The campaigns are becoming more and more sophisticated. We see some of them prominently, but they also hide behind online influencers and 'bots.' Media systems are also enlisting in the campaign's favor • Rabbi Menachem Brod's column
This week we entered the month of Elul. We all long so much for a different spirit, for the easing of tensions, for reconciliation, for the bringing of hearts together in preparation for the High Holy Days. Didn't we just two years ago experience the terrible internal rift, which caused our enemies to believe that this was the time to strike us. Haven't we learned our lesson?
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These days it would be fitting for us all to put aside all differences and struggles, and open our hearts for the new year. In our prayers we ask, "Our Father, bless us all as one" – the blessing from above is showered upon us when we are united. And who doesn’t want the divine blessing for a good and sweet year?
Sophistication is rising
But while the masses of the people yearn for unity and connection, we are held captive by powerful forces that are trying to do the opposite. High-budget campaigns are being waged above our heads, the sole purpose of which is to pit one public against another, to reject all dialogue and compromise, and to create a permanent atmosphere of anger and unrest.
Humans tend to see themselves as independent and free-thinking, but if that were the case, there would be no livelihood for all the advertising agencies and the entire huge industry they drive. Campaigns influence us, consciously or unconsciously. They make us buy certain brands, adopt new fashions, prefer one product over another.
The campaigns are becoming increasingly sophisticated. We see some of them prominently – on billboards, in newspaper ads, in videos of all kinds. But they also hide behind online influencers and behind 'bots' whose credibility the public has no tools to test. Media systems are also enlisted in the campaign’s favor, and we find ourselves subjected to incessant brainwashing.
The campaigns take a painful issue and ride on it. It could be the kidnappings or easing the burden on the reserve servicemen. The campaign leaders know how to squeeze out the pain and play on the emotional threads, but they will of course never offer a real solution. On the contrary, for the most part, the emotional amplification and raising the level of protest and anger only further the solution.
Look for a solution, not a protest.
Take, for example, the issue of conscription. What have the campaigns achieved besides pitting one public against another? Will this bring even one more soldier to the IDF? Will predation ease the burden on reserve personnel and their families? Anyone who is knowledgeable about the subject knows that it does not. But the campaign managers are not interested in a solution, but in protest and unrest.
It's not easy to stand up to such powerful forces, but just knowing that we're in a campaign can provide some protection. When you know that you're being brainwashed, you become more suspicious of the messages they're trying to feed you. You develop a more developed sense of criticism, and you don't let the advertising agencies lead you by the nose.
Indeed, there are real problems here that require a solution, but it will not come from increasing unrest and raising the level of hatred, but rather from dialogue with respect and sensitivity, from an understanding of the needs and values of each and every one. To this end, we must shake off the campaigns and strive for real connections between the parts of the people. Such an approach can bring us to a different reality for the new year.
