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There's Not Much Going On Here Just Now
Gene Mirabelli, who writes most of the posts here, is working on another book. (Another damned book, to quote him.) And it's taking him longer than he had hoped. He's older now and getting slower. He was 83 on his last birthday, whenever that was, so he may be older than that by now. Still, he considers himself most fortunate. "When I get up in the morning almost everything almost works almost all the time." In any case, he's writing fewer posts. In fact, he's asked us to remove some of the older topical posts which have lost there relevance — and we shall do that in our spare time, whenever we get any spare time, which isn't often, and which we'll probably want to spend doing something more entertaining. If you're interested in his works, and we hope you are, you can find his literary web site and some notes about his publications at www.mirabelli.net
The Language Hoax
Some theories just feel right and true. They appeal to our common sense so strongly that we believe in them as soon as we hear them. And if the theory is about language, the language we speak and write, we feel pretty certain that we're familiar enough with the way it works to assess whether some theory about it is true. Now, here's a theory about language:
• Language channels the way we think and view the world.
That theory became popular among certain linguists in the 1930s and still circulate among many, perhaps most, educated people today.
One thing we know for certain, languages vary widely. One language may have only a single word for eating and drinking, still another makes uniquely fine discriminations between different shades of a color, yet another has no articles such as the or a.
Native American Hopi have no tense markers to indicate time and no words like later. And that led Benjamin Lee Whorf to propose that since the Hopi language has no way indicate past, present or future, they view time differently from English speakers and, further, the cyclical Hopi cosmology reflects this difference.
Whorf was not a professional linguist, but his ideas looked right to his mentor, the linguist Edward Sapir, and soon the theory — called the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis — spread among linguists, academics and the general public. However, no examination of people speaking one language or another has found evidence to support the theory. It's generally conceded now that such linguistic differences as Whorf had in mind don't actually channel thought or create a particular view of the world.
And now we have John McWhorter's The Language Hoax: Why the World Looks the Same in Any Language. McWhorter is a Professor of Linguistics at Columbia University and the author of The Power of Babel: A Natural History of Language, an excellent book that is both scholarly and readable. He's the author of many other books on language, as well as works on race and cultural issues, and his articles have appeared in the New York Times, and the New Yorker, among other publications.
The Language Hoax is a short book. The pages are small, only about 5 by 7 inches, and there are about 168 pages, excluding the introduction, notes and index. Even so — as an admirer of John McWhorter's work I hate to say this — it's too long.
McWhorter demonstrates again and again the inability of the neo-Whorfians to come up with credible evidence to support their theory. His examples of wild differences over a spectrum of languages are interesting and often amusing. But after a while even the most indulgent reader will wonder why McWhorter bothered to write this book if, as he says repeatedly and credibly, there's no support for the theory he's attacking.
He has been careful to acknowledge and praise academic work that does show how the workings of language can have a tiny, marginal effect on thought, and he's shown the difference between those studies and the general notion held by some people that such differences in language guide thought and shape culture. McWhorter writes in a readable and engaging style — he's a good writer — but his passion for bashing this moribund theory is hard to understand. And there is certainly no hoax involved in whatever misunderstanding the lay public may have about languages.
Languages change and develop in the most amazing ways, and the variety of ways that languages differ is wonderful. McWhorter believes linguistic changes come about spontaneously. They just bubble up, he says. How those bubble are made and where they come from — well, that would make a very interesting book.
The Nun's Story
There's a little story about a nun and a dog. A dead dog. Fortunately, everything turns out well in the end. The story is set to music and both the story and the music were composed by Marilyn Robertson. And Yes, that's Marilyn playing the guitar and singing. It's a simple whimsical tale and we think you'll like it. Ms Robertson has a way with words and she manages some delightfully sly puns along the way.
The nuns in the image we've posted here are from way back in Medieval times, but our nun is quite contemporary — she rides trolley cars and deals with the hazards of life in the city. The only recording of "The Nun's Story" is located at SoundCloud.com, which you may not be familiar with, so we've made it easy and all you have to do is click HERE. And after you've listened to Marilyn you can explore the other music on the site, too. Then return to Critical Pages.
The Better Angels of Our Nature
While our fellow humans are drowning themselves in each other's blood, it's consoling to remember Steven Pinker's great book, The Better Angels of Our Nature. The author's preface begins with these words:
"This book is about what may be the most important thing that has ever happened in human history. Believe it or not – and I know that most people do not — violence has declined over long stretches of time, and today we may be living in the most peaceable era in our species' existence. The decline, to be sure, has not been smooth; it has not brought violence down to zero; and it is not guaranteed to continue. But it is an unmistakable development, visible on scales from millennia to years, from the waging of wars to the spanking of children."
Pinker's book, including notes and index, is 802 pages long. It's overwhelmingly convincing. You may not want to choose a work of such length for summer reading, or for reading in any season, but even a random walk through these pages will be a corrective to the view that history is on a long downhill trajectory. Some readers may dispute his statistical methodologies, but by and large the trends he focuses on are beyond question.
There are passages describing what humans no longer do to each other, and those pages may be hard to take. The record of violence and cruelty increases as we read further and further back in history, and we've forgotten or averted our eyes from the bloody chronicle because we can no longer stomach thinking about what we have done to each other. If you lived in medieval times your chances of being murdered would be thirty times greater than today.
In Steven Pinker's words "The centuries for which people are nostalgic were times in which the wife of an adulterer could have her note cut off, children as young as eight could be hanged for property crimes, a prisoner's family could be charged for easement of irons, a witch could be sawn in half, and a sailor could be flogged to a pulp. The moral commonplaces of our age, such as that slavery, war, and torture are wrong, would have been seen as saccharine sentimentality, and our notion of universal human right almost incoherent. Genocide ad war crimes were absent from the historical record only because no one at the time thought they were a big deal."
The Better Angels of Our Nature is an important book not only because it adds to our understanding of human history, not only because it is a corrective to fanciful notions of a more just and peaceful past, but also because – and this is crucial – it encourages us to persist in our struggle to overcome what Steven Pinker calls "the tragedy of the inherent appeal of aggression." Our progress has been straight or smooth, and it is certainly uneven today, but clearly we are moving in the right direction. Because we know we can live better, we should keep pressing forward.
Turnips & Rutabegas
Most people know what a turnip is. But not so many are sure they know a rutabega when they see one. Assuming you know what a turnip is and you also know what a cabbage is, we can tell you that a rutabega came about as a cross between the turnip and the cabbage. Yes, we know that's unlikely, but it seems to be so.
Turnips and rutabegas are members of the plant genus Brassica. In fact, among people who care about such things there's a theory known as the Triangle of U which diagrams the relationship between members of the Brassica — a theory which has been proven true by DNA studies. But that takes us very far afield. All we wanted to do was to introduce this light, whimsical poem by Marilyn Robertson. It's called "Roots" and it goes like this…
Is this a turnip? I ask the man arranging vegetables
in the markeet. No, he says, that's a rutabega.
Here's a turnip — and he holds up a roundish
white and purple root. The colors are nice,
but the name is not half so musical as rutabega.
It makes me think of jumprope rhymes,
cheerleaders at football games:
Rutabega, Rutabega, sis boom bah.
Or the melodies of old songs: Rutabega moon,
keep shining…Rutabega, here I come,
right back where I started from.
I put a few in my shopping cart.
At the check-out counter,
I ask the young man bagging groceries,
Pardon me, boy, is that the Rutabega choo-choo?
He has no idea what I'm talking about.
The Polls, the People, and Obama
The Washing Post recently published the results of a Washington Post – ABC News poll which had some curious findings.
The poll sought to reveal what the public thought about Obama, and about Democrats and Republicans in general.
The poll revealed that Obama's approval rating fell to 41 percent from 45 percent in the first 3 months of this year. The results of the Washington Post – ABC poll showed he had just 42 percent approval for handling the economy and 37 percent approval of his handling of the Ukraine and Russia. Furthermore, the Washington Post reported that "people were asked whether they thought it was more important to have Democrats in charge in Congress to help support Obama's policies or Republicans in charge to act as a check on the president's policies. On this, 53 percent of voters say Republicans and 39 percent say Democrats."
Now, here's where the poll gets interesting. The Washington Post reported that the survey showed "Americans trust Democrats over Republicans by 40 to 34 percent to handle the country's main problems. By significant margins, Americans see Democrats as better for the middle class and on women's issues. Americans favor the Democrats' positions on raising the minimum wage, same-sex marriage and on the broad issue of dealing with global climate change."
In other words, more voters than not favor the policies of Obama and the Democrats, but more voters than not think it's best to have Republicans in charge of Congress in order to act as a check on those policies.
Maybe the explanation lies in the connection — or lack of connection — between President Obama and the people of the broad middle class. Wages have remained essentially flat since the 1970s, and most of the middle class is desperately busy keeping body and soul together. Most people don't have time to think about political and social philosophies. What they know in their bones is that they're overworked, that they're running faster and faster just to keep in place, that other people are getting rich and that they, themselves, can't even get by as well as they used to. And Obama isn't any good at engaging the American public in order to explain his policies and say how they're designed to help. The cool, no-drama-Obama isn't the kind of guy who can say, "I feel your pain, and here's what I'm going to do about it."
Meanwhile, Obama's critics are happy to explain Obama's policies, day in and day out. Congressional Republicans, by their remorseless drumbeat on the president's "over reach" and "power grabs," have convinced these busy, over-worked Americans, who know there's something deeply wrong with the trajectory of their lives, that the fault lies in Obama and the expensive, wasteful programs invented by Democrats to help other people.
Easter Renewed
We were unable to reach the web the past few days, so we arrive here at Easter out of breath and unprepared. We do have those eggs we've colored over the years (well, actually, the children did most of the work) and we've taken them from the little egg boxes that we keep beside the cartons filled with Christmas decorations. We haven't anything new to say about Easter eggs, so we're reposting our sentiments from last year. The photos are fresh. You'll notice they're the same decorated eggs, but rearranged — we couldn't get the same arrangement even if we tried.Society finds it easier to give up religious belief, than to abandon the traditions and symbols of religion. Eggs have symbolized fertility, birth and rebirth, for a long, long time. And, as you probably know, you can find eggs used symbolically that way in a number of religious traditions. Here and now we're celebrating Easter and what we have here are Easter eggs. Much of Christian lay society makes a greater celebration and display at Christmas, Christ's birthday, but clearly in the sacred drama of Jesus' life his rising from the dead on Easter morning is far, far more significant than his birth.
If you wish, the egg represents the stone that was rolled against the entrance to the tomb to seal it and was found rolled aside on the third day after his death. Or, if you wish, the egg being empty — and all those painted eggs are first punctured and drained — symbolizes the empty tomb of Christ on Easter day. But for many people, contemporary Easter eggs, as bright and colorful as flowers, simply call to mind springtime, fertility and that awakening we feel when we have come through another dark winter and are looking forward to more light and warmth.
April & Poetry & Financial Literacy
April is National Financial Literacy Month and it's also National Poetry Month. We think it's a bad idea to put them in the same month.
On one side we have the Academy of American Poets which began National Poetry Month in 1996 to increase awareness and appreciation of poetry in the United States. On the other side, we have the US Senate which in 2003 passed Resolution 316, making April National Financial Literacy Month, and two years later the US House of Representatives passed a bill supporting the goals and ideals of Financial Literacy Month.
Because we have poetry and financial literacy occupying the same month, we've looked around for poems about money. There aren't many. We've already posted "The Banks Are Made of Marble" by Pete Seeger and, anyway, we make a distinction between song lyrics and unadorned poems. After a critical search we think that "Money," by Philip Larkin, is the best poem about money. Readers familiar with the rhythms and rhymes of conventional English verse may be unsettled by these unconventionally long lined couplets. We must add that Philip Larkin (1922 – 1985) was a distinguished British poet, a kind of unofficial Poet Laureate in England, and that the word screw in the poem is a Brit's slang for salary or wages.
Quarterly, is it, money reproaches me:
'Why do you let me lie here wastefully?
I am all you never had of goods and sex.
You could get them still by writing a few cheques.'
So I look at others, what they do with theirs:
They certainly don't keep it upstairs.
By now they've a second house and car and wife:
Clearly money has something to do with life
—In fact, they've a lot in common, if you enquire:
You can't put off being young until you retire,
And however you bank your screw, the money you save
Won't in the end buy you more than a shave.
I listen to money singing. It's like looking down
From long french windows at a provincial town,
The slums, the canal, the churches ornate and mad
In the evening sun. It is intensely sad.
The Golden Age of Porn Movies
Did you know there was a Golden Age of Porn? OK, probably you never gave it a thought. A Golden Age is a time of prosperity, achievement and happiness, and for the porn industry that period extended from around the early 1970s to the mid 1980s. It certainly was a time of achievement and prosperity for porn movies — happiness for the actors, not so much.
One of the most beautiful visual records of that time is Barbara Nitke's un-sentimental collection of evocative photographs gathered in her book, American Ecstasy. (Critical Pages posted about American Ecstasy some time ago.) Nitke worked as a set photographer in the porn industry just as the Golden Age was coming to an end. To be protected by the US Constitution, the porn movies had to claim a socially redeeming value — in other words, they had to pass as artistic expression, which meant they had to have characters and a plot, not just bodies doing it. That was the achievement and that's what brought about porn prosperity and the Golden Age.
According to Green Cine's Sex in the Movies Guide, "between 1972 and 1983, porn — not sexy Hollywood fare, not racy sexploitation, not European art films, but pure, unabashed porn — chalked up 16 percent of total box office returns in the US." Eventually, AIDS, the video camera and the Web ended the showing of large scale porn movies in movie houses. The Golden Age was over.
But not forgotten. Photographs from Barbara Nitke's American Ecstasy volume have been enlarged and beginning on April 4th they'll be exhibited in Great Britain at One Eyed Jack's gallery in Brighton. Social historians, admirers of E. J. Bellocq's Storyville portraits and anyone interested in fine photography should take a look at these astonishing photographs.
How Much Does Free Speech Cost?
The full majesty of the United States Supreme Court was on display the other day when the conservative majority proclaimed that rich and poor alike can now give as much money and they please to as many political candidates as they choose, so long as they don't give more than $5,200.00 to any one individual.
Chief Justice John Roberts wrote the opinion of the court's conservative majority. He found that the restrictions on campaign giving, which limited the number of candidates to whom you could give money, violated the Constitution. Roberts wrote that such restrictions "intrude without justification on a citizen's ability to exercise the most fundamental First Amendment activities."
In a wonderful example of non-sequitor thinking, Roberts wrote, "Money in politics may at times seem repugnant to some, but so too does much of what the First Amendment vigorously protects. If the First Amendment protects flag burning, funeral protests and Nazi parades — despite the profound offense such spectacles cause — it surely protects political campaign speech despite popular opposition."
Somebody from Sesame Street should point out to the Chief Justice that merely because we find certain things repugnant, doesn't mean they have any other relation to each other or to something else we find repugnant.
Anyone who so desires can burn a flag, protest at a funeral or parade with Nazis. But only the very rich can give away money in the thousands or millions to influence an election. In the last presidential election, Sheldon Adelson, the casino billionaire, along with his family, gave over $53 million to super PACs to help elect Republican candidates from Mitt Romney on down to a Representative from New Jersey. Thanks to the conservative Roberts court, the rich have considerably more freedom of speech than the poor.


