Always_Ask_Questions

akuperma, a good point on paintings. Note that early film was also affected.

On one hand, WW1 introduced the war into people’s homes – Brits saw the horrible newsreels and did not like it. At the same time, Hollywood was creating new realities in their movies, and then first Soviets and after them Nazis introduced total deep fake movies, rewriting history and present. Soviets created early movies about heroic history of the country, then about peasants dancing happily in 1930s (while they were actually dying from hunger when government took their grain away). Nazis made newsreel showing Polish mob breaking into Jewish stores and then German police restoring peace (omitting German soldiers who bussed the mob and stood with guns behind the camera).

This underscores Jewish idea of reading and discussing texts. Imagery is avodah zora – when you “see” something, it is very hard to not believe it is real … “I saw it with my own eyes”. Reading lets you think and consider the logic of the events. So, let’s not waste this opportunity to think by throwing garbage texts at each other!

So many gedolim, my head spins. I think we need to be realistic about American political system. It is designed to distribute and balance yetezer hara, not to ban it from public life. Justices are not elected, but are put there with a specific role to play. Delegitimizing them from some theoretical, not legal, viewpoints, leads to weakening institutions. You can apply your passion to supporting foundations of American republic. for example, protest all cases where federal government start regulating things that should be better left to the states.

a free advice: if the President would like to dispel fake attack on him, he can simply start having events with press and voters like most politicians do.
no fact checking will convince people otherwise. Jackk, feel free to pass this info beshem amro

> wrote the amendment that allows all young people to stay on their parents’ health insurance until they turn 26.

They forgot to include a provision that these young people wash their own dishes and pay rent. I may sue the senator for the losses.

Chaim, I hear what you are saying. Still, in the absence of evidence, I prefer to keep faith in people. Doesn’t mean that I will drive into their neighborhood, of course. Other than Rahav, I do not have many examples … I did see once, two American yeshivish suit dressed boys quarrelling a little in Old City. A passing by local Arab addressed them in English “Do not fight on Shabbat”. I told him “Shabbat Shalom” and he returned my greeting.

lebidik, there is a teshuva from R Moshe regarding going to a medical school. I hope I recall this correctly. He seems to say that a doctor needs to go to the best school and then deal with difficulties of being shomer shabbos (presumably, problems are solvable just require an effort), rather than go to a shver school that is accommodating, so that one is the best doctor he can be. Can you apply same logic to IDF? If there is a need to go there – go and at the same time deal with challenges and help soldiers to overcome them. Send packages with mehadrin food. Post Rabbis who give classes on tzniyut. Whatever it takes.

here are some quotes from Reb Milton Friedman on public vouchers that are also applicable Jewish education, I think. Keep in mind that it seems also to fit some of halachik principles that allows unrestricted competition between teachers (but in other industries where you are generally not allowed to hurt competition and inconvenience neighbors)

> Reform has to come through competition from the outside and the only way you can get competition is by making it possible for parents to have the ability to choose. … The amount of money spent per child adjusted for inflation has something like doubled or tripled over the last 20 years. …The key word is competition and the question is how can you get competition. Only by having the customer choosing.

WSJ sent one of their arab stringers to interview the neighbors. Their main complaint is that Hamas should keep hostages underground and not risk their (neighbors’) lives! of course, this might be what they say in public… Anyway, it appears that the houses were pretty flimsy, so neighbors do not sound believable that they “had no idea”. Thus, it well maybe that Hamas members presumed that they can rely on 100% support from their neighbors, but someone still spilled the information.

I know of a klal that when minhag goyim is based on a sevorah, we are allowed to follow, but not when it is irrational. So, it might depend on a degree:
having a ceremony celebrating ability to become a medical doctor sounds rational. Celebrating spending $200K on achieving bakiyut in gender studies – irrational.

I skipped PhD graduation because I was busy at work, after I realized how much I still need to learn.

> Those who learn Torah are more qualified for an exemption than any and all of the above.

this is very crum. We had a number of people here voicing their arguments or the rabbis they listen to. The refuseniks include not just lomdei Torah at any reasonable cutoof reason, but anybody who is willing to follow these communities. This is, in effect, catch-22: evil Zs do not listen to our B’D – but if they suddenly listen to us, then everyone will be exempt.

Think, Torah asks us to dedicate 1 day a week fully away from the world. Would it be OK to extend Shabbos by a couple of hours? seems to be OK. How about keep Shabbos 3-4 days a week? Does not make sense, right? This is not what Hashem intended. Same, sheves Levi was exempt, so say 10% of population could be exempt (plus those under 20 and over 60 who can learn full time). So, now about 50% of Israeli Jewish population are shomer shabbos and, B’H, growing. So, distribute this 10% exemption between these whole 50% of population, compensate the rest with college exemptions and establish a strong sheves Levi that is supported by the whole am isroel, instead of current unfortunate bizayon Torah.

Somehow Torah counts Jews in BMibbar as those who are “yetze tzava” (other than sheves Levi).

oh, now it becomes clear what they need by NET income. Maybe they are including all these transfer payments.

common > and are not busy trying to see which way the wind is blowing.

I know you mean well, defending integrity of halakha against various Reformim and OOS. That is not what I am talking about. It is there in the gemora that psak that is not accepted by the community is being rescinded. If you don’t believe me, I hope you only follow hashgoho that avoids shemen akum.

