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There are many, many great yeshivos like this. Without more detail as to your son’s background and aspirations, it’s hard to make any recommendations. Speak with rabbeim and mashpiim in your son’s mesivta or beis medrash for guidance. If you want to go outside of your son’s world, speak to the same people from similar mosdos to those you send to. There are so many amazing yeshivos. Don’t emphasize the “brand name” but rather look at the environment that will be best for your son. The difference between a yeshiva with active mashgichim and madrichim, and a yeshiva that leaves guys on their own is dramatic.

I once asked my rosh yeshiva why we are noheg to listen to music on a regular basis, even when Rav Moshe held differently. We also discussed why we sing psukim, and especially parts of shir hashirim, when this is also questionable from the gemara and rishonim.

He answered in two parts. 1) It is a mitzva to be melamed zchus on klal yisrael, and 2) music today has a different social context than music did 200 years ago. Until recently, music was part of an occasion. You had to hire live performers. Nowadays, music is background noise everywhere we go.

Based on the above, as we know that many, many leaders of klal yisrael appear in these Tisha B’av videos (and they know that these videos include some form of background music), and the music is not upbeat but rather serves to enhance the feeling of mourning and loss, there is good reason to assume that the background music is deemed acceptable.

This isn’t to say that you should run to listen to sad music. But in many shuls, they sing parts of kinnos, or between kinos. If these videos help people experience Tisha B’av in a more meaningful manner, and the leaders of their communities embrace them, the YWN coffee room may not be the right venue for a productive debate.

A high end grocer in a frum community is hosting a raffle over chanuka. The raffle is for private chef dinners, wines and the like. And of course, meat boards etc. I get it. Raising money for a good cause sometimes requires going over the top.

You enter the raffle by spending money in their store. No proceeds go to EY, to causes, etc. No trip to EY. Not even an offer of “donate to Zaka or Hatzalah” to earn an extra ticket. The store owner has every right to make a parnassah and run a promotion. But this is just so distasteful.

We have over a hundred brothers and sisters held captive in hell on earth. Jewish soldiers are literally being murdered daily. Zaka and Hatzala members are struggling with the shock of what they saw and need money for therapy.

Please, celebrate chanukah and promote your businesses. But do so with some taste. We are a special nation, an Am Hanivchar. Chanukah marks an amazing time, when a hishtadlus and emunah saw nissim. This is the time to focus on more than your daled amos, your business or your food. What does it say about a community when this is an acceptable way to behave?

We are better than this.

Each organization overlaps with the others, slightly, and each serves a unique purpose.

United Hatzalah is the main body of “Hatzalah” as we in the US and UK know it. They unified most local branches of Haztalah into a single body. Their primary goal is to get onto the scene as quickly and possible and provide initial lifesaving support in the field. In many/most situations, they work together with Magen David Adom (MADA) for emergency transportation, but they also have transportation ambulances in some areas. This is why United Hatzalah has a lot more bikes and ambucycles, with fewer ambulances. United Hatzalah consults with the chareidi gedolim on all issues, has halacha courses mandated for all volunteers and includes volunteers from all walks of Israeli life.

There are local branches of Hatzalah that for different reasons prefer to remain separate from the national body under HaTsadik Eli Beer. No tainas on them, and this doesn’t reflect poorly on United Hatzalah either.

Magen David Adom (MADA) primarily serves as emergency medical transportation team with emergency response capabilities. MADA is run as a semi-government-run, semi-volunteer organization. They also now have some ambucycles for emergency response.

In the past there were politics. Nowadays, nearly all of them collaborate on most calls. When we called Hatzalah, they arrived within 2 minutes. They call in MADA, who came 8-10 minutes later for the transport. They are all worthy tsedakas.

Check out Ohr Naava. Ask your school to set up some after school and motsei shabbos activities. Nothing wrong with girls getting together to kumzits, play a game, have some pizza, fun, sports etc, in a supervised environment. This is what my Mesivta did for us when they wanted us out of the pizza stores on motsei shabbos. This was 25 years ago, but the scene was always the scene. And it worked.