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Product Description
Black Console Assembly for 1969-1970 Mustangs.Includes:
-Console base with metal support brackets
-Upper console panel with metal retainers (where the shifter plate mounts)
-Front ash tray receptacle and holder with die cast lid and rubber lid bumpers
-Rear ash tray assembly compartment box (1969 style with cigar lighter)
-Hinge for compartment lid
-Cigar lighter assembly with correct knob and chrome mounting plate
To make the console correct for a 1970 Mustang, you must install the original console compartment box which came without a lighter.
*Does not includes compartment lid (CONP), shifter trim plate (CONP13-CONP16), console wiring or ash tray light.
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I agree this is an excellent reproduction and I'm very happy with my purchase.
This is an excellent reproduction. I have an original console to compare it to and it recreates the original in every detail. I have entered my car in MCA shows and the console is never questioned as to it's originality.
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tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-112879592014-11-12T17:40:40.245+02:00The Jewish WorkerThoughts on Torah, working, living in Israel and how they go together.blukehttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-11287959.post-35269849053231317502014-11-05T09:47:00.000+02:002014-11-05T09:47:29.587+02:00Is secular education and work a viable answer for Charedi poverty?Everyone who discusses Charedi poverty proposes as a solution secular education and work for Charedi men as the solution for Charedi poverty. I also used to believe this, however, I have changed my mind on this for the reasons below.

One of the tenets of Charedi society is large families. There is a Mitzva D'Rabbanan of ולערב אל תנח ידיך to have as many children as you can. Therefore the average non-Chasidic Charedi family has 6 kids and when you take away all of those couples with fertility issues that have 0, 1 or 2 kids the average goes up closer to 8.

Large families are not economically sustainable in a modern western economy, period. Here is a fascinating article Children aren't worth very much—that's why we no longer make many which details the reasons why. Basically children have gone from being valuable assets to being financial drains. The cost of raising a single child to the age of 18 in the US is estimated at well over $300,000. These numbers are for the general population, raising a child as a religious Jew is much more expensive due to the cost of education. When you multiply that by 5,6,7, or 8 it simply impossible on the average or even better then average salary in a Western economy.

