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Purim miracles

2006-03-13T18:12:00.000-05:00

WorldNetDaily.com: Fatah Purim attack foiled.

It is written that Purim will be from the only holidays which will be observed when Moshiach comes. The reason is that the Purim story shows the Jewish people at its best: with the odds against us, with the world planning our destruction, we did not recoil in fear, we did not put our hopes in false gods of world globalism, tolerance and appeasement, we did not just despair. We simply returned to our true path: our commitment to G-d's mission. We renewed our fulfillment of G-d commandments, and we prayed until the miracle happened. And happen it did.

May the entire Jewish people, most especially our brethren in Israel, enjoy a safe, secure and joyous Purim. And as in days gone by, may the plots of those who choose the path of Haman be returned upon their own heads.

Quite a ride

2006-03-12T03:53:00.000-05:00

telegraph.co.uk: The accelerator has jammed, the brakes have burned out and I'm trapped in my BMW doing 130mph.

Sometimes, the same thing happens to us, spiritually speaking. We're in too much of a rush to understand where we're going, and what for. If we don't hit the brakes in time, take a step back, and take stock of ourselves, we're lucky to come out with only minor injuries.

Strange currents

2006-03-12T01:42:00.000-05:00

"No man is worthy of me who cares more for father or mother than for me."
-J.C., Mathew 10:37

First Gay 'Marriage' Legalized, Now Spain Bans Terms 'Mother' and 'Father'
-LifeSite.net

I guess that the Christian and gay communities aren't as far apart as they seem...

Glasnost in Congress

2006-03-09T15:31:00.000-05:00

SFGate.com: Bush and the ports: The honeymoon is over.

Hirhurei Teshuvah

2006-03-07T06:15:00.000-05:00

Better one good deed than a thousand blog posts.

Brachos from $99!

2006-03-06T05:10:00.000-05:00

My family and I have been rolling from laughter by Kupat HaIr's brochures for a while. I never got around to putting my feelings on paper. Then Haaretz, Ph.D. came and said it all.

Going the wrong way

2006-03-03T04:40:00.000-05:00

I decided to give Google ads a spin. (By the way, I am prohibited by our contract from either clicking the ads myself or asking others to do so; I will therefore refrain from doing so. But neither will I ask you not to patronize our advertisers).

As everyone knows, Google is supposed to be smart enough to deliver context-sensitive ads, which in simple language means that it will scan ("crawl") through the site and offer ads deemed to be of interest to the reader.

I am therefore shocked and surprised not as much because this blog now carries ads for Islamic schools, liberal think tanks and initiatives for impeaching our President. The fact that it is my site that attracts these, er, flies, is unsettling.

Well, who's crazy, me or Google? You vote!

The infallibility curse

2006-03-02T21:05:00.000-05:00

"To err is human, to forgive divine." - Alexander Pope

An incredible phrase, and an incredible concept. Whether it be the one apologizing, or the one forgiving, the ability to backtrack and to deal with a new situation, an unexpected situation; to know that one needs to take stock of one's situation and if need be, to acknowledge one's own fallibility, to acknowledge a mistake; all this is part of the same unique ability. It is a gift with which G-d has endowed only humans, created in His own image. The advantage Man has over the animal, or machines.

By contrast, not knowing how to check oneself, is arguably the greatest impairment to creativity, initiative and leadership. One who cannot acknowledge his mistakes, he who does not know when to stop and say "Hold it! Things are not as they should be!", this is someone who's many talents will all have been for naught.

And it seems to be the problem plaguing our president.

Whether it be his row with McCain over torture, the ports deal, his Iraq statements, or anything else, one thing has struck me every time I have seen, heard, or read any of his statements. It is his self-assuredness, bordering on borderless arrogance. It is not the assuredness of one who has experienced doubt. It is the quintessential "Just trust me".

This is a quality that looks pretty good at a presidential job. "He's the president, he should know" is a pretty normal response for the average citizen. It takes a while to realize that one can conceivably say "Trust me" on just about anything and everything.

Nowhere did this reach a head more than in the latest Katrina tapes. Warnings were given that the levees might be breached. Nothing was being done. Brown warned about it, Chertoff warned about it, every person who knew anything warned about it.

