The Knight in Shining Armor?
In American life, there are many instances where people defer responsibility for some task or action to some unspecified other person. There was an old, idiomatic expression that I used to hear as a small child: “Let George do it.” I wondered who this “George” was. Finally, I asked my Mom, and she laughingly explained that “George” was simply a convenient label for someone who had to do something, usually a task requiring considerable diligent work. Most people, she said, would try to avoid doing that work if at all possible. “Let George do it” was their phrase.
As an adolescent, I became part of the anti-war, the feminist, and the environmental movements with which my parents were involved. I noticed that many members of these groups came up with excuses for why they “couldn’t” do such-and-such work, and that work eventually was transferred to my Mom, who was an exceptionally-organized, high-speed typist, and who could communicate with the best. Much of the groups’ work involved contacting political, religious, and scientific leaders; organizing conferences or seminars; preparing campaign materials; and otherwise moving the groups’ programs forward.
Mom would express her frustration with the hypocrisy of the members who claimed to be in favor of women’s rights, or against the war in Vietnam, or in favor of the environment, but who deferred responsibility for taking…