Forum Replies Created
-
Posts
-
Re WIY’s first comment: Rabbonim are not nannies, but they are important leaders of their communities, and it is incumbent upon them to make it clear – to the world Jewish population and to the secular Israeli public, as well as their own devoted followers – what they expect their followers to do or not do. Some Chareidim (like all other human beings) are nuts, and do crazy or hideous things (like throwing soiled diapers or assassinating a prime minister), and it is in the interest of the Rabbonim and the communities they lead and serve to draw bright lines between between themselves and the crazies.
Drum stick, wing, back, neck, breast, in that order.
If Hashem did not want American Jews to blab their opinions about Israeli security and political issues, why did He give us words like “yenta” and “kibbitzer”?
The way Congress works is just like an auction: highest bidders gets the laws they want. The rest is commentary.
To the Opening Poster: You have asked the wrong question, or at least the wrong number 1 question. The number 1 question anyone considering a professional school with a price tag like law school is, what levels of income are recent grads experiencing? And getting a straight answer from a law school is not as easy as you might think. There are lots of news reports indicating that there is a glut of young lawyers at the present time. Get that answer before you commit yourself to investing $100,000 in cash and borrowed money, and 3 years of time, in which you could be earning money.
Re rebdoniel’s first post: Do you really mean to imply that US immigration law is supposed to protect Americans from Spanish and Polish nannies? That is as unsound as the view that US immigration law should protect Christians from the spread of Halachah and the appearance of hechshers on packaged foods.
If you really want to know why rabbonim do not actively enforce tznius, ask them.
Sam2: Lots of men walk miles in women’s shoes. You can see them at any Gay Pride parade.
To the Opening Poster: What is the basis of your statement, in your third paragraph that Trayvon Martin “did not have to jump” Zimmerman? We have not heard from young Mr. Martin on that point – and we never will – and we do not even know whether Mr. Martin “jumped” Mr. Zimmerman or was merely “standing his ground,” as permitted under a Florida statute.
One question I have not heard discussed: After the gunshot is heard on the recording in which someone is screaming for help, did the screaming stop? If so, why? Would a person with a gun who was being attacked, and then shot his attacker, not continue to seek help for the target of his gun? Or for his own life-threatening wounds?
In the absence of Mr. Martin, Mr. Zimmerman is free “recall” whatever will keep him out of jail.
Re comment by Just My Hapence: Best. Comment. Ever.
Re Curiosity’s opening post: I agree that the ads you speak of are mawkish, and the cause they support – animal “rights” – is dubious, given the suffering of human beings of all ages around the world. But there is one ridiculous thought in your comment – that the ads are “liberal.” The ad is, for the most part, apolitical. And if the ad means Moshiach is near, let them run more ads.
Never mind whether Mr. Snowden is a hero or a traitor. Now that we know that our government is collecting information on our every move, what do we want to do about it? That is the important question, and it is a hard one. It will take several years for all the issues that this data collection raises to be addressed.
One interesting point to consider is this: An op-ed piece in the New York Times of June 30, 2013, by a German national, says that the experience of his country over the last 80 years – which starts with Hitler and includes 40+ years of the Stasi in eastern Germany – makes it clear that the massive data collection now being conducted in the US is a grave threat to personal liberty, and Germans think it is dangerously oppressive. If Germans think it’s dangerously oppressive, that’s probably a good indicator that this massive data collection is a threat to liberty in the US.
Re: Toi’s comment about me or my comment: I am neither joking nor clueless. I noted that gun crime – which for purposes of this discussion does not include acts of terror, like blowing up or shooting up occupied restaurants, buses or other public gathering places – is a smaller problem in Israel compared to the US. I’m not sure why, and I’m not familiar with Israeli gun laws, though another poster (charliehall) said they are stricter than New York’s. And you suggest that some Israelis “would go bonkers on the palis” in the absence of the rule of law. I’m guessing that to “go bonkers on the palis” means to kill Palestinians in a reckless and wanton killing spree that denies their humanity or relationship to Avraham Avinu. But, as you say, Israeli law seems to discourage your acquaintances from wanton acts of murder, so I guess you recognize that laws sometimes work at controlling behavior.