The President? "We are fully prepared".

If that's not self-assured, conceited garbage, what is?

This is also the challenge facing myriad Jewish institutions, notably the religious groups. The courage to see that things are not as they ought to be; and the courage to go ahead and change them. Lubavitch, certainly since 1994, is no exception. The Rebbe was certainly one who knew and understood the horrors of stagnance and complacency, and fought it tooth and nail. It is the role of his followers to perpetuate that trend. So far, they're being pretty rotten at it.

Come to think of it, this is probably the challenge facing you and me. Chassidut elaborates at length how the holiday of Purim symbolizes the refusal to make peace with any kind of limitations or boundraries. Time to get going.

Drive-thru weddings

2006-03-02T13:30:00.000-05:00

MSN Video: Ohio couple marries in McDonalds.

The event is obviously a Christian one. Who on earth is the Lubavitcher escorting the bride down the aisle?

With this kind of an attitude to marriage and life in general, no wonder so many marriages end up going the way of the fries basket.

Arab "tolerance": More hypocrisy

2006-02-26T10:10:00.000-05:00

The Zionist Conspiracy - Joe Schick: King Abdullah's Facade.

In general, the very idea of a "tolerance award" is rather dubious. Since when do I have to thank you for "tolerating" me? Only my agreeing, expressly or implicitly, that I am in truth a scum not worth being tolerated, can I thank someone for going "beyond the call of duty". With this kind of a "Galut outlook", it is but natural that bigots and racist countries ala Jordan should also be considered "tolerant".

This is what Alan Dershowitz is good for. Alan, make your voice heard!

Democrats are winning on National Security

2006-02-24T16:20:00.000-05:00

Add to the jokes about the best golfer being black and the best rapper being white, this beautiful snippet from Rasmussen Reports:

For the first time ever, Americans have a slight preference for Democrats in Congress over the President on national security issues. Forty-three percent (43%) say they trust the Democrats more on this issue today while 41% prefer the President.
The preference for the opposition party is small, but the fact that Democrats are even competitive on the national security front is startling.

Just in case you thought that there was a natural way to get through this world...

Dershowitz is doing something good?

2006-02-24T13:13:00.000-05:00

Jewish World Review: All praise Professor Alan Dershowitz.

Tony Blankley reviews Preemption, Alan Dershowitz's new book on the realities of civil liberties in a post-9/11 world:

Next week a vastly important book will be published: "Preemption, A Knife That Cuts Both Ways" by Alan Dershowitz. Yes, that Alan Dershowitz: the very liberal civil libertarian, anti-capital punishment Harvard Law School professor. And but for my lack of his legal scholarship, there is nary a sentence in the book that I — a very conservative editor of the Washington Times, and former press secretary to Newt Gingrich — couldn't have written.

Innovative Punishment

2006-02-24T12:45:00.000-05:00

NWITimes.com: Teen's now 'poster boy' for better conduct

A boy who had used vulgar language was made to stand outside for a day on a street corner picketing against his own behaviour.

You can judge a book by its cover

2006-02-22T18:55:00.000-05:00

Try and contrast the visual image projected by Hamas's Arabic homepage and its' English one.

Talk about hypocrisy

2006-02-22T18:10:00.000-05:00

New York Post: A securiy guard at the UN busted drawing swastikas on a log sheet "was issued a letter of reprimand and asked to attend sensitivity training". His name and nationality were not released.

A far cry from the UN's reactions to the cartoons, wouldn't you say?

"Rastalubab" - Oxymoron?

2006-02-21T17:36:00.000-05:00

Melody Maker: The true story of a White Plains boy who found both God and reggae.

(via 770EasternParkway.com)

"There are actually a number of similarities between Rastafarianism and the Lubavitch, including strict adherence to the Old Testament, dietary laws that shun pork and shellfish, a proscription that women keep their head covered, and a fervent Messianic belief—for the Rastas in Haile Selassie, who claimed to be a direct descendant of King David; for some Lubavitch, in Menachem Schneerson. One Rasta sect considers itself the Lost Tribe of Israel, and another early Rasta proselytizer wrote that 'A Rastafarian is a Jew by nature, being a righteous one of principles, dignity and love for God.'"

