Forum Replies Created
-
Posts
-
And those whom it does not stop (and the Yiddish language is not what stops the others, btw) and who chalila act inappropriately, cause a chillul Hashem, davka because they are so easily recognizable as “Ultra-Orthodox Jews.” (As an aside, I wish you would spell “bucher” as “bochur” because I have three times now misread it as “butcher.”)
There is only one reason why chareidi women are not in public office. It would considered untzniusdig for them, and therefore their husbands and Daas Torah would forbid it. I am not debating the right or wrong of taking that position. It is merely my observation.
KJ chusid – you are well-intentioned and I can appreciate the point you are trying to make, but IMO you are nonetheless mistaken. There are chassidim who have acted improperly in inappropriate places, and their clothing and manner of speech did not deter them at all, unfortunately.
In my experience, I have learned that it is not a good thing to generalize about something in absolute terms, because often those things can be easily disproved. It is not the Yiddish that is the saving factor, it is our implementation of what we learn in the Torah, in our own personal lives, that sets us apart.
OY, I am so sorry – I totally misread “bucher” as “butcher.” Wow, I am giving myself fifty lashes with a wet noodle on this one.
The young man is stable, B”H, from all reports that I have heard on the radio. Thank you, Mods, for that quick catch.
I actually have the opposite problem at times. I prefer to be called by my given name, but there are some people who feel it is not respectful EVEN THOUGH I have told them I am more comfortsble being called by my name. IMO, it is disrespectful to NOT abide by the specific person’s preferences as to what to be called, especially once they have expressed it to you.
PAA, did you make that up??????? Bli neder, I am telling it over this Shabbos in your name. Very well-said. Shkoyach!
edited. I think she was asking about the victim I am waiting to see the Crown Heights hooligans start with their protests at the “police brutality” of nebbich shooting the guy holding the knife, who already stabbed one innocent victim. And I have no doubt this individual got his savage idea from the butchery of the Kedoshim in Har Nof.
There’s another good reason to have Yiddish it prevents people from going otd “
Perhaps you are unacquainted with the thousands of European YIDDISH-speaking Jews who actually WERE otd IN Europe, and those who sadly WENT otd after the war (and we cannot judge them). The Zionists who are so reviled by many who post here (for being frei), who were the new settlers of E”Y and built up the Medina, most, if not all spoke Yiddish. Not all Yiddish-speaking Jews were frum, and not all frum Jews speak Yiddish. It still however, has a rightful place among things that we should always respect in our history.
Lior – please understand that what you are saying is something that can cause harm to a baby. And yes, there are MANY studies that prove there is great emotional harm to a baby. Throughout the baby’s waking day, there should be physical contact between the baby and other people IN ADDITION to the very crucial feeding contact, whether by breast or bottle. BABIES NEED PHYSICAL CONTACT in constant real time, which is probably why Hashem created women to nurse babies, in order to ensure they would get that contact. That does not mean they don’t need contact throughout the day BESIDES the feeding. Also, the position in which they lie while feeding, helps keep the eustachean tubes in the ears open, so they don’t get fluid as readily as when they either lie flat or are propped and drinking. The nursing position is unique in its perfection, so a baby being bottle fed should be held exactly like that. Hashem knew what he was doing.
Syag – spot on about the dangers of drowning, especially when the baby cannot move its mouth off the bottle (and if it COULD, then what possible purpose would there be to propping it, if one would have to keep putting it back in the baby’s mouth?).
In orphanages where newborn babies (unfortunately out of necessity due to the small ratio of available caretakers to large numbers of infants) were not held much of the day, the babies often failed to thrive. While nursing is best for most babies, bottle feeding can accomplish much, if not all, of the same good ends, if the baby is held in a nursing position while being bottle fed. The warmth of a human hand on the baby, cuddled up against its caregiver, stimulates crucial physical AND emotional growth developmental signals in that baby.
And Frumguy. you mean well, but not every woman is cut out to nurse a baby, and not every woman is physically capable, and they should not be made to feel by anyone, that they are failures or lazy, or anything negative. I myself was unable to do so for my first two children, though I gave it a very valiant effort (to their detriment) for weeks. B”H I came to realize I had to let go of my bruised feminine ego and give a bottle, and my two eldest children did fine on formula. With my last three, B”H I was successful at establishing a fantastic nursing routine, and did so with great joy for a long time. Not every mom, even the most dedicated, loving one, is able to succeed in this particular area. Don’t blame them. I know you don’t, and that you are referring to a small group of women (yes, there are some).
