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Bottom Line: Another one of these endless line of shailos where a yid should follow a 3-step process:
1. Aseh l’cha Rav
2. Consult with that rav/posek on inyanim such as whether the eruv in your community is kosher
3. Don’t go venue shopping if you are unhappy with the answer to step 2.The so-called “Shidduch Crisis” is a contrived “crisis’ that only serves to place more pressure on unmarried young men and women and make them feel like failures or devalues their decision to marry later in life so they can pursue an education and professional career before having children. When you see postings here in the CR and elsewhere about the “checklists’ some have for their beschert (he/she cannot use a smartphone, must be willing to live within 5 minute walking distance of my parents, must be able to demonstrate by DNA linkages to at least 3 recognized gadolim, will pay to fly my west-coast mishpacha to BP for the chasanah etc) then you sort of wonder why anyone bothers getting married these days. Lets drop the term “shidduch crisis” or at least close the CR to any new threads on this meshugaas.
Its not clear if Rav Moishe ever considered the substantive merits of the LA eruv, at least not according to the books and recollections of R’ Aron Tendler. If you go to the website of the LA Eruv, (I think its against the CR rules to post a URL link) you will see a lengthy list of chashuva Rabbonim from YI, OU, several esteemed roshei yeshiva etc. who have endorsed the kashruth of the LA eruv.
Based on he video, the bald guy in BP screaming gevalt while being arrested had no clue who was dragging him off to jail . He acted as if he was on PCP or some other substance since he was acting like a vilda chayah for the cameras. The police seemed to be exercising restraint in arresting him. Perhaps as a contrarian strategy will reduce the liklihood of actions in the future: the NYPD should make it clear that they will use only female officers to subdue such nutcases in frum neighborhoods. That might serve as a deterrant.
Its a lot easier to ask your tatah or zeidah if they ate gebrokts on pesach growing up. You correctly note that “country of origin” will not definitively inform you whether your family follow a particular hashkafah.
The R’s obviously think they are immune to this stuff since the “base” gave the Trumpkopf a pass with his 15 accusers, the video where he acknowledges grabbing women, etc. The next test will be Cong. Jordan from Ohio who is seeking become majority leader when Ryan retires, even though there are allegations he was aware of sexual abuse of athletes in Ohio when he was a wrestling coach.
Eichler’s offers special talleisim colored with techeles for only a $99 surcharge (and a free shatnes test. Like so many other issues, there is no “right” or “wrong” when you can find several chashuve rabbonim who say its “ok”.
To Philosopher:
Don’t assume misogyny and old fashioned stupidity are mutually exclusive as our resident troll is patently capable of manifesting both of these admirable qualities simultaneously. However, he will likely have more misappropriated quotes in support of his misguided positions than you might possibly be able (or willing) to track down to refute.I recall a recent episode on another frum website where one of the regular electronic kvetchers was really upset about the pritzus in banner ads that kept showing up when he accessed the webite. He didn’t seem to realize that portion of the website showed advertisements based on his own browsing history and had nothing to do with the editors of the website.
Hey Joe…..
I have the same objections to long-term reliance by “certain” minority groups (codewords for those you frequently condemn) on welfare and actually DO support the Trumpkopf’s efforts to impose WORK obligations for able-bodied recipients of food stamps, medicare, etc. However, I also feel that yidden should aim for a higher standard that those minority groups and find it obscene to read about the too frequent episodes of fraudulent activity among some mosdos to actually inflate the rolls of those eligible for welfare.
A G’mar tov from those on your left (which presumably covers a large percentage of CR participants).
To Meno: Chazal bring down that the references in Shemos (16: 1-36) to מָן or mān were really describing Tofui which dor hamidbar saved each week to make chulent for shabbos, a tradition revived in the Alte Heim (aka norther California) .
Not sure where you draw the line on personal “habits” and “practices” during davening that are annoying to those mispallalim nearby. We have coughers, sneezers, pacers, shucklers, those who echo the chazan/baal tifilah offkey, shriekers, those who get in their “uumeins” before the chazan has even completed reciting the baracha, those who take off their taaleisim and run to the lav every 18 minutes, etc. etc.
Where do you draw the line. Some of the above sadly are real physiological needs and simply have to be tolerated, some are simply annoying habits which may be hard to change even if politely brought to the attention of the offender and some may offend you but are tacitly accepted by the majority of mispallalim.
