses! His first talk is all but flowery; it is short sweet and straight to the point: “Six days a week you work and on the seventh you rest! Don’t light a fire on Shabbat!”

You want change? Do a Mitzva.

Lectures on hope should be kept to the clergy. A politician should put forth ideas. Maybe then there is hope for change.