OrangeCountyChapper

ubiquitin, you would think that Tintin’s prodigious “chup” would have been effective protection against repeated blunt force trauma. As it turned out, my own chup provided little protection from corporal punishment. In fact it probably increased the frequency of both frask and patsch applications to my personal space.

I never read Tintin, but I had a “chup” like his, which my Rebbe despised. Therefore his books should be considered a bad influence.

Batman, on the other hand, dresses in black and covers his head, so he seems more Yeshivish. Plus his gloves help him avoid N’giyah when apprehending Catwoman.

AAQ > Far be it from me to argue with Chazal. While I think there’s merit to the logic that someone’s economic status can be a factor in compatibility, “character” is much more important. I know my wife, who comes from a family with higher economic status, appreciates and respects me more than someone else I could have been married to, with a lower status. “Same’ach B’chelko” is a large part of this as well as general Derech Eretz.

So not surprisingly, I have great contempt for the “Shidduch Resume”. Sure, I would counsel someone to look at a potential spouse’s location and education level but not much else. If I think there’s a POTENTIAL for like-mindedness, then I would want to meet the “candidate” and then the candidate’s family multiple times before making a decision. I really don’t think the Shidduch Resume would make that process more efficient. A Shidduch Resume would never reveal potential red flags which may be more critical than “Yichus”, so why bother.

Das, I was glad to see what you wrote, it provides some balance to my comments:

As a parent, if my son was clearly capable and motivated to learn at increasingly advanced levels, I would support him. If my son was only learning 8-12 blatt a year, I would push him to excel at something else. I would like to think that Rav Aaron saw Lakewood as a place where the Talmidei Chachomim and future Poskim can thrive, and their brothers who are not so inclined can be respected for becoming the best plumbers, doctors, etc. that they can be. And for those who do well in their jobs or businesses, I wouldn’t deny them buying nice dresses for their wives, as long as they also are giving back to the community.

We could have a long discussion about the “excesses” both for the people who pay for them, and the people whose parnossah is dependent on selling them. The bottom line is that we shouldn’t waste time judging others on matters like this, it only spreads contempt for the community, and hurts everyone. We should all be happy with what we have and focus on our own personal yiddishkeit.

“he is just not for me” is exactly what it means. It doesn’t mean that there’s anything wrong with your son, just that something the girl wanted wasn’t there. Or she saw or heard something she didn’t want. Lashon Hara and Rechilus could be factors. It could be something silly like your son’s appearance or voice reminded her of someone with whom she had a bad experience – which has nothing to do with your son. Or her friend got engaged to a certain type of guy and she wants someone “similar”, whatever that means. It’s possible that that the entire circle of maidlach your son is seeing has skewed expectations for a choson. Also older girls (and boys) can become set in their ways with a very narrow-minded view of who their bashert will be. There’s nothing to worry about. Tell your son to keep dating – the dating itself is a learning experience – and the right girl will surface.

It’s totally conceivable that by 2030 a self driving car will permit you to enter and take control with facial recognition, respond to “take me to Reb Pinchas’s shtiebel, but park two blocks away”. You won’t need to touch anything. Note I could have told the car before Shabbos to take me to the big shul, but I changed my mind.

Question for today – Can one ask Siri on Shabbos morning to set an alarm in case I get distracted, so I get to shul on time?

AAQ, You’re right about Romney being owed an apology about Russia, but you’re missing the point. Romney is just one example with appeal for moderates who feel both the Republican and Democratic parties has been hijacked by extremists. But the media prefers Trump as the de facto Republican leader because his antics and those of his extremist followers attract more clicks, and he makes a moderate Democratic nominee more electable.

While we enjoy quinoa in my home, and we don’t hold that it is kitniyos, we won’t go out of our way to have it on Pesach. We eat gebrokts and there’s already enough vegetables and protein to eat.

If I am a guest in someone’s kosher home, I would have no problem eating quinoa on Pesach. I would draw the line at quinioa “bread”.

Has the dairy lobby taken over? Cheese is not that healthy, but OK every once in a while.

For sandwiches go with turkey, chicken breast or tuna on whole wheat or thinly sliced rye. Add lettuce, tomato and a light smear of mustard, horseradish or salad dressing depending on what your kids will eat.

Adjust portion size based on the kids’ physical activity.

Yes on the veggies. Baby carrots and celery sticks are easy.

For fun add a handful or two of honey nut cheerios (still pareve the last time I looked)

I was driving on the Long Island Expressway sometime in the last year and passed a car with the license plate “CHOLENT”. This made me both hungry and quite envious. I have since done teshuva by giving tzedakah to the Clean Air Fund.

This thread gives me comfort that I could apply for a vanity plate with one of the alternate spellings.

