Did Ginsberg Speak Too Much Truth?

It was from when I was preparing the outline for my book. Yes, from the chapter on Truth.

But Truth has been no more prominent than in the comments Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg made about Donald Trump. Initially, she said ““I can’t imagine what this place would be — I can’t imagine what the country would be — with Donald Trump as our president,” She elaborated concerns over the makeup of the supreme court, and went on to criticize the press and Trump himself for not releasing his tax returns.” In this case, did Ginsberg speak too much Truth?

Ginsberg’s remarks were very much in line with Jewish tradition. We are taught to speak out against injustice, and clearly her concern for the country motivated her remarks. Speaking Truth to power is sometimes referred to as the prophetic tradition – like the prophets of old, sometimes we are required to speak uncomfortable truths.

In this case, however, Ginsberg was speaking from a position of power. She was perceived as stepping over the line, and eventually apologized, saying, “On reflection, my recent remarks in response to press inquiries were ill-advised and I regret making them. Judges should avoid commenting on a candidate for public office. In the future I will be more circumspect.”

We see in action an important element of Mussar’s teachings – too much of a soul trait is just as bad as not enough. Perhaps Ginsberg was speaking too much Truth in this case. I say perhaps because it is not for me to judge whether on a spiritual level what she did was too much or the right amount. That is for Justice Ginsberg alone to evaluate. The classic indicator of too much Truth is when we are being unkind; more generally we might say that too much Truth causes more harm than good. Personally, I know that I have a tendency to be Truthful to a fault and on many occasions I’ve caused myself and others unnecessary pain by being too Truthful.

There is another important side of Truth: human perception of Truth is subjective. Ginsberg was telling her truth, reality as she sees it. Have you ever been in a situation when you and someone else have very different perceptions of the same experience? This is common, and part of being human. As a result, we need to be cautious when we start tossing our Truth out into the world.