We tend to think of suck-ups as just exasperating, but ultimately harmless, pests. In fact, they are the great movers and shakers of society. They parrot back the values of their bosses at the office. Over time, these values spread like a virus, and are no longer subjective values but just “normal beliefs.” The Italian philosopher Antonio Gramsci knew that, to change society, it was not enough to call for revolution, as Marx did. Rather, it was necessary to change culture itself. Immanuel Kant observed cultural change can only occur through relentless self-questioning and vigorous debate. Yet, our society is automatized; we are more keen to mimic behavior than to question it. As a result, we have come to oversimplify the concepts of freedom and slavery, thereby preventing us from learning from these ideas. The Torah shows how language should grappled with as something ambiguous and open to multiple meanings. Only then can we see slavery for what it really is.

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Music: Morrissey - "What Kind of People Live in These Houses?"