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golfer: Thank you for correcting my error about the chapter number of the quote.
Yes, you understood my question.
A famous metaphor notes that the view of the giant (i.e., earlier scholars) is superior to that of the dwarf (future generations), but the view of the dwarf standing on the shoulders of the giant is greater still.
How do those expressing a pessimistic view of the generations understand Koheles (8:10): ??? ??????? ??? ????? ???????????? ???????????? ????? ??????? ???????? ???? ??? ????????? ?????????? ??? ???
(“Do not say, “How was it that the former days were better than these?” For not out of wisdom have you asked concerning this.”)
I wonder whether some so-called “minhagim” don’t originate with some basic act of thoughtfulness that is subsequently imitated by onlookers out of context.
For example, setting up an oil menorah can be a messy job. Perhaps on one such occasion, a leader helpfully tossed a towel to the fellow who needed it and the event took on a life of its own.
Yes, this is a practical approach in most cases.
In our day, despite so much really good, readily available published material and so many getting a good Torah education, there’s still a powerful role in our lives for the local posek.
Just consider the example of a published halachic work. There are financial and time (to write, edit, publish and distribute) constraints. It’s just not feasible for an author to think of let alone cover every imaginable custom and exception.
Even were such a thing possible, the resulting tome would be so huge that just searching for a specific ruling would be a daunting and time consuming task.
With the recent discoveries of natural gas reservoirs in Eretz Yisroel over the last few years, I would expect that the fuel costs to heat water and homes would stabilize, if not go down. That should help making larger-capacity hot water boilers more affordable to operate.
Of course, if these gas resources are principally for export then things might not change as much as one might hope.
Assuming that Moshe Rabbeinu is the model of Moshiach, it seems that both being married and having children are prerequisites.
My guess is that a successful spouse and parent requires the same traits as the leader of Om Yisroel. Patience, tolerance and selflessness must be keenly balanced with self-respect and unwavering commitment to the Torah.
I think some responsibility is shared by those who build and settle in areas in defiance of the government in power, no matter what their views about the legitimacy of that government.
The planners/builders know full well from the start that the government has the power, the policy and a history of exiling inhabitants and destroying settlements it deems “illegal”. So building them anyway is at best a gamble.
But, to then present themselves as innocent martyrs of an oppressive regime seems a bit disingenuous if not an egregious misrepresentation of the events.
What I find interesting in the history of the pro/anti Medinah debate is the absence of a viable alternative by the “anti” camp. OK, you don’t hold by a non-religious government in Eretz Yisroel. So, join forces and elect a “frum” majority government.
On the other hand, those who hold that no Jewish government of any composition is permitted until “Moshiach”, then I suppose we can expect this sort of thing to repeat itself ad infinitum.
I don’t think too many people take (have?) the time to really enjoy a good cup of coffee no matter how it’s brewed.
Coffee gets gulped down like medicine to alleviate drowsiness, remain alert at work or to warm up on a wintry day. It doesn’t often get shared with friends at the end of a day or on weekends like, say, a glass of beer.
Considering how much some people pay per serving at the local barista, it’s somewhat surprising and perhaps a little unfortunate.
Well, considering the number of national hashgachos in the US, it stands to reason that some folks might prefer one over another.
But, more to your point, I’ve heard from certain Chareidi individuals that they are not happy with hashgachos that certify non-cholov Yisroel products. In other words, it’s not only of the OU they disapprove.
I don’t know whether the same people would eat parve products under such a supervision.
Personally, I – for whatever that’s worth – do consider the OU to be a top-notch kosher organization. It is my understanding that many other “heimeshe” hashgochos in turn depend on the OU, especially regarding their commercial ingredient lists.
It’s when instead of feeling all superior to the balei battim of your shul who weren’t sent to yeshiva like you were, you lament your foolishness through your increasingly frequent – and sobering – encounters with better schooled Yungerliet. (sigh)
Slamming doors shouldn’t too hard or expensive to address, given handy and available members. Fabric weather stripping works wonders.
It may require a bit of effort to recess it into the door or jamb in cases where closing tolerances are tight.
A more expensive solution is an adjustable manual door closer, but selecting the right one isn’t as easy at it might seem at first glance.
As for noisy pushkas, a fabric insert might be a novel, yet effective silencer. I don’t recall ever seeing such a thing, though.
Consider Newman’s Own for marinara.
Along similar lines and in light of the bitterness surrounding the recent elections, who in the list of wanna-bes throughout US history *could* have become the worst president?
