The Democratic National Convention is over. By all accounts it was a resounding success. The soaring rhetoric, the message of hope, the image of decisiveness and leadership and the excitement of a stadium filled to capacity cheering him on made for a pretty impressive sight.
So too did a string of retired generals and admirals who came out to support Obama – along with a number of ‘just plain folk’.
Obama gave a very strong and, impassioned speech. But if you analyze what he said, the utopia he envisions for the US is long on promises and short on details. All those great programs he promised cost big money. Closing a few loopholes in the tax code to pay for them is at best naive. Kind of like his idea about solving the gas shortage by making sure car tires are inflated.
At worst it is a cynical attempt to fool the public. Especially if you include his promise to cut taxes to 95% of the population.
But that was probably lost on most people. They just saw a great show by a man promising them the world while prattling on about how bad things are now and how great they’ll be with him as President.
That said, I still think it was a powerful image and the entire 'show' was reminiscent of the JFK era. Very impressive. And it will probably boost Obama’s numbers in the polls significantly. For me - well frankly I was a lot more impressed by what Bill Clinton said than by what Barrack Obama said.
I don't know how the Republicans can top this spectacle - which it truly was. Especially with the press fawning all over the Democratic convention and treating Obama like the Messiah. It was a spectacle. Obama is a great and inspiring speaker. He's the new 'Rock star' of Democratic politics. But he's no savior. That myth is what the Republicans need to explode if they are going to have any chance of success come November.
But though things seem to be going according to the game plan in the Democratic Party, things are not that bleak for McCain. Here’s why.
One of the things emphasized at the Democratic convention was the progress for women made by Hillary Clinton in breaking new ground. Many of the speakers spoke of her trailblazing efforts. Indeed she almost pulled off being the first female candidate for the Presidency by a major political party. Everyone paid tribute to her - from her husband, the former President - to Michelle Obama - to Barrack Obama himself.
Indeed she did blaze a new trail. But her supporters were disappointed in the end that she didn’t get the nomination, feeling somewhat robbed of it. Of course all the speakers including Mrs. Clinton herself strongly urged all of her supporters to vote for Barrack Obama in the fall.
There was a lot of talk pre-convention about her supporters being so upset that many of them considered voting for McCain! But by the end of the convention that seemed to be taken care of. The image conveyed was one of unity. But it remains to be seen just how many voters who supported Senator Clinton will now actually vote for Obama.
And there is an additional fly in the Democratic ointment. All the rhetoric about the advances of women in the party still left Mrs. Clinton standing at the door. Not only didn’t she win the nomination for the Presidency, she was not chosen as a running mate on a ‘dream ticket’ either. She was never even seriously considered. Joe Biden was chosen for that job. Obama-Biden. Hardly my idea of a dream team.
So her supporters are probably not all that happy right now. That’s not good for Obama. He needs the female demographic if he is to have any chance of winning in the fall.
Well, that may yet happen - but not if Alaska Governor Sarah Palin has anything to say about it. John McCain in what I consider a brilliant political move has chosen a woman as his running mate. Talk about glass ceilings! She is a perfect candidate for him. She is conservative politically to offset the lukewarm conservatism of McCain. She will energize the conservative Republican base which McCain needs if there is any chance for him to win.
Governor Palin will appeal to many disgruntled Clinton supporters as well. Just how much will she take of the Clinton vote - remains to be seen. Much of Senator Clinton’s appeal was to hard core feminists, hardly a Republican constituency. They will not vote for a woman who is not ‘one of them’. But many female Clinton supporters were not hard core feminists. That is obvious by all the talk of Clinton voters defecting to McCain. And now with Governor Palin on the ticket that increases the chances for defection. Many Clinton supporters may actually vote for McCain now.
I can’t wait to see the VP debate between smarmy Biden and the tough as nails Palin. I don’t think he has a chance. He may have a lot of foreign policy experience, but I think she’s smarter than he is. Besides experience - we’ve been told - is not what is important. Good judgment is.
But that hasn't stopped the Obama people from bringing up her lack of experience. I hope they keep doing it. I'll take an inexperienced number two on the Republican ticket over an inexperienced number one on the Democratic ticket any day of the week.
What else does she bring to the tiket? Here is a partial list. She's a successful reformer who went against her own Republican party in Alaska to establish new ethical standards. She is a religious woman with religious values - a mother of five who decided to knowingly give birth to a Downs syndrome baby instead of aborting it. She and her husband are union members. She supports off shore drilling for oil and even supports drilling in the Alaska National Wildlife Reverve (ANWR) in her own state. And her roots are firmly and recently middle class. Her entry into politics - just a few short years ago - was joining the PTA. She can easily identify with those struggling to balance a family budget. She supports the McCain position in Iraq and her son is about to be deployed there.
How will this play out at the polls in November? I don’t know. A lot can happen to change things in either direction. But this was a great move.
Sunday, August 31, 2008
Friday, August 29, 2008
Message to Kupat Ha’ir
If you think that Rav Chaim Kanievsky has ‘Bracha power’ read this. Who did Rav Shach send people to for Brachos? It was none other than Rabbi Morris Esformes - world renowned Jewish philanthropist known to his friends simply as Morrie.
Many people would be surprised to hear such a thing. But Rav Shach was nobody’s fool. He knew the source of all Brachos is God. Not himself. And he was not inclined to give Brachos as a rule.
But his grandson came to him one time. He had been married for a while and had not had any children. Rav Shach told him to go to my friend Morrie for a Bracha because he was such an incredible supporter of Torah institutions all over the world. He surely had the Zechusim to be in a position to give Brachos.
So he listened to the advice given by his grandfather and came to Chicago to see him.
Morrie was not told about this in advance. So when Rav Shach’s grandson came into Morrie’s office, what he saw was a young Charedi man – not knowing that it was Rav Shach’s grandson. Morrie was of course used to seeing Meshulachim on a constant basis. That’s what he thought this young man was.
So he asked him what he wanted. The young man said he does not want any money. He just wanted a Bracha from him so he would have children and explained that his grandfather, Rav Shach, had sent him. Morrie smiled and couldn’t believe what he heard. But he said OK, if that’s what Rav Shach said… and he gave him a Bracha. One year later that young man’s wife gave birth!
That young man now visits Morrie every year and brings his children to meet him. How do I know any of this? Last Monday I was at the wedding of Morrie’s youngest daughter and this young man was there. On my way out at the end of the wedding I was approached by a young woman who I trust and she pointed out a young Charedi looking man to me. She asked me if I knew who he was. I said no. I was told that it was Rav Shach’s grandson and then she told me this incredible story
Many people would be surprised to hear such a thing. But Rav Shach was nobody’s fool. He knew the source of all Brachos is God. Not himself. And he was not inclined to give Brachos as a rule.
But his grandson came to him one time. He had been married for a while and had not had any children. Rav Shach told him to go to my friend Morrie for a Bracha because he was such an incredible supporter of Torah institutions all over the world. He surely had the Zechusim to be in a position to give Brachos.
So he listened to the advice given by his grandfather and came to Chicago to see him.
Morrie was not told about this in advance. So when Rav Shach’s grandson came into Morrie’s office, what he saw was a young Charedi man – not knowing that it was Rav Shach’s grandson. Morrie was of course used to seeing Meshulachim on a constant basis. That’s what he thought this young man was.
So he asked him what he wanted. The young man said he does not want any money. He just wanted a Bracha from him so he would have children and explained that his grandfather, Rav Shach, had sent him. Morrie smiled and couldn’t believe what he heard. But he said OK, if that’s what Rav Shach said… and he gave him a Bracha. One year later that young man’s wife gave birth!
That young man now visits Morrie every year and brings his children to meet him. How do I know any of this? Last Monday I was at the wedding of Morrie’s youngest daughter and this young man was there. On my way out at the end of the wedding I was approached by a young woman who I trust and she pointed out a young Charedi looking man to me. She asked me if I knew who he was. I said no. I was told that it was Rav Shach’s grandson and then she told me this incredible story
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Outrage or Indifference
Guest Post by Dov Kay
The following is a response to a serious question posed on a private e-mail list that I would like to pose here. It was on based on the Agriprocessors controversy. The question is as follows: When comparing the Monsey butcher/Kashrus scandal to the Agriprocessors scandal - which event raises a greater sense of outrage in the Frum world? I am not discussing the validity of the claims made against Agriprocessors. They have yet to be proven and I am still reserving judgment. But for the sake of argument let us assume they are true.
Eating Non Kosher meat B’Anus ( by force of accident – not mistake) means that there are no Halachic consequences. That is because those who did so were not aware nor had any way of knowing they were doing so.
Yet the outrage when it was discovered that hundreds of observant Jews were duped into buying and then eating Treif meat was so enormous that the reaction was almost cathartic! It changed the way Hechsher organizations do business. And it was the talk of the Torah world for a long time. True - the Monsey Butcher was guilty of tremendous Michshol. Be he is really the only one with Halachic consequences. He is the one who requires major Teshuva.
The Agriprocessors controversy has had an almost opposite reaction. In that controversy people suffered serious injuries. Some lost limbs (fingers) due to unsafe working conditions where 13 and 14 year olds were hired to use buzz-saws and similarly dangerous equipment! It seems that the more right wing one was, the more apologetic they were about those accusations. The sense of outrage was lacking.
One individual expressed his disgust at the fact that the Frum community was scandalized by the Monsey Kashrus scandal, but has not reacted the same way to charges against Agriprocessors. (His point wasn't whether these charges were proved, but people's reaction to the alleged offences.) In effect this was causing him a crisis of faith.
With permission - the following was Dov Kay’s response:
There is a Ger Tzedek in this town who likes to say that it is lucky he discovered Judaism before he discovered Jews.
At moments such as these, I find myself tending to strip “pure”, conceptual Judaism, which is beautiful and flawless, of its cultural and sociological trappings, a bit like the Rambam’s advice to abandon a depraved society by fleeing to the desert.
However, I am aware that this also runs the risk of being Poresh Midarkei Hatzibbur - separating oneself from the community - which the Rambam excoriates. I am also aware that it is this very din in the Rambam which Charedi ideology uses to justify its stance on Austritt and attitude to the outside world in general.
Given that I largely reject their stance, I am left even more sensitive to the need for balance in seeking a perfect, ethereal Judaism while loving flawed, flesh-and-blood Jews.
To some extent, the way in which you deal with the dilemma may depend on how you frame your conception of the tzibbur. Is it the members of your local Shul, or the transcendental, timeless community that is K’lal Yisroel? It was Paul Johnson who said about Rousseau that he loved humanity in general, but despised the individual human being.
Clearly, we need to avoid this attitude. Too much of the self-righteous waffle we hear around Tisha B’Av time about Ahavas Yisroel – love of the Jewish people - and Sinas Chinam – baseless hatred -suffers from this shortcoming, in my humble opinion.
I am a commercial property lawyer with many Frum clients who, it saddens me to say, tend to be more dodgey, to use an English expression, than their non-Frum counterparts - whether it’s outright asking me to lie or insisting on squeezing a price reduction out of the seller on the day of exchange, when the seller is over a barrel. (My Rav told me that this practice is permitted, but I think it is unethical nonetheless.)
What upsets me even more than the dishonesty is the indifference to it in the community from whence it arises. I recently listened to an mp3 Shiur by a respected Charedi Dayan with expertise in Choshen Mishpat. (See http://torahway.org.uk/ - and http://www.torahway.co.uk/ for links to these often stimulating Shiurim).
The Dayan concluded his Shiur on Halacha and the Conveyancing Process by arguing that the suggestion that Charedi Jews are more dishonest than their non-Frum counterparts in untrue and probably a slander invented by irreligious Jews to make themselves feel better about their lack of observance.
It is this spirit of denial and refusal to engage in a communal Cheshbon Hanefesh that has caused me to “change camps” as far as the Charedi/RZ/MO divide is concerned. This is not intended as Chizuk, but just a simplified description of my personal journey.
The individual experiencing a crisis of faith should be Zocheh to make his own journey and arrive safely at his destination! Chazak v’Nischazak.
