Op-Ed: Friedman and Paltiel: Chassidishe Openness or the Thought Police?

A great person once told me that whenever she enters a room, the first thing she notices is the racial makeup of the people in the room. As an observer at last night’s question and answer session with Rabbis Manis Friedman and Yossi Paltiel, I was struck by how un-diverse the audience was. The room was brimming with an almost entirely young moderate- to very-chassidish crowd or those with the hergesh to wear white shirts on Gimmel Tammuz, if you will. Mostly older 770 bochurim and yungerleit.

What was more glaring was who were not there – the so-called single working class and the young Lubavitch college students. It is ironic that a program put on by the newly founded Besht Center did not attract an audience from their target group at one of its largest events of the year. But it is unsurprising considering how predictably unfulfilling these events tend to be. I only came down there because I felt I must do something on Gimmel Tammuz and because my friend paid my five-dollar admission fee.

Op-Ed: The Never-Ending Lynching of Sholom Rubashkin

So much for Christian charity.

Sister Mary McCauley, the former pastoral administrator at St. Bridget’s Catholic Church in Postville, Iowa, who provided support for families affected by the Agriprocessors raid, publicly condemned the complete acquittal of Sholom Mordechai Rubashkin on charges of child labor violations as a tragedy. “I was heartsick,” she declared. “I had to just sit and deal with the heartbreak I was feeling.”

Never mind that a jury deliberated only 12 hours to reach a verdict exonerating Rubashkin on all 67 counts. Never mind that Rubashkin, a father of ten with a long of history of charitable acts feeding the hungry and the poor, has been so demonized in the press that it was practically impossible for him to receive a fair trial, and still he was found innocent. The good sister is convinced that the man should have gone down. Her heart tells her so. The jury be damned.

Reizes on Elections and Voting

To Crown Heights Residents, Toshvei HaShechuna Sheyich’ :

We are holding community elections to choose candidates for Vaad Hakahol / CHJCC and for Gabboim, to run the crown jewel of crown heights, 770 Eastern Parkway – the Rebbe’s shul.

I will ask of you to please read the following with the attention that it deserves, and don’t judge the ideas by the writer but by the content.

The Rebbe once said that everything which happens in Crown Heights has an effect on the entire world. In a footnote, the Rebbe adds that (being that this generation is the last generation of golus, and the first generation of geulah, hence the culmination and climax of all generations therefore, the Rebbe emphasizes that) everything that happens in Crown Heights has an effect (not only on this generation but also) on all the previous generations.

Op-Ed: The Issue of the Withdrawal of Mesira

In an open letter to the community titled “Re: various claims on the issue of the withdrawal of Mesira,” Yosef Katzman and Yanky Sufrin explain the various claims on the issue of the withdrawal of Mesira.

Helen of Oy, Reuters, and the Deceitful Press

There was a time that I figured everyone to be mortal except for Helen Thomas. However, the 89 year old “Queen of the Press,” has proven her mortality through a royal indiscretion that will discredit her legacy.

Millions have now seen the footage of Thomas suggesting that Jews, “Get the hell out of Palestine,” and “Go back to Germany and Poland.” What’s more, Thomas’ awful remarks were made at a White House reception celebrating American-Jewish heritage.

Op-Ed: Hamas Hunger Strike or PR Strike on Israel?

I first heard about the Israeli commando counter charge of the now infamous flotilla while waiting to cross the U.S. border from Canada. As my wife and I listened to unconfirmed reports of casualties, I was reminded of a time while at the same U.S. entry port, I waited on queue along side a Red Crescent ambulance in tow. The West Bank-bound vehicle was being donated by a Muslim group in Quebec, and was subjected to a mandatory inspection as any vehicle would that was crossing into the United States.

18 Sons-in-law and counting…

From the Inbox

Being single is great, as we all know.

We can do with our lives whatever we want.

Op-Ed: Are Shalom Bayis Op-Eds OK for the Public?

Just the other day, as we were getting ready to set up dinner, my 12 yr old daughter asked me an extremely shocking question. “Why don’t you and Tatty get along?” My heart skipped a beat. I finally found my breath and asked, “Why would you say that?” In a most innocent voice, she simply replied, “Because Tatty is always on the computer.”

CNN Op-Ed: Stop the Hypocrisy About Israel

Enjoy hypocrisy? This past weekend you could glut the appetite.