The average salary in the US is about $42,000, in Israel it is about 7200 shekels a month. Lets assume that the Charedi man can get a job at double the average salary, $80,000 or 15,000 shekel a month (a dubious assumption but lets use it just to highlight the issue) and has 8 kids. Income taxes eat away at least 25% leaving $60,000 to live on. All of the kids are in school together at some point. Tuition in the US is at a minimum $5000 and generally much more, but even at $5000 a child that is $40,000, 2/3 of the net income. That leaves just $20,000 for everything else and everything else includes clothes for 8 kids, shoes for 8 kids, books for 8 kids, etc. Feeding 8 kids is not cheap either. Food is expensive especially things like meat and chicken. Then of course you have the summers where everyone needs to go to camp which again is another few thousand dollars a child.

In Israel the numbers are similar bad, taxes are higher so the 15,000 shekel gross is at best 10,000 shekel net and then tuition is half of that and you have food, clothing etc. again.

The numbers just don't add up even with much higher salaries then $80,000.

If the numbers are so bad how does Charedi society survive today? In truth, I don't know exactly but here are a few reasons

Government programs - Both the US and Israeli government have a whole host of programs that are available to poor people, food stamps, section 8, medicaid, property tax reductions, subsidised day care, etc. The Charedi population takes full advantage of all of these and lives in large part off of them.

Generational money - The post war generation was able to save up money for their descendant who are living off of it. This will not clearly not last much longer.

They worked in a economic good times

The cost of living was low

Smaller families

Poverty and sacrifice. The Charedi population especially in Israel is very poor.

Community help

Unfortunately these don't translate to working families. As soon as you make a decent salary, you lose all of the government help, if you make $80,000/15,000 shekel you are considered rich and get nothing from the government. The same goes for community help. People are willing to give Tzedaka/help out someone who is sitting and learning, but are much less willing to help someone who is working for a living.

There is another factor which comes into play. When the man is sitting and learning, the wife is willing to sacrifice because she has been taught all her life that sitting and learning is the most important thing her husband can do and that she should sacrifice for it. As soon as the husband leaves kollel and goes out to work, that dynamic changes. It is much harder to sacrifice when your husband is working, when he is not doing the most important thing in the world. Additionally, there is an expectation of a higher standard of learning if the husband is working rather then learning.

All of this leads me to the conclusion that education and work is not the solution for Charedi poverty, because the Charedi lifestyle, specifically large families, is simply incompatible with the modern western economy. The western economy is set up so that salaries can support a family of 4 (2 kids), and even that is difficult these days. Charedim with large families working simply cannot bring in enough money to support the family without additional help.
blukehttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-11287959.post-60515388110109182014-09-15T17:03:00.000+03:002014-09-15T17:03:24.837+03:00Every day Hashem cries for people who can't learn Torah and try anywayThe Gemara in Chagiga (5B) states that Hashem cries for 3 people every day.
1. A person who could learn Torah but doesn't
2. A person who can't learn Torah but tries anyway
3. A leader who is haughty with the people

We can understand why Hashem cries over the first person, he should be learning Torah and isn't, but why does Hashem cry over the second person? At least he is trying to learn.

R' Schacter explained the Gemara as follows. Every person is unique with his own set of talents and abilities. Our mission in life is to figure out how to best use those talents in the service of Hashem. Some people have talents that can be used in learning while others have talents (art, music, business, people skills, etc.) that can be used to serve Hashem in other ways.

Based on this it is clear that Hashem is crying for the first 2 people for the same reason. They are not using their talents to serve Hashem. Just like the person with the talent to learn should be serving Hashem by learning, and therefore Hashem cries because he isn't learning. The person who doesn't have the talent to learn, should be serving Hashem NOT by learning but by using his talents to serve Hashem in other ways. Therefore when he does try to learn Hashem cries because he is not using the talents Hashem gave him.

This Gemara is telling us a very important principle in life that a person needs to understand what his talents are and based on that figure out what his particular mission in life is and we can't force everyone into the same mission.

IMHO this is the biggest problem in the religious world today on both sides of the spectrum. The real modern world (e.g. schools like Ramaz, Frisch, Yeshiva of Flatbush) causes Hashem to cry for person 1. People with the talent to go into learning are encouraged to do other things instead. How many modern parents encourage their children to sit and learn Torah? The Charedi world on the other hand causes Hashem to cry for person 2. In the Charedi world every boy is supposed to sit and learn no matter what his talents are and if your talents lie in other areas you are in big trouble in the Charedi world.

What we need is to allow people to serve Hashem based on their talents rather then simply pigeon-holing everyone into 1 thing.

blukehttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-11287959.post-71901731530289181462014-09-14T12:16:00.003+03:002014-09-14T12:16:59.925+03:00What are the challenges of a Kosher Parnassa?The Mishpacha Magazine in English had an article this past week that people who earn a living need to make sure that they put fear of heaven before parnassa. While the overall message is a good one, I believe that the examples used were very poor and showed a complete lack of understanding of the real challenges a frum person has when working.

The 2 examples given of challenges were davening mincha with a minyan and not shaking women's hands. IMHO the author completely missed the point with these examples.

There is no doubt in my mind that the biggest challenge when working is the issue of stealing. I don't necessarily mean directly stealing money (although unfortunately that happens a lot as well, see for example Ocean County attorney admits role in Facebook scheme), what I do mean is stealing indirectly. For example, not working the amount of hours that you are being paid for, taking long lunch or Mincha breaks, wasting time at work, misusing company resources, etc. Chazal were very concerned abut this issue, so much so that they said (Berachos 14a, Shulchan Aruch Siman 90) that workers who worked high up in trees should daven mincha up in the tree so as not to waste their employers time by climbing down and then climbing back up.

If I had to suggest something related to arayos, it would not be shaking women's hands. I follow the psak of my Rabbeim that if a woman extends her hand you shake it as quickly as possible. I have found that in these situations, I am so nervous about this (thinking whether she will extend her hand or not) that this totally occupies my mind and I have no pleasure at all from the handshake, in fact it is almost painful. If there was an issur related to arayos that I would bring up it would be the issur of yichud. So many of the sexual abuse scandals that have come up in recent years would have been prevented if people simply kept hilchos yichud.

As with many things, it seems that the Charedi mindset is a chumra is always better especially if it is Bein Adam Lamokam. However, the fact is that many chumras are kulas in a different area. The 2 mentioned in the article are good examples.

While davening mincha with a minyan is an important thing, it is at best a chiyuv midrabbanan while stealing from your employer however, is an issur d'oraysa. If it takes you 10 minutes to walk to Mincha 25 minutes to daven (because after all you need to daven slowly with kavana etc.) and 10 minutes to walk back (45 minutes) you are probably stealing from your employer, as he may be willing to give you 10-15 minutes for mincha but not 45. We see this message clearly from Chazal as they permitted workers to daven mincha up in the tree so as not to cheat the employer and allowed workers to skip parts of bentching for the same reason. You see clearly from the Gemara in Berachos (14a) that Chazal were much more concerned about not cheating your employer which is a sin of bein adam lchaveiro and therefore has no kapara until you pay the person back then mitzvos bein adam lamakom like davening and bentching where they instituted leniencies for workers.

Regarding not shaking hands with a women, again the issue is not as clear cut as the author makes it out to be. While the Chazon Ish is machmir other poskim are lenient and they are lenient in part because of the concern for embarrassing the woman. If a woman sticks out her hand and you refuse to shake it, it can be very embarrassing especially in a public setting. Embarrassing someone is a very serious aveira, Chazal equate it to killing someone. In Parshas Vayeishev, Tamar is willing to be killed in order not to embarrass Yehuda and Rashi quotes Chazal who praise her for this. So in fact, you can say that someone who shakes a woman's hand is machmir in bein adam l'chaveiro.

Finally, I would like to take issue with the first story that the author wrote. He wrote that he was in a shul in Yersushalayim for Rosh Chodesh bentching davening next to a kollel avreich and while the avreich had kavana when he said חיים של פרנסה he had much more kavana when he said חיים שיש בהם יראת שמים. The point being that יראת שמים is much more important then פרנסה.

IMHO, you see from Chazal that they thought פרנסה was very important and in fact a prerequisite for יראת שמים. The Gemara in Kiddushin (29b) states explicitly that a father who does not teach a son a trade is teaching him to become a thief. Unfortunately, today we see this too often where people have no way of making a living end up resorting to less then honest means to make money.

There is an obvious question that we can ask about davening for חיים שיש בהם יראת שמים. The Gemara states that הכל ביד שמים חוץ מיראת שמים, that יראת שמים is the one thing that is for sure in our hands and not in Hashem's hands. If so, how can we daven for יראת שמים?

