A brilliant metaphor?

In creating an image of herself holding a replica of President Trump’s decapitated head, Kathy Griffin made something awful. But she also created a brilliant metaphor for the way some on the left have treated this President and his supporters since his first day in office. (Not that I credit Griffin with brilliance because I’m not sure she knew she was creating this metaphor).

Yesterday I tweeted that Griffin “obviously intended to express hate.” On reflection, I’m not so sure. I think it may be more accurate to say that, in creating an image of herself holding a replica of President Trump’s head, severed and bloodied, Griffin intended to CAPITALIZE ON hate.

Because Griffin is a comedian and a provocateur, she tries to shock, amuse, and perhaps most of all, to get attention. Is it possible that she miscalculated with this stunt, simply because so many so-called “liberals” have made it acceptable to view Trump as a “racist,” “evil,” and like “Hitler” – in other words, as someone truly hateful, and his supporters as “deplorable,” rather than fellow Americans who hold a different political philosophy, have priorities that diverge from their own, etc.?

Rather than rush to condemn her, should liberals consider that the metaphor she created might actually reflect some of the hate many of them have indulged in, all while preaching “against hate?”

Consider: Millions of people took to the streets to “protest” this President on his his first day at in office, all while lecturing “against hate.” While I understand some say they were protesting what Trump was proposing to do, and I recognize the protests as their Constitutional right, I still think there is something awful about protesting on his first day in office, if only because it disrespects the will of so many fellow Americans. Imagine for a moment that millions of Americans had taken to the streets to protest Barack Obama’s election on his first day in office. (When Obama was elected, I was very frightened for our national security, our economic health, and the security of Israel – as it turned out, with good reason. My priorities and values are as important to me as those of any American leftist’s are to her. But despite my fears and concerns, I never wrote, spoke or thought, “He’s not my President.” Nor did I protest, or even write a critical word, during Obama’s early days in office. I have too much respect for my fellow Americans to do that).

Many leftists also utterly demonized anyone who voted for this President, again, while claiming to be “against hate.” My family and I have experienced truly vicious treatment on the part of leftists who attacked us for … what exactly? Simply for having a nuanced view of this President. They simply cannot tolerate that. So much for “tolerance.”

Having known and loved a few professional comedians in my life, and having spent most of my twenties in comedy clubs, I believe Griffin’s intent was to shock and garner attention. I don’t think the stunt was funny at all, and I think it was in horrible taste, especially considering that Islamic fanatics are decapitating innocent people in many parts of the world today. But my guess is that, given the level of vitriol being expressed against this President and his supporters from many corners – including during the Women’s March – Griffin figured she was only taking it one step further, and that most Americans, while perhaps being a little shocked, would either tolerate it or cheer her on.

Perhaps it says something about the hate that has become normal to express about the President and his supporters that Griffin thought she could find a receptive audience for this stunt.

To their credit, most liberals have expressed disapproval of what Griffin did here. But I would respectfully ask anyone who has called this President horrible names and dismissed a majority of his supporters as “deplorable,” or “racist” to reflect on why they objected to what Griffin did here.

If President Trump were actually “evil” or the equivalent of Hitler, wouldn’t this have been pretty brave of Griffin?