The following is a response to a serious question posed on a private e-mail list that I would like to pose here. It was on based on the Agriprocessors controversy. The question is as follows: When comparing the Monsey butcher/Kashrus scandal to the Agriprocessors scandal - which event raises a greater sense of outrage in the Frum world? I am not discussing the validity of the claims made against Agriprocessors. They have yet to be proven and I am still reserving judgment. But for the sake of argument let us assume they are true.
Eating Non Kosher meat B’Anus ( by force of accident – not mistake) means that there are no Halachic consequences. That is because those who did so were not aware nor had any way of knowing they were doing so.
Yet the outrage when it was discovered that hundreds of observant Jews were duped into buying and then eating Treif meat was so enormous that the reaction was almost cathartic! It changed the way Hechsher organizations do business. And it was the talk of the Torah world for a long time. True - the Monsey Butcher was guilty of tremendous Michshol. Be he is really the only one with Halachic consequences. He is the one who requires major Teshuva.
The Agriprocessors controversy has had an almost opposite reaction. In that controversy people suffered serious injuries. Some lost limbs (fingers) due to unsafe working conditions where 13 and 14 year olds were hired to use buzz-saws and similarly dangerous equipment! It seems that the more right wing one was, the more apologetic they were about those accusations. The sense of outrage was lacking.
One individual expressed his disgust at the fact that the Frum community was scandalized by the Monsey Kashrus scandal, but has not reacted the same way to charges against Agriprocessors. (His point wasn't whether these charges were proved, but people's reaction to the alleged offences.) In effect this was causing him a crisis of faith.
With permission - the following was Dov Kay’s response:
There is a Ger Tzedek in this town who likes to say that it is lucky he discovered Judaism before he discovered Jews.
At moments such as these, I find myself tending to strip “pure”, conceptual Judaism, which is beautiful and flawless, of its cultural and sociological trappings, a bit like the Rambam’s advice to abandon a depraved society by fleeing to the desert.
However, I am aware that this also runs the risk of being Poresh Midarkei Hatzibbur - separating oneself from the community - which the Rambam excoriates. I am also aware that it is this very din in the Rambam which Charedi ideology uses to justify its stance on Austritt and attitude to the outside world in general.
Given that I largely reject their stance, I am left even more sensitive to the need for balance in seeking a perfect, ethereal Judaism while loving flawed, flesh-and-blood Jews.
To some extent, the way in which you deal with the dilemma may depend on how you frame your conception of the tzibbur. Is it the members of your local Shul, or the transcendental, timeless community that is K’lal Yisroel? It was Paul Johnson who said about Rousseau that he loved humanity in general, but despised the individual human being.
Clearly, we need to avoid this attitude. Too much of the self-righteous waffle we hear around Tisha B’Av time about Ahavas Yisroel – love of the Jewish people - and Sinas Chinam – baseless hatred -suffers from this shortcoming, in my humble opinion.
I am a commercial property lawyer with many Frum clients who, it saddens me to say, tend to be more dodgey, to use an English expression, than their non-Frum counterparts - whether it’s outright asking me to lie or insisting on squeezing a price reduction out of the seller on the day of exchange, when the seller is over a barrel. (My Rav told me that this practice is permitted, but I think it is unethical nonetheless.)
What upsets me even more than the dishonesty is the indifference to it in the community from whence it arises. I recently listened to an mp3 Shiur by a respected Charedi Dayan with expertise in Choshen Mishpat. (See http://torahway.org.uk/ - and http://www.torahway.co.uk/ for links to these often stimulating Shiurim).
The Dayan concluded his Shiur on Halacha and the Conveyancing Process by arguing that the suggestion that Charedi Jews are more dishonest than their non-Frum counterparts in untrue and probably a slander invented by irreligious Jews to make themselves feel better about their lack of observance.
It is this spirit of denial and refusal to engage in a communal Cheshbon Hanefesh that has caused me to “change camps” as far as the Charedi/RZ/MO divide is concerned. This is not intended as Chizuk, but just a simplified description of my personal journey.
The individual experiencing a crisis of faith should be Zocheh to make his own journey and arrive safely at his destination! Chazak v’Nischazak.
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
The Top of His Peers - The Top of Their Game
---------advertisement---------It’s getting close to the month of Elul and thoughts of the Yomim Noraim are beginning to enter my mind. One of the wisest decisions I have made in this regard was to purchase both the Rosh Hashanah and the Yom Kippur Machzor of Rabbi Joseph B. Solveitchik.
These volumes include commentary adapted from the inspirational teachings of the Rav by Dr. Arnold Lustiger. They have both been a valuable resource for me – not only of his words but also his personal customs. I recommend them highly.
On a totally unrelated subject, a word about The Jewish Press. This newspaper is in my view currently the absolute best source of news by, for, and about Orthodox Jewry - and anything that affects the Jewish community.
It is currently at the top of its game. There was a period of time I would not have said that. But in recent years there has been a restructuring of format and a refocusing on news opinion, and feature reporting. There are so many columnists that I read regularly in there - it would take far too long to list them and explain why I read them. Many have been with The Jewish Press for decades and many are relatively new. Some of them are actually heroes of mine. Just to mention one - Rabbi Yakov Horowitz who writes more than one column on a regular basis and occasionally two or three.
So why do I mention these two seemingly disparate things? Because now you can have them both and save some money in the process. By taking out a two year subscription to The Jewish Press for a $60 subscription fee you will receive your choice of either the Yom Kippur or the Rosh Hashanah Machzor - a $31.00 value!
I don’t usually do paid advertisements. I tend to stay away from them unless I really feel that the product offered is one which I would take advantage of myself – if it were offered to me. In this case - it is. I not only have both Machzorim which I was happy to purchase without any special promotion, I also have a subscription to The Jewish Press - one that I’ve had for many years. And it is the home of the articles I’ve written.
So if anyone ever had any interest in either getting The Jewish Press delivered every week or buying the Machzor of the Rav – there is no better opportunity than now. To do so -click here and find out how. You won’t regret it.
A Day in the Park
How low observant Jews have fallen in the eyes of secular Jews. An incident - reported in Ynet - happened in a Jerusalem park which is a disgusting illustration of that. The worst in human nature poured forth on that day when a group of secular Jews insulted and chased out a group of Charedi Jews from a park. Their 'sin'? They wanted to enjoy a picnic on a beautiful summer’s day with their families. The following comment about the attitude expressed by an elderly woman was particularly offensive:
‘…it wasn't nice of us to take up the entire playground for her children’.
That precipitated what seemed to be somewhat of a mob scene as more people started showing up at the park and started yelling at them.
I cannot imagine the hurt these people must have felt by such an insulting and rejecting reaction to their presence. The sight of Charedim trying to have a picnic and children enjoying a playground - and chaos erupted. Children started crying and nice day turned into a horror.
To make matters worse these gentle Charedim decided to just go to another side of the park and not be confrontational. But that wasn’t enough for these secular zealots. They followed them and continued to harass them until they were forced to leave the park.
The behavior of these secular Jews was rude, and disgusting. There is no defending them. They acted like animals. It is reminiscent of the pre-civil rights era in the American South when blacks were similarly treated. These secular Jews were no better than the white supremecists. There was of course no lynching in this case, but the hate and enmity seems to be the same.
My heart goes out to these families. They should not have had to go through this. They are just as entitled as any secular Jew to enjoy a public park on a nice summer’s day. I’m glad to see that the Jerusalem municipality responded. Here is what they said:
"We strongly object to all cases of racism and violence. We hold educational programs aiming to encourage coexistence and a dialogue among the different sectors of society in the city."
But I have to ask why such enmity exists? Why do some secular Jews hate Charedim so much? What do they fear? Was it always this way? What have religious Jews done to make secular Jews go to such disgusting extremes?
Is it that they just hate the Torah? Or is it something else? Allow me to suggest that we do some self examination here.
I believe that coercive religious legislation feuls this hatred. And the incidents like those reported in Ynet - one article by Tali Farkash and another one by Neta Sela - excerbate it.
Those poor families in the park that day took the brunt of years of growing secular anger.
That said those secular vigilantes in the park do not represent all secular Jews. I doubt that most secular Jews would approve in any way of what these - their fellow secular Jews did. I’m sure that any decent human being would sympathize with those innocent Charedi families in the park that day. But I wouldn’t be surprised if they ‘understood’ why their secular brethren did it.
Sound familiar?
It’s going to take a lot to change secular hearts and minds. But in my view the Torah world needs to do something about it. Or the hatred is only going to get worse.
Updated: 8/27/08 - 2:08 PM CDT
‘…it wasn't nice of us to take up the entire playground for her children’.
That precipitated what seemed to be somewhat of a mob scene as more people started showing up at the park and started yelling at them.
I cannot imagine the hurt these people must have felt by such an insulting and rejecting reaction to their presence. The sight of Charedim trying to have a picnic and children enjoying a playground - and chaos erupted. Children started crying and nice day turned into a horror.
To make matters worse these gentle Charedim decided to just go to another side of the park and not be confrontational. But that wasn’t enough for these secular zealots. They followed them and continued to harass them until they were forced to leave the park.
The behavior of these secular Jews was rude, and disgusting. There is no defending them. They acted like animals. It is reminiscent of the pre-civil rights era in the American South when blacks were similarly treated. These secular Jews were no better than the white supremecists. There was of course no lynching in this case, but the hate and enmity seems to be the same.
My heart goes out to these families. They should not have had to go through this. They are just as entitled as any secular Jew to enjoy a public park on a nice summer’s day. I’m glad to see that the Jerusalem municipality responded. Here is what they said:
"We strongly object to all cases of racism and violence. We hold educational programs aiming to encourage coexistence and a dialogue among the different sectors of society in the city."
But I have to ask why such enmity exists? Why do some secular Jews hate Charedim so much? What do they fear? Was it always this way? What have religious Jews done to make secular Jews go to such disgusting extremes?
Is it that they just hate the Torah? Or is it something else? Allow me to suggest that we do some self examination here.
I believe that coercive religious legislation feuls this hatred. And the incidents like those reported in Ynet - one article by Tali Farkash and another one by Neta Sela - excerbate it.
Those poor families in the park that day took the brunt of years of growing secular anger.
That said those secular vigilantes in the park do not represent all secular Jews. I doubt that most secular Jews would approve in any way of what these - their fellow secular Jews did. I’m sure that any decent human being would sympathize with those innocent Charedi families in the park that day. But I wouldn’t be surprised if they ‘understood’ why their secular brethren did it.
Sound familiar?
It’s going to take a lot to change secular hearts and minds. But in my view the Torah world needs to do something about it. Or the hatred is only going to get worse.
Updated: 8/27/08 - 2:08 PM CDT
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Deceptive Practices
There is a fascinating review of the book Flipping Out by Miriam Shaviv in the Forward. Miriam Shaviv is an Orthodox journalist for whom who I have much respect. Everything that I recall reading by her demonstrates objectivity, intellectual honesty, and piercing analysis.Flipping Out is about the year of study in Israel and it has generally been given favorable reviews. That book concludes that young people who spend a year in Israel do not in fact flip out – that the year in Israel is actually a very valuable growth experience for young people. They become more serious about their Judaism and more careful about Mitzvah observance.
That of course is wonderful news. What serious Jew - Charedi or Centrist - wouldn’t want his child to become more serious about his Judaism? The claim is that these young people tend to stay within their Modern Orthodox communities but just do so more religiously committed. But is that universally true? Are there some who also reject their Modern Orthodox Centrist Hashkafos as well? If so - how many? I’m not sure this book adequately answers these questions.
Fully 90% of all Modern Orthodox high school graduates spend at least a year of study in an Israeli Yeshiva or seminary. Many Charedi high school graduates also do. But many do not and instead opt to attend a US Charedi Yeshiva. Charedi high schools do not necessarily encourage studying in Israel. They rather encourage their students to continue their studies in their own post high school Beis Hamedrash program. And there are also many Charedi post high school American seminaries. So the year in Israel is primarily a Modern Orthodox phenomenon.
