Polls, Statistics, and the War with Iran

Polls showing widespread American opposition to the war with Iran should be viewed in the spirit of Mark Twain’s famous observation: “There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics.”

The problem with polls is that they often reflect the way the questions are asked. Statistics, too, can obscure important truths by failing to probe the reasons behind the answers. Which can vary widely among those being polled.

Several recent polls suggest that, by margins approaching 60%, Americans disapprove of the president’s policy toward the war in Iran. That appears to align with the Democratic narrative that this is a war of choice with no clearly defined objective, one that has only made matters worse by strengthening Iran’s hardline Islamist regime. They argue that Iran now appears to exercise permanent control over the Strait of Hormuz, and that if it is ever reopened, they will charge fees for passage. Which was free before the war.

And that even if a new nuclear agreement is eventually reached, that was already the case under Obama that Trump tore up! Thus the region will be less stable than before after a costly, counterproductive war.

But here’s what many of those poll reports fail to mention.

Most Americans actually agree with the president’s stated objectives: preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons, stopping the development of long-range ballistic missiles capable of reaching the United States, and ending its support for terrorist proxies. Where they disagree is over whether this war will achieve those goals.

I count myself among those skeptics. I, too, question whether the current strategy will accomplish its stated objectives. But I do not share the reasons offered by the war’s Democratic critics.

They claim the war has no stated objective. Really? The president has repeatedly declared that its purpose is to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons.

They call it a war of choice. Should the United States have waited until Iran possessed a fully operational nuclear arsenal and chose to use it or threaten to use it? That is not a risk any responsible government should take.

History offers a sobering lesson. Neville Chamberlain believed diplomacy could satisfy Hitler’s ambitions. Instead, appeasement emboldened him and contributed to the deadliest war in human history. Diplomacy with expansionist tyrannies rarely succeeds. It is even less likely to succeed when those tyrannies are driven by religious fanaticism and believe they are carrying out a divine mission.

That is why I find the president’s continued pursuit of negotiations with Iran so perplexing and disappointing. He still appears to believe he can strike a deal with a regime whose ideological goals are fundamentally incompatible with any lasting agreement.

Why he continues to believe that is an open question.

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The Truth About “Settler Violence”

One of the most frustrating issues plaguing the Jewish world is the phenomenon labeled “settler violence.” It is frustrating because the label is both misleading and accurate at the same time.

It is accurate in the sense that there are indeed certain elements living in Judea and Samaria (the West Bank) who have literally lost all sense of morality when it comes to Palestinians in general, and especially those living nearby. They see every Palestinian as a mortal enemy of the Jewish people and treat them accordingly whenever they encounter them.

Even worse, they sometimes take revenge on Palestinian villages and their residents after a Jew is murdered in a terrorist attack—even though those residents had absolutely nothing to do with it. This has happened more than once. It involves settlers—better described as extremists—in greater numbers than many well-intentioned apologists are willing to admit. I also suspect that there are more than a few IDF soldiers serving in those areas who sympathize with them.

But even if every Palestinian living in the West Bank hated Jews with religious fervor, that would not justify attacking innocent people who have done nothing to harm a single Jew.

It is precisely the religious zeal of these extremist settlers that leads them to believe it is a mitzvah to expel every Arab from Greater Israel so that the entire Land of Israel can be settled by Jews. Far from helping Israel, this only fuels Palestinian hatred. The mitzvah of settling the Land of Israel is no justification for what these people do in its name. it is almost as if that were the only mitzvah they care about.

The result is that all settlers are condemned because of the actions of these extremists.

Is that condemnation justified? One might think so based on what I have just described. But the truth is far more complicated.

Violence in Judea and Samaria is not a one-way street. In fact, Palestinian violence in the West Bank dwarfs settler violence. Yet by using the term “settler violence” without sufficient context, the implication is that all 750,000 Jewish residents of Judea, Samaria, and eastern Jerusalem are violent extremists who spend their days harassing Palestinians—or worse.

Nothing could be further from the truth…

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The Price of a Thin Judaism

Photo for Quiz ‘Em (My wife is 2nd from right)

A reader who knows my thinking on a variety of subjects - sent me a Substack essay with the comment, “Your sort of stuff!!!”

