There's only so much a mere editor can do with great copy. We remember we didn't feel the need to edit Charles Krauthammer's columns much, if at all. We were just readers and fans of his weekly genius, same as you. So we slapped a headline on the thing and let it ride.
Those are the easy days. They don't come often. Charles Kraut-hammers are rare.
This past week, a politician of some note talked about the Cancel Culture, which is a rising marvel in modern America. Marvel as in astonishing, but not in a good way.
Say something off-hand (or off-color), make a poor attempt at a joke, accidentally tread upon a stereotype, or back into an opinion that's not shared with your betters, and you might be brought up on Cancel Culture charges. And perhaps hanged from a yardarm, if they could only pull it off.
In his latest Netflix routine, Dave Chappelle took on this phenomenon. With his usual blue language and brilliance. (Note: If you watch that performance, hide the kids and clergy.)
A more tactful gentleman was heard from on this very subject this week. His name is Barack Obama, and he used to hold high office. Speaking before the Obama Foundation on Tuesday, the former president said:
"This idea of purity and you're never compromised and you're always politically woke and all that stuff . . . you should get over that quickly. The world is messy. There are ambiguities. People who do really good stuff have flaws. People who you are fighting may love their kids. And, you know, share certain things with you."
He continued:
"I think one danger I see among young people, particularly on college campuses . . . . I do get a sense sometimes now among certain young people--and this is accelerated by social media--there is this sense sometimes of 'The way of me making change is to be as judgmental as possible about other people. And that's enough. Like if I tweet or hashtag about how you didn't do something right, or used the wrong verb, or . . . then I can sit back and feel pretty good about myself. 'Cause, man you see how woke I was? I called you out.'
"You know, that's not, that's not activism. That's not bringing about change. You know, if all you're doing is casting stones, you're probably not going to get that far. That's easy to do."
Well said, sir. And if anybody knows what it takes to bring about real change, it's the man who embodied it on a national level for about a decade.
But can the Cancel Culture warriors compose themselves long enough to listen? That's the thing about the constantly agitated. They're rarely calm and controlled enough to take good advice.
Editorial on 11/01/2019