Contempt or Condemnation : Transcript of a visit with a psychologist

Consultation Transcript: Dr. Neshama Nervn-Kopf with Ms. Shprintzele Gelachter, 17 May 2026.

NN-K: “The time is two thirty in the afternoon on the seventeenth of May, twenty twenty-six. This is Doctor Neshama Nervn-Kopf. I am meeting with Shprintzele Gelachter. I am starting the tape.”

NN-K: “Good afternoon, Shprintzele. Welcome back. Before we start, I need your permission to record our session. Thanks, but I need you to say it out loud so it’s on the tape.”

SG: “Why should we not record it? You think I would say something not so kosher? I’m not embarrassed. Go ahead.”

NN-K: “You seem excited, Shprintzele. Is there something you’d like to talk about?”

SG: “Yes, doctor! Oh yes! I discovered something amazing! I realized that it is possible to be disgusted with Benjamin Netanyahu and with the New York Times, at the same time! Not only that, I am pretty convinced that it’s mentally healthy for me.”

NN-K: “That’s great, Shprintzele! It sounds like you’re making progress. How does this new realization feel for you?”

SG: “Oh, doctor, it feels so freeing, so wonderful. It’s like how I felt when my mother-in-law, may she rest in peace, would finally leave and go home.”

NN-K: (inaudible)

SG: “Sorry, doctor. I forgot you’re a mother-in-law too, not just a psychologist. I don’t mean any disrespect to mothers-in-law, but my Simhe’s mother was something else. When she left, I felt like I was in an old Disney movie, walking down a path with butterflies and singing animals all around.”

NN-K: (clears throat) “Let’s get back on track, Shprintzele. You feel good about this insight, right? Can you tell me how you felt before you realized this? It sounds like you thought you had to pick which one disgusted you. Is that right? How did that make you feel?”

SG: “Well, how can I say this? I always thought you had to pick a side. You know what I mean. Either you’re a patriot who supports Netanyahu, or you’re an Israel-hating progressive who thinks the New York Times is gospel—if you believe in God. So if you hate the New York Times, you must love Netanyahu, and vice versa. I kept going in circles about this… what’s the word? Conundrum?

I felt bad about it. I hate antisemitism and the enemies of Israel who want to destroy it. So I thought I had to hate the New York Times, but then it felt like I was supporting Netanyahu, since the New York Times hates him too.

Now, I think Netanyahu is awful. He has no principles, no direction for the country, and corruption follows him around like a dog looking for a treat. He’s made bad calls on all the big issues during his time in office. He should have retired years ago. But if I don’t support Netanyahu, does that mean I’m siding with the New York Times? They’re the ones who report things like Israel using dogs to rape prisoners (is that even possible?), show a Gazan child with cerebral palsy as a victim of starvation, and use Hamas sources as if they’re not just propaganda for terrorists, and so on.”

NK-K: “I hear you. I’d like to talk more about what this means for you.”

SG: “Oh, doctor, I’m so happy I don’t have to choose. I can dislike them both. I feel free to be myself.

You know what? They’re both so awful, I think that if I want to take myself seriously as a moral person, I have to despise them both. If this latest article about dogs sexually assaulting prisoners isn’t enough to make you despise them - I mean, just think of how many really dumb, evil things have to go wrong for a reporter to pass on a fairy tale like this and for editors to give it the OK. If this isn’t enough to make you despise them, then you are probably missing a sense of right and wrong. You are probably dangerous to yourself and others. Just saying.”

NK-K: “Well, it looks like we’re out of time. Next time, let’s talk about this feeling—can I call it ‘contempt’?—and whether it’s helping you emotionally. Think about the difference between contempt (despising them) and condemnation (seeing them as morally wrong). In the end, Shprintzele, it’s about what kind of person you want to be. What does feeling contempt do to you? How much do you want to let bad people affect you, even in indirect ways? See you next week.”

SG: “Damn! That’s not fair. More thinking?! I just had it all figured out, and now you want me to think more!”

Tape ends.