Picture Perfect

There is some uncertainty about my future!

At least, for one of my parents, not for myself. I know perfectly well what I wish to do and when I wish to do it, but those parently forces do not agree.

I wish to qualify as a lawyer, but I'll be damned if I spend the rest of my life practicing law. I'm much more interested in journalism, politics and teaching. I'm disillusioned with politics, however, as everything within it is so sordid it makes my head spin. Political leaders wantonly lie time and time again to the people; they have absolutely no regard for the electorate at all. Nothing is as it seems and everything depends either upon public opinion, or better still, keeping the public ignorant of the facts for as long as possible, to cram through whatever policy you want to for as long as you possibly can.

Journalism, on the other hand, is about influencing public opinion in ways I deem positive, without having to fall in line with party-politics, or worrying about whether or not you'll get elected next term. Teaching is something I think I'd enjoy, challenging the young minds of tomorrow as I myself was challenged, once upon a time, remains appealing to me...but I don't see that as a career for myself, more something I want to do at some stage in my life.

However, Journalism, teaching and being a Rabbi - in the words of my grandfather is "hardly a job for a Jewish boy" (to be fair, it was only the job-description of rabbi [to which I have no aspirations] which my grandfather was commenting on, but my mother, no doubt, would insert the other two as well).  

Law and journalism may be combined, there's no doubt about that. But I feel my passions lie mainly within international politics. There's demand for legal correspondents on matters of domestic politics, sure - constitutionalism and other catagories of law-making - which I am "almost equally" passionate about. But we shall see.

The main point of life, according to a religious Jewish and even secular view, is to enjoy it. I do not wish, in the words of Karl Marx, to be reduced to a glorified wage-labourer in the larger system of capitalist furtherment, which the lawyer no doubt is. The same may be said of the teacher and journalist, but those positions have a chance to change the fabric of society, either through shining spotlights on issues or through education. And even an ordinary teacher may do that.

I was once a sceptic on teh matter of student politics. "Does it actually make a difference?" Whilst those involved in it opined that it did, nothing spoke the answer "yes" as vehemently as my fellow students. "I want to go into politics, actually" one of my fellow law students told me. I just laughed and mischievously told them that I'd "keep an eye out for them" if ever I became a journalist, a comment they seemed to appreciate as she too started laughing. 

It was mutually understood that politicians and journalists are almost always natural enemies. I have interviewed a few politicians, many of whom I agreed with on what they were saying, but whom I ferociously attacked nontheless. In one interview at the IDC [a body whose faculty serves as prime advisors to the UN on matters of terrorism], fellow students noted me down as "very journalistic." In the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs, I was deemed equally journalistic and bodering on obsession [especially as I obtained the business card of the person in question, without even asking for it]. I conducted one phone interview with a spokesperson from UKIP, whom I gave absolute hell. I would have been amiable enough, had he not called me "son" at the start of the interview. As it was, I drew out their sordid financial state of affairs - the party was undergoing investiagtion for their payment - or rather lack of it - of tax. I also (somewhat cheekily, I suppose) asked about their affiliations with the British National Party [the leader of which has previously been imprisoned for inciting racial hatred] and if they agreed with their policies. The gentleman on the other end of the phone repeated something which sounded rehearsed, asked to be taken off record and said "we have a Jewish fellow working for us, who does his job very well." "Well" I said "so does the BNP." I allowed the conversation to degenerate into a history discussion about the Nazi party (he claimed the Nazis were actually a leftist organisation, not a right-wing one, citing the name "National Socialist German Worker's Party" as proof. I happened to study the rise of the nazi party for history, but didn't bother pointing out the policies were characteristically right-wing and the leftists in the party were purged upon their succession to power in 1933, during what was called the "Night of the Long Knives"). I ended the conversation and thanked him for his time. He requested a copy of the article I was writing and left me his e-mail address (a useful contact tid-bit I still have). 

The point is, the words and policies which these people were speaking out, I mostly agreed with (woe to those, then, whom I don't agree with at all) - but the second pointis, I actually enjoy all this. 

So finally - finally! -  I have been given an interview for a journalist/writer position which actually pays! If all goes well, I could finally start to eak a living doing something I really do seem to enjoy. A part of that enjoyment may be giving cat headaches telling her to read my latest article, but I'd enjoy that anyway, no matter what job I have.

At the end of the day, life should be enjoyed. Dreams, afterall, isn't something which just has to be dreamt - I intend to them too!