My point is that things change. Sometimes it’s for the better. Sometimes it’s for the worse. Sometimes it’s neither. What Jews did, what our ancestors considered proper and normal is a far cry from what we do today. An examination of how and why this occured is always useful.
In general phrases like “everyone knows” or “it’s unthinkable” or “that’s the way it’s always been” are warning signs. They often hide enormous assumptions and intellectual blind spots which can lead you far, far astray. A classic example is the “Grass Shack Fallacy”. During WWII troops were taught that a good way to clear a room was to open the door, toss in a couple grenades, close the door and enter after they exploded. That worked fine in France or Germany where people had brick or timber frame houses. Flash forward to Vietnam. The first time a soldier followed his training while clearing a bamboo hut with grass walls was often his last…