[Peace-discuss] Fwd: Glenn Beck’s redemption song

[C. G. Estabrook]

  Jensen's a whiner.

The White House is delighted to have Beck as a bogeyman, scaring all the 
liberals back to Barack...

I wonder if they pay him for the act?


On 8/31/10 11:12 AM, Morton K. Brussel wrote:
> Jensen was impressed with Glenn Beck, and hence fearful…
>
> Begin forwarded message:
>
>> *From: *"Robert Jensen Updates" <robertjensenupdates at thirdcoastactivist.org 
>> <mailto:robertjensenupdates at thirdcoastactivist.org>>
>> *Date: *August 30, 2010 12:10:18 PM CDT
>> *To: *brussel at illinois.edu <mailto:brussel at illinois.edu>
>> *Subject: **Glenn Beck’s redemption song*
>> *Reply-To: *"Robert Jensen Updates" 
>> <robertjensenupdates at thirdcoastactivist.org 
>> <mailto:robertjensenupdates at thirdcoastactivist.org>>
>>
>>
>> Glenn Beck’s redemption song
>>
>> by Robert Jensen
>>
>> [A version of this essay appeared on the Texas Observer website at 
>> http://www.texasobserver.org/thewholestar/item/16898-glenn-becks-redemption-song.]
>>
>> About halfway through Saturday’s “Restoring Honor” rally on the DC mall, I 
>> realized that I was starting to like Glenn Beck.
>>
>> Before any friends of mine initiate involuntary commitment proceedings, let 
>> me explain. It’s not that I really liked Beck, but more that I experienced 
>> his likeability. Whether or not he’s sincere, I came to admire his ability to 
>> project sincerity and to create coherence out of his incoherent rambling 
>> about religion, race, and redemption.
>>
>> As a result, I’m more afraid for our political future than ever.
>>
>> First, to be clear: Beck is the embodiment of everything I dislike about the 
>> U.S. politics and contemporary culture. As a left/feminist with 
>> anti-capitalist and anti-empire politics, I disagree with most every policy 
>> position he takes. As a journalist and professor who values intellectual 
>> standards for political discourse, I find his willful ignorance and skillful 
>> deceit to be unconscionable.
>>
>> So, I’m not looking for a charismatic leader to follow and I haven’t been 
>> seduced by Beck’s televisual charm, nor have I given up on radical politics. 
>> Instead, I’m trying to understand what happened when I sat down at my 
>> computer on Saturday morning and plugged into the live stream of the event. 
>> Expecting to see just another right-wing base-building extravaganza that 
>> would speak to a narrow audience, I planned to watch for a few minutes before 
>> getting onto other projects. I stayed glued to my chair for the three-hour event.
>>
>> My conclusion: What I saw was the most rhetorically and visually 
>> sophisticated political spectacle in recent memory. Beck was able to both 
>> connect to a right-wing base while at the same time moving beyond the 
>> Republican Party and the Tea Party movement, potentially creating a new 
>> audience for his politics. It’s foolish to make a prediction based on one 
>> rally, but I think Beck’s performance marked his move from blowhard 
>> broadcaster to front man for a potentially game-changing political configuration.
>>
>> My advice: Liberals, progressive, and leftists -- who may be tempted to 
>> denounce him as a demagogue and move on -- should take all this seriously and 
>> try to understand what he’s doing. Here’s my best attempt to understand it.
>>
>> Religion
>> There’s nothing new about mixing Christianity and right-wing politics in the 
>> United States, and Beck put forward a familiar framework: America is a 
>> Christian nation that honors religious freedom. Christians lead the way in 
>> the United States, but the way is open to all who believe in God. Anyone 
>> teaching the “lasting principles” found in all faiths is welcome, despite 
>> theological differences. “What they do agree on is God is the answer,” Beck 
>> said in his call for a central role for religious institutions, whether they 
>> be churches, synagogues, or mosques.
>>
>> But for all the religious rhetoric, Beck never talked about the hot-button 
>> issues that are important to conservative Christians. No mention of abortion 
>> or gays and lesbians. Theologically based arguments against evolution and 
>> global warming were not on the table. No one bashed Islam as a devilish faith.
>>
>> Instead, Beck concentrated on basics on which he could easily get consensus. 
>> God has given us the pieces -- faith, hope, and charity -- and all we have to 
>> do is put them together. Rather than arrogantly assert that God is on our 
>> side, he said, we have to be on God’s side.
>>
>> Beck may eventually have to voice clear opposition to abortion and gay 
>> marriage to hold onto conservative Christian supporters, but on Saturday it 
>> was his apparent religious sincerity that mattered. I have no way to know how 
>> serious Beck’s faith in a traditional conception of God really is, but it 
>> doesn’t matter. He sounds sincere and moves sincere; he creates a feeling of 
>> sincerity. He brings an emotional candor to public discussion of religion 
>> that is unusual for someone in his line of work. When religious people 