How well he knows me. It is yet another voice of sanity from within the heterodox rabbinate that, I’m afraid, will largely go unheeded.

Conservative Rabbi Steven Abraham has written a hard-hitting critique about what is wrong with heterodox movements. It is a critique I could have written myself and, in fact, have expressed many times over the years. In short, he excoriates his own movement for missing the boat on Jewish education. Focusing too much on Tikkun Olam while neglecting the Torah and its demands.

An example of what I mean is found in the following excerpt:

You cannot balance tradition and modernity when your students know only modernity. You cannot teach historical Judaism to children who have no history. You cannot cultivate halakhic seriousness while presenting mitzvot as folkways, charming when convenient and disposable when they ask something of us. If we are honest, we too have bent to the cultural wind, lowering our expectations and apologizing for the severity of the covenant. But a Judaism that exists to ratify a secular political platform will be discarded the moment its usefulness ends. Why rise early on Shabbat to wrestle with a text three thousand years old if its conclusion merely echoes an op-ed one could have read in bed?

I have to say that the values he champions are the very same values that I - and any knowledgeable Orthodox Jew - would champion. Had he not identified himself as a Conservative rabbi, I might have assumed he was Orthodox, - as another excerpt also indicates:

It is a fine thing to care about the world, but Jews must first know their own. Our children need to know more about Yom Kippur than they know about Ramadan. They need to feel the moral drama of the machzor before they are asked to master every other tradition: why Kol Nidre still trembles, why Neilah feels like the gates of heaven swinging shut, why Jews fast not because suffering is holy but because return is possible...

What our children need first is their own inheritance: Hebrew on their tongues and Jewish memory in their bones, Israel in their consciousness, mitzvot in their hands, a people in their hearts. They need the poetry of Yehuda Amichai, the arguments of the Talmud, the grief of Tisha B’Av, the joy of Simchat Torah, and the terrifying intimacy of standing before God on the Day of Atonement. Then, yes, teach them about their neighbors with seriousness and respect—but teach them as Jews, from somewhere, with enough literacy that encounter becomes dialogue rather than dissolution.

Honestly, I could not have said it better myself.

Imagine what the Conservative movement might have accomplished had it implemented from the very beginning - an educational system that consistently taught these values and the importance of living them. One that encouraged serious Jewish education from kindergarten through high school. In other words, an educational system like our Orthodox one.

It is probably true that many Conservative Jews would still have chosen to send their children to public schools or, if they could afford it, to elite private college-preparatory schools. But it is also likely that a substantial number would have chosen instead to educate their children in the Jewish heritage of their parents or grandparents and pass it on to the next generation. Or at least convinced to try it out.

Orthodoxy once faced similar challenges…

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The Suffering of the Olam HaCharedim

Suffering Charedim (Mishpacha)

Just when I thought every argument about the Charedi draft exemption had been exhausted ad nauseam, along comes Mishpacha publisher Eli Paley with yet another defense of exempting all full-time yeshiva students from military service.

Since the October 7^th massacre, that debate has taken on an exponential urgency. Israel’s response required an unprecedented mobilization of reserve soldiers, many of whom have spent months in combat, risking death or serious injury while their families lived with constant fear. Even those who returned physically unharmed have often paid a tremendous price in lost careers, financial hardship, PTSD, and strained family relationships. Their sacrifice for the country is immeasurable.

None of this is new.

Before addressing Mr. Paley’s arguments, I want to correct a misnomer often used by Charedi leadership. Referring to themselves as the Olam HaTorah is offensive. Not because they are not part of the Torah world, but because the term implies they alone represent it. They do not. The Religious Zionist community is every bit as committed to Torah study lishmah while simultaneously serving in the defense of the Jewish people. A more accurate name for this group would be the Olam HaCharedim.

Ironically, Mr. Paley acknowledges the enormous sacrifice of the Religious Zionist community:

“Our hearts went out to a community that has lost so many sons, husbands, students, and friends — a community that has demonstrated extraordinary self-sacrifice on behalf of Klal Yisrael and paid an unimaginably heavy price.”

That is precisely why his conclusion is so baffling.

