Columnists
Sleight of hand
In my early 20s a friend taught me one of the quickest and most valuable social studies lessons I’ve ever received. It’s a social experiment you may have tried before. She caught my attention by waving her hand to the left of my face, causing me to turn and face that hand. Then, while I wasn’t looking, she used her other hand to (gently) slap my right cheek.
After I got over my feelings of indignation, she explained. They distract you with something flashy on one side while they do what they want on the other.
It’s a common tactic, and an old one, used by grifters and politicians alike. It doesn’t take a particularly high level of skill. And while it can be effective, it’s also easy to spot.
The US’s reality-TV president recently brought its viewing public programming in the form of the latest incarnation of Jersey Shore— if only for a short-lived run.
Last week, he launched an unprovoked assault on transgender people via Twitter, claiming those in the military are a distraction and would no longer be allowed to serve. The notion was absurd, harmful and way out of left field.
Like much of the US president’s Twitter feed, though, it’s a pointless distraction, bits of 140- or-less character phrases that are as meaningless as the platform from which they’re spewed. Once hailed as an organizing tool for revolutions, Twitter has become a reality sideshow.
Upon reflection, it’s easy to see that these acts of buffoonery are nothing more than bafflegab, obscuring something less flashy. What takes a little more work is to see what that was.
Perhaps in this case it’s a tactic taken too far, used by an administration drowning in infighting and failed attempts at leadership. It’s a distraction from the actual train wreck with a bigger, more dazzling facsimile of a train wreck.
Perhaps the hand is waving Americans away from a foolish fight with a North Korea that now has the ability to fire missiles into North America.
Perhaps it’s a deflection from growing questions about Russian ties, corruption, misconduct and blatant nepotism in what has become its own reality show. If so, it has been effective—the media seems far more interested in the sideshow.
Perhaps. I wouldn’t doubt there are smarter people than that in the US government taking advantage of small hands desperately waving to the left in order to do what they want on the right.
But it’s a tactic to be wary of, regardless. Especially because it’s not always a hand waving, or cartoonish reality TV stars. Sometimes it’s shirtless men, riding horses or crashing grad parties.
Try the hand experiment on your friends and family. But don’t be surprised if they’re less than impressed by your trick. After all, it’s the con employed most commonly by politicians and pickpockets. And no one likes to be slapped in the face.
Comments (0)