There are tons of ads trying to recruit chareidi bus drivers. In general there aren’t enough drivers. It’s not an easy job. The best way to get a driver to turn up the air on a long trip is to smile when you get on, say hi or boker tov, and even better – give them a bottle or water or chocolate bar. Little things go a long way, especially for people working low wage jobs.

It repeats and restates things it has read. It cannot develope original thought or solutions.

Volunteering for charity is very important. As is otherwise mandatory social programming – like education and military service / national service.

If you do the math, between spending 2-3 years in the army / sheirut leumi and the 32% chessed for National Religious, this community may have even more total hours dedicated to the kahal.

It’s also important to remember that volunteering is one important way to contribute, but it isn’t the only way to contribute. I hope the tsibbur remembers that just as they should be thanked for the chessed they do within and beyond their community, they should be thankful to the other parts of society that physically protect them, subsidize their healthcare, education, etc.

The new “club” isn’t hallachikly condoning actions that are assur, it is providing guidance with people who have a particular yetzer and need support and guidance.

Sefaria is an amazing tool. It is also an open platform. It will be used by anyone who wants to learn from it and contribute to it. Just like a sefarim store is open to anyone who wants to come in and buy sefarim. And the internet is open to anyone with a browser and an internet connection.

The question now is what you want to do with it. If you don’t want to contribute to the source sheets, the shiurim, etc – because there are “open orthodox” and fully “non orthodox” and possibly even non-Jewish academics using it – don’t contribute. I would similarly recommend you avoid these sections of the app/site.

Even “just” as a resource for access to texts alone, Sefaria is incredible. Use it for what makes sense to you.

Or ignore it entirely.

It’s not so simple that one should keep two days. There is a serious question of bittul Torah as well.

Each person should speak with their Rebbe, and follow their advice.

In terms of American investors in Israel – please come live in those vacation apartments? Imagine all the impact to your neshama and the economy is you lived here!

Every Jew has a right to live here. But if you choose to ignore your right to live here, it’s not pashut that you have the same right to dictate Israeli policy. It’s like the famous line – American Zionists are happy to fight down to the last Israeli. You have a right to an opinion, but not a right to vote. But move here, and you can shape our future!

Find a mix of inspiration, tachlis learning and fun learning. Once there is one good seder in place and you are loving it, more will come naturally over time. if you are struggling with kviyus, check out Rav Eli’s daf at Mercaz Daf Yomi / 8 min daf. It’s really is good fun.

Being yeshivish or chareidi is not much of a consideration. Modern orthodox have the same challenges. There are challenges anytime someone moves, making new friends, adapting to new cultural norms, language barriers, etc.

English-friendly American Yeshivish elementary schools abound. especially in yeshivish American neighborhoods like Ramat Bet Shemesh. There are many, many options in the Ramat Bet Shemesh Aleph and Gimmel neighborhoods for both boys and girls. The quality of educational options for a typical yeshivish family should not be a concern.

I simply want to say to the comments, think before you write. Their loss is our gain? We are one community! We are one family! These words make me sick.

RIETS is falling apart? Have you been to the YU Beis? I’m not MO, but there are guys learning seriously until all hours of the night. Top learners. There are world class talmiday chachamim and poskim. Don’t speak from the outside, until you have walked he proverbial mile.

This issue is one we can raise within our own world. How many Baal habatim that wear hats on shabbos do not put on tefillin every day during the week? How many local shteibels can hardly make a minyan during the week? Sure, Shomrei Shabbos is booming, but we know we are not fully accounted for.

We all live in glass houses. We all need to stop throwing rocks, and start doing yeshiva! It’s Elul! Elul!

Just come home. We are here, waiting for you.

EY has a special shemirah.

EY enforced social restrictions faster, and was far more comprehensive in the measures deployed.

