Bamboozled: Two Recent Biographies Shed New Light

[EmptyTimCup]

Bamboozled: Two Recent Biographies Shed New Light on Liberal Icons


Why are we startled to learn the real truth about Gandhi and Malcolm X? Because journalists are remarkably adept at seeing only what they want to see when a liberal dreamboat comes floating along on a river of lies.


Did you hear that ripping sound? Two liberal icons known by their silly stage names — Mahatma Gandhi and Malcolm X — have just been torn down from their sanctified perches thanks to a pair of massively researched but finally damning new biographies.

Both men, it turns out, were at pains to take on phony identities. Each hid his homosexuality, each was racist, each took pains to manufacture favorable coverage, each was driven by petty hatreds instead of shining ideals — each of these supposedly principled figures was an out-and-out phony.

Perhaps the most delicious irony of this myth-busting is that writers with impeccable liberal credentials are the ones who are doing the exposing — and implicitly rebuking the generations of journalists who actively participated in the distortion and exaggeration.

Malcolm X: A Life of Reinvention, by the Columbia scholar Manning Marable, who died just as the book was being sent to stores, shows us a “profoundly flawed individual,” Princeton professor of African-American studies Melissa Harris-Parry told NPR, which called the book “an abrupt departure from ‘heroic’ and ‘perfected’ visions of the African-American minister that were set in motion by The Autobiography of Malcolm X and perpetuated in American popular culture.”

That “autobiography,” as David Remnick makes clear in a review in The New Yorker, consisted in large part of Malcolm Little making up tall tales about his life while being egged on by the sensationalist writer Alex Haley, whose later book Roots would also turn out to be mostly fictitious (and partly plagiarized). Haley, says Marable, wanted to write “a potboiler that would sell,” facts be damned.

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Mohandas Gandhi also successfully hid his homosexuality — his biographer Joseph Lelyveld, former editor of The New York Times, writes in his admiring new book Great Soul: Mahatma Gandhi and His Struggle with India that the Indian leader dumped his wife to have an affair with a German bodybuilder, Hermann Kallenbach. “How completely you have taken possession of my body,” he wrote to Kallenbach. Gandhi even said that Vaseline was “a constant reminder” of his boyfriend.

If Gandhi was not a rabid anti-Semite like Malcolm, his beliefs in regard to Jews are nonetheless reprehensible. He addressed Hitler as “my friend” in a letter and urged that the Jews pursue nonviolent resistance to the Nazis. He also advised the Jews of Palestine to “rely on the goodwill of the Arabs” and wait for a Jewish state “till Arab opinion is ripe for it.”

 

[SamSpade]

I hate seeing my heroes deconstructed. Especially Ghandi. With all of his failings, I still see him as essentially heroic.

The reason I hate this though is that, unless their history is a complete whitewash of an otherwise reprehensible person, you can ALWAYS find things about anyone to make them look simply awful. You live a long time - surely you've done enough bad things in that time to fill a few chapters? I know I have.

Heroes to me are not perfect men. You can't admire people who never do anything wrong. Washington, to me is even more heroic because he failed - but never quit. I'm reminded of Washington's famous Newburgh speech, where he faced a potential revolt in the army, because they had not been paid. During his reading, he paused and requested of them -- "Gentlemen," said Washington, "you will permit me to put on my spectacles, for I have not only grown gray but almost blind in the service of my country." At that point some of the soldiers were moved to tears - here was a great man who had suffered with them. Sure, anyone who knows about Washington knows his failings, but his great character can't be disputed.

 

[Mongo53]

I Never knew Ghandi had a Homosexual Affair, nor can I rule out its just exploitive or sensalized hearsay without more evidence, NOT like we haven't seen that with other historic figures.

He addressed Hitler as “my friend” in a letter and urged that the Jews pursue nonviolent resistance to the Nazis. He also advised the Jews of Palestine to “rely on the goodwill of the Arabs” and wait for a Jewish state “till Arab opinion is ripe for it.”

I have a tough time seeing that as being Anti-Semmetic, Ghandi was a pacifist and tried to engage bad people or enemies with friendship. Although I agree very foolish, I don't see Ghandi encouraging Isreal and Jews to follow his philosphy of pacifism, anymore than just that, pacifism.

I think you would have a better case in Ghandi oversaw the partisioning and resettlement of Muslims into the break-off countries of Pakistan and Bangladesh. But, even that is NOT fair, cause he never wanted that, and fought against it, he would eaglerly admitt it was his and his country's failure, NOT desire.

Ghandi's Pacifism worked because he was dealing with a civilized and fair nation that could be rationalized with successfully. I don't agree pacifism works in most cases, let alone all cases, and its almost criminally foolish to make that a philosophy.

Personally, what I found Heroic about Malcom X was his sudden enlightenment, and desire for unity and harmony amoungst races and religions, and his courage to act on that, even though he knew it might mean his life, which it ended coming true. Before that point, I would NOT consider him a hereo, only an angry man, exploiting other angry men to scapegoat others.

You've got people that try to discredit Mother Teresa, claiming she was a rich, jet setting, socialite, rubbing elbows with celibrity and running a corrupt charity making money off it. And fill books with events and evidence to prove it, but, like Sam says it decontructing and deconstructing in a vacuum to create a false impression. Fact was, Mother Teresa's charity grew and as it got larger in a Nation notorous for corruption, you could find some corruption amoungst individuals and events within the giving and providing for the poor. Mother Teresa, like others that try to raise money for a good cause, go and meet with Rich People that are willing to give money to their cause, and being very busy running their extensive charity, she took advantage of some of the transportation fund raiser were willing to provide her, such as riding a private jet to an event. The woman lived and died with narly 3 outfits and in a small room with barely any furniture, but don't let that stop people from trying to come up with a sensational story.

 

[Mr.Steed]

I hate seeing my heroes deconstructed. Especially Ghandi. With all of his failings, I still see him as essentially heroic.

The reason I hate this though is that, unless their history is a complete whitewash of an otherwise reprehensible person, you can ALWAYS find things about anyone to make them look simply awful. You live a long time - surely you've done enough bad things in that time to fill a few chapters? I know I have.

Heroes to me are not perfect men. You can't admire people who never do anything wrong. Washington, to me is even more heroic because he failed - but never quit. I'm reminded of Washington's famous Newburgh speech, where he faced a potential revolt in the army, because they had not been paid. During his reading, he paused and requested of them -- "Gentlemen," said Washington, "you will permit me to put on my spectacles, for I have not only grown gray but almost blind in the service of my country." At that point some of the soldiers were moved to tears - here was a great man who had suffered with them. Sure, anyone who knows about Washington knows his failings, but his great character can't be disputed.

Well said Spade. All men and women have their foibles, even those whose act heroically. What Gandhi did for India was and is unprecedented.

 

[EmptyTimCup]

interesting ........