Willi

An interesting post about Williamsburg problems. Check out the Chasid with the M16 cartoon. That's hilarious!

My Quibbles with Chasidim

A reader posted the following comment on my Freedom for Chasidim rant:

Are you suggesting that as long as they let you have a TV at home and/or other religious freedoms, you would be OK with all the illegal activity they are involved?

How that was implied in my blog is beyond me, but the answer is no. This is not about TV. Personally, I could do without the regular fare of low brow comedy, reality shows, and sitcoms; although I wouldn't mind access to Charlie Rose or other cultural programs. But the issue here is personal freedom and individuality. While throughout much of the world a shift toward respecting other religions, cultures, and opinions is taking hold, Chasidic communities are still stuck in the religious intolerance of the middle ages. The dehumanizing of non-Jews, the disrespect for any other spiritual path, the absolutist dogma, etc., etc. is completely out of place in the enlightened world of the 21st century . It is this very attitude, taken to an extreme, that fuels Islamic extremism that has become the scourge of humanity.

And about the illegal activity, I say it's the leaders who are responsible for not coming out in force against it in unequivocal terms. Much credit is due to the Novominsker Rebbe for taking a strong stand against this kind of behavior. The organization he heads, Agudath Israel of America, did well to devote an entire convention to this issue a few years back. But the Novominsker is the exception, and more need to follow his example. Unfortunately, most just deride the Novominsker instead of agreeing with him. In answer to the reader above, I say that without ending the corruption and illegal activity, Chasidm can be accused of hypocrisy, demanding strict adherence to Jewish Laws but ignoring those very laws by stealing from the government.

Abu Mazen

It is ridiculous to say that Abu Mazen failed because of the latest suicide attack, as some are suggesting. What we need to see now is how Abu Mazen responds; whether he takes concrete and courageous steps to halt terror. If the reports about Abu Mazen talking to Hamas and attepting to convince them to stop the attacks, are true, then I'm not too optimistic. You don't talk to terrorists; you fight them. But for me, what matters are results, so I'm staying hopeful.

Making of a Godol

The "Making of a Godol" controversy has reached the New York Times. A couple of weeks ago I had been looking far and wide to get hold of a copy without dishing out hundreds of dollars for it on Ebay, without success. From this article it seems like I'm not missing much, since it's a pretty difficult read. Spending hours looking through footnotes to find a few meager scraps of Godol gossip, just doesn't get my juices pumping.

Playing G-d

I was reading an artile about the SARS virus yesterday, on my bus ride home from work, when an older man from across the aisle looked at the picture of crowds in Beijing with protective breathing masks.

"Der Eibishter bashtruft zeine son'im," he said to me. G-d punishes his enemies.

I looked at him perplexed. How'd he come to that conclusion?

He continued saying that the Chinese were very evil. "Die kommunisten," he muttered angrily.

"Can we attempt to understand G-d's reasons?" I asked him.

He shrugged his shoulders as if to say, what's with you anyway? Of course that's the reason!

Thinking it over in my mind I couldn't help but wonder. Are people's misfortunes so easily traced to their evil doings? Does this man believe that for every tragedy you can follow a logical map from deed to punishment? Would he say that every baby that died in the Holocaust committed evil sins? Must every victim of a terrorist attack be implicated in inquity?

To me, that sort of behavior is indicative of religious intolerance and narrow-mindedness. I don't presume to understand G-d's ways, and I have no idea how G-d punishes or rewards people for their deeds. I believe that G-d keeps his own books and has no need for us to help him along in passing judgement.

Eiruv Arrests

The news on the grapevine is that some Satmar men were arrested on Shabbos in Williamsburg during the violent protests against the eiruv use in Williamsburg. I doubt these idiots will learn their lesson, though.

More on Halevi

I'm almost finished reading Halevi's book, and I must say, it's been a long time since a book has moved me so profoundly. I know that most people I know, who are ultra-orthodox, would consider his opinions blasphemous, but I have gained tremendous strength for my Yiddishkeit. I have a new appreciation for people living devout and spiritual lives especially chasidim, although I still think they need a lot of work in the Religious Tolerance Dept..