And to all you folks invoking gun confiscation as a threat to Jews (or anybody else), please note that no major or minor politician in the US is proposing gun confiscation – not Obama, not Bloomberg, not anyone – they just want to keep guns away from crazy people and known criminals.
To on the ball: “spelt” is a grain, not the past tense of “spell”. But I did not cringe.
To the Goq: Apparently, a lucky guess.
Their 900-year-old rebbe, Yoda, they learn from.
Truthsharer: You are right, I was wrong to say that the Shemah proves the existence of HaShem. The Shemah is a statement of absolute faith.
Hang out with wine snobs.
To The Goq: Prakdon is (a) a sushi roll made with pollack, avacado, seaweed and rice, (b) a small dinosaur whose remains have been found in southern China, Northern India, Afghanistan and Iran, and (c) the mayor of Gemorrah, who slept on his back on a livingroom couch. The text about Prakdon was excluded from the Five Books of Moses, but his story can be found in one of the books of the Apocrypha.
My quick read of the posts reveals only 2 that come close to a sound Torahic answer: Charliehall, who notes that HaShem’s existence is a principal of faith, which some of us recite every morning. This is consistent with Rambam, who authored the 13 principles of faith. frumnotyeshivish gave a good answer by referring to a book by Rabbi Keleman, “Permission to Believe.” Neither of these answers is really one sentence, but never mind that.
Many answers attempt to bend Torah into a quasi-scientific notion. That is utterly unsound and disrespectful of the Torah. HaShem does not need rational proof and does not want us to pursue rational proof of His existence. He wants our faith.
All the proof we need is in the Shemah.
Children are way more expensive than buses, even the big fancy buses. Yeshiva tuition alone from birth to age 18 could buy a pretty nice bus.
Re: oomis post beginning “A rebbetzin is the First ….”
“Rebbetzin” is an honorific, not a title. As you correctly stated in your first comment, it means, simply, the wife of a rabbi. But you went wrong when you suggested that not all rebbetzins are worthy of the “title.” You misunderstand the term, and you also underestimate the burden of being married to a rabbi. Rabbis are on call 24/7, must keep peace among synagogue members (if they are shul rabbis), must devote themselves to their students if they are principally employed as teachers, and must otherwise devote themselves to the Jewish community. And the rebbetzins I have known have all been “worthy of the title”, whatever that standard is.
no, but you posted first.
Re akuperma’s first post: I have never heard a Jew – frum, Zionist or other – say he would like to shoot any human being. And just to be clear, when I say “human being,” I include Palestinians, even the murderous ones, and their parents. Yet you seem to think there are some gun-happy Jews out there. If you have some specific examples, please tell us. Otherwise, where is your ahavas yisrael?
To the opening poster: What is the difference, if any, between a yeshivisha school and a yeshiva?
Re akuperma’s first comment: you obviously do not want to have a serious discussion about child abuse, as you have raised all sorts of straw-man issues in defining child abuse. It does have to be defined, but you have made some foolish proposals and insulted non-observant fellow Jews. Where is your ahavas yisrael? And are you suggesting that there is some vagueness in the Torah about child abuse? Can an adult Jewish therapist (or any other adult Jew) engage in sexual acts with a child that would be permissible between a husband and wife? Is the Torah not clear to you on that subject? I think the Torah is clear to you, but, as I said, you do not want to have a serious discussion about this matter.
Child abuse can be broken down into two broad categories: sexual child abuse, and all other child abuse. The Torah makes it pretty easy to figure out what would be sexually abusive to a child: whatever is prohibited between unmarried adults would also be prohibited between an adult and a child. I would like to hear from someone who can explain at what age a person can consent to marriage, and whether it matters if one partner to the marriage is substantially older than the other.