Of course, it’s all highly speculative and subjective, but, hey, this is the coffee room! 🙂
My vote, so to speak, goes to Spiro Agnew, who might have become president following Richard Nixon’s resignation had he not resigned months earlier due to his own legal problems.
But, as you well know – and sympathies aside – cake is about enjoyment, not fairness.
Suppose, though, there was such a thing as a safe, effective and effortless “antidote”. How would that affect our behavior?
Personally speaking, I think I might indulge in cake (and quite a few other things) all day long! So, I
suppose it’s a good thing that I don’t have
that magic potion.
Regarding meat that falls apart during cooking: roll several portions of raw meat into cylindrical shape and tie each with a string (there’s string available for this sort of thing). Then, just put the cylinders into the chulent for cooking.
The issue of borer is avoided by serving the meat still bound with the string and eating the meat as one might eat meat off a bone.
My opinion is that it’s not OK. The ordinance against parking in front of a fire hydrant is a rational precaution in case a fire truck needs access to the hydrant to put out a fire. Hence, it’s not a “chok” that one might avoid because of chukas hagoy.
Although one might might be confident that one can respond in time to move one’s vehicle should such an emergency arise, there’s simply no way one can be certain of that and lives are at stake.
I’m guessing that MDG was hinting at the dialog from one of my favorite scenes in “Young Frankenstein”:
Dr.F: Would you mind telling me who’s brain I did put in?
Igor: And you won’t be angry?
Dr.F: I will *NOT* be angry!
Igor: Abbie Someone.
Dr.F: Abbie Someone. Abbie who?
Igor: Abbie Normal.
Dr.F: Abbie Normal!
Igor: I’m almost sure that was the name.
Dr.F: Ha, ha…Are you saying that I put an abnormal brain into a 7 and a half foot long, 54 inch wide GORILLA…Is that what you’re telling me???!!!
Tips for bring your own lunch:
1 – Unless one drives to work, the lighter and less bulky the better. Oh, and leak-proof bags are a must.
2 – The more moist the sandwich contents, the soggier the bread is by lunchtime. Either use dense bread (pita), assemble the contents on the spot or avoid sloppy-joes altogether.
3 – Co-workers (co-lunchers?) don’t appreciate overpowering odors. Avoid strong cheeses (Limburger, anyone?) and similarly “aromatic” salad dressings.
4 – If it leaves a noticeable shirt/tie stain, leave it home (skip the left-over spaghetti and meatballs, spare ribs and shpritzy half grapefruit) or bring a bib (napkins? hazmat suit?).
5 – Afternoon coffee & cream drinkers most likely avoid fleishig lunches as a rule.
Aren’t actual cookies available with the same appearance, texture and taste?
Sounds like a research opportunity. There might even be an sizeable, enthusiastic pool of (young?) volunteers available in your neighborhood willing to perform double-blind taste comparisons to find out for certain were a suitable venue and sufficient samples provided.
B’hatzlacha!
It’s my understanding that Accent Flavor Enhancer is actually MSG. It is certified by the OU (not for Pesach, though) and available in many supermarkets in the US.
I purchased a pair of el-cheapo ear-buds at Walmart and they’re good enough for me (I’m no audiophile, though).
Joseph: Perhaps because the imagery of a raucous, ravenous hoard of people jockeying to access piles of food seems so incongruous with the dignified, serene behavior one associates with ruchniyus.
That’s not to say that the latter isn’t preferable to the former. It’s just a possible answer to your question.
Before I add my two cents to the discussion, I want to state that I personally concur with the position that the only “healthy” choice with regard to smoking is to avoid it altogether. Hence, my “analysis” below is nonsensical to begin with.
Having said that, an interesting consideration is the effect of cost and availability on the frequency and duration of smoking and, by extension, effects on health.
An individual cigarette costs much less than the typical cigar and cigarettes are packaged many to a pack. This may lead to increased smoking in the case of cigarettes, which would presumably increase the health risks of that product over cigars.
Also, cigars self-extinguish if not continuously puffed, whereas cigarettes continue burning and emitting fumes until they run out of leaves or are put out. So, theoretically, a casual cigar smoker could possibly have less exposure to fumes.
None of this does, however, provides any guidance as to whether the intensity, volume or composition of cigarette smoke is qualitatively better or worse than that of cigars. That would take a fairly rigorous study and is probably not all that meaningful in the long run.
Not smoking is the far cheaper, more convenient and healthier choice.
Well, since you have internet access, you could do a search of tourist attractions.
I know people who have hired licensed, private tour guides at reasonable (yes, I suppose that term is subjective) prices and felt they it was money well spent.