Never Forget

2006-02-21T03:23:00.000-05:00

Reuters: Austria sentences Irving to jail for Holocaust denial.

Chilul Hashem.com

2006-02-20T01:30:00.000-05:00

Via Vos Is Naies:

Being a judge for anyone unlucky enough to have presided over the recent court wrangles between two rival factions of Satmar Hasidim has probably never felt more like contemplating a new career.

When our warmongers said "To ---- with the Rabbonim, let's go to court", we thought that was bad. (And it is. Very, very bad. In fact, on one of the sides - which clearly has a rabbinical council to which all who suscribe to that side agree - two of Lubavitch's head honchos have gone to court against each other too).

But, as it turns out, not entrusting right and wrong to Rabbonim isn't the end of it.
Hashem Yishmreinu.

Freedom takes some hard work

2006-02-20T01:00:00.000-05:00

Washington Post: Glasnost hitting China.

And on mentalblog.com: Likkutei Maysim and Rudderless.

I was just enlightened as to the meaning of red pill and blue pill. A profound concept, and enjoyable reading.

Hamas beginning facelift

2006-02-19T02:51:00.000-05:00

JPost.com: Hamas working on "new charter".

A charter is supposed to be the guiding document of a movement. Under normal circumstances, if a charter needs to be changed, it means one of two things: 1) Something has fundamentally changed in the surrounding world. 2) Something has been acknowledged to have been very wrong until now.

But I'm trying to approach the Arabs logically again. Silly me.

Late Post: Yud Shvat

2006-02-16T23:52:00.001-05:00

I have been mulling this post for a while, namely whether it should at all be posted. There are sites that have been set up to bash Lubavitch, and some others that consider it their business to express their disappointment with the movement. So technically, there's no real need to add my two cents.

But if I am calling attention to relatively meaningless, obscure bits of nothing, then surely I ought to focus some of my attention to what I feel is not just an isolated occurence, but a disturbing trend.

Without going into history, it has been awhile since I last set foot in the "Rosa Hall" on one of the major days on the Lubavitcher calendar. I came this past Yud Shvat hoping, if nothing else, to hear some inspiring words. Whether it was to be called a Farbrengen or "conference", the dais was filled with scholars and Chassidim of no ordinary caliber, and regardless of whether or not I agree with their general approaches or even what they would be saying tonight, it promised to be interesting.

I came away sorely disappointed.

The makeover of Lubavitch into Lubavitch, Inc, is complete. The tone and atmosphere at the event was reminiscent of a corporate dinner bash more than an evening which would conceivably be the Rebbe's most emotional day of the year. From the tone and rhetoric being pushed by the emcee, to the reports given by "Netzigei HaYeshivos" (anyone remember anything remotely similar in pre-'94 days?) about Yud Shvat preparations around the world, which without exception made at least as big a point of the amount of money raised as the preparations themselves, and which culminated in a public degradation of Torah study, to the rambunctious applause thereafter; this was an evening simply not worth having happened.

To be sure, there were other speakers who spoke sincerely and eloquently about the theme of the hour and our connection to the Rebbe. There was even one who hinted at protest of some of the foregoing. But that any of this should be possible on Yud Shvat of all days, on an evening when the Rebbe would address the world, nauseated me. I wanted to puke; I am sure that the Rebbe would want to, as well.

ומסיימים בטוב.

And I thought Russians don't have spine

2006-02-16T23:52:00.000-05:00

From NY Post - Weird but True:

Seventeen inmates at a Russian prison took drastic action when they were told they could no longer watch their favorite TV show because it was moved to a later time slot.

They slashed their wrists in protest.

But their bloody actions didn't do any good — all are fine and "The Zone" — a prison-based drama — is no longer seen at Prison Camp 2 in Yekaterinburg.

Cartoon News III

2006-02-16T19:02:00.000-05:00

(From the ADL website)

And a jewel from the AP write-up:
"The tension has noticeably increased anti-western dialogue in the Muslim world"...

The Wicked Son

2006-02-13T19:34:00.000-05:00

Treppenwitz: The Wicked Son
(via mentalblog.com).