Despite recognizing this sacrifice, he doubles down on the claim that efforts to draft Charedim constitute a war against Torah world. Only now he accuses the Religious Zionists of being the most aggressively against it. In his view, the issue is no longer Israel’s desperate manpower shortage but an ideological assault on the Torah world.

As evidence, he points to Religious Zionist opposition to legislation that would have postponed the draft issue until after the next election while ending arrests of draft resisters. To him, that proves Religious Zionists are targeting Torah itself. As if there was no Torah being studied at all in their Yeshivos!

He then recounts a conversation with the Rosh Yeshivah of a leading Hesder Yeshiva. Mr. Paley complained that Religious Zionist leaders had not spoken forcefully enough against what Charedim perceive as persecution.

The Rosh Yeshiva thanked him for raising the point and acknowledged that perhaps more rabbanim should express that concern. Then he asked if he could share a personal story…

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The Making of a Kiddush HaShem

Image from Photography by Rick and Rich

I don’t often brag about my city. (Well... maybe I do. A little.) But I can’t help taking pride in how Chicago’s Orthodox Jewish community presents itself to its non-Jewish neighbors.

That is not to say there isn’t the occasional chilul Hashem here, just as there is in other large cities with sizable Orthodox Jewish populations. There most certainly is. And when I become aware of it, I call it out.

But in the aggregate, the Jews who make up Chicago’s entire Orthodox community make me proud. All of us—from Chasidim to the right-wing yeshiva world, to Centrists, to Modern Orthodox—deserve credit for making a Kiddush Hashem at the many public gatherings where non-Jews are present.

Last Monday night I attended a screening of Names, Not Numbers, an annual project in which my alma mater, Fasman Yeshiva High School, participates. Students interview and film Holocaust survivors, preserving their stories for future generations.

A photographer was hired by the school to photograph the speakers and attendees. His name is Rich. At 73, he is now semi-retired. Back when he was in his prime, he and his partner, Rick, were among the most sought-after photographers in Chicago. During my own years as a professional videographer, we frequently worked side by side. Rich and I became good friends. Rich is not Jewish.

I mention all this because of a brief conversation my wife, Annie, had with him that evening. She noticed the words “Baruch Hashem” printed in the upper-right corner of his business card, which she had asked him for in order to stay in touch. Curious, she asked him about it. He didn’t have time to answer while he was working the event, but he promised to send her an email explaining it.

Here is what he wrote:

Good morning Annie,

As to your question, I have a profound respect for your religion, and I often use those words in conversations when appropriate. Although, as I mentioned to Herschel, I am exploring all aspects of religion, both present and past, I feel a kinship with yours.

That is why whenever I am partaking in an event within the community, I wear a yarmulke as a sign of respect and a personal feeling of belonging, in a small way, to the community.

I do on occasion forget my prized yarmulke, and when I do, I am very much aware of feeling more like an outsider.

Of all the events I’ve done in my career, I’ve always felt more connected with community events, even though I am not a Jewish person. This feeling is why I have focused on doing community events over Christian ones in the twilight of my career.

Rich

This letter is a real testament to how a Jew - especially one who identifiably Orthodox, as indicated by wearing a yarmulke (kippah) - should conduct himself in public.

Even at events attended almost entirely by Orthodox Jews, such as weddings, non-Jews are almost always present. Photographers, waiters, hotel staff, musicians, and other vendors are watching us. So are many non-Orthodox Jews. Some may view us with a jaundiced eye, looking for confirmation that we are no better than anyone else. Or perhaps even worse. Others simply know very little about us and are forming their impressions based on what they see.

