5 Responses

1. Many experts are self certified. In medicine they are called quacks. Next time an expert opinion is given, find out the qualifications of this expert. You might be surprised how many have none.

2. One of the owners of a big shoe stores in Boro Park once told my mother that he had a shoe that came in very cheap. He put it out as a cheap shoe and no one bought it. Once he raised the price he sold it all

3. Goes to show you branding is very important

4. Rabbosai:

   That this story, about the foolishness of Yavan’s obsession with exterior beauty, comes to us, davka on Erev Chanukah, it is telling us: “Darsheini!”

   I propose that, in honor of the 36 lights that we are about to light, that we post 36 vorts – mussar, chassidus, gematriya (Payless = 191 (פיילאס) based on this story.

   I’ll start with a straight quote from the Mesillas Yesharim (Chapter 13): “[W]ho doesn’t know that the wearing of finery and rich embroidery results in arrogance? Even immorality is in its range, aside from the jealousy, desire, and cheating, which can come from [pursuing] anything which is [excessively] costly to acquire. Indeed, Chazal said (Breishis Rabbah 22:6): When the Yetzer [Harah] sees a person sees a person strutting about [with ga’avah], smoothing his clothing and playing with his hair; he says, “This one is mine!”

5. At times you’ll go to a simcha where you’ll find a fantastic expensive scotch which tastes aboslutely wonderful that in fact has been refilled with a cheap whiskey and no one can tell.