>> believe that someone’s profession of faith is real -- that it’s rooted in a 
>> basic decency and is deeply felt -- then differences over doctrine become 
>> less crucial.
>>
>> There has been some discussion of whether Beck, a convert to Mormonism, can 
>> really connect to Protestants and Catholics, some of whom view the Church of 
>> Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as a cult rather than an authentic 
>> Christian denomination. No doubt some evangelical/fundamentalist Christians 
>> will reject Beck, but his personal appeal could overcome those objections for 
>> many others.
>>
>> Race
>> There’s also nothing new in Beck’s analysis of race. Like most conservatives, 
>> he argues that America’s racism is mostly a thing of the past, and that 
>> racial justice means a level playing field that offers equal opportunity but 
>> does not guarantee equal outcomes. Rather than come to terms with the way 
>> white supremacy continues to affect those outcomes through institutionalized 
>> racism and unconscious prejudices, folks like Beck prefer a simple story 
>> about personal transcendence and the end of racism.
>>
>> What was different about Beck’s version of this story was the supporting 
>> cast. There were a lot of non-white people on the stage, including a 
>> significant number of African Americans. The rally went well beyond the 
>> tokenism that we are used to seeing, not only in the Republican Party but 
>> also in institutions throughout society. Beck not only gave a featured 
>> speaking slot to Alveda King -- one of Martin Luther King, Jr.’s nieces, no 
>> doubt selected to bolster his claim to be speaking in the MLK tradition -- 
>> but also paid close attention to race throughout the day. Take a look at the 
>> lineup for the presenters of the three civilian badges of merit for faith, 
>> hope, and charity: An American Indian presenting to an African-American; a 
>> white man presenting to a Dominican; and a Mexican-American presenting to a 
>> white man, with a black woman accepting on his behalf.
>>
>> Is it all cynical and symbolic? For those of us who are white, do we have a 
>> right to ask that question in the presence of so much passion from the people 
>> of color on stage? These weren’t cardboard cutouts shoved in front of a 
>> camera to add color, but an eclectic mix of people, all espousing a 
>> fundamental faith that they seemed to share with Beck.
>>
>> Whether a movement rooted in Beck’s approach can gain wide acceptance in 
>> non-white communities is not the only question. For white people who are 
>> struggling with how to live (or, at least, appear to live) a commitment to 
>> racial justice, this kind of space will be attractive. Tea Party gatherings 
>> are weighed down by an overt racial ideology that limits their appeal; Beck 
>> may have a strategy that overcomes that problem, creating a movement that has 
>> a significant enough non-white component to make white people feel good about 
>> themselves without really challenging white dominance.
>>
>> Redemption
>> The key message of the “Restoring Honor” rally was redemption, personal and 
>> collective, the personal intertwined with the collective. Unlike some 
>> reactionary right-wingers, Beck spoke often about America’s mistakes -- 
>> though all of them are set safely in the past. Rather than try to downplay 
>> slavery, he highlighted it. It is one of America’s “scars,” a term he 
>> repeated over and over, to emphasize that our moral and political failures 
>> are from history, not of this moment.
>>
>> “America has been both terribly good and terribly bad,” leaving us with a 
>> choice, he said. “We either let those scars crush us or redeem us.” Just as 
>> all individuals sin, so do all nations. Just as in our personal life we seek 
>> redemption, so do we as a nation. Framed that way, who would not want to 
>> choose the path of redemption?
>>
>> But while on one level America has sinned, on another level it is beyond 
>> reproach. “It’s not just a country, it’s an idea, that man can rule himself,” 
>> Beck said. An idea remains pure, which means we don’t have to wonder whether 
>> there’s something about our political and economic systems that leads to 
>> failures; injustice must be the product of individual’s mistakes, not flaws 
>> in the systems in which they operate.
>>
>> This is all standard conservative ideology as well. The United States is not 
>> just a nation struggling to be more democratic, but is the essence of 
>> democracy. Our wars are, by definition, wars of liberation. The 
>> wealth-concentrating capitalist system is not an impediment to freedom but is 
>> the essence of freedom. How any of this jibes with the egalitarian and 
>> anti-imperial spirit of the Gospels is off the table, because the United 
>> States is a Christian country and the idea of the United States is beyond 
>> reproach.
>>
>> But, again, the key to Beck’s success is not just the ideology but the way he 
>> puts it all together. A nation whose wealth rests on genocide, slavery, and 