Since the state won’t trust humans to cull the deer population, they can reintroduce natural predators – coyotes. Problem solved.

And unlike deer, coyote can be hunted legally throughout the winter in NY, once the deer population is under control.

Getting back to the original post, I don’t believe the airline CEO’s factor the passengers’ health interests into their opinion about the mask mandate. Of course they would prefer not to be responsible for enforcing mask wearing. As someone else here said, you could get sick by sitting next to a sneezing passenger before the pandemic. HEPA filters didn’t change it then and still won’t change it. For now, I will wear a mask because it makes me feel safer, regardless of my vaccination status. I don’t give a rat’s tuchus about what other people do.

If I were an airline CEO I would continuously poll the public over whether they would/would not fly based on a mask requirement. As the flying public’s opinion changes I would rerun the numbers and change my position about masking based on achievable revenue.

The city I live in? Here in Yehupitzville I have to snag three bears, five bucks and a turkey to make a minyan. But I’m close to Bloomingburg.

Reb E., your interpretations of Fiddler on the Roof are inspiring! But I suspect your wise lessons were not intended by the producers.

If we are going to tolerate some Pritzus to get a worthy lesson in Yiddishkeit, I would prioritize the Frisco Kid, where the hero gets back on derech, and The Mad Adventures of Rabbi Jacob over Fiddler. Okay, maybe not Rabbi Jacob, ha ha.

The notion of using software to censor pritzus in movies is hilarious. It’s like trying to find loopholes that would allow the movies to be considered kosher. If the director/screenwriter felt that pritzus, or simply shtus, was integral to their story, then the whole film is shtus, isn’t it?

I would support an effort to provide hechshers for truly wholesome and heimeshe films, assuming we can allow ourselves a little entertainment. It would be more kosher than watching sports where you can’t avoid the pritzus.

Always_Ask_Questions > I do earn enough to pay for the service myself, but you raise a fair point. If someone else was paying for my learning, and the car was essential to my learning schedule, it would be reasonable to ask my sponsor for financial assistance for an emergency repair. But I should have had enough income in the first place to cover routine expenses like fuel and oil changes, and enough basic car knowledge to deal with overheated engines, battery jumps, etc. Also, it would be totally appropriate for my sponsor to question whether I could afford, or needed, a car at all. An unreliable car can be a major distraction.

Your idea is a good one, since everyone who drives a car should have basic knowledge of what to do in an emergency, like mounting a spare tire, using jumper cables, etc. The owner’s manual for your car should explain these basic tasks you may need to do on the road. If you don’t have an owner’s manual it should be available online. AAA is also a good thing to have but you might have to wait an hour for them to come. Of course you should always have a fully charged cell phone.

Make the best use of your time and read the owner’s manual to know what preventive maintenance is expected, and leave the non-emergency repairs like oil changes to the professionals. If you are concerned that your lack of auto repair expertise makes you an easy mark for an unscrupulous mechanic, bring someone knowledgeable with you when going to the repair shop.

Reb Eliezer, are you saying that If the AI is trained to respond to “It is Cold” by turning on the heat, that this is allowed?

Could I train my AI Car to respond to “I better hurry or I’ll be late for davening” by rolling up to my doorstep and pop open the car door? Of course it knows where to drop me off, two blocks from my shul, under the overpass where I won’t be seen, because it understands Maras Ayin.

Alternatively instead of training for these specific spoken observations and responses, the AI could be programmed to simply maximize my comfort, and respond to my whinng using its best judgement.

We are Zoicheh to live in a time when these questions need to asked.

Shoyn. So how about 10 real daveners with Kavana participating on a videoconference? All can be heard, and all can see the chazan.

“Note that if you allow an autonomous car are Shabbos, you are probably allowing any use of computers or smartphones and even electric lights.”

Let’s stick to the point please. For what it’s worth, even if I had a truly autonomous car I would not use it on Shabbos in 2020 because of Maras Ayin.

But If you keep your cholent warm on a blech that you set up on Friday afternoon, then I don’t see why this kind of predetrmined use of energy is any more of a problem.

The premise is that the car is programmed to take someone on a predetermined trip at a preset time. Like a Shabbos Clock.

Or it could just follow a route from some homes to a shul or other Shabbos-appropriate place (NOT the Wawa) continuously through Friday afternoon to midnight, and again beginning Saturday morning. This is similar to a Shabbos elevator.

If you hold that either a Shabbos Clock or a Shabbos Elevator is Assur, then of course this convenience is not for you.

Reb Eliezer, surely you are joking. Are you suggesting Shmos 20:10 applies to autonomous cars?

Seems early to me. If I were the girl’s father I would still question the bachur’s maturity, no matter how learned or financially stable he might be.