> does not believe in daas torah and said everybody should pasken as they see fit

yes, you connected two stories well, this is the same Rav. And he paskens as he sees fit, according to achoronim. How is it different from Rabbonim in your town? Do they all refer all your questions to R Moshe? Then, what is their salaries for? Or do they share their Torah for free as T’Ch should?

I don’t understand this thread – is there a specific claim that the judge benefited his friend somehow? His philosophy is known, and so of other judges. I think 8 of them decide according to their declared philosophy, whether they ❤️ 🍺 or don’t know who a woman is. The chief judge seems to be the only one who has some external considerations.

Simcha, this is very confusing. Melech Dovid was able to gather an army. Was it not “charedi” enough for you? Torah is not calling on us to wear certain clothes and eat gefilte fish. It has various mitzvos and our job is to analyze when they are applicable and act when necessary. Whatever social and psychological issues are there, they should not be an excuse to not follow Torah. I am not saying that there is a definite answer to serious questions, just that excuses are not relevant.

And for sure, one cannot claim an exemption as a ” T Ch” if he has issues that prevent him from considering his options under Torah. This is like killing the parents and asking for rachmonus as an yasom.

DaMoshe, you have a point – pointing that tzadik, and other terms, change their meaning over time, so quoting a source with a word in it maight be anachronism. I know a Rav that when Gemorah mentions “chassid”, he clarifies “real chassid”

In related news, Texas had primaries and it seems that most of Rs that were against school vouchers lost. So, expect school vouchers in Texas next year. I think the plan is for about $10K per child.

Good humor, but “Stop paying teachers a living wage.” is actually a part of the solution. Vouchers that you describe that follow families is another part.

Halakha allows unrestricted competition between teachers, leading to lower prices and higher affordability. Let teachers or small group of teachers open one-class schools, teaching second grade only in their home or any small office or inside a school building to which they pay rent. R Kamenetsky and R Ruderman were in such classes in their Litvishe shtetl and grew up OK. They did complain about one insensitive second grade teacher, but our current towns should provide enough competition.

Jackk, Trump won because he won over “deplorables” who were traditional D base, expanding R reach beyond 47% of taxpayers that Romney so correctly estimated. Very Reaganesque. And he is continuing improving his standing among those groups.

If you are looking for a positive side of the recent politics, it is that large groups of population decided that they “have nothing to lose” and are now open to voting for two parties which is healthier than when two parties simply rally their bases.

Note also that “the verdict” might cost T some independent votes but will surely bring T additional votes from the part of the traditional D base – convicted felons and their relatives and friends.

Wolf, refuah shleimah

akuperma, interesting theory. One problem: most of those Yidden would have ended up in Soviet area of occupation, and a serious number of them would have ended up simply relocating to GULAG or just resettling in Siberia. Such resettling trips in soviet cattle cars had death rate of 50% just during the trip.

Chaim re: Egypt. This is exactly what US and similar systems are designed for – control by masses. This danger was known from ancient times and that is why “democracy” was discredited and was not tried for centuries. Possibly, early modernity that made more people educated allowed thinking about letting more people to participate in the government.

If you know that daas Torah will be not tax deductible – do you still ask the shaila or compensate your daas Torah for the expense. Or, worse, you don’t compensate your DT and he feels that it is his obligation to respond to you but he cannot afford losing tax free status, so you made him into a ganav, thus losing his DT status, of course.

Germans agreeing to a pace agreement, then developing nuclear capabilities, intercontinental missiles and missile defense before US did – would this be a better option? Or, maybe someone learned from Wilsonian WWI fail to “stop all the wars”

Chaim > chasdim just do it out of fear and the chumras come first.

I have an idea about the chumros – why so many people run for chumros bein adam l’makom, but not always bein adam l’chavero. As you say – fear.

You have a relationship with Hashem and you have only limited information about what He expects from you. What if $50 lulav is not enough for a chashuve Yid like you? My neighbor who is an am haaretz spent $100, so it may be $200 is expected from me?! This is a Jewish version of Pascal wager : if your error on being machmir costs you $100, and your error on meikel costs you olam habo, the choice is obvious.

It looks easier when you are dealing with people who provide you with feedback.
Someone is selling a car. You say – how about $2000 for this clunker? The guy agrees. So, obviously the price was right.
Your wife asks – when are you going to be home? After the latest maariv in town and a class after that. OK, says the wife … obviously, she is happy that you are learning and she has the zechus to put kids to sleep.

There two possible errors here:
1) it might be that Hashem did not really care about $200 for the esrog. OK, so the loss is just $150, right? No, the loss will be all the time and effort you spent pursuing these chumros while neglecting other issues and learning and maybe stealing more from others for the chumros (if yo are meikel on using OPM, other people’s money).

2) you can’t always rely on getting feedback from people.
a) They may think that you are dishonest and rude person, but they will not tell you that in your face. Did you have hear people saying bad things about others? Do they usually say it in their face or only behind their back?
b) they may know that they can’t expect more from you. A wife would be the first to know that.
c) they may not understand themselves at the moment that you are not doing enough for them. They may not know choshen mishpat to know, for example, that you have to disclose problems with your clunker when you sell it, or that the buyer is not allowed to insist on a lower price same way as the seller is not allowed to insist on a higher …

So, bottom line is that one should appreciate complexity of human psychology and be fearful that they are not machmir enough in bein adam l’chavero , that are so machmir that Hashem will not forgive them until people do ..