Comments on: Out Of The Mailbag – An ‘Etrog’ Employee Writes YWN

By: my thoughts

my thoughts — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 19:12:39 +0000

To sum up what many have rambled here:
a) Most of the time these kol korah’s are issued because of vindicative and people who can’t fargin concot a “frum” crisis to present to rabbanim and because they are driven by anger (masked as righteousness) they don’t give up until they succeed.

b) the rabbanim are not fools however, in our generation without ruach hakodesh their views and opinions are limited to the information they are given and research they do. Since what information they have is controlled by these so-called askanim they release a kol korah completely believing that they are doing the correct thing.

c) unfortunately, oftentimes some people are completely overtaken by their greed, anger and inability to fargin and they simply can’t get their way – so they forge documents which have terrible reprecussions.

d) Most Shaitel machers recovered and Lipa is doing just fine (doing mixed concerts now.) But as a whole these industries were damaged and the truly ehrlicha people are suffering. The people who listeneded 100% can’t survive anymore. Now, the jewish internet industry was hit. Sure, those who don’t care will go on with their sites and continue working but those like employees of etrog suffer. To compare to the music industry: Shea Mendlowitz suffered, Mordechai Ben David and Yeedle still suffer because they won’t do mixed concerts anymore so they have a very limited audience so they have fewer sponsors but Avraham Fried did his own thing and so did Shwekey and now Lipa – so they make money. THey did what the Kotzker guy wrote and were smart. NOBODY SHOULD LET OTHERS DICTATE WHAT YOU WILL DO – THERE WAS NO CHOICE BUT TO LISTEN TO THE KOL KOREH AND NOW GO ON!!! Open something quick and continue in the industry because the internet will NOT be shut down for frum yidden – it is and will be continued to be used and these 30 people will be the only ones suffering and that is cruel!! Your work is important – we are meant to be using and working with technology. TONS of good is being accomplished. DON’T become the next victims like Mordechai Ben David and Yeedle.

By: JOLI

JOLI — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 10:58:20 +0000

As if Etrog ever had close to 30 employees. Even YWN doesn’t have close to that number. You know what type of revenue they would have to generate to pay for 30 even part time workers?? I don’t think this letter is authentic.

By: Midwest2

Midwest2 — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 01:23:15 +0000

There is a problem here which seems to have occurred before. Bans are issued in the name of Gedolim and are later retracted or altered, because what actually happened is that a secretary or an aide to a Gadol was behind it, convinced the Gadol using slanted information, and then got support from other Gedolim by saying that “Rav So-and-so signed, so why aren’t you signing?”

There are so many kol korehs that one begins to wonder. Remember the big tumult about sheitels with “Indian” hair, when all the sheitel-machers of Boro Park burned their stock, and then later on the whole thing was basically retracted?

Yes there are problems with the Internet, but trying to wish it away won’t work. The printing press and the radio also cause problems.

By: A600KiloBear

A600KiloBear — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 17:29:23 +0000

BS”D

As always, the good guys suffer (as with Lipa during the ban) and the bad guys, the Hyde Parks and Bechadrei Charedim which are trailer parks (I personally spent tens of hours trying to help someone fight a disgusting and evil piece of untrue nonsense that was posted about him on one of them) will flourish as they disregard Daas Torah in any event for the sake of giving oisvorfen and malcontents a forum where they can think they are doing something constructive as they reinforce their own grubkeit and losershaft.

This ban was very poorly conceived and we see that it has already backfired.

I do however hope that YWN will take steps to remove some of the krumkeit that has crept in especially over the past 60 days or so in the Coffee Room. When someone who posts krum views is allowed to ramble, it should be only to allow those who can show such a person the folly of his ways to respond, and to respond in no uncertain terms.

By: MICKEYLEVI

MICKEYLEVI — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 17:42:25 +0000

Now more than ever I can appreciate the derech of Rav Samson Rafael Hirsch ZTZAL. Rav Hirsch’s derech must be reestablished in Bnai Yisrael to ensure our survival in these MODERN TECHNOLOGICAL TIMES. We must not be afraid. We must be strong in our hashkufah as BNAI TORAH. What has happened to us? Why are we self destructing in these days of change? Where are our strong confident Rabbonim? May the zechus of Rav Hirsch protect us and keep our leaders strong to allow Bnai Torah to live in the world without fear and loathing and weakness. Read Horeb and the Intro Book on Horeb for a strong grounding on real Torah hashkufah.

By: MDshweks

MDshweks — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 16:57:38 +0000

The frum community did not siccees in fighting bad newspapers till they created their own good ones. The way to fight bad is to create good.

Again, I do not believe this is a valid ‘Psak” of these Gedolim, especially when I see no signatures, and I only saw it on the internet which is “full of lies”…

It’s very clearly a revenge in the making.

By: GS

GS — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 16:41:38 +0000

I have a hunch that the reason this site is allowing the comments challenging the logic of the ban is because they fear that as always, what happens in E”Y finds its way to America. If they don’t allow there to be a grass roots opposition like these comments being viewed by anyone who visits this site, and perhaps be able to show the leaders in America the damage these bans cause, they will be next to have to shut down.

By: AWoman_outside_bklyn

AWoman_outside_bklyn — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 15:57:06 +0000

I see that websites such as Kol Haloshon are still operating. Are the Gedolim busy pulling their shiurim off of the internet? Do they realize how many Bnei Torah benefit from the availability of hearing Das Torah online, and being able to keep up with Daf, etc.

This is clearly another instance of where people put their names to things (and our Gedolim are people) without understanding their ramifications. Remember in the aftermath of the Kol Koreah about concerts (that caused great financial loss to the producers of the Big Event), one of the Gedolim whose name had originally appeared stated that he had made a mistake in signing it?

By: Jothar

Jothar — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 15:40:14 +0000

The ban was for Eretz Yisroel, not for America.

Once again, askanim have succeeded in ruining people’s lives by manipulating gedolim.

I agree 100% that many published comments both here and in the coffee room have no place on a frum website, and I assume the blogs in Israel are the same way.

However, a compromise could have been worked out to save jobs- perhaps news without comments. Or perhaps much stricter commenting standards.

Regardless, this will backfire as much as the ban on the Internet.

By: EZ from Flatbush

EZ from Flatbush — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 15:38:22 +0000

The point of chanukah is to fight foreign infuences and ideas, that are contrary to Yiddishkeit. One such foreign influence is the Talibanism that is permeating in some chareidi circles.