Charlie Hall:
Have you read “The Rav: Thinking Aloud” by R’ Holzer? The serious inconsistencies (noted by Professor Kaplan himself in his essay “Revisionism and the Rav Revisited”) throw a wrench in the mix. It is no longer simply Professor Kaplan versus the right-wingers.
Prof. Kaplan addresses them in a way he sees fit there. Personally, I feel that the correct approach lies along the difference between the way one feels about an issue and the way he relates to others regarding it. This difference is apparent all the time–we choose how to deal with different people based on a myriad of factors, only one of which is our personal views on the matter. (For example, although I may be highly critical of many things heavily associated with Mizrachi, I honestly think I can–and would, if appropriate–give an even more Zionistic speech than most American Zionists would. Why? Because I’m more interested in serving G-d than having silly, fruitless arguments. It would not lie at all, I would simply highlight the congruent areas and build upon them.) In other words, I think R’ Soloveitchik, because he saw a good cause, chose to motivate them and highlight those positives and keep his reservations out of the public sphere.
But no matter how you feel they should be addresse]d, simply saying that “Prof. Kaplan has caught R’ Meiselman” distorting the truth belies the reality of the matter.