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When Court Jesters Become Kings

New York
rguably, the biggest problem
in American culture today is
the fact that mere entertainers
are its heroes. There is no precedent in
any civilization in the history of the
world for entertainers — actors,
singers, dancers, and directors — to be
elevated to the highest positions of
prominence in the culture.
That's why none of us can name
actors and actresses from ancient
Greece or Rome. They weren't impor-
tant enough to be remembered.
Sure, we can name the playwrights
and we can name the satirists. We can
name the politicians, the philosophers
and the generals. Because literary, aca-

A

Rabbi Shmuley Boteach is a nationally
syndicated radio host on the Liberty
Broadcasting Network, and was named
by Talkers magazine as one of America's
100 most important talk-radio hosts. A
bestselling author of 14 books, his latest
work is "Face Your Fear" (St. Martins
Press). His e-mail address is
shmuley@shmuley. corn

demic, political and military figures
were always the personalities that dom-
inated the cultural landscape.
Whatever you thought of these pur-
suits — and many of the ancient con-
querors were highly immoral men —
their pursuits were at least consequen-
tial. But entertainment? Lighthearted
merriment? That's what you did in
your spare time, when you needed a
break from the serious things.

Changed Times

Prior to the rise of American popular
culture, entertainers could never even
dream of being the most important
members of a society, engaged as they
were in a frivolous past-time that
helped the folks escape their solemn
responsibilities for a short time.
But in our time, the incredible has
happened. The court jester has become
the king. Those who play the heroes
have become the culture's actual
heroes. Those who direct fantasy
movies are directing the direction of
our youth.

And with entertainers as the
the age of Hollywood, was
principal people we look up to,
John Wilkes Booth.
so much of our society has
The consequences for the
become silly and trivial. This is
elevation of people who per-
exactly what was going
form inconsequential tasks to
through my mind as I watched
the center of national atten-
the narcissism of the Academy
tion are enormous. Even if our
Awards.
Hollywood celebrities were
In America today, there
not the most damaged people
RABBI
exists not a single mainstream
SHMULEY in our society — drugged up,
televised awards ceremony for
BOTEACH divorced, with even their kids
anything other than movies,
in rehab — the results would
Special
television, acting, and music.
still be tragic.
Commentary
Even when brave soldiers are
By making fashion models
awarded the Congressional
our role models, Hollywood
Medal of Honor for gallantry,
heroines our heroes, and
it is not broadcast on TV.
singers into saints, we have created a
When the president awards the
shallow and vain society, distinguished
Presidential Medal of Freedom to our
not by sacrifice, but by indulgence.
leading thinkers, writers and civil ser-
We have created a culture known not
vants, it is watched by 10 people on C- for virtue, but for vanity. And our
Span.
country is becoming not more dedi-
But the awards for best actor and
cated, but decadent.
best actress are followed closely by
American kids today, for the most
hundreds of millions who take such
part, don't want to be doctors. They
nonsense quite seriously. That's a major want to be directors. They don't want
change for a country whose only actor
to be rabbis, but rock stars. They
to become an historical figure, prior to
don't wish to be soldiers, but super-

Going, But Not Forgotten

yrian
President
Bashar al-
Assad should con-
template the words
of Lebanon's cele-
brated poet Kahlil
Gibran. To maintain
JONATHAN harmony in a rela-
FRIENDLY tionship, Gibran
advised in The
Special
Commentary Prophet, "Let there
be spaces in our
togetherness."
For make no mistake, despite
Assad's announcement that the
14,000 Syrian troops now in
Lebanon would withdraw first to
the Bekaa Valley area and then to
the Syrian-Lebanese border,
Damascus intends to hold onto its
influence in Beirut for as long as it
can.

JN

3/10

2005

62

Jonathan Friendly is a columnist for
Jewish Renaissance Media, which pub-
lishes the Detroit Jewish News. His e-
mail address is jfiiendly@jewish.com .

Assad is a relatively decent fellow,
particularly by comparison with his
father, Hafez al-Assad, who ruled
the country for 30 ruthless years.
But the thugs and apparatchiks who
hold most of the power in Syria
need the money they get from their
drug and money-counterfeiting
operations in Bekaa. And the Assad
regime would be profoundly desta-
bilized should a withdrawal of
troops be followed by the ouster of
tens of thousands of Syrian workers
who are earning a far better living in
Lebanon than they could in their
destitute homeland.
Assad really has little choice about
getting the troops more out of sight.
The other Arab countries had OK'd
their presence in 1973 as an 'Arab
defense force" that could pacify the
increasingly violent relations
between Palestinian refugees and
competing Christian and Muslim
factions in Lebanon. But France, the
European power with the longest
ties to Lebanon, said last week that
the Syrian presence must end. Then
Russia, a formerly consistent ally,

said the same thing.
Lebanon, is already
And finally Saudi
bidding for whatever
Arabia, speaking for
authority Syria gives
the Arab League,
up. It has built a solid
announced bluntly
following by its
that it was time to
intransigence toward
end the occupation.
Israel — it claims
While the troop
credit for Israel's deci-
withdrawal is
sion in 2000 to end
required, under both
its occupation of a
a United Nations
20-mile swath along
Security Council reso-
the southern border
lution and under the
—. and by its ability
1989 Taif Accord that
to deliver government
ended Lebanon's 15
services with minimal
years of bloody civil
corruption.
Syria's Bashar al-Assad
war, it is far from
In a nice piece of
clear that it will open
political theater,
the door for better
Hezbollah chief Sheik
relations between
Hassan Nasrallah said
Israel and Lebanon or Israel and
his group would not disarm
Syria.
"because Lebanon needs the resist-
ance to defend it" against foreign
intervention. Syria can be counted
Watch Hezbollah
on to remain the conduit for Iranian
Hezbollah, the terrorist organization
arms to Hezbollah, a flow that can
that both Iran and Syria fostered
only increase over time as the tur-
among Shia Muslims in Beirut
moil in Iraq removes any Iranian
slums and in the villages of southern
fears of either Iraqi or American