Many of us believe that the biggest chilul hashem we confront as a tzibur is the continuing culture of welfare dependency in certain communities where there is a sense of entitlement to reliance on welfare payments to subsidize a lifestyle of large families where the husband is osensibly a full time learner and the wife perhaps earns a marginal income part time while also caring for a large family. This was NEVER the yiddeshe model in the alte heim but somehow is rationalized here that as long as the laws allow such welfare claims, we should grab every available dolloar because the goyim do (ans whereas they just sit around doing drugs, our welfare families are engaged in heilege limud torah etc. so that makes its “ok”). In the alte heim, there were a small number of full time learners but the large percentage of men had a parnassah and managed to conduct a balance life of limud torah and support their families. Changing this culture over the long-term should be a subject of debate. Again, this is an issue only for certain families as evident by the welfare dependency data broken down by zip code and more granular census tract reports from the NYS government.
Perhaps the original question can be reframed as when does it make sense to consider modifying how we perform a mitzvah where one can be yotzeh the mitzvah but do so in way that is less offensive to the larger community in which we live. There is one side that would argue to NEVER be intimidated into changing our minhagim to satisfy the goyim and “liberal” (aka secular) yidden while others would argue to be flexible and choose your battles strategically. I personally find the use of live chickens offensive but would much rather that the authorities ratchet up the application of health/animal cruelty/sanitation regulations versus banning the practice completey.
To 1: Actually, I generally don’t always stand still when speaking…l frequently walk into a colleague’s office and pace a bit back and forth….for many adults (not just kids), standing still for an extended period of time is difficult. I’m obviously not referring to shmoneh esreh, etc. but to p’sukei d’zimrah and other portions of the davening where you are not obligated to stand in a solitary position.
‘Also, if I were to take your argument literally, when talking to another person, especially someone of great importance or authority, I wouldn’t be shuttling back and forth as many do while davening, even if holding the same position. Why is pacing a bit different from shuttling using your moshol?
‘How is davening light “shooting an arrow”? Even if it is, a good archer can take aim at the target from ANY location and hit the target. For many yidden, it is more natural for them to move around when they are talking, so it would make more sense that they are relaxed and able to communicate with the Ebeshter in whatever format make it the most effective for them. People are different and trying to lock them into a rigid structure to daven makes no sense as long as they do it with respect and kavanah.
Its a much greater chilul hashem and insult to the memory of the kedoshim who were niftar in the Shoah for tens of thousands of yidden to go back to the blood-soaked earth of Uman each year and pour NIS millions into the Urkraine economy than to drive a VW or BMW which probably was assembled in the U.S. or Canada from about 1/3 U.S. made parts and benefits a universe of public shareholders from around the world.
If you can still vote for the Trumpkopf and his Republican enablers in Congress and somehow rationalize that you are still voting for “family values” than perhaps its time to acknowledge that dementia has sadly become an issue in your life.
I think the original question refers to the overall melodic theme of the davening for the yomim noraim where the same melody line with the minor chords creating an ominous feeling and growing crescendos leading up to the end of the paragraph. I sometime think of musical score that is programmed to a great movie and think that hundreds of years ago (or much longer if these melodies go back to the avodah during the z’ma beis hamikdash ) that the nigunim were deliberately meant to reinforce the emotional feelings we experience while davening alternating between fear, awe, supplication and solace.
Any of these selichot services are a lot more dignified than what you will see going on in Uman in the videos posted in an article tonight (and these videos presumably are the “kosher ones” selected so that they can be posted on YWN)
Who, what, when and where??? Really stupid thread without some context or information as to who fought with whom about what issue and why.
Use common sense. There are ways of neutering animals that are painless and do not create any inyan of tsar ba’alei chayim. Where such actions serve the interests of both the animals and the human population, it would seem a no-brainer. Imposing harm on an animal for no purpose other than some sick psychic satisfaction to a person is obviously assur per Halacha and most likely a violation of state and local criminal animal cruelty laws.
Hey Joey….no evidence that “thousands died from mikvah related contamination” (which isn’t something I’d joke about but you have your own standards as to what is funny). My question was more in the nature of the specific filtration/decontamination mechanisms used TODAY at state of the art mikvos, both Chabad and otherwise, and what are the means for keeping the filtering process operative for use on shabbos for those who choose to toivel on shabbos.