For those who do go to Israel there are differences in how these two communities experience their time there. Charedim see it as just another step along the way in a Hashkafa that is already a part of them. Young men seek Yeshivos like Brisk based on their reputation in Torah learning alone. Young women will seek Charedi Bais Yaakov like seminaries.
They too may be indoctrinated further to the right than even most Charedi parents would expect. But it is just a matter of degree - not Hashkafic change. For Charedi young women, the focus is about preparing them for marriage and reinforcing the goal to seek young men who will to the best of their ability stay in learning as long as possible - a goal they already have.
But for Modern Orthodox students, it’s an entirely different ballgame. They go to Israel one way and often come out another. Modern Orthodox yeshiva high schools send their graduates to schools that specifically cater to them. But not in the way most parents think they do. The process there is one of conversion.
The schools are geared to shake off the Modern Orthodox Hashkafos and replace them with Charedi ones. Of course the young men spend most of their time learning Gemarah the same way a Charedi does in his Yeshiva. And the young women also learn subjects similar to their Charedi counterparts. But the Hashkafa imparted to a Modern Orthodox student – both male and female - is definitely Charedi. With very few exceptions – Gush Etzion and Michlala being two notable ones – these Yeshivos and seminaries actually indoctrinate their young charges to slowly but surely drop their Modern Orthodox values and adopt Charedi values.
As I understand Ms. Shaviv - Flipping Out does not seem to capture this fact. It instead focuses on Modern Orthodox young people becoming more serious about their Judaism and thereby more stringent in Mitzvah observance. But as Ms. Shaviv points out one cannot judge the year in Israel only by the level of improvement in Mitzvah observance alone. There are factors that are more difficult to measure - like psychological and attitudinal changes.
Why do so many of these students go to Israel for a year or two thinking they will come back to a Yeshiva university, and end up instead going to a Ner Israel?
Becoming more serious about Mitzvah observance or learning Torah need not make one change Yeshivos. Only a change in Hashkafos will do that. These young people are deliberately indoctrinated to believe that Yeshiva University or Stern are against Torah Hashakafos and that they will be harmed by going there and are encouraged to go elsewhere.
The truth is that even some of those students who do come back to YU or Stern do so with a jaundiced eye - a view implanted in their minds during their stay in Israel. Of course there are some who come back fully supportive of the YU Hashkafa, but how many? This is a very important question that seems to go unanswered.
This is the ‘flipping out’ that concerns me, not the adoption of higher standards of observance. That is a good thing. But it is when the Hashkafos change, when attitudes about the value of secular studies changed from a positive one to at best a utilitarian one if not a totally negative one – or when externals like manner of dress changes and wearing a hat becomes as important as keeping Sabbath observance – that is flipping out. Apparently what this book is missing. And there is more.
Miriam Shaviv said it best:
But you cannot properly discuss “flipping out” by looking at how many halachic stringencies students, on average, adopt. “Flipping out” is a minority sport that has as much to do with emotional and psychological factors as with halachic ones. Students who are affected may have trouble relating to their family; become obsessive and dogmatic about some aspects of religion, and shed central parts of their old personality. These are all harder to measure, but without addressing these issues substantially, the book cannot be said to be about “flipping out” at all.
It has become very apparent to me that these Israeli Roshei Yeshiva have an agenda of making Charedim out of young people with Modern Orthodox backgrounds. They are not satisfied with simply making them more religious, the goal is a comlpete Hashkafic change. And to a large extent I think they are succeeding. Is that fair? After all don’t’ they have a right to teach the Torah Hashkafa in which they believe
The answer is no. Not if they don’t spell it out to the tuition paying parents.
It is grossly unfair for any Israeli Yeshiva to not advertise who they are and what Hashkafos they teach. It should be made clear to every parent before they enroll their child. By not admitting their true agendas - they are deceiving parents.
Just to be clear, I have no problem with anyone changing their Hashkafos in either direction - as long as they do so in an intellectually honest environment that will expose them to the Hashkaific thought of both Charedi thinkers and Centrist thinkers.
It is when they are only exposed to one way of thinking which usually includes haranguing against those with Centrist Hashkafos to which I object. In my view that is nothing less than Geneivas Daas. And if I were a parent who sent a son or daughter to a Yeshiva or seminary like this and he or she changed Hashkafos, I would be demanding my money back.
Monday, August 25, 2008
A Voice of Sanity
Finally a voice of sanity in the Charedi world – an important one. Perhaps he’s been reading my blog.
The Jerusalem Post has reported that Rav Moshe Sternbuch one of the leaders of the Edah HaCharedis, is saying that it was permissible to hand over to the police Charedi zealots who desecrated God's name with their actions.
The element that has long been missing in all the condemnations by rabbinic leaders is teeth. Telling his constituents to report Charedi zealots to the police follows condemnation with action is the 'teeth' those condemnations were missing.
Often the word Mesirah – reporting Jews to secular authorities - is heard in defense of not reporting a vigilante perpetrating violence. It is felt by many in that community and those who sympathize with them that the police are so anti-religious that no one should ever report another Jew to the police. But this is apparently not the view of Rav Sternbuch. It’s too bad that the Edah itself did not come out with this as an official position.
This is not too surprising unfortunately. The Edah is known for its zealous and uncompromising attitudes about religious matters - especially those involving modesty in dress. As the article says - All the crusades chosen by the various modesty squads are no-brainers for the majority of the Charedi populace.
It should therefore not be surprising that Edah leadership tends to only mildly condemn their actions that get out of hand – explaining that while it is wrong - it as an just an over-reaction to a just cause.
But not Rav Sternbuch anymore. He realizes that this issue goes far beyond the issue of standing up for the religious value of modest dress. He calls their actions a Chilul HaShem - just as I do.
One should realize that while Rav Sternbuch is a member of the Edah leadership he is not really one of them. The Edah membership is generally not made up from the world of Litvishe/Yeshivishe Rabbanim, to which Rav Sternbuch belongs. But his level Torah knowledge and his prestige lends them greater credibility and extends their reach to the Charedi Yeshiva world.
I am told that one of the reasons Rav Sternbuch joined the Edah is to moderate their attitudes on a variety of issues to be more in line with mainstream Charedi thinking. I don’t know. But if that’s true, it is a good idea. But be that as it may. Rav Sternbuch is not known for his Kulos – leniencies in Halacha. He is better known for his Chumros- stringencies. And he is often strident in expression of his views - many of which I have great disagreement about. For example I am opposed to his condemnation of Rabbi Natan Slifkin’s works as heresy.
But he is absolutely right on this issue. And this amounts to a sea change in attitude if what is being reported is accurate.
But now comes the test. Will his new attitude be put into action?
One of the alleged perpetrators of a severe beatings of a woman on behalf of the Tznius Patrol has just been indicted. From another Jerusalem Post article:
The chilling three-page indictment relates how the seven men brutally assaulted their victim - a divorced woman who had previously led a haredi lifestyle - in her home in the Ma'alot Dafna neighborhood on the night of June 1.
The men, armed with a bat and tear gas, barged into her home in the predominantly haredi neighborhood at 10:45 p.m., the charge sheet relates.
"The defendant and the others shoved the complainant, dropped her to the floor, beat her, slammed her head against the floor and kicked [her] all over her body."
"The defendant or one of the others sat on her head in a bid to prevent her from seeing what was going on and to prevent her from resisting," the charges continue.
The men also allegedly tied a piece of cloth to the woman's mouth and warned her that should she open her eyes, they would spray tear gas into them, the indictment says.
If this fellow is found guilty and sentenced to prison, the community ought to support the verdict and not protest it - or try and get him off. If hope Rav Sternbuch advocates this position - maybe thing will finally begin to change.
The Jerusalem Post has reported that Rav Moshe Sternbuch one of the leaders of the Edah HaCharedis, is saying that it was permissible to hand over to the police Charedi zealots who desecrated God's name with their actions.
The element that has long been missing in all the condemnations by rabbinic leaders is teeth. Telling his constituents to report Charedi zealots to the police follows condemnation with action is the 'teeth' those condemnations were missing.
Often the word Mesirah – reporting Jews to secular authorities - is heard in defense of not reporting a vigilante perpetrating violence. It is felt by many in that community and those who sympathize with them that the police are so anti-religious that no one should ever report another Jew to the police. But this is apparently not the view of Rav Sternbuch. It’s too bad that the Edah itself did not come out with this as an official position.
This is not too surprising unfortunately. The Edah is known for its zealous and uncompromising attitudes about religious matters - especially those involving modesty in dress. As the article says - All the crusades chosen by the various modesty squads are no-brainers for the majority of the Charedi populace.
It should therefore not be surprising that Edah leadership tends to only mildly condemn their actions that get out of hand – explaining that while it is wrong - it as an just an over-reaction to a just cause.
But not Rav Sternbuch anymore. He realizes that this issue goes far beyond the issue of standing up for the religious value of modest dress. He calls their actions a Chilul HaShem - just as I do.
One should realize that while Rav Sternbuch is a member of the Edah leadership he is not really one of them. The Edah membership is generally not made up from the world of Litvishe/Yeshivishe Rabbanim, to which Rav Sternbuch belongs. But his level Torah knowledge and his prestige lends them greater credibility and extends their reach to the Charedi Yeshiva world.
I am told that one of the reasons Rav Sternbuch joined the Edah is to moderate their attitudes on a variety of issues to be more in line with mainstream Charedi thinking. I don’t know. But if that’s true, it is a good idea. But be that as it may. Rav Sternbuch is not known for his Kulos – leniencies in Halacha. He is better known for his Chumros- stringencies. And he is often strident in expression of his views - many of which I have great disagreement about. For example I am opposed to his condemnation of Rabbi Natan Slifkin’s works as heresy.
But he is absolutely right on this issue. And this amounts to a sea change in attitude if what is being reported is accurate.
But now comes the test. Will his new attitude be put into action?
One of the alleged perpetrators of a severe beatings of a woman on behalf of the Tznius Patrol has just been indicted. From another Jerusalem Post article:
The chilling three-page indictment relates how the seven men brutally assaulted their victim - a divorced woman who had previously led a haredi lifestyle - in her home in the Ma'alot Dafna neighborhood on the night of June 1.
The men, armed with a bat and tear gas, barged into her home in the predominantly haredi neighborhood at 10:45 p.m., the charge sheet relates.
"The defendant and the others shoved the complainant, dropped her to the floor, beat her, slammed her head against the floor and kicked [her] all over her body."
"The defendant or one of the others sat on her head in a bid to prevent her from seeing what was going on and to prevent her from resisting," the charges continue.
The men also allegedly tied a piece of cloth to the woman's mouth and warned her that should she open her eyes, they would spray tear gas into them, the indictment says.
If this fellow is found guilty and sentenced to prison, the community ought to support the verdict and not protest it - or try and get him off. If hope Rav Sternbuch advocates this position - maybe thing will finally begin to change.
Sunday, August 24, 2008
A Gift
Senator Barrack Obama has chosen his Vice Presidential running mate. It is Delaware Senator Joseph Biden. This is a gift.
Joe Biden did not run for the Presidency for the first time in this election. He first ran over 20 years ago. He was then found to be a man of questionable ethics. It was discovered that he plagiarized major portions of a speech given by - at the time - British Labor party leader Neil Kinnock. Biden used Kinnock's words as his own without any attribution.
That embarrassing discovery ultimately caused Biden to drop out of the race. I don’t think that voters ought to forget that. Character is a big issue in my mind and Joe Biden doesn’t have the character to be a heartbeat away from being the leader of the free world in my view. If I were John MCain this ‘pick’ would make me very happy. And it makes McCain's ‘pick’ all the more important. He should choose carefully. If either of the two Jewish candidates he’s considering – Lieberman or Canter - were to be chosen, it will be a far better selection, in my view.
During the democratic primaries, Joe Biden was quite the attack dog against Obama. He is a very verbose and long winded speaker - a man that does not mince words. And throughout his run in the primaries he constantly attacked Obama’s judgment and lack of experience - especially in foreign policy . There ought to be plenty of quotes the MCain campaign can use against Obama. I expect to see a lot of Joe Biden in Republican ads.