The Maharsha asks this question on the Gemara in Berachos (10a). The Gemara tells a story about a group of thugs who were bothering R' Meir. R' Meir was going to daven that they should die, however his wife, Beruria, told him that instead he should daven that they do teshuva which he did, and they did teshuva. The Maharsha asks our question from above, how could R' Meir daven that the thugs should do teshuva, isn't that under the rubric of יראת שמים?

The Maharsha asks this question on a Gemara at the end of Moed Katan(28a) (that was just learned in Daf Yomi) as well. The Gemara states that Rava davened that he should become an ענו like Rabba Bar Rav Huna (his prayer was not answered). The Maharsha points out that ענוה should fall under the rubric of יראת שמים and therefore how could Rava daven for it?

R' Moshe Feinstein in Iggros Moshe (as well as others) answers that you cannot daven directly for יראת שמים, that is only in your hands. However, you can daven that Hashem should remove any obstacles that you have that may prevent you from achieving יראת שמים. Interestingly enough the example R' Moshe gives is parnassa, he says that the thugs were thugs because they had no parnassa, once R' Meir davened for them and they received parnassa they did teshuva. We see that Parnassa is a key blocker in achieving יראת שמים.

In fact, based on the above, it makes more sense to daven for parnassa then יראת שמים because יראת שמים can only come from you, while parnassa comes from hashem and is a prerequisite to יראת שמים and therefore it makes sense to daven for it.blukehttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-11287959.post-45836784407859540842014-08-28T14:57:00.000+03:002014-08-28T14:57:25.823+03:00Bobov45 Rebbe: Gedolei Yisroel will decide whether we accept the psak of the Beis DinFor those who haven't been following the story after the previous Bobover Rebbe died, both the Rebbe's son-in-law and brother claimed the throne. This caused a split in Bobov (Bobov48 and Bobov45) and they even went to court to resolve the dispute. The judge (a religious Jew) sent them out of court to a Beis Din which has been working on the case for 9 years. The Beis Din just released a psak in which Bobov48 came out the winner.

You would expect that a Chasidic Rebbe would respect the psak of a Beis Din win or lose and move on, but no, he doesn't like the psak so he is consulting with Rebbes in Israel on what to do.

Many are claiming that the Beis Din was corrupt and that the psak is one sided. It is no wonder that many religious people have no faith in the Beis Din system. If the Bobover Rebbe (45) can't get a fair hearing and is thinking of ignoring the Beis Dins psak what should the average person think and do?blukehttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-11287959.post-62669106259773888382014-08-27T12:02:00.001+03:002014-08-27T12:06:48.487+03:00A Hamodia reader was very upset that the newspaper referred to the Israeli Army as כוחותינו, our forces
Here is the letter from Hamodia.

"The Real Power"

As subscribers to your important newspaper, Hamodia, the newspaper of Charedi Jewry, I was very surprised to see time after time during the military operation the words, "our forces" ...

It is important to point out that we never relied on or put our trust in flesh and blood and our true forces are -- only Torah learning and the students who learn Torah.

IMHO this letter is idiotic for a number of reasons:

The fact is that whether you like it or not, the soldiers are fighting for every Jew who lives in Israel and if given the chance Hamas would slaughter the Haredim just as much as they would slaughter any other Jews.

Did Moshe Rabbenu not raise an army to fight Amalek, Midyan, etc.? Did Yehoshua, Dovid Hamelech etc. not fight wars? Why didn't they just sit and learn? The answer is very simple, we need to do our hishtadlus when it comes to war (just like anything else) and that means having an army and fighting. Why does the writer see a contradiction between our army and faith in Hashem?

Why can't the writer show a little hakaros hatov to those who are putting their lives on the line so that he can sit and learn?

Source: Kikar Shabbat

blukehttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-11287959.post-81376973220599146642014-08-12T14:32:00.002+03:002014-08-12T14:32:52.726+03:00Yeshiva Gedola with secular studies planned to open in Israel - fierce Charedi oppositionThe yeshiva is supposed to be modeled on YU where the boys learn Gemara in the morning and secular studies for a degree late afternoon and night. However, it is meant to be a Charedi yeshiva appealing to the Charedi world. The reaction in the Charedi press has been swift and fierce as expected.
The following are from today's Yated:

There are a number of questions that need to be answered about this new Yeshiva.

How will it work with army? Will the students still get an exemption?

Who is it aimed at? The logical target crowd are the American Charedim who send their kids to high schools like Maarava and get a bagrut. The question is will it be able to expand past that group.

Does it have any Rabbinic support?

It will be fascinating to see how this plays out.
blukehttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-11287959.post-37142355572582279402014-08-10T14:10:00.001+03:002014-08-16T22:15:59.799+03:00Misleading statements in the name of AchdusJonathan Rosenblum wrote a column describing the efforts of Mrs. Sharon Issacson a member of the "Charedi" community in Ramat Bet Shemesh, to help out women whose husbands were called up to the army to fight in Gaza. The point of the article was to show how the Charedi community has stepped up to the plate and is showing achdus with the soldiers and the Israeli people.

There is only one problem. Mrs. Sharon Issacson is not your typical Israeli Charedi. In fact, it would be hard to call her Charedi at all given her background and life today. She was raised in a Modern Orthodox home in NY and attended a co-ed elementary school and YUs Stern College. Her husband is a graduate of MTA and YU and has a law degree from Columbia NYU. He is currently the Rosh Yeshiva of Mevaseret, a 1 year American Yeshiva for modern orthodox boys in Israel. Her 2 sons went to Maarava for High School. There is 1 even more startling fact that is missing, her son is currently serving in the Israeli Army in Nachal Haredi.

Given all of the above is it not very misleading to simply call her "Charedi"?

It seems that every time the Charedi world tries to appeal to more moderate Americans they bring examples that fall into one of 2 categories:

1. Baalei teshuva
2. They grew up in modern homes

A few years ago, Aish Hatorah published an article Women at Work which claimed that Orthodox women can work at any job that they want.

Let's get something perfectly clear: Jewish women work. One of my neighbors is a nuclear physicist. I'm a zoo veterinarian.
...
And nowadays, like women all over the Western world, they work in every field. Some run their own businesses or are part of a larger corporation. Here in Israel one of my neighbors is a nuclear physicist. Another is a school principal. Several good friends are lawyers. One's a pediatrician. Two are successful artists. I'm a zoo veterinarian.
...
My point is, little is forbidden to us. We work in the fields we want. We have open choices. We can choose to work part-time or full-time.

As I pointed out then (See Misleading statements in the name of Kiruv) if Aish Hatorah was a Modern or Centrist Orthodox institution then these statements would be perfectly true and not misleading. However, Aish Hatorah is a Charedi institution and it's goal for it's students is that they join Israeli Charedi society. The fact is that if Elizabeth had been born to a Charedi family she would not have had a choice to be a veterinarian, a nuclear physicist or anything other then a school teacher. University study is strictly prohibited. In Yerushalayim and Bnei Brak even getting a high school diploma is prohibited (see this post No Bagrut for Beis Yaakov girls?).

I find it very offensive when Charedi institutions use examples of Baalei Teshiva or people who were brought up in a more Modern home, as Rosenblum does in this case, to try to make a point about the Israeli Charedi community. It is simply not true, the are not really in the same Charedi community. A "real" Israeli Charedi would never marry any of their children for example. Americans, either Baalei teshuva or those coming from a more modern home, have a very different world view and certainly do not represent Israeli Charedi society.

blukehttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-11287959.post-76050740121574507032014-07-30T20:02:00.001+03:002014-07-30T20:02:41.074+03:00A new logo for UNRWA

blukehttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-11287959.post-31702586692407263092014-07-22T11:04:00.000+03:002014-07-22T11:04:11.965+03:00The role of human initiative and actionThe article that I quoted yesterday It's not Iron Dome [saving us] it's Hashem, where Chaim Cohen claimed that Hashem is diverting the Hamas rockets to non-inhabited areas and that our hishtadlus (Iron Dome) has little to no effect, started me thinking about this question. The article is perfect example of the current Charedi approach that a leaf doesn't fall without it being decreed from heaven (see my post Hashgocha Pratis, what does it mean? for an elaboration of this). I believe that this shita has taken over the Charedi world in the last 50 years for the following reasons:

1. It is theologically simple. It is a very black and white answer which fits into the current Charedi mindset and it promotes emuna peshuta
2. It is as the Chinuch wrote far-removed from the intellect, which fits the current anti-intellectual climate
3. It fits very well with a Torah only mindset. If everything (even a leaf falling) is from Hashem then Torah only makes a lot of sense. Everything else doesn't count anyway.