Unless the water is filtered on a real time basis or heavy chemical additives are incorporated into a circulation system, how would you assure the cleanliness of the water without completely draining, and cleaning of the mikvah and refilling after each use?
Probably not a major factor but I’ve never seen any old photos or artwork placed from North Africa or the Spanish Portuguese region riding around in Streimlach……perhaps the climate lent itself to a “cooler look”
After years of debating the “Uman issue” on some variation of this tread every year around the yamim noraim, no minds have really been changed. For the hard core nachmanites and a much larger number of disenfranchised yidden “looking for new connection with yiiddeshkeit, and an even larger number of new age spiritualists looking for a “high”, Uman will be the Woodstock of their respective hashkafos. For the rest of us, it seems like a waste of money and poor choice of venue given Uman’s connection with the worst anti-semitism in history but that is their decision, not mine.
Michael….did you mean to say that the Stypler wouldn’t use a towel to dry himself yet felt it was OK to turn on a fan to dry himself? Or did he arrange for the fan to be turned on by someone else or simply turned on before shabbos and left running all day?
Do you and others derive some pleasure in constantly invoking the notion of a “shidduch crisis” which is not only untrue but only increases the stress on unmarried young men and women who either haven’t yet found their beschert or have chosen to delay kiddushin to pursue graduate study or professional advancement. Just lighten up and stop this constant drumbeat of a “crisis”.
Find a new shul/shtiebel where both the daveners and the davening energizes you not just for Rosh Hashanah but for shabbos and year-round. Perhaps a shul where there is more spontaneious singing, less schnmoozing, where the rav interjects a d’var torah throughout the davening rather one long “sermon” , where the daveners greet you with a simile and an honest sense of care for your well being. All of these and other factors will provide you with more long-term ruchniyus and ahavas hashem than a one-time “pilgrimage” to the epic-center of anti-semitimism in Eastern Europe.
Apushatayid….yup, you slept right through the yomim noraim after which it was announced that the Breslov were going to bring back the remains of Rav Nachman from Uman to Secuacus, missed the big esrog crisis six months ago, and then most importantly, the recent announcement that Chabad would be sending a caravan of 770 mobile mikvahs mounted on the back of flatbed trucks down to Lakewood solve the “Taharah Crisis”.
Breaking news!!! The parade has been rescheduled and relocated from Washington D.C. to Tijuana. All those thousands of state national guard troops that the Trumpkopf sent to patrol the border but have instead been sitting around doing administative tasks for the Border Patrol will particpate in a Parade nex year on the Cinquo de Mayo holiday. They will be marching to the music of mariachi bands rather than the traditional military bands but most importantly, MEXICO will pay for the Trumpkof’s paradei
After reading 100 posts on this subject I come to the conclusion that there is a general sentiment that davening with a minyan is always preferable where circumstances allow but the same caveat applies to many other mitzvos and/or opportunities for hidur mitzvah where more is better than less but less is not itself forbidden. A yid who decides with his family to take a vacation where minyanim are unlikely because they wish to experience the benefits of travel may also make decisions in other areas of their lives which go beyond the norm for a particular mitzvah. I’m not suggesting you offset one with more of another since not all mitzvos are equivalent but in the real world, we do the best we can in terms of balancing competing priorities in our lives.
The photos I saw of the Parklands school sadly make it look like a quasi military fortress but that may be the reality of today’s world if it keeps our schools safe. I know the yeshivos and day schools in our area have tapped this federal program for funds but the demand way exceeded available funds. Ultimately , each yeshiva must do its own threat assessment relative to its physical facilities and do whatever they can afford, federal funds or not.
apushatayid…….you would be amazed how often we have found minyanim forming up spontaneously at Old Faithful in Yellowstone Park (no pun intended) and other national monuments and other major tourist locations where groups of yidden are visiting and “solicit” other yidden to join them in a minyan for mincha. I think the issue here is whether is willing to forego travel to all but the US, EY and a few major cities or on occasion, daven b’yachid to be able to see the Ebeshter’s world. One might ask why would the Ebeshter have created these locations if his yidden were foreclosed from seeing the wonders of his creations?