Finally, someone who managed to spell out clearly that which for a while I have been unable to: that the delegitimization and isolation of the right justifies their taking drastic measures.

More on the cartoons

2006-02-13T19:15:00.000-05:00

A brilliant perspective about the cartoons by Michelle Malkin.

And on the author's blog, the cartoons themselves.

Not all lawyers are liars

2006-02-13T18:56:00.000-05:00

I had to speak to a traffic lawyer in Binghamton. He was a wonderful person who told me everything that had to be done, and how to do it myself. All on the phone.

If anyone in the Binghamton area needs any kind of regular law work, check out his website: http://www.binghamtonlawfirm.com.

Fight fire with fire

2006-02-02T12:53:00.000-05:00

Ask anybody which European countries are the most sympathetic to Islam and Muslims in general and the Palestinian cause in particular, and you will be told France and Denmark. It is therefore very, very enjoyable to see what is happening now.

And these are the countries whose citizens Fatah gunmen are aiming at, because of one stupid cartoon. Beggars can't be choosers; these people have built everything you have.

But will the French and the Danish acknowledge that these people are lowlives, that is another matter...

Back to normal

2006-01-28T20:58:00.000-05:00

Yahoo News:
Hamas Suggests Using Militants in Army.

Things are slowly beginning to return to normal:

Mashaal says that Hamas will abide by existing agreements with the country "as long as it is in the interest of our people"; an interesting definition for "abiding by an agreement".

Israelis are demanding that Hamas "look for peaceful solutions" to the conflict.

Hamas, not an organization known for wasting time, is openly starting to build an army. And the finale...

President Clinton is suggesting talks with Hamas. Why not, they are after all, duly elected representatives of the Palestinian people, moreover they "abide by their agreements"...

Reverse McCarthyism

2006-01-28T20:43:00.000-05:00

Moving from the sublime to the ridiculous, it seems that Senator Dianne Feinstein is not anti-war, anti-Bush and anti-Iraq enough to suit the radical left camp.

Asscciated Press: Cindy Sheehan, the peace activist who set up camp near President Bush's Texas ranch last summer, said Saturday she is considering running against Sen. Dianne Feinstein to protest what she called the California lawmaker's support for the war in Iraq.

Marvin Schick

2006-01-26T06:18:00.000-05:00

At the risk of dragging on with a point that has been belabored ad nauseam mamash, I will add my two kilobytes to the ruckus.

The omnipresent shallowness behind the response to Schick's article betrays one of the problems confronting us today. It is not only the profound am haaratzut, simple ignorance that characterizes our religious youth across the board; it is the institutionalization of this ignorance. Asking hard questions these days is more uncommon for a yeshiva bochur today than it ever was before. Things have come to the point that stagnation is formally encouraged. The form depends on the sect; the responses to intellectual deviance range from bookbanning to excommunication to cries of "Maskil!" (תרתי משמע), "Nifrad!". The concept of emunah lema'ala misechel, as explained in Chassidut, has nothing in common whatsoever with what I am writing about: nowhere was this doctrine used to abolish Talmudic debate, works of the caliber of the Kuzari, and so on. Any attempt to connect the one with the other, is lack of depth at best; at worst, it is willful falsification and distortion. The Lubavitcher Rebbe did not produce 200 volumes of brilliant discourse just to have it parroted blindly the world over.

I just read Marvin's two articles again: whether I agree with him or not, his article was well-written and expressed genuine admiration tempered with real concern with real problems. The tone reminded me of Pat Robertson's reaction to Ariel Sharon's condition; the reactions to both bore a striking resemblance.

Manis Friedman's response is not new; he has been espousing this idea for a while. There is certainly some merit to it. That said, King Solomon said many thousands of years ago (Proverbs 21:30): אין חכמה ואין תבונה ואין עצה נגד ה.

Let us hope that we will wisen soon. More than we imagine depends on it...

Hamas: Didan Notzach!

2006-01-25T22:43:00.000-05:00

Plenty of people are watching the Palestinian elections with an awful lot of trepidation, among them the governments of Israel, the United States and Europe.