While this shita is certainly legitimate and has it's sources, it creates a lot of serious questions about man's role in the world. Basically, according to this shita, man has no real role in the world. This world is simply a test and nothing that man does has any real effect (see R'Dessler). The problem is that we see with our own eyes that this isn't true. Of course R' Dessler says that we are simply mistaken and it is all a test, but I think that most people have a very hard time with this. We see that people take initiative and do things and do have success. People work hard and get promoted for their hard work, get good grades and based on that get high paying jobs, etc. While this shita may have made sense for people in earlier times when man had basically no control over anything, today, when we do have limited control, and we can see the direct results of our actions this shita is much more difficult to accept.

In fact, even in the real Haredi world we find that this shita is not accepted when it comes to certain things, medicine for example. Haredim many times move mountains to see the top specialist in the field (for a famous case see Should we go to the best doctor?). However, according to R' Dessler (and the Chazon Ish) this really should be considered too much השתדלות and a lack of בטחון. After all, Hashem is doing the healing not the surgeon and once we have done our השתדלות, going to the doctor and having the surgery, why should it matter whether the surgeon is the best in the world or simply Joe surgeon who is competent? As long as we do our השתדלות to avoid requiring a נס, the rest is a גזירה מן השמים. If the גזירה is that the surgery will be successful, then it will be successful even if done by the average surgeon, and if the גזירה is that it won't be successful then it won't help that you have the best surgeon.

In fact, what does it actually mean that someone is considered the best surgeon? After all, הכל בידי שמים, our success is actually an illusion to make it look like it is our skill. In fact, our success in worldly matters is simply a גזירה מן השמים so the fact that he successfully operated is not due to his skill but due to the גזירה מן השמים. This is essence Chaim Cohens claim against Iron Dome, all hishtadlus is simply an illusion and doesn't really matter.

There is however, a different approach, that while there certainly is hashgacha in the world, man also has the ability to take initiative and accomplish things. As I pointed out yesterday, the Ran in his Derashos (10) explains that in truth a person can say that כחי ועוצם ידי עשה לי את החיל הזה as long as he recognizes that his raw talents come from Hashem. because we see that different people have different talents and some people are truly gifted. With this approach, Hashem has given every person certain כוחות and it is up to us to use those כוחות in the world. According to this approach, Iron Dome itself is from Hashem because he gave the designers and implementers the intellect and skill to build it. However, it didn't just come down from heaven, people had to actually use their initiative and skills to make it happen.

This is much more theologically complex position, but ultimately one that fits in much better with the way we see the world working and I believe gives more meaning to what we do in our lives.

blukehttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-11287959.post-39773338861845464602014-07-21T18:01:00.004+03:002014-07-21T22:31:40.205+03:00It's not Iron Dome [saving us] it's Hashem - UpdatedSo writes Chaim Cohen in a column on the Charedi website Kikar Shabat. He is upset that all we hear about in the news is praise for Iron Dome and that no one gets up and says that we are being saved by Hashem in the merit of our Torah learning and mitzvos. He even claims that Hamas believe this quoting an interview on CNN where he claims that someone from Hamas said that their rockets are very accurate and that 80% of the rockets are diverted to uninhabited areas by your god.

I have a few issues with this article.
1. Why is it that when it comes to the good things done by the government they always come from Hashem but yet the bad things are always from the government? If you really believe that Iron Dome has little to no role in protecting us, it is all from hashem then where is that faith when it comes to other things like government money? Why scream, kick and yell when the government cuts funding, after all that also comes from Hashem? Why bring in the top heart specialist to treat R' Elyashiv (see Should we go to the best doctor?) when everything is from Hashem?
2. As many people pointed out in the comments on Kikar Shabbat, there was no such interview on CNN, it looks like he simply made it up. The claim that their rockets are accurate is laughable and ridiculous. Everyone knows that their rockets are very inaccurate especially the home made ones and therefore 80% landing in uninhabited areas is perfectly reasonable.
3. Where is the Hakaros Hatov to the soldiers and the defense establishment? Soldiers are dying in Gaza protecting him and his family and is pontificating about having faith.
4. His argument is silly. He can claim anything but he has no way to prove it.

Updated 10:30PM
R' Aviner has what I believe is a much truer Torah perspective. He says that we need to understand that Iron Dome is from Hashem. He quotes a Ran in his Derashos (10) where the Ran explains that in truth a person should be able to say that כחי ועוצם ידי עשה לי את החיל הזה because we see that different people have different talents and some people are truly gifted. However, the Torah tells us that we need to remember that these כוחות are from Hashem and therefore ultimately it is all from hashem. This is the way that we need to look at Iron Dome, Hashem gave the Jews who built the system the intelligence and skill to build it. Therefore, Iron Dome is itself a נס and worthy of praise.blukehttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-11287959.post-5733037719912455602014-07-15T11:36:00.000+03:002014-07-15T11:38:37.010+03:00Summer Safeguard CampaignWhen I first heard about this I thought this was a safety campaign for the summer. However, when I saw this ad I realized that this was nothing of the sort.

I think this is a very unfortunate and damaging phenomenon. It makes Judaism into magic and promotes a quick fix. You have a problem do this סגולה and your problem will be solved. That is not how it is supposed to work. You are supposed to be מפשפש במעשיו do teshuva, etc. not some quick fix.

For a whole list of Segula ads see The latest סגולה and Some of the segula type ads that I have seen in the past.

I recently heard a drasha from a Charedi Rosh Kollel who decried the whole segula business and he said the following. When Bnei Yisrael fought Amalek the Torah says that when Moshe raised his hands they won and when he lowered them they lost. Chazal asked did Moshe's hand win the battle? The Rosh Kollel said that if we asked this question today about a Gadol (do R' Chaim Kanievsky's raised hands make us win the war?) the answer would be "of course" and "how can you even ask such a question"? Yet, Chazal did ask this and didn't answer of course.blukehttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-11287959.post-83835062490558084922014-07-14T06:58:00.000+03:002014-07-14T06:58:23.993+03:00Charedi Yeshivas are again running away from the missiles in the South, what about the protection of Torah learning?

Source: Mishpacha Newspaper י"ב תמוז

This is the third time in 5 years that this is happening and I am posting about it (Yeshivas are moving north out of danger, what about the protection of Torah learning?, Should yeshiva students move away from the South to avoid the missiles?). Three times in Halacha makes a חזקה, so it is fair to say that we can draw conclusions from the actions of the Yeshivas. What I posted then is as relevant today as it was then:

The Charedi world justifies the draft exemption for yeshiva students based on the following:

1. Torah learning protects everyone
2. The boys are engaged in מלחמתה של תורה
3. Talmidie Chachamim don't need protection

Based on these it would seem that the Yeshivas should stay where they are. If the boys who are learning are engaged in war just like the soldiers why should they abandon their posts? In addition if Torah learning protects, let them stay where they are and be protected by their Torah. Their move undermines the claim for draft exemptions and looks very bad. The soldiers are preparing to entering Gaza to fight while the yeshiva bachurim are fleeing to safer havens.blukehttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-11287959.post-88131378950639772852014-07-08T13:09:00.002+03:002014-07-08T13:09:27.071+03:00Skverer Chasidim are now censoring the ChumashSkverer Chasidim have come out with a new Chumash for their girls school that has censored out whole swathes of the Chumash. It only starts at לך לך as בראשית and נח are too theologically challenging and then it censors out things like Lot's affair with his daughters, Yehuda and Tamar, Yosef and Potiphar's wife. In short, anything having to do with relations between men and women.

I always joked that the Chasidim would need to censor things out of the Chumash but I am still surprised to see it actually happening.blukehttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-11287959.post-3284846729501709882014-07-06T11:56:00.000+03:002014-07-06T11:57:19.752+03:00How many people can a פרה אדומה be מטהר? Part 2In my previous post I asked about the strange distribution of פרה אדומה 8 in the period of the second בית המקדש and only 1 from Moshe to Ezra.

The ערוך לנר (Succah 21a) offers an answer explaining why there were so many in the second בית המקדש. He posits that פרה אדומה are very rare, it is very hard to find an animal that meets all the criteria. Therefore he says that whenever they did find one they used it even if they did not need the ashes. In other words, the reason why there were 7 פרה אדומה during the time of the second בית המקדש is that 7 suitable animals were found. If more animals had been found there would have been more, if less animals had been found there would have been less. The פרה אדומה were not done specifically out of need.

However, this does not explain the period from Moshe to Ezra:

1. How could 1 פרה אדומה last for 800 years?

2. Why didn't they make more פרה אדומה even if they didn't need them like they did in the second בית המקדש? It is logical to assume that פרה אדומה were as rare in that period as they were in the period of the second בית המקדש and therefore whenever they discovered a suitable animal they should have used it.
blukehttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-11287959.post-14195859138607774582014-06-29T14:38:00.003+03:002014-07-06T11:57:28.224+03:00How many people can a פרה אדומה be מטהר? Part 1How many "doses" can 1 פרה אדומה provide? How much ashes can there possibly be from 1 cow? It is not clear to me from the Mishnayos or the Rambam exactly how much ashes needs to be in each "dose" the one thing it does say is that you need to see the ashes in the water which means that you need more then a drop of ashes. I don't see how the ashes of 1 cow could provide millions of "doses" which is what it sounds like, see below.

