Sitting at home, end of day, watching msnbc. O'Donnell comes on, and I am reading off my I pad and listening with one ear. It's the end of the show and O'Donnell begins an interview about the sexual assault allegations against Dershowitz . Suddenly, I watched Alan Dershowitz destroy himself. It was like a magic trick. I had expected a soft ball interview by O'Donnell. Two white males discussing sexual assault...ho freaking hum. But then it happened. Follow me over the orange s's, if you missed it.
It began the way I thought it would, Dershowitz was brilliant as he destroyed his accusers' credibility. It was the performance of a lifetime, and a little too perfect. I felt like clapping as he boomed his final threat. There was a brief pause and O'Donnell launched the question. New subject. He had given Dershowitz the whole floor. No questions or poking while he delivered his final soliloquy. There was something in O'Donnell's voice that made me stop and look up. Lawrence asked if Dershowitz had said that "France always rewards terrorism". Dershowitz begins to respond gracefully, but is clearly flustered. O'Donnell pressed, "did you really mean always, not "sometimes or a few?". And Dershowitz was caught. He begins by standing by his statement. He's clearly wrong. And he cannot be wrong. He can't walk it back. He defends and sticks with his absolute. He meant it. Red in the face and shaking he defends. "Yes I said it and I meant it!"
At this moment Dershowitz is transformed before my eyes into a lizard. His pathology exposed. O'Donnell keeps pressing the absolute "always". Dershowitz escalates to the point that he is purple and shaking. He loses it. Suddenly the polarity is clear. One minute ago he was a brilliant lawyer giving the performance of his life. His defense perfect. His threat to his accuser so blatant. "I'll drain my bank accounts just to prove you lied". Next minute, he was a very wounded man. His ism exposed. Black and white thinking, dichotomous thinking is a diversion from truth, from reality. Alan Dershowitz was clutching his rigidity...for dear life. And the more O'Donnell tugged, the more he clutched. It was brilliant. I could not believe how effective the question had been. Nothing pertaining to sexual assault. Completely new subject. It doesn't mean Dershowitz is guilty. I was somewhat swayed by his assertions that he wasn't anywhere she said he had been and he could prove it. I was swayed by the strength of his rebuttle but, I was aware that I wasn't convinced. Then, when he lost it, it occurred to me, that this was a man on the edge of reality. Now I see an angle of defensiveness that I had not seen. Not a hint, but a complete reveal. Watching him cling to something that could not factually be true simply by the nature of the word "always". It would have been so easy to say "well, perhaps not always." There are very few "always" in life. ( and I know nothing about the situation...but I know about "always".) Dershowitz suddenly looked vulnerable. Too angry. Too rigid. Too emotional. Too unwilling to allow the truth.
Last I checked I didn't see the link. Feel free to post it when it comes up. I desperately wonder if anyone else saw what I saw.