>> ongoing domination of the Third World is the nation that defines faith, hope, 
>> and charity? Beck “proves” it by connecting Moses to George Washington to 
>> Abraham Lincoln to Martin Luther King, Jr. All are part of the same 
>> tradition, the same striving for freedom.
>>
>> Beck is the perfect person to sing this redemption song. He talks openly of 
>> the alcohol and drug abuse that ruled his life until he discovered his faith 
>> in God. Unlike George W. Bush, Beck tells the story with conviction. Perhaps 
>> both Bush and Beck tell the truth about their experience, but Beck makes you 
>> feel it is the truth in a way Bush could never pull off.
>>
>> Reactions
>> Wait a minute, you say, none of this makes a lick of sense. Beck tosses a 
>> confused and confusing word salad that rewrites history and ignores reality. 
>> Maybe it sounds good, if you throw in enough energetic music and 
>> inspirational personal stories from veterans, ministers, philanthropists, and 
>> skillful TV personalities. But it’s really nothing but old right-wing 
>> ideology, no matter how slick and heartfelt the presentation.
>>
>> What would Beck’s supporters say? Probably something like this:
>>
>> So, you are one of those who wants to keep picking at the scars. Why do you 
>> lack faith, reject hope, refuse to offer charity? Why do you turn away from 
>> the values and principles that made us great? Glenn said it: “We must advance 
>> or perish. I choose, advance.” Glenn wants to help us advance, and you want 
>> us to perish.
>>
>> I agree that Beck is wrong about almost everything. I agree that given his 
>> record of demagoguery and deception, he is unfit for work in the news media 
>> or political leadership. I agree that he may be one of those people incapable 
>> of sincerity, someone whose “real” personality is indistinguishable from his 
>> stage persona. I agree that he’s a scary guy.
>>
>> I agree with all that, which is why I don’t really like Glenn Beck. If I ever 
>> got close to Beck I would probably like him even less. But after watching his 
>> performance on a screen over those three hours, I understand why it’s so easy 
>> to like him, at least on a screen. His convoluted mix of arrogance and 
>> humility is likeable, so long as one doesn’t look too closely at the details.
>>
>> More than ever, people in the United States don’t want to look at details, 
>> because the details are bleak. Beck is on the national stage at a time when 
>> we face real collapse. One need not be a Revelation-quoting end-timer to 
>> recognize that we are a nation on the way down, living on a planet that is no 
>> longer able to supply the endless bounty of our dreams. That’s a difficult 
>> reality to face, one that many clamor to deny.
>>
>> The danger of Beck is not just his appeal to fellow conservatives, but rather 
>> his appeal to anyone who wants to deny reality. My fear is not that he will 
>> galvanize a conservative base and make a bid for leadership of that part of 
>> the political spectrum, but that his message will resonate with moderates, 
>> maybe even some liberals, who despair over the future.
>>
>> Does worrying about Beck’s appeal beyond the far right seem far fetched? The 
>> most important rhetorical move Beck made on Saturday was to claim the rally 
>> “has nothing to do with politics.” Many people across the ideological 
>> spectrum want desperately to escape from contemporary politics, which seems 
>> to be a source of endless frustration and heartbrea
>>
>> To those people, Glenn Beck’s redemption song will be seductive.
>>
>> -----------------------
>>
>>
>> Robert Jensen is a journalism professor at the University of Texas at Austin 
>> and board member of the Third Coast Activist Resource Center in Austin. He is 
>> the author of All My Bones Shake: Seeking a Progressive Path to the Prophetic 
>> Voice, (Soft Skull Press, 2009); Getting Off: Pornography and the End of 
>> Masculinity (South End Press, 2007); The Heart of Whiteness: Confronting 
>> Race, Racism and White Privilege (City Lights, 2005); Citizens of the Empire: 
>> The Struggle to Claim Our Humanity (City Lights, 2004); and Writing Dissent: 
>> Taking Radical Ideas from the Margins to the Mainstream (Peter Lang, 2002). 
>> Jensen is also co-producer of the documentary film “Abe Osheroff: One Foot in 
>> the Grave, the Other Still Dancing,” which chronicles the life and philosophy 
>> of the longtime radical activist. Information about the film, distributed by 
>> the Media Education Foundation, and an extended interview Jensen conducted 
>> with Osheroff are online at http://thirdcoastactivist.org/osheroff.!
>> html.
>>
>> Jensen can be reached at rjensen at uts.cc.utexas.edu 
>> <mailto:rjensen at uts.cc.utexas.edu> and his articles can be found online at 
>> http://uts.cc.utexas.edu/~rjensen/index.html 
>> <http://uts.cc.utexas.edu/%7Erjensen/index.html>. To join an email list to 
>> receive articles by Jensen, go to 
>> http://www.thirdcoastactivist.org/jensenupdates-info.html.
>>
>>
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