On Monday, Israeli ships stopped a flotilla carrying materials that could be used for war, including cement that Israel maintained could be used to build bunkers, to Hamas-ruled Gaza. The crew of one boat resisted violently, triggering a firefight in which nine people were killed, most of them Turkish nationals.

Op-Ed: Non–Tznius Magazines in Frum Establishments

From the inbox: I am not against all secular magazines, but when I went to a Jewish owned beauty salon in CH I was surprised to see among the reading material, some magazines that have virtually no redeeming value whatsoever and the only reason that someone would read such as magazine would be to see what the less moral side of the world is doing.

Op-Ed: Chillul Hashem and a Census Bureau Worker

From the inbox: Dear Editor, this is a true event that happened earlier this evening when a census bureau worker knocked on my door.

Customer is Pleasantly Suprised with Stores Honesty

From the inbox: When a local business provides exceptional customer service, I think it should be publicized. I was in a Kingston shop yesterday and bought some things totaling a little over $100.00, the owner, called me to say there was a mistake in the charge.

Op-Ed: Achdus? Can It Really Happen?

I received a call from a neighboring Shliach the other day. It was about a student of his, originally from Atlanta. This student comes from a minimal Jewish background. Besides for the Pesach Seder and the High Holidays (“sometimes,” as the mother shared with me), there is no Yiddishkeit to talk of.

“We don’t do Friday night dinners,” confessed the mother. “We have too much going on. Julie (names have been changed) goes to dance, the boy plays sports, and we are not really motivated for Shabbos.”

Their oldest daughter, at college, away from home for the first time, has fallen in with a group of students from a different religion. She is now “discovering G-d,” and feeling really good about it. The G-d she should be looking for is, of course, a G-d she knows very little about. She has now finally found something to confide in.

Op-Ed: Achdus among Chassidim (Yidden)!?

Let us sit together and ponder. We’ll come up with ideas on how to achieve Achdus.

WRONG!

We are approaching the issue backward!

Why do we crave Achdus? What truly unifies us? Simple — our Neshamas are all part of one unit and therefore we intuitively crave Achdus. Intuitively, we feel fragmented without Achdus.

Practically, what is the key to expressing the Neshamah’s desire for Achdus? Torah and Halacha. Simply put, adherence to Halacha unifies Yidden. Without Halacha as our guide, all efforts for peace will at best be temporary. Halacha creates true homogeny and guides us to a single cause. Why do we eat food that has a Hasgachah from a Rav that belongs to a community that is very different from us socially and ideologically? Because we share common ground –Halacha.

Op-Ed: Man, Interrupted

Until today I didn’t cry. Until today my eyes did not water nor shed a tear. Until today my heart did not skip a single beat. Until today I did not lose a moment’s sleep. I am not a friend or relative of the Rubashkin family and I’ve never met Sholom Rubashkin.

Until today I read the mainstream news and followed the blogs. Until today I analyzed the facts and debated the case. Did Sholom Rubashkin commit a crime? If he did, was it intentional? Is he a vicious felon or a misguided fool? Was he actively involved in the crimes that were committed or was he simply in the wrong place at the wrong time? If he is a criminal, does he deserve prison time? If so, how many years? Should they be served in a minimum, medium or maximum security facility? Was the raid on Agriprocessors instigated by PETA and the unions? Is the prosecution being overzealous? Is there an anti-Semitic element to the prosecution?

Op-Ed: Tears for Nosson – My Friend

A friend is the greatest of all blessings, and that which we care least to thank.

Nosson, was the greatest friend one could wish for, we cried on his shoulder, and took pride when he laughed at our jokes, his robust smile lit his countenance, there was love radiating from him, his soft words and kind advice were an antidote to a soothing heart, he affected everyone that he met.

Tears streamed from our eyes when he heard about the tragedy, the pain is agonizing, all we could think of was “if Nosson was here we would gain comfort by crying with him”, but the comforter could not give comfort, the giver was no longer there, we needed to be pacified over the pacifier, as tears slowly stream down our cheeks our wide eyes stare out to the black space, our solemn voices crack with cries, our bodies shaking with fever fell crouching to the ground. The unthinkable happened.

When I first met Nosson in 3rd grade, I was lonely, being new to school he helped me be part of it, he always made you feel proud of what you accomplished, his nonjudgmental remarks came from a altruistic Neshama, with a heart of gold he shone like the midday sun, in 7th grade we had color war, when we were split up on different teams, he never hesitated to inquire how we were doing.