In classic Jewish style, Olmert was virtually on his knees pleading with the Palestinians to elect someone good for Israel rather than someone who would expose the naked Emperor. Hamas may be, and probably indeed is, great for the Palestinians, but not very good for the Jews. The trouble is that the Palestinians, not the Jews, are the ones voting, so count on them to vote for who is good for them, not us.

No longer can anyone say that the problem lay in Arafat, or anybody else for that matter. No longer can anyone babble about "waiting for a better partner"; if Abu Mazen must educate us, then so be it. Let us listen to him: "We are partners with the Israelis. They don't have the right to choose their partner".

The results so far show that almost less than half of the Palestinians have chosen a party that sanctions terror under the carpet; the majority are not interested in beating around the bush, and have voted H-A-M-A-S. Once the democratic process is underway, it must be respected: The Arabs are talking here, listen to what they are saying. It is perhaps the first time in history that a nation made an informed choice, in the most free and democratic of ways, to formally embrace terror as a way of life.

So everyone is nervously trying to figure out what to do, now that Hamas has shocked the world by getting twice the votes anyone dared forecast. Fatah managed to hide its involvement in terror, at least to the satisfaction of those who were willing to go to any length to not see it. Hamas makes no pretense whatsoever as to its intentions. In the most polite and blunt way, they have stated: Recognition of Israel, "negotiating" with Israel, ending terrorism, is "not on the agenda". This puts everyone into a quandary: Even Israel cannot be expected to negotiate with someone who openly, officially calls for its destruction. Bush has said the same up till now: "Not until you renounce your desire to destroy Israel will we deal with you". But nobody seems to be asking: why negotiate? What for? If Hamas will now "recognize" Israel, he will deal with it? These people are bloody terrorists!

Anyone with an ounce of sense, be it Israel or the Bush Administration, would gladly seize on the opportunity to realize that the Emperor is naked, and that we have not only no real or true partner for peace, but no partner at all. It is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to return to the status quo, and make some true peace in the Middle East, Afghanistan/Iraq-style.

But dont count on anyone currently holding the cards to capitalize on it. The Jews will behave themselves nicely and properly to the end. G-d Almighty, have mercy on us...

The wolf shall dwell with the lamb

2006-01-19T05:38:00.000-05:00

Yahoo! News:
Hamster, Snake Best Friends at Tokyo Zoo.

BlueEyes Magazine

2006-01-19T02:56:00.000-05:00

Chabad: A Photo Essay.
(via mentalblog.com comments)

Blue Eyes Magazine is one of the most stunning modern photo collections I have ever seen. The coverage of 9/11, Chabad, Haiti and more are simply astounding.

Old jokes, new flavors

2006-01-18T04:51:00.000-05:00

A Good Joke
(via BuchrimBlogs)

"This short is based on an old joke, a perennial in compilations of Jewish humor. Although the details differ between versions, the scene remains the same:
A priest challenges a rabbi to a debate on the spiritual condition of the Jewish people. But neither speaks the other's language, and... well, I won't spoil the punch line."

JC's killer about to become a hero

2006-01-12T15:54:00.001-05:00

London Times:
Judas the Misunderstood: Vatican moves to clear reviled disciple’s name.

I found the logic rather confusing. If any person who did something devilish can be cleared because he was "playing a role in G-d's plan", this begs the question: Who isn't? Pharaoh? Hitler? Is there a 2000-year statute of limitations on fiends?

Or is this just the next step in Christianity's own self-destruction?

State of Judea gaining force

2006-01-12T15:54:00.000-05:00

Read the WND article.

The State of Judea: Halachically Acceptable?

2006-01-09T00:11:00.000-05:00

So it seems this was in the works for a while. A Jewish state remaining in "the territories", that would have nothing to do with the State of Israel.
It seems that the government is getting nervous about it. Just google the State of Judea, and you get a flabbergasting amount of hits.

How would this fit in with the "שלש שבועות"? Has the State of Israel broken that already?

The Jewish side

2006-01-08T23:58:00.000-05:00

(Reuters photo)

Yahoo! caption: Jewish men pray for ailing Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon in a synagogue in Moscow January 8, 2006.

Some praying, eh?