If one does not wish to nurse, that is entirely her decision. It is a very personal one, sometimes even a painful one. But it is wise NOT to find ways to legitimize doing something that is mamesh harmful to a helpless infant, like propping a bottle. it is not ok. It is simply NOT ok. Hire a babysitter to feed the baby, if one is overwhelmed. Let Bubby and Zaydy help, if possible, and Dad should be pitching in as well. But a baby should not suffer in the process.
I am sorry for the rant, but this is another one of those issues about which I have such strong feelings (like mother’s working outside the home fulltime, when they have their small children being raised by nannies), that I tend to get on the soap box about it. I don’t mean to hurt anyone’s feelings. if I did, I apologize.
Yiddish is a perversion of German, a language that comes from tameim and achzarim. So how is it any better? “
It’s ironic, this was something that I actually typed in myself and then deleted, for fear of starting a controversy. Yiddish is primarily corrupted German, and considering what the Germans put us through, I find it hard to understand the attitude that some people have that it is Kadosh. English is the language most Jews speak and learn in, today. Neither do I find English to be Kadosh.
Charliehall makes a good point as well, regarding the Sephardic Jews. I can understand that a chassid who grew up with a Yiddish mindset, has a strong connection to it and kol hakavod, but more Jews in the world did NOT grow up with that mindset, so are they and their spoken languages of lesser value????
Secularly, we have beautiful poetry. Do most people speak that way in the course of their normal conversation? Our Avos had to speak SOMETHING, and I guarantee you 1,000% it was not Yiddish. The Rishonim lived a long time before there was Yiddish, which was probably created by the man on the street, ratehr than by learned people. When I hear about the belief that Rishonim sanctified Yiddish, it makes me think l’havdil, of present day Palestinians claiming ancient ownership of Eretz Yisroel, when there was no such thing as Palestinians until recent times. It is fine to make a point, but it should be based on real information, to MAKE the point.
And yes, there is a great deal of shmutz in Yiddish, as with any street language. There is also a great deal of Torah, as with English, Hebrew, and any other language in which Torah is learned.
Golfer,kjchosid, and DaasYochid – Though I understand where each of you is coming from in your opinions. I respectfully do not agree. I find it hard to think that our Avos or Moshe Rabbeinu conversationally spoke EXACTLY in the the way the Torah is written. And when I make a bracha, the language in which I am making it, which is LOSHON KODESH is, in fact what else if not Ivrit? It surely is not French, English, or Yiddish. I do not not daven “Zei Gebensched, Eibishter,” I say Boruch Atah Hashem. These words inarguably are Hebrew.
You may not like or hold by Eliezer Ben Yehudah for many reasons, but IMO he did one very good thing in his life by revitalizing the Hebrew language and making it more accessible to all of us. I guess this is one of those issues where none of us will change the opinions on either side. That’s fine, as long as we have civil discussions about it. Personally I think we are arguing semantically on this issue. We may not all be so far apart in our thinking.
A baby is meant to be nursed AND HELD during a feeding. If one chooses not to or cannot nurse for other reasons, then at least hold the baby while bottle feeding. Babies absolutely need the physical contact that nursing affords them. Propping the bottle deprives them (and the parent)of a very crucial developmental bond, which can affect their emotional development also (I am not making this up). Babies who are not held for feeding, do not thrive in the same way as babies who are. Nursing is best, but it is not for everyone, so at least give the baby the cuddling aspect of the nursing experiencing by holding him/her during a feeding. Some experts even feel it is a good idea (if feasible, of course) to hold the baby to one’s skin while bottle feeding, to simulate whatever is lacking when not being nursed.
If Golfer’s scenario is what is going on in your house, GET SOMEONE ELSE TO HOLD AND FEED THE OTHER BABY. Please don’t prop the bottle. This is a very hot button issue with me.
Ivrit while based on a holy language is certainly NOT a holy language “
When I am making a bracha, it is. When I am translating a posuk into it, it is. And Yiddish potentially has negative aspects to it as with any language. That said, I certainly do not want to see it die out. It is a rich language, as well, with expressions that simply cannot be translated effectively to convey their meaning.
