So, Daniel Barenboim, the noted conductor of the Berlin Stadtskappalle Orchestra, had the last laugh on us anyway. As a second encore to the final concert of this magnificent orchestra's performance at the Israel Festival last Saturday night, he conducted a piece of music composed by Richard Wagner. Barenboim addressed the audience at the concert and told it that he had been asked by the organizers of the festival not to perform any of Wagner's works and had agreed to change his program to exclude any Wagnerian music.
Nevertheless, in true artistic arrogance and elitist hubris, Barenboim broke his word and determined that "art must triumph." The paper reported him as saying that "while the feelings of those who opposed the playing of Wagner, who was Adolf Hitler's favorite composer and expressed virulent anti-Semitic sentiments, had to be respected, one also had to take into account those who wanted to hear him." Taking a voice vote of the audience and determining that more wanted to hear Wagner than did not, he then conducted an excerpt from Wagner's Tristan and Isolde.
What arrogance! How did he "respect the feelings of those who opposed playing Wagner?" This article is not about the merits of playing Wagner's music in Israel or not. Nor is it about whether or not it is time to start forgetting the past and let the Holocaust rest, so to speak. It is about the arrogance of one person who decides on his own what is proper, acceptable and correct, riding roughshod over the feelings and sensitivities of a large section of the Israeli public. Barenboim knows better! And therefore, he can go back on his word, hurt people present in front of him in his very audience and cause anguish to thousands of others in the larger Israeli society. Is that not the privelege of the elite, the artistic, the super-educated and super-intellectual amongst us? If you have any doubts that the few "enlightened ones" have a duty to bring all of us unwashed, ignorant, backwards (read religious) ones into the light, regardless of our beliefs, sensitivities and tradition, just ask Justice Barak and his colleagues on the Supreme Court for their views on how important it is in a "Jewish democratic state" to have an activist judiciary! Activism oftentimes is only a synonym for arrogance.
And speaking of arrogance, have you noticed how Yossi Beilin continues to peddle his own personal foreign policy on behalf of all of us? He meets with foreign leaders, with Yasser Arafat and with other interested parties to our current "situation." This prime architect of the Oslo disaster who has never, to my knowledge, admitted being wrong in his public career, represents whom in the conversations he has with Arafat and foreign leaders? He has no official position any longer in any Israeli government or political party and he is still too young to be considered an elder statesman ala Jimmy Carter or George Mitchell. So, it seems to me that it is the height of arrogance for him to continue on his merry diplomacy trips and meetings as though he is Israel. He is bright, knowledgeable, even sincere in his efforts and personality. But he is not our representative in anything. He may think he knows best what is good for all of us and for the future of Israel and the Jewish people, but his past record in this matter is quite spotty to say the least.
The best and brightest amongst us, our political, artistic, educational, judicial and religious leaders, even our weekly oped columnists, could all stand an injection of a little more humility into our personal opinions and behavior. The Mishna in Avot warns us against saying "accept my opinion - I know better!" Wisdom is to be gently taught to others and not unilaterally coerced upon them. The greatest of all Jewish leaders, Moses, was outstanding because of the absence of arrogance in his leadership and personality. There is a lesson there for all of us.
Nevertheless, in true artistic arrogance and elitist hubris, Barenboim broke his word and determined that "art must triumph." The paper reported him as saying that "while the feelings of those who opposed the playing of Wagner, who was Adolf Hitler's favorite composer and expressed virulent anti-Semitic sentiments, had to be respected, one also had to take into account those who wanted to hear him." Taking a voice vote of the audience and determining that more wanted to hear Wagner than did not, he then conducted an excerpt from Wagner's Tristan and Isolde.
What arrogance! How did he "respect the feelings of those who opposed playing Wagner?" This article is not about the merits of playing Wagner's music in Israel or not. Nor is it about whether or not it is time to start forgetting the past and let the Holocaust rest, so to speak. It is about the arrogance of one person who decides on his own what is proper, acceptable and correct, riding roughshod over the feelings and sensitivities of a large section of the Israeli public. Barenboim knows better! And therefore, he can go back on his word, hurt people present in front of him in his very audience and cause anguish to thousands of others in the larger Israeli society. Is that not the privelege of the elite, the artistic, the super-educated and super-intellectual amongst us? If you have any doubts that the few "enlightened ones" have a duty to bring all of us unwashed, ignorant, backwards (read religious) ones into the light, regardless of our beliefs, sensitivities and tradition, just ask Justice Barak and his colleagues on the Supreme Court for their views on how important it is in a "Jewish democratic state" to have an activist judiciary! Activism oftentimes is only a synonym for arrogance.
And speaking of arrogance, have you noticed how Yossi Beilin continues to peddle his own personal foreign policy on behalf of all of us? He meets with foreign leaders, with Yasser Arafat and with other interested parties to our current "situation." This prime architect of the Oslo disaster who has never, to my knowledge, admitted being wrong in his public career, represents whom in the conversations he has with Arafat and foreign leaders? He has no official position any longer in any Israeli government or political party and he is still too young to be considered an elder statesman ala Jimmy Carter or George Mitchell. So, it seems to me that it is the height of arrogance for him to continue on his merry diplomacy trips and meetings as though he is Israel. He is bright, knowledgeable, even sincere in his efforts and personality. But he is not our representative in anything. He may think he knows best what is good for all of us and for the future of Israel and the Jewish people, but his past record in this matter is quite spotty to say the least.
The best and brightest amongst us, our political, artistic, educational, judicial and religious leaders, even our weekly oped columnists, could all stand an injection of a little more humility into our personal opinions and behavior. The Mishna in Avot warns us against saying "accept my opinion - I know better!" Wisdom is to be gently taught to others and not unilaterally coerced upon them. The greatest of all Jewish leaders, Moses, was outstanding because of the absence of arrogance in his leadership and personality. There is a lesson there for all of us.