The Gospel of Political Correctness

2006-01-05T23:23:00.000-05:00

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has fallen ill. The reactions are as emotionally charged as they are diverse. In the beautiful language of Rabbi Zevin, הללו מהללים והללו מחללים. Media outlets that have earned a name for their left-leaning bias have begun to refer to him as "a longtime hawk turned peacemaker", "man of great courage", and other titles with rather positive connotations.

In the meantime, a few people dare to speak their mind on the issue that has plunged the Prime Minister into the news in the first place.

Let us for a moment cast aside the poor Jewish souls in Chevron that are celebrating much as their landsleit in Hebron are rejoicing. Let us also disregard the ethical and moral aspects of judgement on a person who has done much good as he has done much bad. Let us forget the political ramifications of a country that is in the middle of a war and suddenly without a real leader.

That all said, the simple fact remains that a standard has been upheld. From the days of Menachem Begin, not one single Israeli leader has played around with the Jewish ownership of the land of Israel without speedy downfall. This downfall has taken on various forms, but the point remains the same, be it through losing office in disgrace, assasination, losing office in even greater disgrace, losing office in yet greater disgrace, or being hauled out of the show without any human intervention at all.

Pat Robertson's remarks were in every aspect readily discernible from blind rhetoric. At every turn he emphasized his personal sympathy for a friend, and distinguished between that and the act of calling a spade a spade. Even a close friend can be wrong - dead wrong.

Contrastly, the knee-jerk level reactions to those comments were shallow and unenlightening. Mostly, they were by Jews, who were terribly frightened that the world - the goyim - may actually take seriously the child's observation that was being made. The shande far di goyim would be too much to handle.

ADL chief Abraham Foxman was first on the damage control scene, saying that "His remarks are un-Christian and a perversion of religion. Unlike Robertson, we don't see God as cruel and vengeful". This is a curious comment, coming from a person who is not religious, less so Christian, and his comments on how we view G-d only show that he obviously hasn't read the Jewish Scriptures, Talmud, Codes, or any other credible sources anytime recently.

Regardless of whether one agrees with him or not, Robertson's remarks have objective validity, and were expressed in a most thoughtful and sensitive manner. The point is potent enough to shine through nonetheless: Our religion is one that recognizes retribution on this earth for our actions. In a case such as this, when an overweight but otherwise perfectly healthy person totally collapses in what seems to be a perfectly orchestrated place and time, is one truly doing something so bad by speculating openly on what is apparent to all? But the gods of not saying what ought not be said will not be denied.

To be Continued

Obsession with cars, analyzed

2005-09-21T22:02:00.000-04:00

Chassidus refers to something called רצון הנעלם בעצמותו, which translated into English means roughly that I can want something, but so deep down that I myself am unaware of my wanting it. OK, the obvious question comes up: if my desire is so repressed that I am not aware of it at all, then of what meaning is that desire?

The explanation I heard a few years back made use of a well-known Talmudic saying, that "a man who does not have a home is not a man". The meaning of this, Chassidut explains, is that essential to every person's is the existence of a private domain, where he gets to be himself. Not in any function or capacity (student, teacher, passenger, customer, client, worker, etc.), but just himself. This same idea goes to explain what we are trying to accomplish down here; to make this physical world a place where G-d Himself, as it were, could feel at home.

This need is implanted in the human existence; while not necessarily emerging for a long time, it is deemed to be hard-wired into the human psyche by definition. Fair enough; in the real world, we do indeed place much emphasis on a home. Someone without a fixed address is not simply deemed to be that much poorer than others; "homeless" is arguably the most pitiful label we can give a person.

That said, what of those who focus more on an expensive car, with every trapping possible, than on their home?

The difference between a home and a vehicle is primarily in their inherent purpose. A vehicle's purpose is by definition utilitarian: to get me from here to there. The meaning of a home, as said before, is not simply a place to sleep. In it lies a value that transcends utility; it is where one becomes himself. But a car has many of the same characteristics that make a home unique; it, too, is a private domain where more and more people are finding their expression. Why is a car that different from a home?

Because if one's whole passion is in something mobile, in something the point of which is to transport him somewhere else, that makes him someone who has no life in the present. One whose very being consists of getting somewhere else, anywhere and anything but here and now. בלשון החסידות, the quintessential חיצון.

Just a thought to reflect on before Rosh Hashanah...