?However, tzadikim were able to have proper kavanah, whereas us simple folks do not, so losing out on minyan effects our tefilah. That is something one should take into consideration [when planning travel]”
I respectfully suggest that for many of us, its easier to daven with kavanah by ourselves w/o a minyan as compared to the talking, gossipiing, walking in and out, etc. one encounters these days at many minyanim
Given that the vast percentage of frum yidden do not toivel in mkivah every morning before davening, I’m not sure that adding the additional criteria of having a mikvah at the vacation location is relevant.
No equivalent FAA rule in the U.S. for mechanical delays beyond obligation of airline to provide some minimal compensation for meals etc. for delays beyond a specified time. Each airline may have its own rules beyond the Federal minimum standards but those are buried in its tariff sheets which read like legal goblygook. You are supposed to be able ask a ticket agent at the counter to see a copy of the tariffs but lots of luck trying to find any information with a line of other irate passengers waiting to vent their own tsoros to the gate agent after a delay or cancellation i
There is a common recited but totally false narrative that net neutrality means neutral with respect to access to content and/or social media have some obligation to carry all perspectives like the public airwaves were once required by the FCC under the Fairness doctrine prior to elections. Net neutrality only means not throttling down (aka slowing) the SPEED of access via broadband to certain websites to assure that some users and sites don’t “hog” available bandwidth. The FCC eliminated that Obama era rule although Congress is considering restoring it. There are no longer any federal/FCC rules governing how much time (if any) public airwaves must devote to a particular editorial position although hate speech etc. could be a basis to revoke a channel’s license. Cable channels have ZERO oversight of their editorial content as anyone who has tuned in to Fox News or MSNBC during the evening hours will attest. As you may have notice, Fox no longer even bothers to use its “fair and balance” slogan anymore, although some of their daytime newscasters (e.g. Shep Smith) make a pretense of covering both sides of an issue fairly.
Two-2-Tango……the rebbe explicitly addressed the issue of his shalichim locating in areas where there were a lot more challenges for a frum yid than just not having a minyan for davening. How about not having access to kosher food, no yeshiva for the kids, no mikvah, etc. While one obviously doesn’t earn the same z’chus for going trekking in the Himalayas as he would for bringing unaffiliated yidden back to yiddeshkeit, presumably if it was per se assur, the Rebbe would never have sent hundreds of his chassidim to locations where a minyan would be a rarity for most of the year.
YWN is totally free to post news stories the editorial staff believe are of interest to their readership and exclude stories that may be offensive or inconsistent with the role of a frum site. It does not claim to be a “neutral” forum nor are they under any obligation to provide a venue for contrarian perspective. The Mods in the CR operate in accordance with certain editorial guidelines and may (and often do) exclude postings inconsistent with those guidelines. While social media sites may claim to be “politically neutral”, they are totally free to set their own guidelines and enforce them as they see fit. Likewise, if someone wanted to sue YWN or any other website for “skewing its coverage” they can do so but as others have posted, they would face a very high legal hurdle. If the “alt right” wants its own social media site, they can certainly establish one to compete with FB, Twitter, etc.
Is having a minyan to daven with the reason why we read about chashuvah rabbonim going off to exotic locations on vacations and schlepping along a number of their chassidim with them? Its expensive enough just to fly the rav and his family on chartered flights or business class as is sometimes the case but the costs become substantially greater to the Rav’s mosdos to absorb if he must also fly another 7-8 chassidim (since I assume he will take at least one or two gaaboim with him irrespective of the minyan question).
Social media are NOT public utilities and don’t operate with FCC authorization on public airwaves. Fox News has repeatedly banned political ads denigrating the Trumpkopf because their listeners would be offended (although they cite to some weird “advertising standards”. We deregulated the media long ago and thats why Twitter may decide NOT to take down some of the Trumpkopf’s more racist and misogynistic comments while others will refuse to carry the messages. Drudge normally carries some really werid stuff along with some great breaking news items. Alex Jones can start his own social media platform and I’m sure there will be plenty of white supremacists, tin-foil hat types and other fringe elements who will gladly listen. For many of us, we can get our fill of conspiracy theories from the usual trollers here in the CR.