The latest data suggests that the US has a different strain of the virus.

I will tell you exactly why this thread is dangerous. I spoke with a relative in BP who has coronavirus, tested and confirmed. They told us that their doctor can’t get the medication they are supposed to get, because there are shortages. But they now knows that garlic and tea are sufficient, and all these guidelines aren’t necessary. This misinformation could be literally sakanas nefashos, endangering millions of lives.

The OP was sharing his/her personal suspicion that they had a deadly virus, and a statistically meaningless personal experience. I’m sure this came from a good place, but this is not how medicine and science works nd these stories endanger lives. The OP did not create this claim – these are false narratives that have been circling the internet for weeks and have been disproven. Check Snopes. Check every reputable medical site and journal. Speak with your own physician. Do not take medical advice from the Coffee Room.

It is dangerous to yourself, and everyone else around you.

There are reports of people getting this twice. Be a chochom.

You don’t cancel a wedding. But you may want to do a smaller wedding. Talk to your rov.

Ask your local Rav or Vaad Hakashrus. I did this regarding some local 711s when this sugya came up almost 20 years ago, and they said told me that the local machines had sufficient filters.

It should be noted that not all rabbanim or hashgachos require filters. Speak with your Rav, and make your own decisions.

The rabbeim and teachers (for Sem) in American are amazing. In EY it is often on a different level alltogether.

That said, be carefull that you send to the right program, no matter where they are. I have seen some seminaries (not saying where) that were run as money factories with little attention paid to the young women beyond enforcing strict rules. As a parent, this is so disappointing, considering what amazing options there are out there.

That said, the ability to live on another plain for a year or two, to live in a culture that values torah in a different way is special. The ability to daven and experience yahadus on a different level, to experience a shabbos in Tsfat with a family that has nothing, but invites the whole world over anyway, to experience Bnei Brak, to experience a shabbos with the amazing communities of Olim in (Ramat and) Bet Shemesh, to experience a shabbos in a yishuv where people are moser nefesh for yishuv ha’aretz, these are not things you get in NY of NJ. There is nothing wrong with the US or the UK. But EY is ours. It’s where we belong. And sending your teens here for a year or three sends a message about what matters most. Before we go to college, before we get married, we orient ourselves towards who we really should strive to be, and what kind of lives we want to live. We give our young men and women a choice, we send them off, we show them our trust and let them discover themselves in a fairly safe and growth driven environment. What a beautiful commitment to our children.

Like many questions, this depends on who you ask. I know frum people who have come on trips with no issues. And there are clearly some who have reasons for concern.

Speak to your Rav, not strangers in the Coffee Room. Regarding Har Herzl, I must object to the comments above. I understand that some have a different hashkafa, and respect your right to follow your rabbanim. Visit there and see for yourself. Speak to the talmidim or Rav Shlomo Zalman. This is a very special place. A place for those who gave their lives for other Jews. Please do not be mevazeh something so holy over political concerns.

Aish is very successful. It’s not about changing people, it’s about helping people embrace their Judaism and add mitzvos. It’s not all or nothing.

More unaffiliated Jews in America associate with Israel than with religion. It’s a door opener.

Before your criticize, open your own worldwide network of yeshivos and do something better.

I have written to the OU about this. OU Israel is the same standard as OU Kosher in the US. With the added hallachos of EY. Standards in Israel are different overall, and kashrus preferences often include political considerations.

Tachlis, it’s the OU. Please stop with the motsi Shem rah.

This isn’t a yes or no question, there are varying shades of gray. You can be in EY and still be in galus.

On that note, geulah and moshiach are also generally not regarded as black and white. There are stages and phases. Even the most ardent Zionist say a Yehi Ratzon on Yom Haatamuat and Yom Yerushalayim praying for the guelah shelayma – implying that we don’t yet have the full geulah. And many who are not zionists still believe that we are in ikvesah demeshicha – because of the holocaust, etc.

Let’s focus on what we have in common and daven for progress.