Blogging is being put on hold

2005-09-17T21:30:00.000-04:00

I would like to announce to my rather limited but loyal readership that I am putting my blogging on total hold for the time being. This month, the month of Elul, is a month that Jews from time immemorial have set aside as a time of introspection, of soul-searching, of resolution to make the next year better than this one has been. It is a time when, as Chassidut has us know, there is a G-dly revelation in this world that beckons even to those who would prefer to believe that they are beyond hope. A time for renewed acceptance of our commitment to fulfilling our G-d-given mission on earth.

In this spirit, I have come to the realization that as enjoyable as this blogging exercise may be, it is not what I ought be occupying myself with, at least not at this sublimely holy point in time.

I expect to meet up personally with some of you in the upcoming month. May you and the Jewish people in Israel and abroad be inscribed for a good and sweet year, both materially and spiritually.

Brilliantly Direct

2005-09-12T23:00:00.000-04:00

I have been staying away from WND and Joseph Farah for a long while. I did not at all like his response to the Jewish reaction to the Passion movie. Ever since then, his evangelical leanings have crept more and more into the open. Yes, Israel's best friends today are evangelical Christians, but one can be at least a little discreet about it. Farah wasn't. From speaking about the "Judeo-Christian" values that shaped america, he started more and more to drop the "Judeo" part.

However, I'm back these days. WND remains one of the lone voices in the anything-remotely-close-to-mainstream media that speaks the truth about Israel, calling a spade a spade. Farah's understanding of American politics is also strikingly deep.
This article is one that I find fitting for someone who truly believes in the American ideal. He is direct and to the point. He is good.

Reminiscing...

2005-09-12T20:30:00.000-04:00

Today I was studying a Chassidic discourse, a Ma'amar, that I had not looked at for several years. Nearly a decade ago, I was a young, impressionable yeshiva bochur, a child for all practical purposes, exactly at the age that was open and thirsting for some guidance, direction, meaning. The age when an authentic call to morality, to a higher responsibility, to service of G-d, would make an indelible mark on his thinking and approach to life.

The Ma'amar (ד"ה אחרי ה' אלקיכם תלכו, ה'תרצ"ז) dealt with the different levels in which we as Jews relate to G-d simultaneously; as children, and as servants. The Rebbe proceeds to elaborate on the difference; the child is by definition devoted to his parents, and anything that is dear to the parent will be of necessity likewise dear to the child. No commitment is required on the child's part; the relationship is natural and automatic.

The Ma'amar then proceeds to the relationship between a (true) servant and his master; the servant has no inherent interest in doing what he does for his master, receives no renumeration, will never inherit his master. If it would be up to him, he would do anything but serve his master. Nonetheless, once he has become a servant, he is characterized by total, single-minded devotion to the master's command, with no expectation of renumeration ever. He knows no rest from his labor; even when he sleeps, it is a sleep that can at any moment be cut short because he must arise to do his duty. With time, his servitude becomes second nature, to the point that notwithstanding that he has no personal interest in whatever he may be doing being done, his ultimate hapiness in life is to see his master pleased by his toil. The master's hapiness becomes his own hapiness: his identity is his own no more; but since he has surrendered himself to serving his master, his self-definition is that of a servant; that which pleases his master, is what makes him rejoice. The analogy in our service of G-d is obvious.

In this age of "freedom", where unhindered pursuit of self-gratification is the norm, when any bounds, at least those of basic humanity, are anything but the norm, the idea of one being entirely given over to a calling that will bring him no immediate happiness is anathema. But it is the type of radical idea that will readily capture the heart of one searching for a deeper truth.

Many years have passed, and all it took was one short look at that Ma'amar to bring me back to those days of confusion, clarity, longing and security that mark a child raised in a morally strong environment passing into the turbulence of adolescence. It is refreshing to know that those feelings are not entirely gone yet, not entirely swept away by the "stability" of ceasing to look for anything (baalabatishkeit בלע"ז); they are dormant just beneath the surface, waiting to be reawakened.

Emotions are a beautiful thing, but they are not enough; they must be harnessed into some useful change in one's day-to-day life. We are in Elul; time to get moving.