The Mishna in Para (3:5) states that there were 9 פרה אדומה in history. However, the distribution is very puzzling. The Mishna states that Moshe (really Elazar) made a פרה אדומה in the מדבר and that פרה אדומה lasted until the time of Ezra which is about 800 years and then Ezra made a פרה אדומה when they returned from בבל. Then, in the period of the second בית המקדש they made an additional 7 פרה אדומה. How is it possible that from Moshe until Ezra one פרה אדומה was enough to be מטהר everyone while in a much shorter period from Ezra until the destruction of the second בית המקדש they needed 8? What changed between the period of the שופטים and the first בית המקדש and the second בית המקדש that required so many more פרה אדומה in the second בית המקדש? Going back to my original question how could 1 פרה אדומה possible have enough ashes to מטהר everyone for 800 years? Did people not become טהור in that time period?

[Update] It was pointed out in the comments that the ashes come not only from the cow but also from everything (wood, etc.) that was used to burn the cow which would additional ash. However, I don't think that it dramatically changes things, even adding in the wood that was burned teh questions above still remain.

blukehttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-11287959.post-17670820541595244212014-06-24T15:25:00.001+03:002014-06-24T16:04:53.041+03:00R' Shalom Cohen spiritual leader of Shas - It is prohibited for women to learn academic studies
Here is the letter that R' Cohen published:

We are witnesses today that there are students who learned in [Charedi] seminars who are applying and requesting to learn academic studies.

Our Rabbis, the Gedolei Yisroel, completely opposed academic studies even in Charedi colleges since a number of the lecturers are university graduates and don't have the pure torah ideology that we are raised on.

Likewise, the coursework in the colleges is based on academic and scientific methodologies which contradict daas torah.

Therefore, students should not even consider going to learn academic studies in any setting, because this is not the path of Torah.

The third paragraph is quite interesting, I wonder what scientific methodologies contradict daas torah?

The problem with this is that you can't have it both ways. On one hand, the men have to sit and learn in kollel and not work and the wife has to support the family. On the other hand you can't ask the wife to support the family with no education.

Bottom line, if the husband is sitting and learning and the wife doesn't have an academic degree who is going to support them?

Source: Kikar Shabbatblukehttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-11287959.post-44810815415538198162014-06-18T14:22:00.001+03:002014-06-18T14:22:10.924+03:00Yated Neeman - The boys were kidnapped because the draft law was passed.It amazes me how certain people in the Charedi world always seem to know חשבונות שמיים and that these חשבונות שמיים always come out that they are right. To think that we know what Hashem is doing and why and to blame it on someone else is simply unbelievable.

See: האשמים בחטיפת הנעריםblukehttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-11287959.post-54049520057047860202014-06-08T13:50:00.000+03:002014-06-08T13:50:28.019+03:0093% in Kiryas Yoel on MedicaidThis is driving animosity for Orthodox Jews as they are being looked upon as drains on the government treasury.

You can see the stark difference in numbers between Kiryas Yoel and the other areas of Orange County.

Dec. 2013 Medicaid recipients / Population / % Enrolled:
- Kiryas Joel - 20,293 / 21,894 / 92.7%
- Newburgh area - 17,764 / 54,447 / 32.6%
- Middletown area - 17,253 / 48,418 / 35.6%
- Port Jervis area - 4,485 / 14,511 / 30.9%
- Orange County - 91,557 / 375,592 / 24.4%

Sources: Orange County Department of Social Services, U.S. Census Bureau

In the past Jews (including Orthodox Jews) have been looked upon as a model population in the US, educating their children and contributing/succeeding economically. Now the picture has changed radically and Orthodox Jews are looked upon as a drain on society. I don't know how much longer this can go on.

Source: Times Herald-Recordblukehttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-11287959.post-52926891154643068292014-06-02T13:22:00.002+03:002014-06-02T13:22:50.216+03:00R' Shteinman: No degrees for girls even at the expense of losing large amounts of fundingR' Shteinman was asked by the head of the Seminary in Bnei Brak, R' Wolff, the following question. The seminary is getting a large sum of money to pay for the education of a certain set of girls and the donors are requesting that the girls get a degree. Should he acquiesce to the request or continue the policy of no academic degrees?

R' Shteinman answered, no degrees even if it causes a major loss of funding.

On one hand the Charedi world is collapsing economically and yet, the leadership will not allow anything to be done to alleviate the problem.

Source: B'Chadrei Charedim

blukehttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-11287959.post-31315919256878056372014-05-25T13:34:00.000+03:002014-05-25T13:47:45.250+03:00What do they want from the Avreichim, that they should die from hunger?So says the cover of this weeks Mishpacha's magazine where the cover story interviews the head of the largest Gemach in the world (who has seen a tremendous increase in the number of people taking loans), and details the financial crisis that the Israeli Charedi community is going through.

98% are requesting loans just to continue living. I know for sure of hundreds of girls who are sitting at home because there is no money to marry them off . People come to us because they need expensive treatments. What should I tell them? That they should forgo surgery until the government will fall? What do they want from the Avreichim - that they should die of hunger?

R' Kuperman then goes on to blame the financial crisis in the Charedi world on the government which has cut funding and the Charedi rich who don't give enough tzedaka.

What he fails to say is that the Charedi world itself is to blame for setting up a society that cannot sustain itself. When you set up a system where every man is supposed to sit and learn in kollel forever, you are setting the society up for a financial collapse.

Of course people can't marry off their daughters when the price for such a marriage is an apartment plus support for the husband to keep learning. Where on earth is the money going to come from when the father of the girl has himself been sitting in kollel for 20 years?

Of course people can't pay for expensive surgery because they have no supplementary health insurance because they can't afford the few shekels a month for such insurance.

Of course people have to take out loan after loan to pay their monthly bills, when the husband is sitting and learning (earning almost nothing) and the wife is earning next to nothing because she wasn't allowed to get a university degree.

A while back I posted a quote from R' Shteinman that people should not buy life insurance as the merit of giving tzedaka to the widows and orphans is what is saving this generation from destruction. The practical result of this policy is that every single day I get a flyer in my mailbox telling of some tragic death and that because of it the wife and children have no food to eat.

Someone in the Israeli Charedi world (not Jonathan Rosenblum) needs to state the obvious truth, that the current system is financially bankrupt and cannot go on. Much of the Charedi world is living in a fantasy world that the government is going to fall and the Charedim will be in the next government and restore the government money. It isn't going to happen. No Israeli government in the foreseeable future is going to give significant amounts of money to the Charedim. The Charedi world is going to have to wake up and understand that it has to become self supporting, and not self supporting with a handful of super rich paying the bills and the rest sitting and learning, but self supporting where the majority of the population goes out and works and only the true elite sit and learn long term.

blukehttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-11287959.post-61191357293007145342014-05-13T08:00:00.000+03:002014-05-13T08:00:06.414+03:00A very different perspective on Shechita - Helping souls achieve their tikunI was always under the impression that shochtim saw themselves as people providing a valuable service to the Jewish people by providing kosher meat. However, Mishpacha (Hebrew) had an interesting article last week about the Kosher meat industry in Argentina. As part of the article they interviewed Rav Asor who is the head shochet (as well as the oldest and most experienced) for both the Rabbanut and Badatz Beis Yosef in Argentina, and he provided a very different perspective as to how he perceives himself.

"Do you think I look at the animals with the eyes of a butcher? No, I look and think about the many souls that are gilgulim in these animals that are waiting for a tikun, and how much these souls will be helped when the meat that are in will be eaten at the seudas mitzva of Pesach night. I truly feel a shlichus.
...
I don't just think I know. Sometimes I see the tears in teh eyses of the animal, and I had some cases where the animal itself stuck out ist neck to my knife. At the last second you can see that the soul inside wants to get out.

The truth is that there is no source for gilgulim in the Gemara, in fact, there is an explicit Gemara that seems to contradict the whole idea of gilgulim. The Gemara in Bava Metziah (107a) comments on the pasuk ברוך אתה בבואך ברוך אתה בצאתך that it is teaching us that just like a person enters the world without sin he should leave the world without sin. The רש"ש there comments that this contradicts gilgulim. The reason being, that the premise of a gilgul is that a nefesh that already sinned comes into the world to be מתקן that sin. However, the gemara states explicitly that a person comes into the world without sin. Gilgulim is a Kabbalistic concept which was popularized by the Ari and has now become part and parcel of Charedi Judaism.

