@ujm I apologize greatly for putting your statements in quotes instead of italicizing. It’s been years since I’ve been active on here and have forgotten how to do it.
1) “Why do you think MO Jews, generally, have such small family sizes whereas traditional Orthodox Yidden, typically, have large family sizes?” – Non- sequitur, has no question as to the materialistic nature of the society.
2) “How many times have you missed a “Kiddush Club” in MO shuls? Not too often. Then they come home shikur. This issue is extremely rare in Yeshivish/Chasidish minyanim.” – Firstly, this is an extremely uninformed opinion. I have spent time in the Five Towns, Teaneck, The Hempsteads, etc. where the MO Jews live. and I have NEVER , not even once, seen them coming home from shul shikur. It is so silly, especially when practically anyone who I’ve ever seen publicly shikur have been Heimish guys either in the Catskills or increasingly in certain neighborhoods in Monsey and the Lakewood area. I’ve also seen it occasionally in Flatbush, but very rarely.
3) “If you have 8 kids in MO school (in the imaginary world where an MO family has 8 children) and your income is $60k/year, you’ll be paying most of your income to the MO school, if you want a chance of keeping the 8 in MO schools.” – Again, Non-sequitur. And the average Jew, no matter which community, is paying a significant portion of their income to tuition. Either their own children’s or for their neighbor who got the break.
4) “lakewhut: It is true that the SY families in Flatbush often have fancy houses, but by the Ashkenazic Yeshivish families (Flatbush, Kensington, Bensonhurst, Boro Park, etc.) that is infrequent.”
I dont know where to start with this one. Every block you go on in BP has McMansions being built. Monstrosities 4 stories high with grand terraced porches for the landscaping and a driveway with built in running LED lights. Inside you have porcelain tile costing $10,000 just for one floor, with doors going for $1500 each and hardware that wouldn’t look out of place in high-end Hollywood elite neighborhoods.
The streets are lined with stores selling pacifier clips for 60 dollars and baby stretchies for 150. Cafes teeming with people buying ridiculously overpriced luxury food. Every now and then, between the banks and internet kiosks, is a luxury clothing store . The standard of living and the things that are considered “givens” in the Heimish velt has no comparison in the modern world, just ask them. When they travel to Brooklyn their reaction typically is “How in the world do people manage to survive this pressure cooker of excess?”
Go to Google Maps and choose a random block in Boro Park on 13th or 16th Avenues, and compare the archived pictures from 10 or more years ago to now. The difference in stores, modes of dress, types of buildings, etc. is tremendous