If one is raised with the mindset that Yiddish is the only proper language for a Jew to speak conversationally, then there is really no changing that person’s mind. Before the Yiddish language was created, I suspect Jews spoke to each other nonetheless. And as I do not speak Yiddish, I will stick to the two languages in which I am fluent, English and Ivrit, and use them both.
Hashem’s intention was for ALL mankind to speak ONLY Ivrit. It was not until the Migdal Bavel incident that other languages were created by Him. I will presume that prior to that all mankind had many topics under discussion besides Torah, in the course of a day, including topics that made them chuckle. So I will likewise presume Hashem was apparently ok with Ivrit being spoken when discussing the weather, or else He would have created those second languages much sooner and instructed Adam and Chava NOT to speak Ivrit when say, tending to the animals or finding something to be humorous.
Yiddish had a vital place in Europe for a long time and should be honored for that reason. But to say it is more or even as holy as the language that MOST Jews speak today, is to be a little out of touch with reality. What Yiddish does today is the exact opposite of what it did before. Instead of INCLUDING vast numbers of Jews, it excludes most of us who no longer speak it.
Giving Chanukah gelt is a nod to the Chashmonaim who first minted coins. As it is not always practical to give little children money (and not even safewhen they are VERY little children), gift giving has become the practice in many if not most families. I doubt we can unring this particular bell.
mazel tov!
CoffeeAddict and Little Froggie, m’omek leiv, thank you.
Shavua tov to all.
I learned that Yiddish was spoken to stay separate from the goyim. I guess it would apply today too. “
Hebrew does that, too. Yiddish didn’t separate us from the goyim. It helped Jews all over Europe communicate with each other. Hebrew could have accomplished that, too, long before the Satmar Rebbie said a word about it. The people who spoke (and speak Yiddish) were holy, but the language was nonetheless based on a potpourri of goyishe language mixed with some Loshon Kodesh.
I am frankly sick of this entire inyan already. The one main thing no one is emphasizing is that parents (black, white, purple) ALL need to instruct their children from day one, that they need to speak respectfully to people in authority, NOT give them attitude and a fresh mouth, and be compliant when confronted with the police, especially when they are doing something illegal, however minor. A little incident can rapidly escalate into a tragedy. This could have been avoided in the Garner case, had he had the brains to recognize he was doing something wrong, and do what the officer said. he should not have gotten a “death penalty” for selling cigarettes, but that would not have happened had he not tried to resist arrest.
Someone made a very valid remark on the radio today – these inner city kids are being subjected to HIDEOUS gangsta rap type music all the time which urges them to commit awful crimes, including homicide, and this is the continuous and powerful brainwashing in the guise of entertainment, with which they live. What responsible, caring adult is teaching them otherwise? They clearly have allowed this trash to become an intrinsic part of their urban culture, and are doing little to stop it. I believe in freedom of speech and expression, but not when it urges people to act like animals. If anyone reads Newsday, take a look at the political cartoon on the editorial page.
Coffee Addict – Yom huledet sameach, and much nachas one ach new birthday ad emah v’esrim shana.
If you are so inclined, I would ask for brachos for good health and a refuah shelaima for all those in my family in need of same, without giving particulars. Thank you, and have a good Shabbos.
K Shkoyach we also say yuntif and chulamoid and shalashudes “
That’s Yiddish though. “
Uh… no… that’s actually HEBREW – Yom Tov, Chol Hamoed, and Shalosh Seudos. Most Yiddish is an amalgam of Hebrew and German that has been slightly re-worked.
I agree with Zahava’s dad. Yiddish once upon a time was a great unifier of Jews from all over Eastern Europe. Now, English achieves that same end. The difference is that people who still speak Yiddish, but who do NOT have a good command of English, do not benefit much from the MANY, MANY wonderful seforim that are written in English. Artscroll is Greek to them, secular education is a wash, and they appear uneducated, which sometimes works against them in the business world.
And while there are exceptions to every rule, the main reason Yiddish became a “universal language” for Jews, is that for Eastern European Jewry it was a necessity in order to be able to communicate. That necessity is no longer as great as it once was. Most people here speak English. Hebrew is Loshion Kodesh, and that is what our Avos spoke. BTW, not all Jews in Europe spoke Yiddish. Many spoke , Hebrew, Ladino or the languages of their places of birth.