If you are a rationalist does this statement of the shochet bother you? Does this make you have any doubt about the shechita?blukehttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-11287959.post-32303845152851264202014-05-12T08:14:00.001+03:002014-05-12T08:14:26.104+03:00The Supreme Court in Belgium upholds law forcing Charedi schools to teach secular subjectsIt's not just in Israel, in Belgium starting next year, the Charedi schools must by law teach secular studies. Not only that, the government will be administering standardized tests to everyone and any children who fail the tests will be forced to transfer to a government run school.

The Admor of Peshvark told his Chasidim that in light of the ruling they should leave Belgium and go to a country that doesn't have compulsory secular studies. I wonder how practical that is for 2 reasons:
1. What countries don't have compulsory secular studies?
2. How will they get in?

It will be interesting to see what happens.

Source: Kikar Shabbatblukehttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-11287959.post-39034665210457749712014-05-11T11:51:00.002+03:002014-05-11T11:51:24.406+03:00A letter to Mishpacha in response to their dramatic headline about financial collapse in the Charedi worldThe following letter was printed in this week's Mishpacha in response to their dramatic cover story last week about the financial collapse of the Charedi Torah world.

As the wife of an Avrech in Kollel whose stipend has been almost completely cut, I would like to respond to the news that was reported about the poor status of Avreichim. I am writing with tears because I look around and I see that people have no idea. They don't know what we are dealing with every day. I am certain that it has been many years since Jews have been required to show this much dedication to Torah and supporting a house of Torah.

My Husband is an Avrech who is a Tzadik, he learns all day and excels, yet, in spite of all this, he has no stipend except the bare minimum - and people around don't know. Everyone is enjoying life and we are living in real poverty.

I don't want to be poor, to have to ask for money, to become someone who needs help, but this is what is happening because we want to preserve a house of Torah and only Torah.

If people now know what the families of the Avreichim were going through, it is a little bit better.

I have to say I don't understand what this woman wants. She can't have it both ways, she says that she doesn't want to be poor, yet she wants her husband to sit and learn all day. Well guess what, money doesn't grow on trees. She and her husband have made a choice and now need to live with it. Learning torah was never meant to be an occupation and a way to make a living. She is poor by choice and should not be blaming other people. Her comment that everyone else is living it up and enjoying life while she and her family suffer in poverty is particularly galling. People who work, work hard for their money and sacrifice a lot to do it. No one owes her or her husband anything.

blukehttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-11287959.post-59014249600075922122014-05-01T13:46:00.000+03:002014-05-01T13:46:19.628+03:00The Charedi world in Israel is in financial collapse

So says the Mishpacha newspaper this week. Tens of Kollels have shut their doors leaving thousands of Avreichim nowhere to go. The heads of the Kollels claim that donations from abroad (mostly the US) have dropped due to the incitement against the Torah world in Israel. What they mean by this is that many American Charedim don't understand why everyone should sit and learn and no one should work. They don't understand why secular studies are prohibited in high schools when all of the Charedi high schools teach secular studies. They don't understand on the insistence that no one should be drafted. The fact is that American Charedim are a different breed then Israeli Charedim and given the financial problems in the US are no longer willing to provide unlimited funds to bankroll a system that they don't really believe in.blukehttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-11287959.post-2124206042041066482014-04-28T12:14:00.003+03:002014-04-28T12:14:44.091+03:00Why do Skverer Hasidim wear boots?One thing that differentiates Skverer Hasidim's dress from other Hasidic groups is that they wear high boots on Shabbos.

The Mishpacha profile (referenced in my last post) quoted 2 reasons for this minhag, one a typical Chasidish story and one a very practical reason:

One of the previous Rebbes went to visit his brother for Shabbos. On Erev Shabbos he put on the traditional white knee high socks, however, he saw that his brother was not wearing white socks because he was too poor to afford them. In order not to embarrass his brother he put on his high boots for Shabbos.

Skver located in the Ukraine is a very cold place and therefore they wore boots all the time to keep their feet warm.

The question that we can ask is what is the relevance of wearing boots today? Especially according to the second reason, why wear heavy boots in a warmer climate where everyone has heat? Why did clothing styles get frozen in the style of 150-200 years ago?
blukehttp://email@example.com


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Samson CT20 Tuner Review
There are a lot of guitar tuners out there. Everything from rack mounted tuners, stage mounted tuners, and advanced chromatic tuners all meant to keep you guitar at the perfect pitch. Most of these are advanced tuners with a large price tag. Luckily for those of us beginner guitar players on a budget, we have the Samson CT20 guitar tuner.
Samson CT20 Clip-On Tuner Features:
- Full color LCD display
- Integrated clip with 360° movement for easy viewing
- Chromatic, guitar and bass tuning scales
- Built-in mic or clip-on setting for precise tuning
- Flat tuning/transposition
- Real-time response for tuning accuracy
- Pitch calibration rages from A 410 to 490Hz
- Powered by a single CR2032 battery (included)
- Auto power-off and energy-saving functions for maximum battery life
While this tuner may not be as accurate as some of the more advanced tuners mentioned above, it is certainly sleek in design and full of features for just a small clip on tuner. The rubber grip is incredibly thick to give you the peace of mind when clipping it on to the headstock. One of my favorite features is the ability to rotate it 360 degrees in any direction on two different axes. This allows for perfect positioning of the tuner for your level of comfort.
There are other reviews on the CT20 out there that bash the look of the tuner screen. While the screen may not be as bright as other clip on tuners, I personally think the aesthetic of the dials, text, and notes are actually quite cool for a little clip on tuner. The ability to switch between a dial gauge and a fuel gauge, while completely superfluous, is really a treat to see on a tuner. Now you can see how flat or sharp you actually are and how much further you have to go to be in tune.
For a guy like me who is only a fair weather guitar player, I really liked the features on the Samson CT20. Its a great tuner at a great price and I am buying one right now so you guys can tolerate my novice guitar playing.
Transcript:Hey this is Taylor from uniquesquared.com and we're back once again. This time we're talking guitar tuners. This is one from Samson it's called the CT20. Now it's a clip on guitar tuner, and it's really small and portable. One of the cool things about it is that you can rotate it three hundred and sixty degrees from the tuner. You can also rotate it three sixty at this axis as well. And not only that, you can also pivot these at one hundred and eighty degrees on each of the axis. So this tuner has two different modes of tuning, you can either do the clip mode or the mic mode. Now the clip mode is obviously when you have it clipped to the guitar and it measure the vibrations for tuning. And if you want to put it in mic mode, I guess mic is better for acoustic instruments and then if you want to use the clip mode for electric instruments. So on the back you have your mode button which selects from guitar, bass, and also the twelve note chromatic scale. And below that you have a flat button which allows you to tune in a flatter scale if you'd like to do that. And between each of those is the plus and minus button, now this allows for changing the hertz level of your tuning. You usually want to keep it at that standard 440 but it's nice to have that option if you want to switch between them if you want to do some different eclectic types of tuning. So another cool feature, behind if you hold down the mode button you can switch from either a line gage or a fuel gage. It's something that's purely aesthetically for the tuner but it's cool that Samson threw that in there if you want to have different options for how you view your tuning. So if you want to find out more about the CT20 check us out here at uniquesquared.com/ Also follow our blog, follow us on twitter, like us on facebook and be sure to subscribe to this youtube channel. My name is Taylor and be sure to be you, be unique, at uniquesquared.com.