The one impression that stays with me when I think of Joe Biden is ‘loose cannon’. His ‘shoot from the lip’ style of responding to questions is not the demeanor one should expect from a man who would be President. His smarmy, wise guy - know it all manner will not compliment the smooth, polished and intellectual – almost professorial manner that characterizes Barrack Obama. It will instead be an abrasive counter too it. It is almost physically painful to listen this guy, Biden.
That’s right. I said ‘this guy’. ‘This guy’ and ‘these guys’ are phrases that Biden often uses when referring to the President and/or his advisers… as though they were just a bunch of careless and incompetent nincompoops sitting around the TV in their T-shirts watching ‘the game’ while eating pizza and guzzling beer.
‘This guy’ is a wholly inappropriate way of referring to the democratically elected leader of the free world. The President deserves more respect from a sitting senator – no matter what he thinks of his policies. I therefore have no compunction in referring to Joe Biden as ‘this guy’.
This guy is the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. That gives him the supposed heft that is sorely missing from the Obama candidacy. Biden is a bright fellow with a lot of foreign policy experience. Not that experience means good judgment as the Obama team is quick to point out about John McCain.
This is nothing less than an admission by Obama that he lacks experience and expertise in dealing with matters of foreign policy. And that – in my view - is probably the most important function of the leader of the free world. The very existence of nations can depend on decision a US President makes! Obama’s decisions will probably be heavily weighted on what Joe Biden tells him. This in effect will make Biden the defacto President when it comes to foreign policy. This requires a very close examination of Biden’s views on Israel.
Both Biden and Obama may say all the right things about ‘our ally’ Israel. But they both - along with other Democrats - keep harping about the lack of diplomacy on the part of the current administration in solving international problems which – they say- has caused the US to lose the support of our foreign allies in the world.
What does that mean with respect to Israel and the Arabs? Exactly what kind of ‘diplomacy’ will work to get the Arabs on our side? Will this mean using pressure on Israel to make peace on Palestinian terms? Will Obama-Biden withhold financial aid as a means of pressure? I shudder at the thought!
I don’t know the answers to these questions, But I do know McCain’s fundamental attitude about Israel is existential. He sees any threat to their existence in the ‘never again’ terms of the holocaust. The Democrats have never characterized it that way. They are all about pragmatic solutions. This mostly means one sided concessions of the type that - when attempted in the past - have caused nothing but death, destruction, and misery to the Jewish people. This is the vibe I’ve been feeling from democrats generally and from Obama specifically. They are definitely of the ‘one sided concessions for peace’ mentality - whether it is Israel, Iraq, or Iran.
But now that this guy Biden has been chosen, I’m beginning to believe that McCain actually has a chance.
Joe Biden did not run for the Presidency for the first time in this election. He first ran over 20 years ago. He was then found to be a man of questionable ethics. It was discovered that he plagiarized major portions of a speech given by - at the time - British Labor party leader Neil Kinnock. Biden used Kinnock's words as his own without any attribution.
That embarrassing discovery ultimately caused Biden to drop out of the race. I don’t think that voters ought to forget that. Character is a big issue in my mind and Joe Biden doesn’t have the character to be a heartbeat away from being the leader of the free world in my view. If I were John MCain this ‘pick’ would make me very happy. And it makes McCain's ‘pick’ all the more important. He should choose carefully. If either of the two Jewish candidates he’s considering – Lieberman or Canter - were to be chosen, it will be a far better selection, in my view.
During the democratic primaries, Joe Biden was quite the attack dog against Obama. He is a very verbose and long winded speaker - a man that does not mince words. And throughout his run in the primaries he constantly attacked Obama’s judgment and lack of experience - especially in foreign policy . There ought to be plenty of quotes the MCain campaign can use against Obama. I expect to see a lot of Joe Biden in Republican ads.
The one impression that stays with me when I think of Joe Biden is ‘loose cannon’. His ‘shoot from the lip’ style of responding to questions is not the demeanor one should expect from a man who would be President. His smarmy, wise guy - know it all manner will not compliment the smooth, polished and intellectual – almost professorial manner that characterizes Barrack Obama. It will instead be an abrasive counter too it. It is almost physically painful to listen this guy, Biden.
That’s right. I said ‘this guy’. ‘This guy’ and ‘these guys’ are phrases that Biden often uses when referring to the President and/or his advisers… as though they were just a bunch of careless and incompetent nincompoops sitting around the TV in their T-shirts watching ‘the game’ while eating pizza and guzzling beer.
‘This guy’ is a wholly inappropriate way of referring to the democratically elected leader of the free world. The President deserves more respect from a sitting senator – no matter what he thinks of his policies. I therefore have no compunction in referring to Joe Biden as ‘this guy’.
This guy is the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. That gives him the supposed heft that is sorely missing from the Obama candidacy. Biden is a bright fellow with a lot of foreign policy experience. Not that experience means good judgment as the Obama team is quick to point out about John McCain.
This is nothing less than an admission by Obama that he lacks experience and expertise in dealing with matters of foreign policy. And that – in my view - is probably the most important function of the leader of the free world. The very existence of nations can depend on decision a US President makes! Obama’s decisions will probably be heavily weighted on what Joe Biden tells him. This in effect will make Biden the defacto President when it comes to foreign policy. This requires a very close examination of Biden’s views on Israel.
Both Biden and Obama may say all the right things about ‘our ally’ Israel. But they both - along with other Democrats - keep harping about the lack of diplomacy on the part of the current administration in solving international problems which – they say- has caused the US to lose the support of our foreign allies in the world.
What does that mean with respect to Israel and the Arabs? Exactly what kind of ‘diplomacy’ will work to get the Arabs on our side? Will this mean using pressure on Israel to make peace on Palestinian terms? Will Obama-Biden withhold financial aid as a means of pressure? I shudder at the thought!
I don’t know the answers to these questions, But I do know McCain’s fundamental attitude about Israel is existential. He sees any threat to their existence in the ‘never again’ terms of the holocaust. The Democrats have never characterized it that way. They are all about pragmatic solutions. This mostly means one sided concessions of the type that - when attempted in the past - have caused nothing but death, destruction, and misery to the Jewish people. This is the vibe I’ve been feeling from democrats generally and from Obama specifically. They are definitely of the ‘one sided concessions for peace’ mentality - whether it is Israel, Iraq, or Iran.
But now that this guy Biden has been chosen, I’m beginning to believe that McCain actually has a chance.
Friday, August 22, 2008
Mocking the Gedolim
Earlier this week a video was released on the Internet that was at the same time entertaining, shocking, and informative. It was a video posted on Youtube about how color war broke out in a camp called MaNaVu. An editorial in The Jewish Star reproduced at VIN tells us the camp has very strong ties with Yeshivas Rabbenu Chaim Berlin.
For those not familiar with the genre of color war - it is probably the most enjoyable part of any summer camp experience. And the way it ‘breaks out’ is probably the most enjoyable and memorable part of it.
Much like a real war an ‘incident’ happens that outrages one side to a potential conflict - and that leads to war. So too - color war. An ‘incident’ is created and designed to look real. The campers think this is really happening. The more realistic it looks - the bigger the bang.
When color war is finally announced - everyone is relieved and very excited about how it broke out. The camp then divides in to teams and has events related to that. Teams are judged and a winner is ultimately declared. But the most fun is the opening event and that is usually the most 'told over' story brought back from camp. It’s great fun for all.
In this case Lipa Schmelczer of ‘concert ban’ fame was hired to perform in the camp. At the end of the concert he did the unthinkable. He started singing the opening to a very popular rap song designed to make the crowd very lively. The camera then focuses on a very Chasidic looking gentleman in full beard and Chasidic garb – someone who looks like he may be a camp director. He is clearly very agitated by this.
After a few more minutes, he gets up on the stage and physically throws Lipa off of it! He then starts haranguing the crowd about how bad this is. All the while the campers are chanting Lipa! Lipa! Counselors walked over to him an try to appease him to no avail. After a few minutes of a rant, he begins singing a familiar traditional Jewish piece. Lipa then gets back up there and starts to sing along but subtly changes the tune to the rap song he started with.
The Chasidic fellow looks shocked. One thing leads to the next, and pretty soon a counselor gets up on the stage and starts pulling on the Chasidic man’s beard. And little by little the beard comes off as does the Kapote and hat to reveal it is one of the counselors and the shouts of ‘Color war!’ is heard.
Very entertaining to watch. But let us analyze what just happened. This was no less than a ridicule of a ban made by many Rabbanim some of whom are on the Agudah Moetzes.
Recall that the ban was signed hastily and was repudiated by various Gedolim who admitted signing the ban without reading it. But one thing was made clear at the time. The spirit of the ban was to forbid ‘foreign music’ to permeate the Jewish music scene - music of the type Lipa was thrown off the stage in this camp. This incident made a mockery of that ban. There is no other way to look at it. A camp apparently closely tied to a mainstream Charedi Yeshiva – crossed a cardinal line! They mocked an edict of people they consider Gedolim!
I have said this before. The more bans like this are made - the more it will undermine authority of those who make them. Less people will then listen to them when it really does matter.
One of the cardinal tenets of Charedi Judaism is the unyielding loyalty to the ‘Gedolim’. The respect and awe they have is virtually sacrosanct. They consider veering from what their Gedolim tell them to be a violation of the biblical command of Lo Sasur - to not veer to the right or to the left of what a rabbinic authority of a generation says. What they did at camp MaNaVu was to undermine that with ridicule!
If a Modern Orthodox camp had done exactly the same thing, it would have been put in Cherem. The rabbis involved would have been called Misyavnim - Hellenists!
To me this is a very positive development. Not that I want to God forbid see rabbinic leaders mocked and ridiculed. But the fact that people are finally coming to their senses. Sometimes words are ill conceived – even if they are said with the best of intentions as I’m sure they were with respect to the ban.
The time has long passed to stop the turn to the right and reflect on what that has wrought so far - and what it portends for the future.
Some of these edicts are Chumros She’Ein HaOlam Yochal Lamod Bam - stringencies which the public cannot tolerate. This incident proves that this feeling exists even among the devoted of their constituents. Congratulations to them for their courage and for inserting some fun into the camp experience while sending this important message. Long Live Lipa!
For those not familiar with the genre of color war - it is probably the most enjoyable part of any summer camp experience. And the way it ‘breaks out’ is probably the most enjoyable and memorable part of it.
Much like a real war an ‘incident’ happens that outrages one side to a potential conflict - and that leads to war. So too - color war. An ‘incident’ is created and designed to look real. The campers think this is really happening. The more realistic it looks - the bigger the bang.
When color war is finally announced - everyone is relieved and very excited about how it broke out. The camp then divides in to teams and has events related to that. Teams are judged and a winner is ultimately declared. But the most fun is the opening event and that is usually the most 'told over' story brought back from camp. It’s great fun for all.
In this case Lipa Schmelczer of ‘concert ban’ fame was hired to perform in the camp. At the end of the concert he did the unthinkable. He started singing the opening to a very popular rap song designed to make the crowd very lively. The camera then focuses on a very Chasidic looking gentleman in full beard and Chasidic garb – someone who looks like he may be a camp director. He is clearly very agitated by this.
After a few more minutes, he gets up on the stage and physically throws Lipa off of it! He then starts haranguing the crowd about how bad this is. All the while the campers are chanting Lipa! Lipa! Counselors walked over to him an try to appease him to no avail. After a few minutes of a rant, he begins singing a familiar traditional Jewish piece. Lipa then gets back up there and starts to sing along but subtly changes the tune to the rap song he started with.
The Chasidic fellow looks shocked. One thing leads to the next, and pretty soon a counselor gets up on the stage and starts pulling on the Chasidic man’s beard. And little by little the beard comes off as does the Kapote and hat to reveal it is one of the counselors and the shouts of ‘Color war!’ is heard.
Very entertaining to watch. But let us analyze what just happened. This was no less than a ridicule of a ban made by many Rabbanim some of whom are on the Agudah Moetzes.