Since checks are signed in English, contracts are written in English, and most business (uless Chassidish to Chassidish) is conducted in English, it behooves all of us to recognize English as a major language of Jews, besides Ivrit. There was a time when Jews spoke Aramaic to each other, but as that necessity became less crucial except for learning Gemarah, its use as a conversational language dwindled. We are seeing that today, with Yiddish, as well. Yiddish was spoken by holy people, but it is not intrinsically a holy tongue, no more than English is. I apologize if I am offending any Yiddish speakers – that really is not my intention.
It’s usually considered rude to speak in a foreign language around people who cannot understand. The first thing they think is that you are talking about them.
I would donate to ANOTHER (secular) cause, like the American Cancer Society, and send a nice sympathy note to the person whose father died. I do not think it is appropriate, mipnei darchei sholom or not, to donate money (to any organzation) that will potentially be used by ovdei A”Z. We cannot unknowingly contribute to someone’s A”Z, which is one of the 7 Mitzvos of Bnei Noach, so they as well as we, are chayav in it.
If it were anything OTHER than A”Z, it would be a lesser issued, but A”Z is a special catergory, in that even THINKING about committing it is a terrible aveira. I think this is an area in which we need to be really careful.
I would have said, “I am so sorry for (so and so’s) loss. I absolutely want to show respect for him by contributing to charity in memory of the departed. However, fopr personal reasons I cannot contribute to this particular organization, but would be very happy to contribute to another one in his name. Perhaps you know of another one that would be meaningful to So and So.”
Labels usually mean nothing. I dislike putting names on people. I know some very (what would be called) Yeshivish people who are phonies, and modern Orthodox Machmirim, who are emesdig frum, while they also listen to classical music, are well-educated secularly as well as religiously, and hold down decent jobs. Labels are meaningless, divisive, and often meant pejoratively. And worse, they mean different things to different people.
My tastes have changed completely over the years. I used to love a burnt steak, beyond well-done. Now, I won’t eat it unless it’s medium rare, with some pink inside.
Second hand smoke is overrated. I mean come on, if i’m smoking and Ruben passes by, I’m willing to bet that his chances of getting cancer are not higher after he passes by, or walks out of that entrance i have to be twenty feet away from. “
Most people affected by second-hand smoke live or work with the smoker. If a pregnant woman smokes, her fetus is smoking, too.
But if Ruben passes by and inhales your smoke, he could possibly be someone who is allergic to it, so don’t be so quick to automatically assume there is no harm done. If someone wants to smoke solely inside a bubble, kol hakavod. But it is unfair to force others to also breathe the air that is polluted by this habit, against their will.
Anyone recall Eleanor Bumpurs?
If this was a serious question – smoking is infinitely worse IMO. Unequivocally, it can and will kill, with very few exceptions. The Internet can also have a “killing” effect when used incorrectly, but smoking kills WHEN USED EXACTLY AS DIRECTED! You can also do teshuvah for anything inappropriate for which you used the internet, but once someone has lung cancer, emphysema, or has endangered someone ELSE’S life due to second-hand smoke exposure, there is no teshuva for that – only horrible, painful, suffering and choking to death.
I am actually looking for a good egg-free one. Any ideas?
I typically make my latkes by “feel.” I put several peeled and quartered potatoes in the processor with a large onion and a few eggs, salt and pepper to taste (I HATE WHEN PEOPLE GIVE THAT AS A DIRECTION!!!! I never know how much is “to taste” until I actually make the latkes!). Then I pulse the mixture several times until it seems ready. If the batter looks and feels right, I will proceed to frying.
After the first latke is made, I adjust seasonings if need be. Most of the time, it’s perfect as is, B”H. If too loose, I prefer to add potato starch vs. matzah mehl, as we have a gluten-free member of the family. NOW because of my grandson’s severe allergy, I need to also make them egg-free, or we are not having latkes this year.
LF, you’re hired to be my campaign manager!!!! I’m running to retain my current subtitle.
The answer is, there were no speeches”
And no mother-in-law… 😛
lookingforsem – You are so sweet, but I was in my mid 20s when I got married. Not so old, but not so young, either.
Haleivi, when someone ACTS as a nasi, then we follow that klal. But when he acts as a dictator who is accountable to no one but the man in the mirror, a law unto himself, then I feel a different klal is in order – the one quoted by Rabbi Akiva. I don’t feel any great friendship emanating from our nasi.
oomis – your already a bubby?! “
For over 8 years now, with four aineklach, bli ayin hara. I only SOUND young! (My joints tell me otherwise) LOL !