It is therefore all too easy to create a massive chilul Hashem through inappropriate behavior. Especially at weddings. Often this is fueled by excessive drinking. Sometimes it is the result of overexuberance – young people becoming so wrapped up in themselves that they ignore everyone around them under the mistaken assumption that they are merely being mesame’ach chasan v’kallah, performing the mitzvah of bringing joy to the bride and groom…

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A Holocaust Story

My parents becoming US citizens shortly after the Holocaust

The doorbell rang and Ivan - the righteous gentile who sheltered and fed Jews hidden in a bunker dug below his basement - answered it. 5 people were there claiming to be Aron’s family. They knew about the bunker and asked to be let in. My father, two of his sons, Jack and Barry, his brother Joseph and a young man by the name of Elie were standing there all smelling of excrement. They were let in and given pails of water to bathe in and given clean underwear. My father then sat on the bed sobbing and told them his harrowing story:

We had a difficult time in the forest. Getting food was a problem. ‘Eventually Mrs. Zuk, the forest ranger’s wife took pity on us. “It was an awkward situation. Her husband had no interest in helping us But she had a good heart. We paid her and she agreed to supply us with corn, barley, bread, and potatoes. Her husband didn’t want to get involved with us and even scolded her for getting us food. We would go into the house when he wasn’t around and pick up the food she had prepared for us.

We cooked at night and slept during the day. During the day, no one would venture outside. It was always dark in the bunker although during the day, some light seeped in through the twigs covering the bunker. Many of us developed diarrhea and used a big hole dug inside the bunker for a toilet. There was of course no privacy.

By the end of November the first snow fell and we had to be careful not to go outside and create footsteps in the snow. One of the people in that bunker had developed a severe case of diarrhea and was embarrassed to use that toilet so often. So he kept going outside even though Aron had tried to stop him. No one could hold him back.

Some farmers noticed the footprints. 3 days ago early in the morning Ukrainian and German police surrounded our bunker. They were shooting all over. And then it stopped. Nobody moved. One fellow stuck his head out from among the twigs and was shot in the head.

Aron realized that we were all doomed…

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Some Pre-Tisha B’Av Ramblings

Jews fighting Jews

It’s hard. Much harder than Yom Kippur. (At least for me.)

Tisha B’Av is meant to be hard. We are supposed to feel the pain of losing the most important structure in all of Jewish history - the Beis HaMikdash, the Holy Temple in Jerusalem, God’s residence (so to speak) here on earth. The Sages therefore gave us a program to follow on the anniversary of the destruction of both Holy Temples—a day dedicated to reflecting upon all the tragedies that have befallen us throughout our long exile.

We are, in fact, still living in that exile. Despite our return to the Holy Land and the tremendous success and growth we have attained, our redemption will not occur until the Messianic era, when the Temple is rebuilt.

And yet, it’s difficult to mourn a loss that happened thousands of years ago to ancestors long since gone. Honestly, I have a hard time doing that because I never personally experienced the glory of the Temple. For me, it’s ancient history—something I had no part in.

I suspect that if most people were honest, they would say the same. Which is why the Sages wanted us to experience the pain, at least in some measure, by requiring us (among other things) to fast, sit on the floor, and refrain from any enjoyable activity on this day. Even Torah study is forbidden.

We force ourselves into a state of mourning in order to better appreciate the magnitude of what was lost when the Beis HaMikdash was destroyed.

The “sins” of our ancestors are not our sins. I would argue that - with some notable exceptions - today’s observant Jewry is far more devout than the generation whose sins led to the destruction of the First Temple. That generation was guilty of the widespread commission of the three cardinal sins: idolatry, sexual immorality, and murder.

The Second Temple, however, was destroyed because of a chain of events that began when one prominent Jew publicly insulted and humiliated another Jew for no good reason. We refer to that as Sinas Chinam - baseless hatred.

I doubt that the vast majority of observant Jewry today is involved in any meaningful way in the three cardinal sins. But I do believe we are still guilty of publicly insulting and humiliating one another. Now more than ever.

And it’s happening at the highest levels…

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The Extreme Comments of a Charedi Gadol

Rav Dov Lando

I am beside myself with pain and anger at the following excerpt from Rationalist Judaism:

The State of Israel should never have come into existence. The Arabs would have happily allowed hundreds of thousands of Jews to come from Europe and live peacefully in Palestine. Zionists are responsible for all the terrible things that have happened. Religious Zionist soldiers die because of the corrupt teachings of their rabbis. Jews should only learn Torah as taught by charedim. Charedim should not participate in the war effort, even if they are not learning, and should not even perform acts of kindness for soldiers. They should not visit them in hospitals, attend their funerals, or raise money for their welfare. And anyone who wants charedim to be subject to the same rules as everyone else and share the burden of the war is evil.

