January 20, 2007
Juxtaposition
The State of the Union speech and Groundhog Day this year each come within only a few days of the other.
Air America Radio took note of this coincidence and pointed out that “It is an ironic juxtaposition of events that the one involves a meaningless ritual in which we look to a creature of little intelligence for prognostication while the other involves a groundhog.”
OoN reports this if for no other reason than that we feed off irony and are constantly alert to it however and whenever it comes down. Indeed, it is refreshing even to find it elsewhere than seemingly always somehow involved in the church’s frequent obsessive obfuscation with itself.
Also, we do not wish to be unreasonably pedantic, for it may be unfortunate that some, if they catch Air America’s insinuation, may be offended and see this as a misunderstanding of the proper use of irony and as an altogether appropriate if unfortunate comparison. The leaders of the nation — and of the church, as well, for that matter — seem so constantly into the gravitas of life. Further, they seem so burdened by their reading of it and with the making of decisions about it that an occasional injection of how ludicrous we both must seem to outsiders could possibly be a source of comic relief. But then, it may not.
There’s little we can do about that, save savor the moment and take full advantage of getting to use a fun word like juxtaposition even in the same sentence with irony. As you might imagine, we’re rather pleased and invigorated whenever such a word becomes flesh.