More evacuation details

2005-09-08T23:28:00.000-04:00

From the NY Times: Police Begin Seizing Guns of Civilians.

Go through this article and read the details. The weapons confiscation in advance, amid people dead on left and right. The ban on civilians having weapons of any kind (this is America, anyone remember the Second Amendment?). The "option" being offered of "voluntary evacuation" before being forced out. The choice of using police rather than National Guard. The "support" being offered by the president from the dry comfort of Washington. Even if I would believe that Gaza has nothing to do with this hurricane, I would say that it has been used as a textbook lesson in this evacuation.

Moment in the limelight

2005-09-08T23:23:00.000-04:00

According to several news reports, New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin considers himself important enough as to make the invective he hurled in the direction of the federal government and the President reason enough to assasinate him. During the time he should have been running his city, it seems he was busy reading Robert Ludlum novels.

The problem is not that there are stupid people in this world. The problem is that in a country that is the very symbol of democracy, the result of the system is that this kind of moron, a crybaby who will swear at the President and anyone else in sight for money instead of using his own city's emergency plan and saving some lives, gets democratically elected by a city of 500,000.

The isolated acts of heroism in this story that is at the same time both horrific and pathetic, do help restore some confidence in humanity. But not much.

A teenager who had never before driven a bus, "stealing" one and driving a busfull of people to the Astrodome is gallant heroism. Putting him behind bars and describing his actions as "an example of extreme looting" is heinous. Again, Farah is right on the money when he says that American society has possibly already decayed past the point of no return.

Every occurence is a challenge and an opportunity, on both the personal and the communal level. Let's see if we can stop blowing it.

The Arabs are doing a fine job so far

2005-09-07T21:06:00.000-04:00

Arutz Sheva: Arab Mob Kills Moussa Arafat.
If Israel was indeed trying to pull out "unilaterally", it could at least have done so in style. We could have done it years back, and we should have taken with us the telephone, the electricity, the hospitals, everything. You want the land? Here it is: take it. Nothing more. Why should we repay your terror by not only leaving, but leaving a full ready infrastructure for these animals?
We would have been back in Gaza, by the Arabs' own request, within weeks.

Auschwitz - Reflections

2005-09-05T12:39:00.000-04:00

Standing first from the watchtower then from the memorial and looking out at the monstrosity known in the world's concience as Auschwitz. Among the feelings that sink in, the starkest is simply awe: awe at the sheer size of the beast; awe at the efficiency of the machine of death that man built. To have come up with something like Auschwitz, one must be nothing short of an absolute genius. The arrangement of the bunkers; the cordoning off of the gas chambers/crematoria from the rest of the camp, so that no SS could enter, but “shipments” of doomed Jews could get there in a moment's time. Awe at the German orderliness and efficiency leaving its mark at every step of the way, here of all places. This camp is a brilliant conception, art even; only that at its' very core, it is a machine of death.

At no point in time did the Lubavitcher Rebbe's clarion call to moral awareness ring more clear:

“If there was ever any doubt whether just and righteous behavior is possible only when based on the realization that such is G-d’s desire, or it is also possible when based on mortal considerations, on human wisdom and doctrines and behavior codes — all doubts have been resolved in this generation. The same people that prided itself on its scientific and philosophic accomplishments, that prided itself on its sons who devoted decades to intellectual inquiry and research and who authored books on these subjects, that had so many students pursuing knowledge — that people wrought the most horrific and evil of deeds.
The holocaust was not the result of one mentally unbalanced individual who coerced others into helping him. Everyone who was there, I amongst them, saw how enthusiastically that folk accepted him, expressing the hope that he would bring to realization their heartfelt longing to slew ‘Deutschland uber alles’.
The only way, then, to ensure that people behave decently and morally, is a code of conduct not of human invention but based on the fulfillment of G-d’s will. In the words of the Rambam: “‘They should accept (the Seven Noachide Laws) and do them [not because they may be logically appealing, rather] because G-d commanded them in the Torah and let us know of them through Moshe Rabbeinu.’”

Surprisingly, there were many more non-Jews than Jews there. I brought up this point in conversation with several of them. Not surprising was that most of them agreed with me far more enthusiastically than your average Jew.