Recall that the ban was signed hastily and was repudiated by various Gedolim who admitted signing the ban without reading it. But one thing was made clear at the time. The spirit of the ban was to forbid ‘foreign music’ to permeate the Jewish music scene - music of the type Lipa was thrown off the stage in this camp. This incident made a mockery of that ban. There is no other way to look at it. A camp apparently closely tied to a mainstream Charedi Yeshiva – crossed a cardinal line! They mocked an edict of people they consider Gedolim!
I have said this before. The more bans like this are made - the more it will undermine authority of those who make them. Less people will then listen to them when it really does matter.
One of the cardinal tenets of Charedi Judaism is the unyielding loyalty to the ‘Gedolim’. The respect and awe they have is virtually sacrosanct. They consider veering from what their Gedolim tell them to be a violation of the biblical command of Lo Sasur - to not veer to the right or to the left of what a rabbinic authority of a generation says. What they did at camp MaNaVu was to undermine that with ridicule!
If a Modern Orthodox camp had done exactly the same thing, it would have been put in Cherem. The rabbis involved would have been called Misyavnim - Hellenists!
To me this is a very positive development. Not that I want to God forbid see rabbinic leaders mocked and ridiculed. But the fact that people are finally coming to their senses. Sometimes words are ill conceived – even if they are said with the best of intentions as I’m sure they were with respect to the ban.
The time has long passed to stop the turn to the right and reflect on what that has wrought so far - and what it portends for the future.
Some of these edicts are Chumros She’Ein HaOlam Yochal Lamod Bam - stringencies which the public cannot tolerate. This incident proves that this feeling exists even among the devoted of their constituents. Congratulations to them for their courage and for inserting some fun into the camp experience while sending this important message. Long Live Lipa!
Thursday, August 21, 2008
A Note to John McCain
Next week the Democratic National Convention will take place. Barrack Obama will probably choose his running mate very soon.
John McCain has a little more time to decide who will join him on the Republican ticket as a running mate. There has recently been a lot of talk about a McCain-Lieberman ticket. Most recently on last night’s broadcast of the NBC Nightly News.
I am a big fan of Senator Joe Lieberman. He was the primary reason I voted for Al Gore in the 2000 election. Thankfully Al Gore lost – but that is another discussion.
I truly believe now as I did then that an observant Jew in the second highest office in the land - only a heartbeat away from being in the White House - would be a huge Kiddush HaShem. Joe Lieberman has long ago established himself as one of the most morally fit members of the senate. That an identifiable and proud Sabbath observing Jew has accomplished that is alone a Kiddush HaShem.
His star has been tarnished a bit of late in the liberal wing of the Democratic Party because of his support of the war in Iraq. But I think his moral standing remains untouched.
That said, I do not think Senator Lieberman is a good choice. Not because he wouldn’t be a great Vice President. I just don’t think McCain-Lieberman would make for a winning ticket. Joe Lieberman would not add votes to John McCain.
Joe Lieberman was elected to the senate by the Republican voters of Connecticut. Not because of his conservative political views. He was elected because of his views on Iraq which are virtually identical with conservative views on Iraq. His democratic opponent was about as anti war as could be and won the primary. Both candidates were liberal on all other issues. But Senator Lieberman was none the less rewarded by conservative voters for his support of the Iraq war and his courage in separating from his party on that issue.
But now his candidacy will be viewed as adding a more liberal tilt to a McCain Presidency. And though no conservative will vote for Senator Obama, some of them may be turned off enough to stay away from the polls altogether this fall.
John McCain cannot afford to lose his conservative base. In my view there is another Jewish candidate that would help his cause, Congressman Eric Cantor. He is a conservative Republican and a rising star in the party. He is young and attractive and a counter balance to Senator Obama's youth and attractiveness.
Of all the candidates Senator McCain is examining, Eric Cantor seems like the most exciting! And it will energize his base. The undecided independent voters that Senator McCain is looking for should still not be influenced by a conservative VP candidate on the ticket. Hopefully they will see the ‘maverick republican’ as one who is less ideologically conservative and more willing to cross the party lines to get things done.
And a Jewish VP may give Jewish voters something to look at too. I think this would be a brilliant strategic move that would energize his base. And they need energizing. Powerful and influential Conservative talk radio will be all over him in the negative for choosing a liberal Lieberman and enthusiastically all for him he chooses a conservative Cantor.
So Senator McCain, if you read Orthodox Jewish blogs and happen to read this one, heed my words. It will be a step in the ‘right’ direction.
What about Lieberman...? He will make a great Secretary of State.
John McCain has a little more time to decide who will join him on the Republican ticket as a running mate. There has recently been a lot of talk about a McCain-Lieberman ticket. Most recently on last night’s broadcast of the NBC Nightly News.
I am a big fan of Senator Joe Lieberman. He was the primary reason I voted for Al Gore in the 2000 election. Thankfully Al Gore lost – but that is another discussion.
I truly believe now as I did then that an observant Jew in the second highest office in the land - only a heartbeat away from being in the White House - would be a huge Kiddush HaShem. Joe Lieberman has long ago established himself as one of the most morally fit members of the senate. That an identifiable and proud Sabbath observing Jew has accomplished that is alone a Kiddush HaShem.
His star has been tarnished a bit of late in the liberal wing of the Democratic Party because of his support of the war in Iraq. But I think his moral standing remains untouched.
That said, I do not think Senator Lieberman is a good choice. Not because he wouldn’t be a great Vice President. I just don’t think McCain-Lieberman would make for a winning ticket. Joe Lieberman would not add votes to John McCain.
Joe Lieberman was elected to the senate by the Republican voters of Connecticut. Not because of his conservative political views. He was elected because of his views on Iraq which are virtually identical with conservative views on Iraq. His democratic opponent was about as anti war as could be and won the primary. Both candidates were liberal on all other issues. But Senator Lieberman was none the less rewarded by conservative voters for his support of the Iraq war and his courage in separating from his party on that issue.
But now his candidacy will be viewed as adding a more liberal tilt to a McCain Presidency. And though no conservative will vote for Senator Obama, some of them may be turned off enough to stay away from the polls altogether this fall.
John McCain cannot afford to lose his conservative base. In my view there is another Jewish candidate that would help his cause, Congressman Eric Cantor. He is a conservative Republican and a rising star in the party. He is young and attractive and a counter balance to Senator Obama's youth and attractiveness.
Of all the candidates Senator McCain is examining, Eric Cantor seems like the most exciting! And it will energize his base. The undecided independent voters that Senator McCain is looking for should still not be influenced by a conservative VP candidate on the ticket. Hopefully they will see the ‘maverick republican’ as one who is less ideologically conservative and more willing to cross the party lines to get things done.
And a Jewish VP may give Jewish voters something to look at too. I think this would be a brilliant strategic move that would energize his base. And they need energizing. Powerful and influential Conservative talk radio will be all over him in the negative for choosing a liberal Lieberman and enthusiastically all for him he chooses a conservative Cantor.
So Senator McCain, if you read Orthodox Jewish blogs and happen to read this one, heed my words. It will be a step in the ‘right’ direction.
What about Lieberman...? He will make a great Secretary of State.
The Increasing Power of the Blog
Yesterday I watched and listened to the webcast of the Nefesh B’Nefesh bloggers conference in Jerusalem. And as I said in an earlier post, I regret not being able to attend.
The beauty of this conference was the ability to meet, interact, and network with fellow bloggers - and exchange ideas face to face. Not least benefit of attending the conference was the opportunity to be present to see and hear former Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu speak.
That the former Prime Minister made time from his busy schedule drove home a point that is known to most bloggers - the importance and influence that blogs have on public opinion. Just as blogs in the secular world have done - Jewish blogs have become an alternative to much of the mainstream Jewish print and even electronic media. The almost instant immediacy of a blog post combined with the equally instant ability to respond in the comments section makes blogs an attractive alternative source for news and commentary. And that is diluting the influence of the mainstream Jewish media.
This was one of the points driven home by former Prime Minister Netanyahu. And the fact that he was there underscores it.
Blogs do have a tremendous power to inform and to influence. With that should come a responsibility of the blogger to – well - blog responsibly. This is one of my goals. Although I’m sure that some people would dispute that I ever achieve it. I admit that sometimes my emotions overcome my better judgment. But I hope that in the balance my posts are presented in an informative and responsible way - and that any impact I may have is positive.
I gained a lot from the few hours I spent watching - mostly listening - to the various speakers. It wasn’t so much in what they said, although that too was valuable. It was mostly because this event actually happened - and the implications of that. Jewish blogging is huge. Probably much bigger than I ever thought.
That said, I will reiterate what fellow blogger Gil Student said at the conference. It is something I have said myself and something that rabbinic leadership of all stripes would agree with as well. Not all blogs are worthy of being read. Some are quite destructive in various different ways. But the good outweighs the bad. And if one chooses wisely a lot can be gained by reading a blog like Gil’s blog, Hirhurim, Micha Berger’s blog, Aspaqlaria, Rabbi Yosef Bechhofer’s Torah blog, YGB and many others too numerous to mention. Hopefully mine as well.
One critique I have of the conference is that I don’t think opinion blogs were represented on the panel. Torah blogs like Gil’s were and so too were Israeli blogs. But there was little focus on how a blog can lead public opinion – for the better or for the worse - although it was mentioned in a general way as I said above.
My biggest regret is that I did not have an opportunity to pose some of the questions to former Prime Minister Netanyahu about the Israeli government policy on issues important to the religious public – issues that I frequently mention like state of funding Yeshivos that do not offer any secular education.
I don’t know that I would have gotten the chance anyway. But… he was there, I would have been there in the same room with a relatively small crowd. Who knows. It’s probably the closest I would have ever gotten to do that. What a missed opportunity!
Oh well. Maybe next year. If they schedule is made far enough in advance, maybe I’ll be able to go.
Congratulations to Nefesh B’Nefesh, Steven Leavitt of Webads and all the participants, backers, an organizers of this event. Job well done.
The beauty of this conference was the ability to meet, interact, and network with fellow bloggers - and exchange ideas face to face. Not least benefit of attending the conference was the opportunity to be present to see and hear former Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu speak.
That the former Prime Minister made time from his busy schedule drove home a point that is known to most bloggers - the importance and influence that blogs have on public opinion. Just as blogs in the secular world have done - Jewish blogs have become an alternative to much of the mainstream Jewish print and even electronic media. The almost instant immediacy of a blog post combined with the equally instant ability to respond in the comments section makes blogs an attractive alternative source for news and commentary. And that is diluting the influence of the mainstream Jewish media.
This was one of the points driven home by former Prime Minister Netanyahu. And the fact that he was there underscores it.
Blogs do have a tremendous power to inform and to influence. With that should come a responsibility of the blogger to – well - blog responsibly. This is one of my goals. Although I’m sure that some people would dispute that I ever achieve it. I admit that sometimes my emotions overcome my better judgment. But I hope that in the balance my posts are presented in an informative and responsible way - and that any impact I may have is positive.
I gained a lot from the few hours I spent watching - mostly listening - to the various speakers. It wasn’t so much in what they said, although that too was valuable. It was mostly because this event actually happened - and the implications of that. Jewish blogging is huge. Probably much bigger than I ever thought.
That said, I will reiterate what fellow blogger Gil Student said at the conference. It is something I have said myself and something that rabbinic leadership of all stripes would agree with as well. Not all blogs are worthy of being read. Some are quite destructive in various different ways. But the good outweighs the bad. And if one chooses wisely a lot can be gained by reading a blog like Gil’s blog, Hirhurim, Micha Berger’s blog, Aspaqlaria, Rabbi Yosef Bechhofer’s Torah blog, YGB and many others too numerous to mention. Hopefully mine as well.
One critique I have of the conference is that I don’t think opinion blogs were represented on the panel. Torah blogs like Gil’s were and so too were Israeli blogs. But there was little focus on how a blog can lead public opinion – for the better or for the worse - although it was mentioned in a general way as I said above.
My biggest regret is that I did not have an opportunity to pose some of the questions to former Prime Minister Netanyahu about the Israeli government policy on issues important to the religious public – issues that I frequently mention like state of funding Yeshivos that do not offer any secular education.