Caveat: This isn’t intended as a substitute for professional treatment.
I found this translation of the Rambam’s introduction to his perush on Mishnaos Avos:
Regarding elevator door sensors, once we accept – as others have pointed out – that their purpose is to protect people, limiting their function can have serious consequences beyond the issue of melacha on Shabbos/Yom-tov.
Design engineers consider a variety of potential passengers, including the hearing impaired (audio buzzers), the elderly who may take longer to clear the doors, toddlers who escape their guardians and even the situation of someone fainting in the threshold.
The doors wouldn’t close based solely on, say, a timer even in concert with an audible and visual alert and risk injuring someone still in the threshold.
The Goq: Sorry if my joke was annoying. Not my intention.
Cheers.
The only problems I have with any flavor of ice cream are the looks I imagine I (and my belly) get from the the supermarket cashier that say: “Is that to go or do you plan to eat that here on the check-out line?” 🙁
I’m getting a bit off topic, but how often would one encounter an escalator on Shabbos? Elevators, on the other hand, are fairly common, even in old buildings.
I mean, just in terms of cost/value, an escalator only connects two floors together, whereas elevators can service many floors.
Plus, in terms of building design escalators need ample horizontal space most often found in resort or casino hotels, train stations, airports, etc. (I have seen one in a supermarket in FL), not the typical shul, apartment building or average hotel.
The only issue a chazzan may want to consider is not having that option on Yom Kippur.
If one doesn’t practice singing/projecting without the honey/egg lubricant, it may be twice as difficult (due to the fast itself) to get through the day.
One of the main differences of modern English compared with most other languages is the lack of a gender-specific grammar.
I think that distinction makes it much more difficult for native English speakers to learn other languages, like Hebrew and Yiddish or the so-called Romantic languages.
In the shul belong to, instant coffee (and tea, etc) is offered without charge (though, there’s a sign requesting “donations” by a wall-mounted lock box and the provided disposable cups are just 7oz).
So, I suppose the price and convenient location make it “better” than the offerings at the local barista.
As for ratings of flavor or other qualities, I’ll leave that to the connoisseurs.
I would like to hear more about the “ASAP” fund, like how costly do they expect the trauma therapy to be (relying on estimates of the length of the average therapy treatment), which areas the fund would cover (is it local or nationwide, etc.), does it work in tandem with health insurance, etc.
I think that jeans (and dungaree) were mostly considered work clothes (physical labor) and were frowned upon as appropriate attire in a yeshiva/school setting where a more refined environment was sought. Once it was not approved there, it eventually became inappropriate in the shuls as well and on and on.
Yes. I have a relative who has had some bad experiences with the air quality of the few flights she went on that she eventually stopped flying altogether. Even travel across the country is done by car with overnight stops at a motel.
Granted that she went by discount airlines and her bad experiences were over a decade ago, so it’s possible that she might have done better on a different airline or with better air planes.
“Names of the involved parties are almost never included”
Quite right.
When I was young, I wondered why batei dinim didn’t publish transcripts of their choshen mishpat cases to be studied like other shailos u’tshuvos, even with names and locations altered or removed.
I eventually realized that identities could sometimes be discovered through the unique details of the cases.
Perhaps one day, satellite imagery will improve to the degree that one would be able to use something like Google Maps and zoom in enough to read what’s inscribed on the matzeivos.
It may depend on the shaila. If publicizing the incident might lead to revealing negative information about others involved (even with names or other details changed or omitted) then it would most likely never appear in print.
Also, some tshuvos are unique to the particular case and could potentially be misapplied to a similar case. That could be disastrous. Such tshuvos would also not likely appear in print.
Avi K: Well, technically speaking, “No” is also an answer.
But, generally speaking, why would one think that their prayers would not be answered?
I think we too often get bogged down in a competitive view of the world (and what Chaza”l meant); it’s us versus them and only one team can emerge victorious (or, at all).
Isn’t it among the roles of the Jews to influence the nations of the world to accept HaShem as the One, true Master? If so, it seems imperative that, among other things, the tefillos of the non-Jews be directed to Him, alone.
I would think that if their tefillos are important, then a response of some sort is not an unreasonable expectation.
Like many things, the problem is about assumptions and perception.
First, most people assume that “unhappiness” is the opposite of “happiness”, but that may not necessarily be the case. This isn’t merely a semantic argument, but something more fundamental. Must “happiness” be a binary state, on or off?
Perhaps one can be both happy and unhappy simultaneously or neither.
