What should a community do if a buss company does not respond to reasonable requests for accommodating the sensibilities of the Charedi community? Why throw rocks at them of course. Isn’t this what Pinchas would do? After all who should they listen to, God or Egged? ‘Nuff said.
What? You say such activity is not justified? Of course it is. If the Reshaim at Egged won’t listen to reason what choice do they have? If we want to live their lives on the standard of “taharas hakodesh” one must sometimes fight for it. This is what is what happened in the city of Bet Shemesh. A bus driver got hurt? He probably deserved it. He should know better than to work for the devil (Egged).
Anyway, as my Satmar friend always say, “It’s time we taught these Reshaim a little Kavod HaTorah!” You know what I mean?
NOT!
Unfortunately far too many Charedim believe this stuff. And their rabbinic leadership tolerates it. I don’t mean to say that they support or advocate it. They of course don’t. But they certainly tolerate it it enough to allow it to happen. Numerous times. Without consequences.
And it does happen quite frequently. I cannot ask this question enough times. Why is this behavior tolerated? Why do these hooligans feel they have a license to do this? There can be only one answer. It is a special type of hooliganism which is based on just demands (according to them) It is the type of Chinuch that equates sitting on a bus that does not segregate the men from the women is tantamount to Giluy Arayos, Shfichas Damim, and Avodah Zara. The way they look at even the slightest infraction of of even the most outlandish Chumra puts them into a mindset that makes them think they have a right to cuase general destruction of property and risk causing bodily harm to others. They are “Pinchas” to Egged’s “Zimri”.
Now of course their rabbinic leadership does not believe this behavior is justified. But it is a tepid belief. The fact that not even the most Charedi amongst them really believes that men and women sitting mixed on a bus equates to what Zimri did with Cosby Bas Tzur. But there is a hooligan element within their ranks that uses this as an excuse to cause mischief and mayhem.
The truth is it is not correct to call these people hooligans. They aren’t your typical gangster types. These are not your gun toting, drug dealing, thugs from the poor side of town who would just as easily kill you as look at you. These are people for whom violating Shabbos is unthinkable. People who Daven three times a day. .. people who would not be caught any where near a gangster. These people are “Frum” in the most commonly understood use of the word. But they are thugs never-the-less. Frum Thugs who think they are doing a Mitzvah by standing up for their principles… fighting for their ideals.
So the public condemnation by their own rabbis just passes right through them. They probably think all it is done with a wink and a nod… and that it is just stated for public consumption.
Those who would dispute that is must ask themselves why they are so defensive of that community. Why do they say, as they often do, “You can’t judge a community by the actions of the hooligans within it”? I think you can if that community tolerates enough of Apologists galore appear after an event like this in their defense saying things like “OK, they were wrong. But you have to understand…” Attitudes like this is what produces such “Kanoim”.
If their leadership would come down forcefully instead of tepidly against these people and stop apologizing for their actions, things might change. Then when someone says “Charedi hooligan” it might actually be a real hooligan.
And that’s what makes these events so bad. These hooligans actually think they are doing something good.