Depends where “here” is. Israel – lots of Jews own guns, carry them openly, not much shooting going on. New York – I don’t know, but no one I know in New York owns a gun, except for one Jew I know whose wife is gentile. His guns are hunting rifles, are not used as defensive weapons.
Re yekke2’s comment that there is no such thing as an “average Yekke”: All the Yekkes I know tell me that all Yekkes are above average, but half of all Lubavitchers are below average.
What do you get when a Yekke marries a Lubavitcher? Children who exactly one hour late to everything.
HaKatan: Your question to me is a good one. I am not sure I have a good answer, but the one I do have is this: The Zionists are not in the business of killing Jews, but the Nazis were. The Zionists know that in pursuing their goal of a Jewish state, some Jews will die, but they are acting in good faith (though maybe not your faith as you interpret it), and therefore the comparison between Jewish lives lost in pursuit of Zionism is not the same as Jewish lives lost in the Nazis’ pursuit of Judenrein.
I don’t know about tipping movers (I do it, but no where near 10%, and don’t ask me why I tip). But if the boss asks for it at the end of the job, rather than when I engaged him, I would tell him that he should have said so before I signed up.
Re akuperma’s post that begins, “Pogroms happen.” Your cavalier notion that frum Jews have a ho-hum attitude toward the extermination of 6,000,000 fellow Jews is an insult to frum Jews. It also reflects a fundamental and egregious misunderstanding of the Torah view of Jewish life, which is that every life is precious, and no Jew is expendable. Jews and others will be struggling with the meaning of the Holocaust for many more decades – or centuries, perhaps – and I do not purport to understand Hashem’s relationship to that horrible phenomenon. Your suggestion that the Holocaust was business as usual for Hashem is too wrong to put into words.
To ChanieE: I am sorry that I cannot provide citations to the Torah authorities that call for universal health care, but for personal reasons, my personal library is packed up and I cannot access the source at this time.
health: you make a number of unsound conclusions but you make one good point. End-of-life care under Torah is complicated by a number of considerations. As I said to ChanieE, my personal library is inaccessible, and I cannot check on the requirements. But if government care covers all other situations, then it would be relatively easy for a small group, like frum Jews, to provide reciprocal-style insurance coverage for Jews who want to make their end-of-life health-care decisions in accordance with Torah, without worrying about the financial ruin of their families.
To the opening poster: If BY high school in Brookly teaches you that “anyways” is not an English word, it is step in the right direction. But I hear they have a strict rule against amphetamines and cocaine, which may be a problem for you, based on the unbounded enthusiasm of your posting.
In my limited experience, I find that my bank – not Chase – very aggressive in charging fees. You must look at every monthly statement, challenge them on every inappropriate fee, and keep careful track of what they do when their telephone reps say the fee will be reversed. It is tedious and time-consuming, but the banks are too politically connected for our nudnik legislature to do anything they do not want.
As for Chase, I had a colossal problem with them on a real estate loan several years ago, and I determined never to do business with them again.
Anybody want to try polygamy? I think it worked for our 2000 years.
“I have a somewhat different interpretation.”
“That’s a good one.”
Re oomis’s 4th comment: It is regrettable that your drug costs have gone up. I do not know whether the price rise is caused by Obamacare or something else. My point is that if, as Americans, we all agree to provide health care for all, as the Torah commands, no one will suffer financial ruin because of medical bills, and everyone will have access to good medical care. Some of the details need to be fixed, but Obamacare follows and supports the fundamental Torah principal.
Re zahavasdad’s 2nd comment: I interpret your comment as complete agreement with mine. Yes, it is hard to raise $50,000 from the readers of a small web site, and easier to raise the same amount from 200,000,000 taxpayers, which is exactly why government-funded health care works so well in Europe and will work in the US when its ideological and political opponents get out of – or are pushed out of – the way.