There’s also the issues of duration and range. Does a moment of either category count or must it be all encompassing? Can I be happy with some aspects of my life and unhappy with others? How does one solve for X – the “happiness factor” – in that equation?
Even ignoring that, Chaza”l said some very cryptic things about “simcha” (again, it’s often translated to mean “happiness”). For example, there’s no “simcha” except through meat and wine (pardon my simplistic translation). Just for the sake of argument, let’s just focus on the physical experience.
One may very much enjoy the taste, texture, resulting satiety and other sensory aspects of consuming these food items, but would the usual understanding of the term “happiness” best describe one’s emotional state? In my reading of some of the most glowing reviews written by culinary experts of wines, restaurants and chefs’ dishes, I don’t think I’ve ever encountered the word “happiness” (or its variants) among the accolades. Odd, no?
As to perception, we also tend to fill in the blanks. When we presume that unhappiness is the lack of external “happiness” ingredients or the presence of “unhappiness” ingredients, we conclude that “happiness” is achieved by “correcting” the balance.
While it may sound logically compelling, is it true?
Considering all the halachos they will face for the first time the answer should be “yes”, though I don’t know of a sefer written specifically for that purpose.
I know of a pulpit rabbi who offered a weekly class to newlyweds in his shul for several years. He put together a sourcebook he then used in the lessons, but it’s not a published work.
This could be an opportunity to perform a mitzvah while learning Yiddish. There are still quite a few people in old age homes who speak Yiddish and would love to get visitors, even strangers who don’t know “a bissel” from a carpet sweeper.
If you have such a place close to home, you might give that some thought.
We each have challenges to improving ourselves and different people are on different levels of achievement.
Whether the topic is homes, furnishings, clothes, jewelry, cars, weddings or vacations, it’s not hard to determine acceptable degrees of gashmius based on our personal life-styles and castigate those who don’t adhere to them. But, it’s not all that meaningful.
Rather than looking disapprovingly at those who, for whatever reasons, feel the need to go on expensive vacations, etc., let’s evaluate our own challenges balancing ruchnuis and gashmius.
That’s where we have the most influence and power to improve.
This whole debate over who is and who isn’t a moderator and how they function reminds me of a similar debate on a computer designer newsgroup some 30 years ago.
The debate back then was whether one of the more prolific participants was a real person or an experimental artificial intelligence engine (akin to the famous Turing test experiments.)
There was never any resolution to the debate, but it was fun to read the evidence proponents of each side offered to support their claim.
Yes, some conspiracy theories have been proven true.
For example, long unsubstantiated claims of government surveillance of private citizen electronic communications were later confirmed with the release then-secret NSA information by the Edward Snowden in 2013.
Prior to this, the Wikileaks organization, reportedly headed by Julian Assange, publicized the then-secret reports of international espionage back in 2006.
I suppose one could go further back to the release of the “Pentagon Papers” by Daniel Ellsberg in the 1971 having to do with the US fighting in Vietnam.
Depending on how one defines a conspiracy theory or what it takes to turn that into fact, there are probably a large number of them, though not nearly as many as there are bogus theories.
In the end, it’s hard to know what is true and what is false just by reading about a controversy. Most of the time, it pays to reserve judgement for a while to allow “the noise” to subside and the facts to come to light.
Defining “money the government needs” is key.
The government spends all the money it collects on the various programs it supports, including defense, foreign aid, social programs, national debt, consumer protection agencies, interstate hwy construction and maintenance, etc.
So, to cut taxes, scale back on programs (i.e., shrink government).
The Libertarian party, for example, is all about radically scaling back or eliminating practically every federal (state/local?) government-funded or operated program and thereby reduce taxes and government intrusion.
Libertarians contend that if citizens wish to have a service like social security, foreign aid or an FDA, they can organize and fund it themselves in the private sector rather than incorporate that activity under the “government” umbrella.
Disclaimer: I’m not Libertarian and don’t agree with some of their positions, but I think I understand them.
> we have a semi-socialist approach to tuition already,
> as no yeshivish schools insist on full tuition for
> those who truly can’t afford it. I think the
> chassidishe middos are even more socialist about
> this than we are.
Of course, that only addresses tuition, which, though significant, is just one of the many financial burdens borne (no phonetic pun intended) by those raising children.
Many of these educational institutions themselves face financial pressures. In Oct. 2015, there were reports of poorly maintained buildings of “yeshiveshe” schools in Rockland County, NY (with counter-claims of politically motivated accusations – See edited and search “unsafe conditions” for that date).