I don’t know that I would have gotten the chance anyway. But… he was there, I would have been there in the same room with a relatively small crowd. Who knows. It’s probably the closest I would have ever gotten to do that. What a missed opportunity!
Oh well. Maybe next year. If they schedule is made far enough in advance, maybe I’ll be able to go.
Congratulations to Nefesh B’Nefesh, Steven Leavitt of Webads and all the participants, backers, an organizers of this event. Job well done.
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
The Torah U’Mada of Rav Yitzchak Hutner
One of the most revered Charedi Gedolim of the 20th century was Rav Yitzchak Hutner. He was indeed a Gadol – a Torah giant. His magnum Opus Pachad Yitzchak was written at a very early age. If I understand correctly it was published by his daughter, Rebbitzin Bruriah David.
I never met him but I am quite an admirer of his. He was a revered Rosh HaYeshiva and rabbinic leader – a member of the Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah of Agudath Israel.
If the current Charedi rabbinic leaders were to follow his path - we would be living in a different world. It is a curious fact of life, however, that his successor Rav Aharon Schechter the current Rosh HaYeshiva of Yeshivas Rabbenu Chaim Berlin does not seem to really follow in his Rebbe’s footsteps. Nor did another famous student of his, Rabbi Yaakov Perlow, the Novominsker Rebbe. He attended college and received a degree. But he does not advocate it for his current students.
This is not to cast any aspersions on anyone - certainly not Rabbi Perlow. People have a right to their own views. Rabbi Perlow was my 12th grade Rebbe and I still respect him and all he brings to the table as a rabbinic leader in Klal Yisroel .
But there are some students who I believe did follow in his footsteps - at least in having a positive attitude about secular studies. One of them is Rav Aharon Lichtenstein. Another is Rav Aaron Soloveichik. While obviously not identical to Rav Hutner I believe their Hashkafos are far truer to Rav Hutner’s than the current Rosh HaYeshiva of Chaim Berlin.
Rav Hutner was at his core a believer in the value of secular studies and limited participation in general culture. He spent time studying philosophy in the University of Berlin, and befriended other Gedolim there at the time including Rav Joseph B. Soloveithcik and the late Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rav Menachem Mendel Schneersohn - who attended classes there at that time. It is interesting to note that late in his life he became a fierce critic of Lubavitch.
Not only did he attend university, his daughter, Rebbitzin Bruriah David, the current head of Beis Yaakov of Jerusalem – a very Charedi women’s seminary- received her PhD from Columbia University in the seventies.
But it doesn’t stop there. Rav Hutner actually wanted to create a fully accredited Yeshiva college. Together with famed Torah VoDaath Rosh HaYeshiva Reb Sharga Feivel Mendelowitz - he had gone to the trouble to put all the elements in place including the accreditation from the New York Board of Regents.
Unfortunately Rav Hutner acceded to Rav Aharon Kotler’s wishes who urged him not to do it. It never happened because of Rav Hutner’s profound respect for Rav Aharon Kotler. But what this episode says about him is that he viewed studying secular subjects to be so positive that he was willing to create a Yeshiva college. He had not changed his views on secular studies upon his immigration to America and - it seems – they actually became even stronger.
One of the people he was very close to was my Rebbe, Rav Aharon Soloveichik. When Rav Aharon was 12 years old and still living in Europe - Rav Hutner tutored him after Rav Ahron’s father, Rav Moshe, had moved to New York to become Rosh HaYeshiva of Yeshiva University. And years later after both had immigrated to America -when Rav Ahron was ready - he became a Rebbe in Rav Hutner’s Yeshiva as well while as retaining his position in Yeshiva University.
In his later years his look changed. But I do not believe his Hashkafos ever changed.
The following story was told by Dr Yitzchak Levine. It is about a fellow who had attended Chaim Berlin it its early years.
After graduating Mesivtha Chaim Berlin, this fellow had no connection with the yeshiva for a number of years. More than 20 years later he attended a dinner sponsored by the yeshiva. When he got to the dinner, he saw Rav Hutner sitting on the dais. He had a full beard, was wearing a very large "up hat," and a kapote. This former talmud went over to Rav Hutner, looked at him, and said, "What happened to you? This is not the way you dressed when you were my rebbe." Rav Hutner replied, "I am the same person I was when I was your rebbe. The times have changed, that is all."
Perhaps. People do evolve and sometimes modify their Hashkafos. Rav Hutner was firmly was a disciple of Rav Avraham Yitzchak Kook the patriarch of Religious Zionism - even though his early gounding was in the famed Slabodka Yeshiva under the Rav Nosson Zvi Finkel. But in his later years Rav Hutner seemed to move away from the Hashkafos of Rav Kook and closer to those of the Chazan Ish.
But I still believe that at the core he was the same person he had always been. This is what he meant when he answered that student of 20 years ago. His look changed and his emphasis changed, but his core values did not.
Those values included a positive view of secular studies, a warm and welcoming approach to secular Jews and an appreciation of the Halachicly permitted secular culture as evidenced by his love of opera - a fact testified to by one of his early students - a man old enough to be my father (who prefers to remain anonymous).
If only there were more Rav Hutners today.
Newly Updated: 8/22/08 - 8:34 AM CDT
I never met him but I am quite an admirer of his. He was a revered Rosh HaYeshiva and rabbinic leader – a member of the Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah of Agudath Israel.
If the current Charedi rabbinic leaders were to follow his path - we would be living in a different world. It is a curious fact of life, however, that his successor Rav Aharon Schechter the current Rosh HaYeshiva of Yeshivas Rabbenu Chaim Berlin does not seem to really follow in his Rebbe’s footsteps. Nor did another famous student of his, Rabbi Yaakov Perlow, the Novominsker Rebbe. He attended college and received a degree. But he does not advocate it for his current students.
This is not to cast any aspersions on anyone - certainly not Rabbi Perlow. People have a right to their own views. Rabbi Perlow was my 12th grade Rebbe and I still respect him and all he brings to the table as a rabbinic leader in Klal Yisroel .
But there are some students who I believe did follow in his footsteps - at least in having a positive attitude about secular studies. One of them is Rav Aharon Lichtenstein. Another is Rav Aaron Soloveichik. While obviously not identical to Rav Hutner I believe their Hashkafos are far truer to Rav Hutner’s than the current Rosh HaYeshiva of Chaim Berlin.
Rav Hutner was at his core a believer in the value of secular studies and limited participation in general culture. He spent time studying philosophy in the University of Berlin, and befriended other Gedolim there at the time including Rav Joseph B. Soloveithcik and the late Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rav Menachem Mendel Schneersohn - who attended classes there at that time. It is interesting to note that late in his life he became a fierce critic of Lubavitch.
Not only did he attend university, his daughter, Rebbitzin Bruriah David, the current head of Beis Yaakov of Jerusalem – a very Charedi women’s seminary- received her PhD from Columbia University in the seventies.
But it doesn’t stop there. Rav Hutner actually wanted to create a fully accredited Yeshiva college. Together with famed Torah VoDaath Rosh HaYeshiva Reb Sharga Feivel Mendelowitz - he had gone to the trouble to put all the elements in place including the accreditation from the New York Board of Regents.
Unfortunately Rav Hutner acceded to Rav Aharon Kotler’s wishes who urged him not to do it. It never happened because of Rav Hutner’s profound respect for Rav Aharon Kotler. But what this episode says about him is that he viewed studying secular subjects to be so positive that he was willing to create a Yeshiva college. He had not changed his views on secular studies upon his immigration to America and - it seems – they actually became even stronger.
One of the people he was very close to was my Rebbe, Rav Aharon Soloveichik. When Rav Aharon was 12 years old and still living in Europe - Rav Hutner tutored him after Rav Ahron’s father, Rav Moshe, had moved to New York to become Rosh HaYeshiva of Yeshiva University. And years later after both had immigrated to America -when Rav Ahron was ready - he became a Rebbe in Rav Hutner’s Yeshiva as well while as retaining his position in Yeshiva University.
In his later years his look changed. But I do not believe his Hashkafos ever changed.
The following story was told by Dr Yitzchak Levine. It is about a fellow who had attended Chaim Berlin it its early years.
After graduating Mesivtha Chaim Berlin, this fellow had no connection with the yeshiva for a number of years. More than 20 years later he attended a dinner sponsored by the yeshiva. When he got to the dinner, he saw Rav Hutner sitting on the dais. He had a full beard, was wearing a very large "up hat," and a kapote. This former talmud went over to Rav Hutner, looked at him, and said, "What happened to you? This is not the way you dressed when you were my rebbe." Rav Hutner replied, "I am the same person I was when I was your rebbe. The times have changed, that is all."
Perhaps. People do evolve and sometimes modify their Hashkafos. Rav Hutner was firmly was a disciple of Rav Avraham Yitzchak Kook the patriarch of Religious Zionism - even though his early gounding was in the famed Slabodka Yeshiva under the Rav Nosson Zvi Finkel. But in his later years Rav Hutner seemed to move away from the Hashkafos of Rav Kook and closer to those of the Chazan Ish.
But I still believe that at the core he was the same person he had always been. This is what he meant when he answered that student of 20 years ago. His look changed and his emphasis changed, but his core values did not.
Those values included a positive view of secular studies, a warm and welcoming approach to secular Jews and an appreciation of the Halachicly permitted secular culture as evidenced by his love of opera - a fact testified to by one of his early students - a man old enough to be my father (who prefers to remain anonymous).
If only there were more Rav Hutners today.
Newly Updated: 8/22/08 - 8:34 AM CDT
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Gladdening the Heart - or Alcohol Abuse?
I don’t know when it happened - or how - or why. But alcohol abuse among Orthodox young people is pretty common these days. I see it all the time at the many weddings I attend. It cuts across all segments of Orthodoxy. The real shock though is when I see the Lakewood type student imbibing. They are the keepers of the flame who claim the mantle of superiority in Torah lifestyle and observance - role models of Torah behavior. And I’m beginning to see it more among them than I do among Modern Orthodox youth.
It’s not that they are evil people. They want to be Mesameach the Chasan and Kallah. As good friends of the Chasan they want to do all they can to make him rejoice on his wedding day. But instead of a natural exuberance - they go immediately to the bottle.
That of course gives them the buzz they are looking for and eliminates any inhibitions. But the inhibitions are not just about being shy. They get so plastered that they forget everyone around them. When the dancing begins they become loud, rude, and muscle their way into an inner dance circle so they can dance with or impress the Chasan - without regard to who they hurt on the way in. Not that they hurt anyone on purpose. They are just too drunk to notice if or who they’ve pushed aside - or who they’ve hit with their flailing arms while they dance. They are oblivious to all but themselves.
To the casual observer from a distance it may not seem like there is anything wrong. They just see a group of exuberant friends dancing up a storm – if a bit wildly. But to those of us who are sober on the inside trying to dance with the Chasan as well (or as in my case trying to get a decent video when I work) we are kicked and hit and pushed aside - often with rude comments. Sometimes those pushed aside are elderly grandparents or older aunts and uncles.
There are of course still weddings where the friends who are dancing are not drunk and therefore aware of what’s around them. They dance very joyfully too but are not pushy and do not shove or strong arm others who are older. They are aware of others and are respectful of them. But that is becoming increasingly rare.
When someone is drunk it reveals his true personality. And often the personality that is revealed is that of a self centered holier than thou elitist who thinks the world revolves around him and his friends. Everyone else is just scenery to them.
Just to be clear, this seems to be a male problem. I never see women get drunk at weddings. But young men…? Increasingly so.
One of the most troubling aspects of this relatively new phenomenon is that the drunken friends at weddings are fellow students with the Chasan in the same Yeshiva. More often than not the Rosh HaYeshiva is the Mesdaer Kedushin – the officiating Rabbi - who witnesses his students acting like a bunch of wild animals. And they seem oblivious to it - caring little if at all. It’s almost as if they approve!
These young people pick up on that and see it as tacit approval. The thinking probably goes something like this. They are just putting themselves in the proper mood by proper means. The Talmud states: Yayin Mesamchin Es HaLev - wine gladdens the heart.