My pleasure.
OT, nicely expressed.
As to how to do the same – by always trying to be respectful of someone else’s point of view and not becoming disagreeable while disagreeing.
I have a good suggestion for you. Go to the website of [email protected] and sign up. Then follow all directions for receipt of email from the group (you need to go into mail preference settings, to see if you want digest form or individual emails). Then you will be able to post this same request as:
(type into the subject header box, precisely as I have written it below)
ADVICE?: Looking for dorm or room/board
(Body of post)
Looking for a dorm or room and board situation for a young man in 11th grade in a Far Rockaway Yeshivah. All suggestions will be appreciated. Please reply to this post or call…(your preferred contact number). Thank you.
That should give you responses from either the Yeshiva involved or people who open their homes to boarding situations. Hatzlacha.
The Jewish immigrants who came to the USA during the early 1900s, did so in order to make a better life for themselves. Apparently, so do the illegals. And there the comparison stops cold.
My ancestors did not go on Welfare, they learned to speak English without expecting the public school system to educate their children in their own language(s). They immediately took any jobs they could, often losing work as of Friday and having to start all over again. There was no unemployment insurance, no free medical care, no NOTHING for them. They not only survived, they thrived.
They were in a country that did not want them, simply because they were Jews. But they persevered and made something of themselves. They were religious, morally upright, hard-working family people, whose children excelled in school and went on to a better life for the most part.
They did not rob, mug, murder, assault people in order to get money to buy drugs. They did not carry drugs on their person from one country to another in order to sell them to others. Were there exceptions? No doubt. But the rule was that parents expected the highest achievement from their children, and did not teach them to feel entitled on someone else’s back. And therein lies the very big difference.
Experts-schmexperts, so long as we are healthy! 🙂
in other words terrorism is only worth fighting for when its against America”
But my problem here is that several of the Kedoshim WERE American. Daniel Pearl was a Jew, too. What did our nation do when HE was beheaded?
Now to address charliehall: I respect your right to believe as you wish and even to defend the honor of Obama, because this is a free nation. But I am honestly surprised and dismayed when time after time, ANYONE, and especially any frum Jew still does so. Obama has been unbelievably contemptuous of Israel, of its leadership, of its people, and of its extremely painful recent history (based on his inability to talk plainly about the terrorists). His arrogance knows no bounds. One could argue that the people who surround him, his advisors and speech writers, are the real ones at fault, but that was Achashverosh’s problem, too. Obama has too many Haman’s at his ear, and he himself is CLEARLY no Jew-lover.
He is Barak HUSSEIN Obama, and this is how he identifies first and foremost. Whatever he said that “sounded” like he was speaking out for Israel, did not address the issue in any way. His ONLY words should have been, “We condemn in the strongest terms possible, the butchering of innocent Jews, especially while in the midst of their prayers! There can be no moral justification for attacking rabbis wrapped in their prayer shawls. No ideology can allow such barbarism!” Instead he called for “both sides” to act to lower tensions. There would be no tensions whatsoever if these savages would stop attacking Jews. And anyone watching them dancing in the streets in celebration, holding up axes and guns, should be nauseated. AND OUTRAGED!
Someone made the really stupid comment somewhere that there is some type of equivalence between Har Nof and the actions of Boruch Goldstein, who also killed Arabs amidst their prayers. He should not have done what he did. The BIG difference however is, the Shul of Har Nof, was not an armory with a hidden cache of weaponry to be used to attack and kill Arabs without provocation. Unless I am very much mistaken (known to happen from time to time), there was a veritable arsenal that was discovered hidden in that Arab place of worship, (because who would expect someone to hide such things in a holy place?).
A president probably has to walk a fine line, but this is something that OUR president should have condemned in the harshest language possible, as well as any other world leaders who likewise were pretty silent because, “It’s only Jews.” I cannot wait for Obama to be permanently out of office. it is very clar where his allegiance lies, and it is neither with Israel NOR the USA, for that matter.