The US is the only advanced, developed, post-industrial nation on Earth where illness can be a financial calamity for a patient and/or his/her family. The Torah requires that no one go without medical care, and the obligation to provide it is on the entire society, not the healthcare providers alone. (I apologize for not having the relevant citations to the Torah on this important point.) In light of the Torah requirement for health care, I continue to be puzzled by the vehement opposition of so many readers on this site to Obamacare or “European socialized medicine”. It is a Torah obligation, and I have not read a cogent, Torah-based reason to oppose Obamacare or some other government assurance that we all will have medical care without financial ruin – of the patient or society.
I am sorry to bring up this political issue in connection with the very serious personal crisis described here, but I cannot think of a better time or place to make the point about the Torah’s requirements that we provide for the health care of all. I hope the patient and his family get the medical and financial relief they need. My modest check is in the mail.
There is a boatload of bad advice on this thread, and I hope I am not adding to it.
First of all, the initial post says her friend is a little overweight and a doctor has recommended lap band surgery. Either the poster is being kind in understating her friend’s obesity, or doctor making the recommendation is incompetent. Lap band surgery is for the morbidly obese, not the chubby.
Secondly, there are a lot of bad therapists, counsellors, coaches and other nominally licensed quasi-professionals, who are little more than yentas with portfolios. None of them are helpful unless they somehow encourage the chubby girl to lose weight. Weight Watchers or one of its reputable imitators is all the help a chubby girl needs if she wants to lose weight. And if she does not want to lose weight, she should accept herself for what she is.
SaysMe makes some important points – some nominal adults have the responsibility of 10-year-olds.
Syag lchochma – Thank you. Nobody on this web site has ever called me civil or calm.
Here are 10 things baby-sitters should know about baby-sitting.
1. You are paid to take care of children for a few hours. You are not being paid to do your homework, so if the kids are up, you are earning your wage. If you they are asleep, you have made some easy money, which everyone should get once in a while.
2. The wage is the wage that we agreed to. If it’s too low, say so, or say no thanks. (If you think it’s too high, wait till you meet the kids.)
3. We try to be home on time. If we are more than a half hour late, we will call you. If you have a curfew or must be home by a specific time, whatever the reason (school, exam, drug addiction), tell us before you take the job. We will comply with your requirement if we can, or hire someone else if we can’t.
4. You are not doing us a favor – you are being paid for your troubles. If the pay is too low, ask for more, or say no to the job offer.
5. Baby-sitting requires adult-like responsibility. Consider it practice – you will be old enough to be considered an adult before you know it. If you practice taking your responsibility seriously, it will prepare you well for adulthood.
6 – 10. See 1 – 5 again.
golfer: Thank you for the correction. “Teshuvim” sounded wrong when I typed it, but now I know why.
I googled “Hillel” at the Web site for the Colorado School of Mines. I got some articles about moisture levels in desert soil, but no reference to a kiruv group.
Hillel has been in business since the early 1920’s, during which time assimilation of American Jews has accelerated, and so Hillel does not seem to be working.
Chabad has been on American college campuses since the early 1970’s, and although I have no figures on their success, I think that in 20 years, you will see that they have produced more baal teshuvim than any other kiruv effort. I do not know whether Chabad’s efforts will address the “shidduch crisis,” particularly since I am skeptical about the existence of the shidduch crisis.
ubiquitin, in his/her paragraph 3, hit on exactly why there is no point to this serious discussion: absence of any statistical evidence that there is a “crisis.” Population growth in the frum community has been strong since 1945, and the rate of out-of-wedlock births in the frum community is extremely low. So where’s the shidduch crisis? I think some parents and some young adults have their own timetables for marriage, and if the shidduch choo-choo train does not arrive when these disparate timetables say they should, the makers of the timetables assume there is a “crisis.”
If this is a serious thread, future responders should have sound data, and sources (not like me).
Basil’s at the corner of Kingston Ave. and Lincoln Place (one block north of Eastern Parkway). Like the best pizza in Israel.
Ashkenaz – vodka. Sephardim – more vodka.