Having been born and bred in Brooklyn, I found Senator Ted Cruz’s categorization of The Donald’s values as “New York Values” interesting. From birth until age 25 I lived in the city. New York was all I knew and, it seemed, was all there was to know.
Ironically, during those 25 years, I really didn't know city values. The pockets of Orthodox Judaism in Brooklyn are far removed from the mores of Manhattan. Besides holiday trips to historical landmarks and museums, South Street Seaport and the Intrepid, my parents almost never took us to 'the city that never sleeps'. They had no interest in the latest plays and shows, fashions and food. We slept well; we slept securely. We lived in the culture of our community – God centered, community minded, where creativity was channeled, largely, to make sure no man, woman or child was left behind. It more than satisfied our need for identity.
Today, as a 43 year old rabbi/businessman living in Dallas, Texas, I return to New York regularly. I have meetings in the city and deal with its people. I have learned its nature. As I get older, it becomes clear that culture can be distilled and that, ultimately, culture is an expression of values. And that New York values are secular.
New York is unique. It is tough, brash and confrontational. It has bright minds, fearless operators, people who understand industries, trends, tendecies of the human psyche, and the impulses that drive markets. But when you tease out the the bagel, bustle, and Broadway, the primary value, in my opinion, is irreverence. Nothing is holy. Cash is king. Personal restraint and discipline; respect and dignity? Faggetaboutit.
This irreverence goes back a very long time, over 200 years.
In 1774, John Adams wrote about New Yorkers: “They talk very loud, very fast, and all together. If they ask you a question, before you can utter three words of your answer, they will break out upon you again – and talk away,” (John Adams, David McCullough, pg. 25).
Irreverence may lead to financial success. Only someone willing to trample tradition can bring a new product to market. Only an agressive operator can dispose yesterday’s creativity for tomorrow’s efficiency. New York forces industries to adapt or die. Many of my coreligionists live there, because it is easier to make a living among people who create wealth.
But the issue facing this nation is not where wealth is best created. The issue is which values are required in to lead a nation who has lost its way, whose position in the world is compromised, whose finances are near collapse.
I look at Trump and see New York values. It takes a brash New Yorker to mock the personality of the accomplished, former governor of Florida on a national stage; to poke fun at the facial features of the former CEO of HP, and the libertarian Senator of Kentucky. It takes a New Yorker to cross the line of acceptable criticism and reach undignified mockery. It takes a secular, irreverent man to talk endlessly about himself. Discipline and dignity may not be virtues in New York; indeed, they don’t exist in the world of The Donald.
In “The Art of the Deal,” Trump writes about his wealth: “I’ve got enough, much more than I’ll ever need. I do [deals] to do [them]. Deals are my art form. Other people paint beautifully on canvas or write wonderful poetry. I like making deals, preferably big deals. That’s how I get my kicks. …That’s where the fun is. And if it can’t be fun, what’s the point?”
These are not conservative values. These are irreverent values.
Contrastly, Texas is a world apart from this. Recently, I was at the home of a Texan billionaire. Literally, throughout the evening event, you didn't know who the owner was. He was confident and quiet, humble and dignified. It wasn’t about him; it was about our shared purpose.
Irreverence may be fodder for angry people who can't make it because of government policies that cheapen citizenship and devalue a hard day’s work, laws that create endless regulation that kills manufacturing jobs. But fodder for the angry won’t lead a once great nation out of the morass.
There is a hard wire setting to the human condition: left to its own devices, the ego seeks to expand without limit. It is the weakness of man, not its greatness, that is so inclined.
A shameless New York promoter is a lot of fun. But to those who care about the fate of this nation, who stay up at night worrying about the future of this last great hope for humanity, I pray that they look through bluff and bravado, and caucus for a man who embodies discipline and dignity, virtue and valor.
Brooklyn born Yaakov Rosenblatt is a rabbi and businessman living in Dallas Texas
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