Music written by Jews is Jewish music. The only authentic holy Jewish music (of which I am aware) is that of the Leviim in the Beis Hamikdash. Everything else comes from anywhere that Jews have lived or travelled, or listen to in their surroundings. We cannot HELP but be influenced (the Maoz Tzur we sing, for example). To negate the coming together of musical notes, because it might have a non-Jewish origin, makes no sense to me (unless it is IMO really awful music, like certain types of heavy metal or jazz, which I personally do not much like), because we are continuously influenced by the world around us. And that is not necessarily a bad thing, musically.
When I first heard the Moditzer album, as a young(er) person, my first thought was that it reminded me of ANY march I had ever heard, though personally it was more melodious to me BECAUSE IT WAS MODITZ. It is the meaning behind the music that makes it worthwile. When I hum a “Jewish” tune that might have been secularly-based, I am not thinking, “WOW, what a great secular song!” I am thinking of how this song resonates with me, and that brings me closer to Hashem, especially if the lyrics are from Tehillim.
People can think and believe whatever they are comfortable in thinking, but for me, there is only MUSIC, neither Jewish nor non-Jewish. It is how we take the music and elevate it to a level of Kedusha, that makes all the difference. Just my very humble opinion.
Voos epes, I am not certain I gave you actual advice, more of an observation of what probably will happen. HOWEVER, to be safe, I would still see a doctor if you are bothered by it, to be certain there are no fractures or the like. I would not want you to refrain from seeking proper medical advice, based on what I said about my own situation. Each person’s situation is different. Feel better soon.
It’s all good. My husband had to have some treatments. B”H, he’s coming along. Thank you for your kind words.
FTR, though he may believe differently, the president of the USA is NOT a king. He is an elected official of this country, and unlike a king, IS ANSWERABLE to the people of this nation who put him in that position of leadership.
Little Froggie, I left my sense of humor at the hospital this past week. I really did NOT realize it was a jest. But neither did I find anything offensive in that post, so I think we are still good to go. 🙂
Rabbi Bender’s Yeshivah (Darchei Torah) is in Far Rockaway.
Rabbi Kelemer IS an Adam Chashuv meod and a Gadol b’Torah. There is more than one Shul in West Hempstead, and an eclectic variety of FRUM Jews live there. Some are more modern, and some are less modern. They are Shomrei Torah u’Mitzvos, so let’s not get into borderline L”H about WH, which is a very affordable community.
I have heard that there was talk of a Yeshivish community being established there. I don’t know if it is happening so quickly. When WH was established (and I only know this from people who helped establish it, it was a religious wasteland. Very few frum people were there. And now it is a vibrant Orthodox community.
Cedarhurst was ALSO pretty much a religious wasteland when the frum people began moving in. It had one Orthodox shul, where I am fairly certain most members in the CR would not feel too comfortable davening. Not to denigrate the shul, but its mechitzah left a great deal to be desired. So the families that moved in, mine among them, left to form their own shul,a Young Israel, under the leadership of a most choshuvah rov.
Don’t discount a community because it is not exactly what you feel is ideal for you. Move in and slowly MAKE it your ideal place, while being careful not to step on anyone’s toes along the way. West Hemsptead’s present population is comprised of some really wonderful people.
Don’t I wish, Little Froggie!!!!! I am just a seasoned vet of having things drop on my foot. I was once cleaning my dresser and pulled it out too far and the entire thing hit me squarely on the big toe. Big OUCH! It took nearly a year for the black nail to grow out.
If the nail was damaged it will take the better part of 6-12 months for the nail to grow out. If the nail BED was damaged, the nail could come back in with ridges. The toe will probably change colors over the next couple of weeks. Black and blue,then yellowish/green is normal.
Do you believe that seeing the best in someone is a BAD thing? We are all anonymous posters here, for the most part. I think most of us over the years, have gotten a “sense” of the personalities of the posters, i.e. kind, sarcastic, intelligent, witty, etc. Many of us have had posts deleted or edited from time to time (and WHY DID YOU DO THAT TO ME, MODS, HMMM?????), not for any nefarious reason, just because in the moment it was an executive decision to do so.
Sometimes discussions get too heated, sometimes they seem headed in a direction that could lead to an inappropriate remark being made by someone else. Whatever it is, I don’t believe that we have to ascribe negative traits to anyone because of the things we did NOT read from them (and even perhaps from those things that we DID read). Whether or not you agree with those opinions is up to you, but people are allowed to think as they wish, as long as they are not hurtful and mean-spirited, and are not chalilah derisive of the Torah.