A revealing incident surfaced at the Miss Universe competition, held recently in Doral, Florida. An Instagram photo sparked an ugly encounter that belied the theme of international camaraderie hyped by the pageant. Apparently, the idealized assumption of harmony among the contestants has some serious boundaries.
The fracas started when this year’s Miss Israel, Doron Matalon, posted a photo on Instagram. The “selfie” featured four young ladies – Matalon along with the representatives of Lebanon, Japan, and Slovenia. In these days of social media, the posting seemed to be a truly benign event.
The picture, however, caused a furor in Lebanon. The country has a law forbidding its citizens from associating with Israelis. A Lebanese official told the Associated Press that measures could be taken against Miss Lebanon, Saly Greige.
Greige offered a post of her own. She said, “I was very cautious to avoid being in any photo or communication with Miss Israel.” She contends that she was photobombed.
Matalon said the reaction “doesn’t surprise me, but it still makes me sad.” The Miss Universe Organization issued a statement that said, “It is unfortunate to know a photo of four smiling women from different parts of the world, working together at an event, could be misconstrued as anything other than what it is, a celebration of universal friendship.”
It is easy to dismiss this entire episode with a smirk and a chuckle. We need to delve deeper and realize there are some very basic matters that need to be addressed.
Despite the most cherished ideas in the modern world, all people are not essentially the same, nor do all people strive for commonalities in their national and personal desires. The obsession with the political correctness that is endemic in America today has stripped us of the ability to see what is before our eyes. The Western mind seems to be suffering from a collective case of denial, making it incapable of recognizing reality.
The ineffectiveness of various international organizations in creating any good will or cooperation among nations is disappointing. However, insanity has been defined as doing the same thing the same way and being shocked at getting the same results. Perhaps we need to take a long and serious look into some of the most cherished notions and ideals of our unfulfilled desires and finally face the ugly truth.