NOTEBOOK I

Reviving The
Good Old Daze

GARY ROSENBLATT

Editor

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Wake me if I'm
dreaming, but
it seems that
George McGov-
ern intends to
run for president
and Imelda Mar-
cos says she's go-
ing to return to the Philip-
pines and run for the
presidency there.
Seriously.
If that's not scary enough,
Jim Morrison of The Doors,
who died in 1972, is the hot
rock star of the day, thanks
to a reverential movie about
his druggie life, and we now
learn that polyester, the
epitome of tackiness from
the 70s, is the New Fiber of
the 90s.
Am I lost in a time warp or
are we headed for a Retro-
Decade?
What would George San-
tayana have to say now about
those who do not learn the
lessons of history being con-
demned to repeat them? We
thought we learned the
lessons of history and we're
repeating them anyway.
Does this mean that
Menachem Begin will
awaken from his self-
imposed exile one morning
and announce his intention
to regain the post of prime
minister of Israel?
Or that Nancy Reagan will
convince her husband that
they can have more fun in
their sunset years by retir-
ing to the White House?
It's like the scene in
Awakenings when the
hospital patients suddenly
stir from their years-long
stupor and come to life.
I'm not suggesting that all
of these former political fig-
ures are going to be re-
elected, but the very fact
that they're considering
running tells us something
about our society. It is one
where changes take place so
rapidly that we tend to wrap
the recent past in the gentle
gauze of Nostalgia.
One week a movie is play-
ing in the neighborhood
theater, the next week you
can see it in your living
room, courtesy of the neigh-
borhood video store. Soon
after a pop song is on the Top
40 list it's a Golden Oldie.
And somehow, a politician
who was seen as a jerk when
he was in office can bask in
the warm glow of our collec-
tive faded memories.
Maybe George McGovern
is counting on us remember-

ing him as a leader of the an-
ti-Vietnam movement
rather than as a presidential
candidate who sounded like
Liberace's brother and got
clobbered by Richard Nixon.
(Now there's a former presi-
dent who's been graced by
the passing years; once con-
sidered a disgrace to the
presidency, he is now viewed
as a brilliant strategist and
historian — and not a crook.)
The truth is that Jimmy
Carter, while considered a
failure by many as presi-
dent, is considered an
excellent ex-president.
Maybe that's the job he
should have rim for in the
first place.
As for future campaigns,
Mrs. Marcos could do well in
the Philippines by promising
high-heeled shoes to every
woman who votes for her,
and Gerald Ford, if he gets
the presidential itch, could
hand out helmets to those

Mrs. Marcos could
do well by

K

promising
high-heel shoes to
every woman who
votes for her

who watch him play golf. As
for Mike Dukakis, the
memory of his failure may
be too fresh in our minds for
his comeback, but the image
of him riding around in a
military tank is already
looking better in these post-
Gulf war days.
Even though Israelis
haven't started waving
"Draft Begin" signs, they
have had the right idea for
some time now, rotating
prime ministers and
discouraging their former
leaders from retiring from
public office. That's why
Yitzhak Rabin, who re-
signed because of a minor
banking scandal, managed
to return as prime minister a
few years later and would
like the post again. For
Shimon Peres, being prime
minister was the only
cabinet post he's gotten high
marks for. And it seems that
Yitzhak Shamir has been
prime minister forever.
If there's a lesson here it's
to never underestimate our
capacity to forget unplea-
sant memories and re-
member only the good stuff.
And never underestimate a
politician's ego.
As for me, I'm hording
"Win With Wilkie" buttons.
Just in case. El

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