January 21, 2009, 6:33pm
Yid Vid: Obama’s Not the Only One Conjuring Washington and Lincoln
By Daniel Treiman
Barack Obama, as we all know by now, is quite fond of summoning up the spirit of Abraham Lincoln. That’s why it was such a surprise when the presidential predecessor Obama decided to invoke in his inaugural address was not “Honest Abe” but the fellow who (as lore has it) could not tell a lie about chopping down a cherry tree. But our new president isn’t the only one conjuring the spirits of the American Cincinnatus and the Great Emancipator for elevated purposes:
Limmud LA from Gordon Eick on Vimeo.
In the interest of full disclosure, I should note that the script for the video was written by Nick Weiss, the brother of Forward staff writer Anthony Weiss. Nick Weiss also provides the voice of Lincoln.
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There are at least 5 good reasons for thinking Lincoln (Lincohen?) was Jewish. 1. As the video notes, his name was Abraham (and as Archie Bunker reminded his wife Edith, one should pay attention to the first name, not the last). 2. He always wore black gabardine. 3. He had a beard. 4. He owned a department store in New Salem, Illinois, before becoming a lawyer. 5. He was shot in the Temple.
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