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Even if you choose not to decide you still have made a choice!
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: Iowa
Posts: 621
Hello Everyone
Just thought I would say howdy to everyone and let you know I was around and checking this huge wonderful site all about Disney. I have been receiving email updates from this site for quite some time now and have been lurking about and checking it out before finally deciding to register.
I am a huge Disney fan....but then again obviously so are all of you or we wouldn't be here. I have managed to addict my wife and children to Disney too which isn't a bad thing in my eyes. I grew up in Westminster California as a child, which is right next to Anaheim, which as we all know is where Disneyland is located. I use to ride my bike to Disneyland as a child and was constantly there. While I enjoy going to Disney World, my favorite vacation destination is Disneyland. I still go to Disney World about every 7 to 10 years, but make it to Disneyland about every 2 to 3 years. I wish I live in Southern California so I could be a season ticket holder, I would be there every day, but I live in Iowa now and money is what holds me back from going every year.
So there ya have a little bit about me, I've rambled on enough. Glad to meet everyone.
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Boasting many of Istanbul's most visited sites- including the Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia, the , Istanbul Archaeological Museum, the Byzantine Hippodrome, the Turkish and Islamic Arts Museum and Topkapi Palace - it's easy to see why many tourists never venture further than the historical centre of Istanbul.
Set high up on the Eminönü Peninsula, Sultanahmet makes up part of one of the oldest settlements in Istanbul. In fact, the Peninsula was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1985 and visitors are still able to wander past the old city walls and preserved structures which used to be part of Byzantine Constantinople.
It's worth navigating past the tourists to the back streets of Sultanahmet, where you'll likely stumble on crumbling wooden houses, hidden tea gardens, small parks and the friendliest population of street cats you'll ever meet.
Sultanahmet has a seemingly never ending supply of accommodation, ranging from bargain basement hostels to charmingly restored Ottoman-era guesthouses as well as internationally accredited five star hotels. Thanks to Sultanahmet's manageable size, almost all of these accommodation options are within easy walking distance of the main sites.
Sultanahmet is very well connected to the rest of Istanbul. As well as having a dedicated tram stop, it is also nearby Sirkeci Railway Station, from where all trains from or to Europe depart.
Sultanahmet © Yildirim Inceale...
©Andrew Sawvell
Bosphorus by Mista Riggs
Haydarpasha Station © Yildirim...
Hagia Sophia
Grand Bazaar
"A traveller without observation is a bird without wings" - Moslih Eddin Saadi


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7-Tree Farm
P.O. Box 157 Union, ME US 04862
Union~s oldest family owned farm. Settled in 1779 by Moses Hawes and now being operated by the ninth generation. Raise/sell cattle and hay. Specialize in Proven Winner~ Annuals.
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Maine farmers are the stewards of 1.25 million acres of land, helping feed families across the state from the bounty of 6,000 farms. From July to...
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A family business growing and harvesting wild blueberries on Clary Hill in Union since 1936. Open to the public during harvest as suitable fruit...
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Emma's Family Farm
Located in Windsor Maine, our Farm specializes in quality, pasture raised meats and free range eggs. We offer chicken, beef and pork for sale...


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Whoah, you're at our level cap. Good job, you rock! Here, have some cake.
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I publicly apologize to the Canoga Park Tourism Board. They disapproved of my "Canoga Park Tourism Video." At first the board wanted their money back, but when I threw in a case of MD 20/20, they agreed to let me produce another to rectify. They kept saying, "Great things about Canoga Park were left out." I forgot to ask what they meant, but I assumed that they were referring to the nightlife, state of the art public transportation and flourishing economy. So here it is: "Canoga Park Tourism Video II." I hope I got it right this time.
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Share on Tumblr Story and Photos by Seth Albaum It's 7:00pm on a Wednesday at Tatiana's Restaurant and Lounge on Market Street. There are a few people sitting at the bar and in booths eating their dinners. The game is…
Monthly Archives: August 2009
Photos from 3rd Thursday's Dog Days of Summer Pageant
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Happen's Stance – Signs of Downtown
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Share on Tumblr This first Happen's Stance is going to begin with the issue that drew me into neighborhood and city politics. It is not something that should be on the top of Lynn's list of priorities, and there are…
East Lynn Community Association to host Mayoral Debate, Sept. 2nd
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Share on Tumblr Judy Flanagan Kennedy personally accepted an invitation to a town hall style mayoral debate sponsored by the East Lynn Community Association (ELCA) and scheduled for Wednesday, September 2, at 7:00 P.M at the Temple Abahat Shalom in…
Dog Days of Summer Parade & Pageant
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Share on Tumblr Central Square Lynn, August 20, Third Thursdays presents the Dog Days of Summer Parade & Pageant. Bring your 'best friend' down to the 4th Annual Dog Days of Summer Parade & Pageant on Thursday, August 20,…
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Roll Call Friday January 18th...
Rise and Shine Y'all.:jumpjoy:
We have a clear blue sky and sunshine today but our temps are low, deep freeze weather.
I will check back later...
paste from my earlier thread.
VERLEEN, great post yesterday.
I was starting to wonder if you were OK as well.
NOW I am hungry for spegetti and meatballs.
Woke up to a little snow on the ground and only a high in the 30's today. The heat ran just about all night $$$$ and I am pretty sure that dry heat knocked me out as I slept way late for me and I have a awful headache as well. Nature girl here but sometimes you gotta have heat.
Love how the pet family is growing- need pics.
The sun is actually out finally.
I'll be getting yellow bags ready for the Purple Hearts Vets pick up and WILL vaccume the very day no matter what.
Good morning all,
Verleen...great post...I am so glad you are having a good time. I am so southern that I wouldn't survive a trip to NYC either!!! kidding ... I've been and enjoyed the trip a lot. No one could understand a word I said, however!! Michele cute little dog. What's his name?
I'm back amongst the living today. Still renting food but it is getting a little better. This has been a rough week. I'm sure the men would have dropped 25 pounds by not eating for a week...I bet I didn't drop 2.5! Oy...not fair. If I had to suffer at least I could have a small silver lining!!
Got the linens stripped and resting before I put the bed back together.
Hello, gang.
Verleen, it was good to read you last night, and I'm glad you have some fun and entertainment there with you now, ENJOY!
Hi Anne, Lainey, and thanks to Susan for moving us out the door.
It's 10 degrees, and I refuse to go out and shovel more snow, the bike is good enough for me.
No, the bracelet/handcuff was not removed yesterday.
Wishing everyone well.
Good morning all...just standing in the doorway waving to all...type ya later.
Is this the flu? I was so cold, that my whole body was shaking, couldn't control it. Then, for the first time I can remember in my life, I tossed my breakfast. So, I took a tylenol and got under the covers and slept for a good hour. Before I fell asleep, I debated calling a neighbor or emt but held off.
Hi All,:D
I am back, glad to see a few posts, sharing your day already.
Yes, Verleen, You had several of us here concerned, so see how WE are ALL relieved to see your post last night. Glad to see you are in good spirits.:clap:
Lainey, I too had Diabetes pick up today. I had two large boxes and a bag of clothes too. I always feel good to get the clutter and stuff out of the house. I feel better at doing it now somehow. :up:
Anne, Glad to hear you are making a steady recovery. One day at a time huh? I hear ya on that weight loss sure is unfair for the females.
Good for you stripping down your bed and freshening your sick room.:up:
Julie, You did well to get more rest this morning. Do you have a temp?
Rest up, lots of fluids and hope it passes you by quickly. Keep us posted...:heart:
Hi Mary, You are doing so well to keep typing your posts. WE enjoy hearing what everyone is up to, so keep 'em coming.:)
Cold up here, thinking of going out with the dog for a quick walk.:confused:;)
Julie, you might have a bladder infection. Hope you get it checked out.
Anne, glad that you are back to the land of the living. How nice to return to real life.
Rest up though and don't be in too much of a hurry to get back to the usual.
Stay well Verleen, glad that you are doing better.
We have a beautiful day here in Ky loaded with sunshine and milder temps. Not much in the way of wind, so it is really pleasant.
Very happy to say that Bob will be coming home from the hospital tomorrow, 12 days and at least 5 different antibiotics later.
I am so relieved!!!!
love to all,
P.S. Julie, please get yourself checked out!
I'm very thankful to read this news, Louise, will he have a visiting nurse?
Hoping it all goes smoothly, hard to be able to walk after being in the hospital so long.
Very good news Louise.
He will recover so much better at home.
Brrr it is so cold here I am just going to go to bed and snuggle under the down comforter with even a blanket on top of that (my elect. blankie quit) but so far I have not missed it at all. That down thing is like a sleeping bag and real toasty. Should be lots warmer come Sunday but the sun was so nice today and will be with me for the next several days.
Getting real sleepy now so I'll wish all sweet dreams.
Double woo-hoo for me today...once for you , Louise, and your Bob coming home tomorrow. So happy for you both.
The other woo-hoo for me as I'm pretty sure my lemon tree has survived our winter temps. I can't find any leaves that appear bitten from the frost and the fruit is still on it and ripening grandly....
Today is a good day; hope good things came your way.
grr. sorry about that.
oops double post.
:hugs:Thanks for the start off, Susan.
Nice post from Verleen. So good to hear her daughter and grand kids arrived and enjoyed her wonderful, spaghetti and meatballs.:clap:
Oh Louise, how wonderful that your DH is home and able to enjoy the comforts of home. He will be much more comfortable there.
Anne, great to hear you are almost back to the world of the living. These nasty bugs are just awful!!
Loretta, enjoy the milder temps and then please send them on to us.;)
UGH Julie, sure hope this is a short lived bug, flu or infection that got you.:console:
Lainey, enjoy that nice warm down comforter. They are wonderful, if you aren't allergic.
Hi Mary, you must be very happy that your lemon tree survived.
Doris, so no one in the hardware store could get that bracelet off? :eek:
Cold here in Gettysburg and will be for the entire weekend. Fortunately our "event" in indoors.
Will pop in when I can access this INTERNET.
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