That’s it. It’s Kosher to get drunk. There is no Chilul HaShem. Anyone who suggests otherwise, get out of my way! What do you know?! It’s a Mitzvah to be Mesameach the Chasan and Kalla. What better way to do that then to follow the Gemara’s implied advice?
It can’t be emphasized enough that these are normally well behaved good kids – when they aren’t drunk. These are not kids at risk. For the most part they learn well in the Yeshivos they attend. But in recent years they have picked up a bad vice and have made it Kosher. And that has revealed their inner personality.
But what about the slippery slope? Once you have experienced the high of getting drunk at a wedding or any Kosher environment, it doesn’t stop there. People will seek that high in other places too - in Shul at a Kiddush, on Purim, and in pool halls in the Catskills. And once you’ve experimented successfully with alcohol, why not try some Marijuana or something stronger and quicker?
This is what happened last Sunday morning in Monticello New York:
A group of approximately nine individuals hailing from some of Brooklyn's Orthodox neighborhoods were arrested by the Sullivan County Sheriff's Department this weekend. The arrests mark at least the third time in the past several days that Jewish teens from Brooklyn have been charged by upstate New York law enforcement officers [see HERE and HERE].
In the early a.m. hours of Sunday morning, a group of teenage boys along with a couple of adults were hanging out in the parking lot of Wal-Mart at Anawana Lake Road in Monticello. The boys were behaving in a loud and rowdy manner. Several were openly consuming alcohol and it has been alleged - but not verified - that some were seen smoking marijuana.
When I was a student in Yeshiva back in the 60s and early 70s, these things were unheard of. Except for Purim, young people never drank to get high. I never saw any drunken behavior at a wedding by a Yeshiva student. I never heard of any young Orthodox Jews getting arrested for drunk and disorderly conduct. But now the problem is huge and it seems to be getting worse.
I think it’s time for the Roshei Yeshiva to tell their young people to stop drinking. Even at weddings - or anywhere else for that matter. Its time for these young people to learn that getting drunk in public is a Chilul HaShem. And that it endangers their health, too. It’s time for Roshei Yeshiva to pay more attention to this and get a handle on it instead of being oblivious to it.
In this day and age where Roshei Yeshiva have more power and influence on their Talmidim than at any time in history - it’s time they use that power for more than creating new Chumros.
I realize that the problems are greater than just alcohol abuse. That is probably more of a symptom than a cause. But tackling alcohol abuse will be a good start.
It’s not that they are evil people. They want to be Mesameach the Chasan and Kallah. As good friends of the Chasan they want to do all they can to make him rejoice on his wedding day. But instead of a natural exuberance - they go immediately to the bottle.
That of course gives them the buzz they are looking for and eliminates any inhibitions. But the inhibitions are not just about being shy. They get so plastered that they forget everyone around them. When the dancing begins they become loud, rude, and muscle their way into an inner dance circle so they can dance with or impress the Chasan - without regard to who they hurt on the way in. Not that they hurt anyone on purpose. They are just too drunk to notice if or who they’ve pushed aside - or who they’ve hit with their flailing arms while they dance. They are oblivious to all but themselves.
To the casual observer from a distance it may not seem like there is anything wrong. They just see a group of exuberant friends dancing up a storm – if a bit wildly. But to those of us who are sober on the inside trying to dance with the Chasan as well (or as in my case trying to get a decent video when I work) we are kicked and hit and pushed aside - often with rude comments. Sometimes those pushed aside are elderly grandparents or older aunts and uncles.
There are of course still weddings where the friends who are dancing are not drunk and therefore aware of what’s around them. They dance very joyfully too but are not pushy and do not shove or strong arm others who are older. They are aware of others and are respectful of them. But that is becoming increasingly rare.
When someone is drunk it reveals his true personality. And often the personality that is revealed is that of a self centered holier than thou elitist who thinks the world revolves around him and his friends. Everyone else is just scenery to them.
Just to be clear, this seems to be a male problem. I never see women get drunk at weddings. But young men…? Increasingly so.
One of the most troubling aspects of this relatively new phenomenon is that the drunken friends at weddings are fellow students with the Chasan in the same Yeshiva. More often than not the Rosh HaYeshiva is the Mesdaer Kedushin – the officiating Rabbi - who witnesses his students acting like a bunch of wild animals. And they seem oblivious to it - caring little if at all. It’s almost as if they approve!
These young people pick up on that and see it as tacit approval. The thinking probably goes something like this. They are just putting themselves in the proper mood by proper means. The Talmud states: Yayin Mesamchin Es HaLev - wine gladdens the heart.
That’s it. It’s Kosher to get drunk. There is no Chilul HaShem. Anyone who suggests otherwise, get out of my way! What do you know?! It’s a Mitzvah to be Mesameach the Chasan and Kalla. What better way to do that then to follow the Gemara’s implied advice?
It can’t be emphasized enough that these are normally well behaved good kids – when they aren’t drunk. These are not kids at risk. For the most part they learn well in the Yeshivos they attend. But in recent years they have picked up a bad vice and have made it Kosher. And that has revealed their inner personality.
But what about the slippery slope? Once you have experienced the high of getting drunk at a wedding or any Kosher environment, it doesn’t stop there. People will seek that high in other places too - in Shul at a Kiddush, on Purim, and in pool halls in the Catskills. And once you’ve experimented successfully with alcohol, why not try some Marijuana or something stronger and quicker?
This is what happened last Sunday morning in Monticello New York:
A group of approximately nine individuals hailing from some of Brooklyn's Orthodox neighborhoods were arrested by the Sullivan County Sheriff's Department this weekend. The arrests mark at least the third time in the past several days that Jewish teens from Brooklyn have been charged by upstate New York law enforcement officers [see HERE and HERE].
In the early a.m. hours of Sunday morning, a group of teenage boys along with a couple of adults were hanging out in the parking lot of Wal-Mart at Anawana Lake Road in Monticello. The boys were behaving in a loud and rowdy manner. Several were openly consuming alcohol and it has been alleged - but not verified - that some were seen smoking marijuana.
When I was a student in Yeshiva back in the 60s and early 70s, these things were unheard of. Except for Purim, young people never drank to get high. I never saw any drunken behavior at a wedding by a Yeshiva student. I never heard of any young Orthodox Jews getting arrested for drunk and disorderly conduct. But now the problem is huge and it seems to be getting worse.
I think it’s time for the Roshei Yeshiva to tell their young people to stop drinking. Even at weddings - or anywhere else for that matter. Its time for these young people to learn that getting drunk in public is a Chilul HaShem. And that it endangers their health, too. It’s time for Roshei Yeshiva to pay more attention to this and get a handle on it instead of being oblivious to it.
In this day and age where Roshei Yeshiva have more power and influence on their Talmidim than at any time in history - it’s time they use that power for more than creating new Chumros.
I realize that the problems are greater than just alcohol abuse. That is probably more of a symptom than a cause. But tackling alcohol abuse will be a good start.
Monday, August 18, 2008
Is the Yated – Ne’eman?
Some people have complained about my use of the secular media as a source for information in the Torah world, especially if that information is about the Torah world. The attitude seems to be that if the news is good - believe it. But if it’s bad then one is not allowed to believe it because the writers and publishers are not religious and therefore have no Ne’emanus - they are not trustworthy.
I have no qualms about using respectable secular sources. They are reporting Misiach B’Fi Tumo. That is an expression in the Gemarah describing the circumstances where we may trust even the testimony of idolaters.
Religious Jews are generally presumed to be honest and their testimony is trusted in all cases. But idolators are generally not presumed to be honest. They are not trusted to serve the truth but rather to serve their own agendas. However in cases where there is reason to believe them - such as an incidental remark without their being aware of the consequences - we may trust them. That is called Mesiach B’Fi Tumo.
Despite accusations of biased reporting in secular newspapers, they must be abide by a code of journalistic ethics, the central tenet of which is the truth. Without that they would fold in a New York minute. The minute a newspaper deliberately lies about anything and is caught - they lose all credibility and no one will trust them anymore. So, no matter what bias they may bring to the table - the fear of losing credibility keeps them honest. This is a form of Misiach B’Fi Tumo.
Of course that doesn’t mean there isn’t any bias. Of course there is. There is always bias. But bias does not translate to deliberate lies. And there is at least some attempt to not show any bias in their reportage. However when it comes to dry facts, they cannot lie. The last time a eliberate lie was tried it was by a popular reporter in the New York Times. That reporter was fired immediately and the Times paid dearly in credibility.
Nowhere is bias put to greater use than in the Charedi newspaper the Yated. This is evident from the recent article duplicated at the Yated’s thinly disguised website Dei’ah VeDibur. There was a small article there (see yesterday’s post) claiming that rabbinic sources have condemned the practice of going on vacations to hotels and bungalows where there are TVs and other pitfalls for Charedim.
I took it this condemnation to refer to the Catskill Mountains scene. I thought that the reason this condemnation came out now is because the week after the 9th if is a prime vacation period for many Charedim. But I was not the only one that thought so. Yeshiva World apparently thought the same thing as the photo accompanying the artilce there was clearly of an area in Catskill Mountains.
But as was pointed out by a couple of commentors here - this article had nothing it do with the Catskill Mountains. Here is one such comment:
It’s all very well and good to discuss the merits or demerits of the Catskills, but the Yated article is a translation of the Hebrew Yated in Bnei Brak and it addresses Yeshivishe families in Israel who go on vacation during the bein-hazmanim. If it was referring to the Catskills, which it definitely is not, why did they wait until mid-August? It’s talking about tzimerim in the Galil and Tiveria. No connection to the American bungalow colony scene in at all.
The translated English version was unclear and intended to mislead. There was no mention of the fact it was talking only to the Yeshivishe crowd in Israel about vacations during Bein HaZmanim - the more or less official vacation time of all Yeshivos. There was the use of the word bungalow. That strongly suggests the bungalow colonies that exist in the Catskill Mountains. The purpose? I suspect it is to make waves and stir controversy.
It is apparent from this and other articles that they are often written with an agenda to stir controversy and cause anguish to the masses.
The Yated can therefore not be trusted to report the facts clearly - not book bans and not concert bans. They are just the newspaper version of the posters put up by zealots in Meah Shearim or Ramat Bet Shemesh B.
What makes this particularly grievous is the fact that it is a religious paper that prides itself on following Daas Torah. This makes them worse than secular publishers because they use their status as religious journalists for their own self righteous purposes. Instead of raising the level of Kedusha in their community they cause a Chilul HaShem.
As far as I’m concerned the National Enquirer is probably a more reliable news source. Next time anyone reads the Yated – that is the rag they ought to be thinking of.
Update
I have been made aware that the De’iah VeDibur website is reflective of the Israeli Yated Ne’eman an not the American Yated although they were at one time affiliated.
This fact is not made clear anywhere on its website. And it should be. The reader is entitled to know where this paper is coming from and who they are talking about when they write ambiguously - as they did in the above referenced article. But all it says is that De’iah VeDibur is a window into the Charedi world.
With that as its published mission statement - there is no reason to expect that stories reported therein are related only to the Israeli Charedi scene and not the Amercian Charedi scene.
I therefore still hold this paper responsible for misleading its readership. And unless it makes a correction and states clearly that articles therein are only about the Israeli Charedi scene, it will continue to mislead and misinform - disclaimers of responsibility about accuracy not withstanding.
I have no qualms about using respectable secular sources. They are reporting Misiach B’Fi Tumo. That is an expression in the Gemarah describing the circumstances where we may trust even the testimony of idolaters.
Religious Jews are generally presumed to be honest and their testimony is trusted in all cases. But idolators are generally not presumed to be honest. They are not trusted to serve the truth but rather to serve their own agendas. However in cases where there is reason to believe them - such as an incidental remark without their being aware of the consequences - we may trust them. That is called Mesiach B’Fi Tumo.