Anyone interested in comparative religions and spirituality should get this book. I must warn you though. You must have an open mind to other religions and you must must accept that other people too, not just Jews, have a purpose in life and can attain spirituality and closeness to G-d.

The "Making of a Godol" controversy makes it to the New York Times.

A couple of weeks ago, I tried desperately to get hold of a copy without dishing out hundreds of dollars, but I've had no success. I'm happy now that I didn't get it; according to this article it's a difficult read.

Freedom all the Way

The war in Iraq and the subsequent welcoming of American forces by Iraqis, however apprehensive initially, is turning out to be a cause for cautious optimism. If the U.S. can establish in Iraq a liberal democracy based on the rule of law and participatory government by its citizens, it will be one of America's greatest achievements. It will be an immense triumph over those who believed that we had better appease those in the Middle East who wish us harm, cynically dismissing the capacity for freedom by the people in those regions.

But that also brings to mind some places where freedom is still sorely needed. I'm talking about a place of extreme religious intolerance. A place where dissent is dealt with harshly. Where you can be excommunicated and physically beaten up by religious vigilantes for expressing a heretical opinion, especially if there is a danger of others agreeing with you. Separation of the sexes is strictly enforced. Women are forbidden from pursuing careers or scholarship. Western newspapers and radio are shunned. Television, movies, theater, and art are forbidden. All these will corrupt the hearts and the minds, especially of the young , they claim. Their masses wallow in poverty, but no leader there would dare raise the idea of reform and innovation, fearing the others would accuse him of not being religious enough and straying from the traditions.

You may think I'm talking about Iran, Saudi Arabia, or the former Afghanistan. But no, I'm talking about a place closer to home. I'm talking about the communities of the Chasidic Jews in New York City and Upstate. Communities in Brooklyn such as Williamsburg, Crown Heights, and Boro Park. Upstate there are the towns of Kiryas Joel, Monsey, and New Square. Especially in the cases of Kiryas Joel, Williamsburg, and New Square, these are places known for corrupted leadership who hold a cynical grip on the population. Financial scams, money laundering, stealing from the government, are widespread with the tacit approval of the religious leaders. In any one of these places, should an individual own a television set, he can be beaten up, have his kids expelled from school, and he will be forbidden from entering the synagogue.

To institue changes in these places requires courage on the part of the people to take a stand. U.S. army forces and marines will not do the job here. The time has come for people to examine what they are being taught and decide for themselves whether they accept the abuse of power in their midst. Like-minded individuals must get together and hold strong against these forces who wish to suppress diversity of opinion. The time has come to liberate the Chasidim!

Today I called in sick to work. I told myself first I'm doing it because I need a break after yesterday's shocking disappointment. But I think the real reason is because I woke up late. I figured I need to start work after this week and a half holiday break with a fresh and enthusiastic attitude, and waking up at 9:00 meant I wouldn't get to work before 11:30 with davening and commuting.

I've given in to the urge to put in functionality for posting comments on my posts. From now on, beneath each blog posting there will be a link to allow posting comments. Now all we need is for some of you dear readers out there to post something so that my efforts in adding this functionality would not be for naught.

I've just had the shock of my life. For weeks I've been talking to a prospective employer about a planned employment at his company. He had offered me a substantial increase -- actually 35% -- above my current salary, with equal benefits. I had already structured much of my work at my present employer in such a way that it would be easy to hand over my projects to co-workers. I admit also that I even slacked off a bit knowing that my job change was imminent. I just didn't tell my present employer that I'm planning to leave.

Today, I was supposed to sign a contract with my new employer, and then I would call my present employer and let him know I'l be leaving in two weeks. I had phoned my new employer in the morning to arrange a time to meet, and left him a voice mail message. After some back and forth phone tag, I finally spoke to him at 10:0 in the evening. He's in my area, he says, and would like to come over to discuss. I wait for him outside and I get into his car. Greetings, small talk for a few seconds and then he drops the bomb: He can't do it. I thought I was going to faint. He explained that the project he needed me for hadn't been working out too well and right now he's not hiring. I left his car in a daze.