These are the actual published words of Rav Dov Lando, a man considered by much of the Charedi world to be the Gadol HaDor. Published as part of its effort to demonstrate where the ‘Torah world’ stands with respect to the State of Israel, its military, and those who support it in any way.

Although these statements were not all uttered at the same time, they were each made by Rav Lando in one context or another.

Ahhhh... there’s that word: context.

This is where deniability comes in. Sometimes it is valid, and sometimes it is not. Any statement taken out of its original context can easily be misinterpreted, and often is. Unscrupulous people with partisan agendas frequently extract outrageous-sounding quotations that, when placed back into their original context, turn out not to be outrageous at all. And are often quite reasonable.

But sometimes, when you see a zebra, you shouldn’t assume it is merely a horse painted with white stripes. Sometimes quotations are so clear that no context in the world can make them sound any better.

I think it is safe to say that the quotations above fit that category.

How, for example, can anyone spin something positive out of a statement like:

“Religious Zionist soldiers die because of the corrupt teachings of their rabbis”?

Or…

“Charedim should not even do acts of kindness for soldiers—they should not visit them in hospitals, attend their funerals, or raise money for their welfare”?

Thing is, the devout Charedi politicians who follow their rabbinic leaders have not even attempted to deny that statements like these were made. They defend them

Case in point:

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu responded Monday afternoon to remarks by Lithuanian haredi leader Rabbi Dov Lando against IDF soldiers in general, and Religious Zionist soldiers who wear knitted kippot in particular.

“I strongly reject the shocking statements made against IDF soldiers from the Religious Zionist community. IDF soldiers—religious, secular, and charedi—leave their homes, their jobs, and their families, and risk their lives to defend the State of Israel, its citizens, and the entire Jewish people.

“They deserve profound appreciation, gratitude, and full support from every segment of the public, and certainly also from the Torah world,” Netanyahu said.

That drew a harsh response from Charedi MK Moshe Gafni:

“The words of the Gedolei Yisrael are the Holy of Holies of the Jewish people, and we live by them. Those who do not live in the world of Torah and do not understand the depth of their words would do better not to rush to interpret them, and certainly not to attack them.”

‘Holy of Holies.’ ‘Words to live by.’ Regardless of what anyone else thinks of them. Regardless of whom they disparage - even if they are fellow religious Jews. It doesn’t matter. How dare anyone question, let alone criticize, the words of the Gedolim? That would border on blasphemy.

If this doesn’t illustrate the power of Charedi Daas Torah, nothing does. Any disagreement is viewed as playing with fire.

And yet there are many Charedim who, in fact, do not agree with Rav Lando. Some have even joined the IDF. Many - perhaps most - at least understand what the rest of the nation is going through.

How do they reconcile Rav Lando’s words with the explanation offered by MK Gafni, who was merely articulating the worldview of the Charedi community. A worldview that grants extraordinary deference to the Gedolei HaDor…

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The Charedi View of the IDF

IDF soldiers in the Chashmonaim brigade

I am not a Religious Zionist, nor am I Charedi. The truth is that I am hard to peg. Always have been. But I do have an identity that does not fit neatly into any one category.

Truth be told, however, I lean far more toward the Religious Zionist point of view than I do toward the Charedi one. Although I value much of the Charedi approach to Judaism, their leadership has lately become so intolerant of the Religious Zionist perspective that it has become almost impossible for me to respect those who increasingly reflect that intolerance.

Although I do not subscribe to the belief that the modern State of Israel is “the first flowering of our redemption,” I wholeheartedly support the State of Israel. I believe that every Jew has a responsibility to help defend the country in which they live and prosper, whether that prosperity is financial or spiritual. I consider Israel my ancestral homeland, and I am profoundly grateful to the founders of the Jewish state for building it into a model society that has produced great people and remarkable achievements, both religious and secular. As a Jew, I could not be prouder of that.

Not so the Charedi world.

That said, the Charedi world is far from monolithic in how it views the State of Israel and its obligations to it. One thing does seem clear, however: much of its religious leadership is.