Despite accusations of biased reporting in secular newspapers, they must be abide by a code of journalistic ethics, the central tenet of which is the truth. Without that they would fold in a New York minute. The minute a newspaper deliberately lies about anything and is caught - they lose all credibility and no one will trust them anymore. So, no matter what bias they may bring to the table - the fear of losing credibility keeps them honest. This is a form of Misiach B’Fi Tumo.
Of course that doesn’t mean there isn’t any bias. Of course there is. There is always bias. But bias does not translate to deliberate lies. And there is at least some attempt to not show any bias in their reportage. However when it comes to dry facts, they cannot lie. The last time a eliberate lie was tried it was by a popular reporter in the New York Times. That reporter was fired immediately and the Times paid dearly in credibility.
Nowhere is bias put to greater use than in the Charedi newspaper the Yated. This is evident from the recent article duplicated at the Yated’s thinly disguised website Dei’ah VeDibur. There was a small article there (see yesterday’s post) claiming that rabbinic sources have condemned the practice of going on vacations to hotels and bungalows where there are TVs and other pitfalls for Charedim.
I took it this condemnation to refer to the Catskill Mountains scene. I thought that the reason this condemnation came out now is because the week after the 9th if is a prime vacation period for many Charedim. But I was not the only one that thought so. Yeshiva World apparently thought the same thing as the photo accompanying the artilce there was clearly of an area in Catskill Mountains.
But as was pointed out by a couple of commentors here - this article had nothing it do with the Catskill Mountains. Here is one such comment:
It’s all very well and good to discuss the merits or demerits of the Catskills, but the Yated article is a translation of the Hebrew Yated in Bnei Brak and it addresses Yeshivishe families in Israel who go on vacation during the bein-hazmanim. If it was referring to the Catskills, which it definitely is not, why did they wait until mid-August? It’s talking about tzimerim in the Galil and Tiveria. No connection to the American bungalow colony scene in at all.
The translated English version was unclear and intended to mislead. There was no mention of the fact it was talking only to the Yeshivishe crowd in Israel about vacations during Bein HaZmanim - the more or less official vacation time of all Yeshivos. There was the use of the word bungalow. That strongly suggests the bungalow colonies that exist in the Catskill Mountains. The purpose? I suspect it is to make waves and stir controversy.
It is apparent from this and other articles that they are often written with an agenda to stir controversy and cause anguish to the masses.
The Yated can therefore not be trusted to report the facts clearly - not book bans and not concert bans. They are just the newspaper version of the posters put up by zealots in Meah Shearim or Ramat Bet Shemesh B.
What makes this particularly grievous is the fact that it is a religious paper that prides itself on following Daas Torah. This makes them worse than secular publishers because they use their status as religious journalists for their own self righteous purposes. Instead of raising the level of Kedusha in their community they cause a Chilul HaShem.
As far as I’m concerned the National Enquirer is probably a more reliable news source. Next time anyone reads the Yated – that is the rag they ought to be thinking of.
Update
I have been made aware that the De’iah VeDibur website is reflective of the Israeli Yated Ne’eman an not the American Yated although they were at one time affiliated.
This fact is not made clear anywhere on its website. And it should be. The reader is entitled to know where this paper is coming from and who they are talking about when they write ambiguously - as they did in the above referenced article. But all it says is that De’iah VeDibur is a window into the Charedi world.
With that as its published mission statement - there is no reason to expect that stories reported therein are related only to the Israeli Charedi scene and not the Amercian Charedi scene.
I therefore still hold this paper responsible for misleading its readership. And unless it makes a correction and states clearly that articles therein are only about the Israeli Charedi scene, it will continue to mislead and misinform - disclaimers of responsibility about accuracy not withstanding.
Sunday, August 17, 2008
The ‘Bury Your Head in the Sand’ Solution
Every summer in the city of New York and its environs an annual ritual takes place among a huge number of religious families. There is a mass migration to the Catskill Mountains - a decades long favorite vacation spot for Jews of all stripes. For the last 50 years or so it has increasingly become populated by religious Jews. They do so to get away from the heat - and the hustle and bustle of the city. I can certainly understand their desire for this change of environment. They go from hot concrete to a cooler and beautifully scenic country atmosphere.
This can entail a 2 or 3 week stay in a Kosher hotel or more typically renting cabins in what is known as a bungalow colony for a couple of months that is filled with religiously like minded families. The wife and children stay there the entire time and the husbands commute - staying in the city for their jobs during the week and joining the families for Shabbos.
I could never understand this mindset. Aside from the expense of maintaining two residences for two months a year - how is a family to function properly as a unit for an entire summer without a father’s presence except for Shabbos? And how does the father spend his non-working hours during the week in the city alone? In my view this is an invitation for all kinds of problems.
Be that as it may, it’s a free country and it seems to work. The families survive. I am not here to judge them. I am here to defend them.
Last year at about this time, an event took place that shocked the Torah world. It happened in the Catskill Mountains in and around areas heavily populated by Religious Jew both Modern Orthodox and Charedi. Hundreds of young people from some very fine homes were found in and around a pool hall and hanging out, cavorting, drinking, and snorting drugs. The kids ran the full range of Orthodox Jewry “ children from very Chasidish to very modern Orthodox homes.
Mainstream young people joined the party at least as observers. Their friends had rented bungalows in non-Jewish colonies or rooms in hotels throughout the Catskills where they party from Thursday night until Monday morning including Shabbos.
When this was discovered last year it of course created an uproar. Parents and educators were rightly upset by this event. There was an outcry that was heard by some of the rabbinic leaders. It was determined that what was lacking was some sort of structured and Kosher activities for these young people to go to on a Motzei Shabbos. If I recall correctly they responded by organizing Saturday night concerts so that young people would be attracted to that - instead of hanging around bored - with nothing to do, no where to go, and being left to their own devises.
Personally I believe the problem in the Charedi world is deeper than just the lack of kosher entertainment. It is a problem of insularity. In the attempt to insulate from the toxicity of much that is American popular culture, they isolate – building walls around walls to prevent that culture from creeping in. Great effort is placed into assuring that children not see or hear anything outside of their tightly knit communities. Any activity seen as even a slight possibility to leading to a problem is completely avoided or banned. This - they feel - is the beast way to protect their children from the vices of the outside world.
That has left their young people with essentially nothing to do in a summer that is filled with lots of free time. The desire to alleviate boredom is a powerful force. If no outlets are provided, then young people will create their own. Most of the time this doesn’t mean going to the Beis Hamedrash as we see from the events of last year.
What is the Charedi response this year? The Yated is reporting yet another unbelievable ban by some unnamed rabbinic leadership. If one can trust the Yated, the solution is yet another ban - or near ban. This time it is on the entire Catskill Mountains. From the Yated:
Gedolei Yisroel want it made clear that those who opt to go to such places place themselves in a real nisoyon whereas those who "guard their soul" distance themselves from such places. Those who have already made reservations should ask a rov whether to cancel their reservations.
Yet another ‘bury your head in the sand’ solution. Any time there is any possibility of a problem in any enterprise, no matter how beneficial it might be, the entire enterprise is banned. This just happened again, if one is to believe the Yated.
Instead of trying to deal with the underlying cause of a problem the easy way out is taken, Ban it, ban it, ban it. Instead of finding solutions that will not drastically alter the lives of families who have a decades-long tradition of summer vacationing in the mountains, they just ban the whole thing. That’s always the solution.
Wasn’t last year’s solution more sensible? When are those who advocate bans as the solution to every problem - going to learn that instead of solving the problem they might actually be contributing to it? The more forbidden a fruit becomes, the more enticing it becomes. Sometimes I think the biggest problem plaguing the Torah world these days is the lack of common sense.
Many young people are unable to survive the austere environment that being handed them. I see it more and more. Some good kids from fine families are either going off the Derech when they encounter the forbidden fruit in a place like the pool hall of last year - or opting for a lifestyle that is far more consistent with the Modern Orthodox values than Charedi ones. That population is growing by leaps and bounds.
Is this the goal? To raise children that will rebel from the Charedi values and adopt a lifestyle that is Modern Orthodox but without the benefits of its Hashkafic underpinnings? Because if it that is their goal is they are succeeding in increasingly greater numbers.
This can entail a 2 or 3 week stay in a Kosher hotel or more typically renting cabins in what is known as a bungalow colony for a couple of months that is filled with religiously like minded families. The wife and children stay there the entire time and the husbands commute - staying in the city for their jobs during the week and joining the families for Shabbos.
I could never understand this mindset. Aside from the expense of maintaining two residences for two months a year - how is a family to function properly as a unit for an entire summer without a father’s presence except for Shabbos? And how does the father spend his non-working hours during the week in the city alone? In my view this is an invitation for all kinds of problems.
Be that as it may, it’s a free country and it seems to work. The families survive. I am not here to judge them. I am here to defend them.
Last year at about this time, an event took place that shocked the Torah world. It happened in the Catskill Mountains in and around areas heavily populated by Religious Jew both Modern Orthodox and Charedi. Hundreds of young people from some very fine homes were found in and around a pool hall and hanging out, cavorting, drinking, and snorting drugs. The kids ran the full range of Orthodox Jewry “ children from very Chasidish to very modern Orthodox homes.
Mainstream young people joined the party at least as observers. Their friends had rented bungalows in non-Jewish colonies or rooms in hotels throughout the Catskills where they party from Thursday night until Monday morning including Shabbos.
When this was discovered last year it of course created an uproar. Parents and educators were rightly upset by this event. There was an outcry that was heard by some of the rabbinic leaders. It was determined that what was lacking was some sort of structured and Kosher activities for these young people to go to on a Motzei Shabbos. If I recall correctly they responded by organizing Saturday night concerts so that young people would be attracted to that - instead of hanging around bored - with nothing to do, no where to go, and being left to their own devises.
Personally I believe the problem in the Charedi world is deeper than just the lack of kosher entertainment. It is a problem of insularity. In the attempt to insulate from the toxicity of much that is American popular culture, they isolate – building walls around walls to prevent that culture from creeping in. Great effort is placed into assuring that children not see or hear anything outside of their tightly knit communities. Any activity seen as even a slight possibility to leading to a problem is completely avoided or banned. This - they feel - is the beast way to protect their children from the vices of the outside world.
That has left their young people with essentially nothing to do in a summer that is filled with lots of free time. The desire to alleviate boredom is a powerful force. If no outlets are provided, then young people will create their own. Most of the time this doesn’t mean going to the Beis Hamedrash as we see from the events of last year.
What is the Charedi response this year? The Yated is reporting yet another unbelievable ban by some unnamed rabbinic leadership. If one can trust the Yated, the solution is yet another ban - or near ban. This time it is on the entire Catskill Mountains. From the Yated:
Gedolei Yisroel want it made clear that those who opt to go to such places place themselves in a real nisoyon whereas those who "guard their soul" distance themselves from such places. Those who have already made reservations should ask a rov whether to cancel their reservations.
Yet another ‘bury your head in the sand’ solution. Any time there is any possibility of a problem in any enterprise, no matter how beneficial it might be, the entire enterprise is banned. This just happened again, if one is to believe the Yated.
Instead of trying to deal with the underlying cause of a problem the easy way out is taken, Ban it, ban it, ban it. Instead of finding solutions that will not drastically alter the lives of families who have a decades-long tradition of summer vacationing in the mountains, they just ban the whole thing. That’s always the solution.
Wasn’t last year’s solution more sensible? When are those who advocate bans as the solution to every problem - going to learn that instead of solving the problem they might actually be contributing to it? The more forbidden a fruit becomes, the more enticing it becomes. Sometimes I think the biggest problem plaguing the Torah world these days is the lack of common sense.
Many young people are unable to survive the austere environment that being handed them. I see it more and more. Some good kids from fine families are either going off the Derech when they encounter the forbidden fruit in a place like the pool hall of last year - or opting for a lifestyle that is far more consistent with the Modern Orthodox values than Charedi ones. That population is growing by leaps and bounds.
Is this the goal? To raise children that will rebel from the Charedi values and adopt a lifestyle that is Modern Orthodox but without the benefits of its Hashkafic underpinnings? Because if it that is their goal is they are succeeding in increasingly greater numbers.
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