I suddenly started feeling perhaps it's G-d's hand guiding me. After all, I did have some doubts about the stability of the new company. As most religious Jews would say: It's bashert. I had an urge to acknowledge the hand of G-d. And then I realized that this precisely is the power of religion. It provides such comfort; even a skeptic like me could not help but feel the urge to just let it go and trust G-d.

I am reading Entrance to the Garden of Eden by Yossi Klein Halevi that was recommended by a friend. The author participates in Muslim and Christian rituals and services, and tries to find spirituality and inspiration and a feeling of closeness to G-d by observing and experiencing how other humans of different religions attain spirituality. The book is an interesting read, and one thing is for certain: if only there were more people like Yossi Klein Halevi and the people whom he describes in his book, the world would be an immensely better place.

His moving accounts of spiritual experience notwithstanding, I am highly doubtful whether there really is truth to such a path. To accept the notion that all religions are valid and bring one closer to G-d in its own way, is to accept its truths, at least to some extent. To say that their are universal truths in each religion may not be a problem by itself. But it requires a process of wading through the teachings and beliefs and selecting and choosing what is not a contradiction to your previously held beliefs and discarding what is. That in my opinion is an arbitrary process. Halevi, for instance, accepts Jesus as a righteous and spiritual teacher, but not as G-d. He experiences spiritual enlightenment through a Zikr dance with Sufi Muslim Sheykhs, but of course rejects the Koranic accounts of what he believes are distortions of his own traditions, such as Ishmael being placed on the altar instead of Isaac. He actually does it with Judaism as well. He follows many of the Jewish laws and customs but rejects some that he finds offensive, such as the blessings for not being created a woman or a gentile. Does that mean one can just go about to all religions and pick what makes sense and discard what doesn't feel right? If our search for spirituality is guided by feelings, and we discern right from wrong based only on intuition, wouldn't that allow others with less peaceful inclinations to do the same with opposite results?

I've been browsing around other people's blogs all the while trying to think up something insightful or profound to share with the world. I've come up with nothing.

::Thinking to myself:: Is anyone ever going to visit this blog anyway? Depressing.

I borrowed a book form the library called Essential Blogging published by O'Reilly. It wasn't exactly what I was looking for. I was looking for something that would give me ideas on how to use a blog to change the world. The book meanwhile just goes into boring detail on how to use the differet blogging tools available. Oh, well. ::sigh::

I had been thinking of putting up a section for people to post comments. What good is a blog if you can't see people's reactions to what you write? And for some reason, I don't think people comment by email that much if they don't think they have something important to say. I guess, people only comment if they know it'll show up for other people to read. The problem is, I need to find a service for processing and hosting the comments which is too time consuming, I'm afraid. So I'm leaving it for now. If anyone thinks I should really create a comments section EMAIL ME!!

In Williamsburg, the Satmar stronghold in Brooklyn, a group of non-Satmar Rabbis and laymen established a committee who proceeded to put up an eiruv around the Jewish community. Satmar Chasidim, who believe that their late Rebbe was against putting up an eiruv anywhere in New York City, launched a violent and ugly campaign against those who put up the eiruv, and those who would wish to use it. Satmar men have reportedly been attacking people on the street who they saw carrying items in their hands or pushing baby carriages. Massive numbers of N.Y. cops were in the streets of Williamsburg to help keep the peace.

Now this is really disturbing. If we can't establish democratic practices in our own cities in the U.S. how can we hope to bring democracy to such places like Iraq and other countries in the Middle East. This sort of behavior is despicable and should not be tolerated. The question is, what can we do about it? How can we show the Satmars once and for all that their terrorist practices just won't work in the land of the brave and the home of the free?

If you can read Yiddish you can read all about it here.