I recently heard a sermon in which a pastor used the analogy of a club sandwich to explain the various interconnected layers of a particular passage of Scripture. In the spirit of various senior scholars at Harvard and other universities who seem to be having a hard time refraining from imitating others these days, I would like to “borrow” that pastor’s analogy and share my thoughts on recent events. Let’s apply it to the way we look at it. As I write this column, I’m literally starving, so the thought of a well-cooked club sandwich is more than just a metaphor, and I’m a little distracted and totally tempted.
Let’s start with the top layer – the toasted bread. This Sunday is an important game. No, according to the Biblical context, it is not a Roman Colosseum where lions and martyrs fight to the death (martyrs) while royalty sits on high seats. But it’s true that while the ultra-wealthy secular royals of our time are enjoying the moment from their suites, the simple wealthy are enjoying $10,000 seats and other ordinary mortals are enjoying Taylor Swift’s Others of us are enjoying the NFL rendition of the moment, others of us are enjoying rooting for the modern-day lions, the chiefs and prospectors, and some of us are simply enjoying the advertising. Since I’m primarily in the advertising fan club, I’d like to revisit one of my all-time favorites, the FedEx ad from many Super Bowls ago. As you may remember, this is a pre-biblical scene depicting a caveman trying to send something that looked like a bone or a long stick. The flying dinosaur he worked on quickly ended up being grabbed by another dinosaur, so the caveman retreated to a cave, where his boss asked if he had sent it by Fed Ex, but the first cave The person answered that it has not been invented yet.
The next layer of the sandwich is lettuce and tomato. Combining the caveman and sandwich metaphor, it was “invented” a long time ago, but many of us, including myself, are unaware of the reality that we need to eat enough vegetables. Therefore, it may be difficult to get past the vegetable and traditional common sense layer. Do you know any leader of a country who speaks for centuries of failure to recognize the reality around them? No one can blame them for not using services a million years before they were invented. A presidential candidate may be criticized for jokingly claiming that he won’t lose voters by shooting people, though he shouldn’t. President Trump’s claims in 2016 were both appalling and seem to foreshadow the near-blind following of many of his supporters. His naive claim that he can end the war in Ukraine in one day is also dangerous. Both Ukraine and Russia are sovereign states, and there may be something to be said for such bravado.
Another failure to recognize a long-held truism is President Biden’s continued failure to understand how to deter aggression. As I pointed out in several columns at the beginning of the Ukraine war, he has made it clear what he will not do: not put his boots on the ground, not set up a no-fly zone. Now, as he once again signals simply “stop,” he also says what he won’t do: this time, he’ll bomb Iran.
In my opinion, Biden is unwilling to effectively use deterrence, inviting further aggression. And President Trump believes he can do business with anyone from a business standpoint, which could lead to war. Both remind us of two historical events that should be taught in every high school history class. The Munich Agreement of 1938, a metaphor for appeasement, and our country’s “America First” movement in the late 1930s. Both results were disastrous. In the more familiar Munich Agreement, British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlin was essentially tricked by Adolf Hitler, and a transfer of power to Winston Churchill was necessary to begin to counter the Führer’s aggressiveness. In the little-known America First movement, which culminated in 1940 with the America First Committee, isolationists sought to distance the United States from World War II, which was then raging. They opposed President Franklin Roosevelt’s attempts to aid Britain before December 7, 1941. The commission was disbanded shortly after Pearl Harbor, clearly on the wrong side of history.
America once again has isolationists opposed to aid to Ukraine. In my opinion, they are the intellectual descendants of America First, which unfortunately includes Charles Lindbergh, the aviator who was once America’s number one hero.
Some may have a hard time eating the lettuce and tomato slices of the proverbial club sandwich, but it’s worth it to get to the cheese and cold cuts in the center. Or, figuratively speaking, a solid foundation, the “heart” of the problem.
Have faith in every sense of the word. We all know leaders with solid foundations. Those are what we need to understand – figuratively, of course.
Contact Larry Little at [email protected].