When the disdain for Yiddishkheit is what it is among some Israelis, anything that one views as objectionable is categorized under “religious coercion” and that is exactly the case in Israel for many, including those who decided to hold a protest on motzei shabbos against the move from daylight savings time to standard time. The move is done on the last motzei shabbos before Yom Kippur towards facilitating the fast but for the secular protestors, they feel “there is still plenty of summertime left so why give in to the frum”.
Hundreds of protestors were on hand motzei shabbos the eve of 7 Tishrei 5773, placing candles on the street to form a clock shouting “We are here to remove the darkness”. Others, in Yerushalayim, were outside Minister of the Interior Eli Yishai’s Har Nof apartment to protest since he is the man that has made the arrangement to accommodate Yom Kippur fasters. The Meretz activists outside the minister’s home carried alarm clocks to make their point after waiting at Ben-Yehuda Street on shabbos afternoon to meet the party-sponsored shabbos bus that they financed in the hope of compelling the city to operate public transportation in the capital on shabbos.
Another opponent to the changeover to standard time was Yair Lapid, who on his Facebook page called the move “abusive to the majority of Israelis opposed to the move”, calling it a “cruel plan” which he blames on the frum parties.
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu on Sunday instructed coalition chairman Ze’ev Elkin to look into extending DST, an effort that has been held up in committee. Likud Minister Limor Livnat released a statement “I don’t understand why we are changing over to standard time. It is the middle of the summer. It is a waste of money”.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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8 Responses
Summer is over
It is fall now
The sinat chinam is gross
Idont understand it either. If the whole world changes at a certain time of year, why is it different in Israel? Why should yidden there have an “easier” fast than anyone else in chutz laaretz? Why dont they change the clock starting at shiva asar betamuz zlready??
Will you please stop with the hate mongering?
The objection to moving the clock back in September is not “disdain for Yiddishkheit”, it is a legitimate concern. Even more northernly countries will not ‘fall back’ until November, the very early ‘fall back’ costs the Israeli economy a great deal of money and truly inconveniences millions of people.
Frum people around the world get along just fine with the normal ‘fall back’ date and it is far from obvious why the vast majority of Israelis must suffer for the convenience of part of the frum community.
What is remarkable is not that there are those who oppose the early ‘fall back’ but that the majority of Israelis are willing to do it for the benefit of the minority.
Stop spinning hate, at least ‘bain kesseh le’asor’.
Gmar chatima tova.
From Israel, things look different. Few of the frum really think the fast is easier on winter time. Few of the non-frum really blame this on the frum collectively. The anti-frum know, but won’t admit, that once airconditioning became common there’s nothing to save by extending DST or having it at all. Overall, I think it’s one of these things that got started decades ago, continues to run on autopilot, and creates useless anger. Maybe the Palestinians and Lederman’s shul got it right to begin with; they never change their clocks from winter time.
I don’t think the change in the clock effects the fast for any frum person. Though, I wouldn’t be surprised if the earlier end time does assist in the not yet frum from deciding to fast. I suspect, that if the clock change is made later, less people will be fasting on YK in EY.
It benefits non-Orthodox Jews who do, however, observe the fast. Frum Jews are already focused on paying attention to sunrise and sunset, which throughout the year determine davening times. Those who don’t daven every day, however, tend to focus more on the “clock” rather than the “sun”.
Personally, I feel it is in the interests of the frum community to support daylight savings (summer) time for as long as possible, since the benefit to those who need to get somewhere on Erev Shabbos is more important than the inconvenience to early minyanim (who at worst, using New York as an example, might have to move to Manhattan rather than closer to home elsewhere).
Many Israeli citizens are not happy with this change of clocks, do it like every other country in the world at the end of October. This is not an anti-religious anger it is a political coercion that was not agreed upon by the majority of people. There is no halachic reason for the clock to be changed now!!!!
#3, Yes, this is motivated entirely by hostility to yiddishkeit.
1. There is no evidence that daylight savings saves any money.
2. The vast majority of Jews fast on Yom Kippur, and ending the fast an hour earlier makes it easier for them. The few bitter anti-religious resho’im who don’t fast want to make it harder on everyone else.