Stamp out Elvis

Copyright Rabbi Eli Hecht
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January 8,1993 will go down in history as the biggest commemorative stamp sale ever held  by the United States Postal Service. It is the day that the immortal king of rock, Elvis Presley, went public. His now famous smile printed on the 29 cent stamp was snatched up by hungry fans. In unprecedented numbers, people arrived to the post offices and bought sheets and sheets of stamps. In a small post office 16,000 stamps were sold within the first half hour. Mr. David Mazer, communication manager for the U.S. postal services assured the public that even though ten or more post offices had run out of the Presley stamps the masses  should keep the faith as there would soon be a second printing of 200 million stamps and there would be enough for everybody. In total there would be 500 million stamps printed. The stamp marks the 58th anniversary of the rock star's birth. Officials predict  profits to the cool tune of 20 million.

As I thought about stamps I remembered that I had a little stamp collection as a child. With nostalgia I rumbled through the boxes of odds and ends and found my  small  prized collection of stamps.

There they were: Presidents George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Andrew Jackson, Abraham Lincoln, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Dwight Eisenhower, John Fitzgerald Kennedy. The stamps read like an inspirational song of courage. The faces of determined men forging our great and illustrious country through times of war and peace. For science there were stamps honoring the space program. Pioneer, Jupiter, Mariner10, Venus, Mercury. Then there were commemorative stamps highlighting the spirit of Independence during the revolutionary times.  I even had the wonderful stamp titled "contributors to the cause" featuring a picture of Haym Salomon. Haym was a Jewish banker who helped Robert Morris obtain the needed funds for staging the revolution.

Last but not least were the simple stamps with our country's flag, Old Glory, flying high and proud with the printed dignified words "United States". A collection of stamps that would make any American citizen proud.

As a child, that little stamp collection of my heroes, helped me understand my American heritage. The stamps made history come alive and were inspirational. Our school teacher would bring in books and posters of the new stamps so we could understand the importance of a stamp being printed.

Now I don't want to sound like a "party pooper" but what lessons are the young people going to learn from the Elvis stamp.

Between the songs "Love me tender, love me sweet" and "Nothing but a hound dog" much unhappiness was taking place! The bellicose angry iconoclast singer made a sorry case of rebellion. Scandals were always hovering over the Presley group. Alcohol, drugs, you name it, was the real reason for the dethroning of the so called king of rock. It's rather hard for me to understand the rationale for picking Presley as the stamp of the year by the US Postal Services. If we are talking about honoring the contributors to the American Mosaic then let's stay with citizens who personify the lifestyle we expect for society. You can't separate the music from the person.  MTV can testify to that.

If we think we can draw the distinction then we may have some immense problems. If we are going ahead and giving honor to the great performers then let us put Jimmy Hendrix, the great electric guitarist, Janis Joplin the gutsy singer, and Marvin Gaye the pop singer on a stamp. So what that all three died in hard drug or violent related situations? Who cares, they made music and that's what counts! Lets not forget Madonna, she too deserves a stamp (There may just be a problem picking the right pose). And guess what? The US postal service may even make enough money to keep the postage rates down.

No, I don't believe that would work for us!

It may be time for our nation to re-evaluate what message we want to send to our baby boomers. We ought to think a little bit more of what is respectable and deserving for our country. The Torah is the ideal blue print to measure the criteria for right and wrong; it gives us the right ingredients for our moral fiber. The Torah wants us to have models that truly get us moving in the right direction. There are no allowances made for living one way and singing another way.

Once again, there is no way possible to condone the picture of Elvis on our stamps. He was no model for the law abiding citizen.

This year we have a new younger administration. One that is sensitive to the youth of our country. We must send them a message for change but not at the cost of our ideals and morals.

So when you write your elected officials, stamp your letter with a stamp depicting the flag and what it stands for. Be graceful, Leave Elvis in Graceland.