I admire the views of some prominent Charedim, but I am literally appalled by the views expressed by many of their leaders. Never has this been more evident than in the divergent perspectives published in two separate articles.

In yet another admirable Mishpacha column, Jonathan Rosenblum rebukes those within his own Charedi community who refuse to recognize the legitimate concerns of the Religious Zionist and Dati Leumi (Modern Orthodox) communities regarding military service:

I think we can all agree that Israel needs an army. If Bnei Yisrael, upon entering Eretz Yisrael, were explicitly commanded with respect to warfare, certainly our lowly generation is no better situated to rely on Divine miracles alone to defeat our enemies.

Further, I would guess that almost all can agree that the campaigns waged by the IDF in Gaza and Lebanon since October 7 were required, and that more than 100,000 Jews could not be left indefinitely to choose between fleeing their homes or being subject to constant rocket fire and the threat of invasion.

If an army is required, then we can drop all slogans that imply that service in the IDF is ipso facto forbidden. The manner in which the IDF is organized, with respect to the integration of genders and the like, may make participation halachically prohibited, but that is a far cry from arguing that army service is inherently forbidden.

It also follows that all the citizens of Israel owe a debt of hakaras hatov to those serving in our defense and should say so openly and often.

Coming from a prominent Charedi columnist, these words are remarkable, especially in light of the strident opposition of Charedi leaders to drafting any Charedim. The fact that his 35-year-old married son, a father of three, enlisted in the Chashmonaim Brigade and is currently stationed in Lebanon gives Jonathan’s words even greater moral weight.

Then there are the published words of Rav Chaim Mordechai Ausband, a prominent Charedi Rosh Yeshiva…

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The Science of Chutzpah

Image for illustration purposes (Mishpacha)

Many years ago, a dear friend of mine, who happened to be the general studies principal of a Charedi yeshiva high school, confided in me about the shocking pattern of behavior he observed on the part of his students. These young men had all the requisite respect - even awe - that one would expect Bnei Torah to show their Limudei Kodesh (religious studies) teachers. But they had absolutely no respect whatsoever for their Limudei Chol (general studies) teachers, most of whom were not even Jewish. They would often ridicule them to their faces.

I am no longer shocked by such behavior on the part of Charedi students. It is, unfortunately, an all-too-typical consequence of the messaging young people receive from their religious teachers. Which is to view anything secular with complete contempt. The corollary is that they come to treat those who live in that culture with the same disdain.

Thus, ridiculing them to their faces becomes a natural outcome of this kind of messaging. I have heard recordings of lectures by Charedi religious studies teachers that so thoroughly vilify the secular world that it becomes de rigueur for students to treat anything - or anyone - connected with it accordingly.

When I’ve brought this up to some of my Charedi friends - I got pushback. They insist that this is not how most of their students behave. They argue that the Yeshiva where my friend served as general studies principal was the exception that proves the rule.

Well, it appears that this kind of behavior is not an exception at all. It is, indeed, a function of the kind of messages students receive from their religious teachers. In a rare moment of candor, this was acknowledged by Rabbi Avrohom Neuberger, a popular Charedi Mechanech (educator) in Mishpacha Magazine. It was in response to a letter by a Charedi parent expressing the following concern:

Our son Shloimy is in sixth grade. He’s a good kid, really. He generally behaves well, and his academic performance is on par. But even at his age, we’ve begun to notice traces of chutzpah. Interestingly, it’s not directed at us—it’s reflected sporadically in the most unexpected situations.

For example, on Chol Hamoed we went to the zoo. There was a performance in which one of the zookeepers entered the lion’s den. Before he walked in, he said, “Watch out, I may not come out alive!”

And Shloimy shouted out, “If you don’t, can I have your watch?”

My wife and I were horrified.

The parent goes on to contrast his son’s behavior with that of students at a Modern Orthodox school, whose conduct in situations like this was respectful. He wondered whether he should transfer his son to that school.

Rabbi Neuberger advises strongly against doing so. For good reason, in my view. But that is beyond the scope of this post. What is definitely within its scope is his explanation for this phenomenon, and, amazingly, his concession that it is indeed a function of the kind of education Charedi students receive. His explanation closely mirrors my own…

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