Because airlines are generally deregulated on most elements of their “terms of carriage” (technical jargon for what they can charge, when they must provide compensation etc.) . There are very specific areas where the law or FAA rules dictate compensation such as denied boarding for overbooking, keeping passengers on the tarmac too long, etc. but “mechanical delays” are not included since there is no way to define the term and not wanting to create disincentives for airline employees to flag and fix problems. Indeed, flying with an even minor mechanical issue that has some safety component can result in fines in the hundreds of thousands of dollars. Instead, the current philosophy is to let the market regulate on-time performance and delays and the airlines must publish performance data so you can choose a flight based on the livelihood of non-weather delays.
DuvidlBT
And the Trumpkof’s only interest is in how he can benefit his own business interests and those of his rich chevrah. The first study of how the benefits of the corporate tax cut were allocated showed that roughly 46 percent were immediately paid out by companies as special dividends, increased regular dividends or used to buy back stock to increase share prices. Less than 4 percent was allocated as one-time bonuses for employees and wage increases. The rest is still carried as retained earnings. Thus, for every dollar that went to workers, more than 10 dollars went to shareholders. While that is certainly legal and consistent with capitalism, don’t pretend that Trump really cares about the poishete American worker.
The ones that assemble other robots are currently in short supply according to NYT article several weeks ago. The simple ones that do a single task on an assembly line (e..g. drill hole, tighten bolts, arc weld joints, etc) are readily available. Jury is still out on growth market for surgical robots. Lots of hospitals, out-patient centers etc. spent a gazillion dollars installing robotic operating rooms and tried to use that investment to push up pricing on surgical procedures. Insurance companies pushed back and refused to pay until there is sufficient evidence showing incremental cost is warranted in terms of greater success rates, fewer “accidents” during surgery, better long-term survival rates etc. Thus, today, there is considerable “over-capacity” in surgical robotic production capability as new orders have flattened .
The parade is a farce other than stroking the Trumpkopf’s sick ego. There was going to be a Veteran’s day parade in D.C. several days earlier so this will be a slightly expanded version of what happens every year so the Trumkopf can stand by salute and bask in the glow of those who did not crawl away from serving their country because of a bone spur. When asked, each of his 4 grown kids expressed surprise that anyone would have asked them if they considered military service.
Akuperma: The parade is in D.C., not NYC…..the Military never wanted the parade and Trump is doing it over their objections. He originally wanted a huge parade with like the one held every year in Paris (for Bastille Day), and in China and Moscow with Tanks, missile carriers, etc. and tens of thousands of troops. Instead, what he is getting is approximately 6500 uniformed soldiers and veterans (most from units in the D.C. area) with no Tanks or heavy armored vehicles (since the D.C. streets won’t support them and the city is doing its best to obstruct the parade.) The parade will end will a flyover of some jets stationed at Air Base Andrews and Patuxent Naval Air Station and some vintage aircraft. The military is hoping to get by with the least amount of show that will allow the Trumpkopf (the nation’s draft-dodger in chief) to satisfy his ego.
Sadly, there is a shortage of robots. Several recent studies have shown a backlog in deliveries of the robots needed for certain industries since most are manufactured overseas and are now subject to trade import limits. Also, the movement towards a $15/hr minimum wage in pushing fast food establishments to accelerate their use of robots which also are in short supply.
Slominer
I’m sure ANY color is ok…I’m only saying that at the chassanahs I’ve been to, where the bride wore a gown in anything other than white, it was a lighter pastel color. I’ve never seen purple or red for the kallah.
As to “minhag”, I’m using the term somewhat colloquially…its become a custom in both Jewish and non-Jewish weddings for a variety of reasons (no just the “sign of purity” etc.) not clear whether yidden or goyim started it first but I suspect its simply been woven into Western culture without regard to any considerations of halacha. Most kallahs fret about whether the gown is sufficiently tzinuyah, not whether the shade or white or slightly “off-white” satisfies some unrwitten minhag.
To Slominer….
Slow news day and maybe the mishpacha is up in Monticello and you have time on your hands. A kalah can wear ANY color to her chassanah, although the minhag is obviously white (but some could argue that has become derech hagoyim so she could wear any other color, albeit tzanuah, and be OK). I’ve been at several frum weddings where chashuvah rabbonim were mesader kiddushin but where the kalah wore other light pastel colors.