Always_Ask_Questions

Avira,
what messianic Rabbi? Oh, a Chabad Rav who mentioned that Rambam learnt from anyone. No, he is not a moschihist, but rather a serious engineer in addition to being Talmid Chacham. And he did not say “learn Torah from Aristotle” but rather “accept empirical truth from whomever”, it was Muslim science in the context of conversation, but you are probably not aware what was studied in Fes madrasa when Rambam passed by there. Your ability to insult people l’hathila is sad.

I am not saying R Twersky mixes Torah and Psychology. He does a normal thing – applies Torah to the current reality. He happened to be a baki in certain area and does it well, in opinion of many people. I am still not sure what is your claim to knowledge here. It seems to be entirely self-circular: “I learned from Rabbi X and Y whom I think being most important ones, therefore, my opinions are most important because I am following those important Rabbis”. I am afraid you are insulting your teachers also.

Most important, many leaders advised against leaving Eastern Europe based on well-perceived spiritual dangers and underestimation of upcoming physical dangers.

smerel, you are right! Even as other Republicans chose not to participate, she had all the leverage to insist on a balanced inquiry and presentation. Instead, she went for a show. It looks like she, and her father, feel that Trump is such a threat that you can use any methods to fight him. This is un-American.

We always had signs for arei miklaot, used rarely – so that the retzahim would quickly go where they need to go without stopping to talk to anyone and creating more trouble. At the same time, there is no mitzva to have signs towards Yerushalaim, so that everyone going on regel would stop and and ask direction from everyone and inspire them. So, this is a good reason to have Arabic signs. Otherwise, they will be stopping by a makolet to ask for direction and getting into a fight.

Developing nuclear weapons by trial and error is not a good idea, hope nobody tries it at home. Rosenbergs definitely participate in espionage. Whatever one specific spy accomplished is not even relevant. The enemy uses all obtained material, uses that to direct further collection and their own research .. Khrushchev et al would not care about the role of a specific spy, except playing it to gullible Americans for political purposes. So you can safely disregard anything any Soviet leader or engineer said.

Their state, town, kahal. Last time I checked American constitution, it said that whatever is not mentioned there is reserved for States and people.

Avira, you won’t be able to learn this way. You reject a serious expert in the field because of your nebulous feeling that this is not proper without having any serious argument. This is circular logic where you reinforce your biases. And every time you convince yourself in that, you become even more reassured.

There is nothing wrong to use your gut feeling as the initial position. So you suspect that r Twersky is making a mistake. Shoyn. So then it’s the time to go and verify that with T Ch who understand the issue, read more of the Ravs books, analyze medical literature etc This way you’ll eventually know how well your gut feeling actually works

1, If you are in a minyan you need to do what they do publicly. You can daven your nusach quietly or do things in other places. Say you wear tefilin on chol hamoed and they don’t, do you wear them at home… Other way around, you may get away being without a tefilin, I think

I thought I am indecisive but now I am not so sure about it.

Gadol, that would be a subset. I think information also need to be released and be harmful. In this case, public knowledge seems to be entirely due to DOJ act. interesting, that while this was an issue between maralago and national archives – there were no leaks… this helps narrow down where leaking is coming from.

Anyway, a lot of experts seem to say that there are novel issues here, possibly touched before in the case of Bush Jr verbally authorizing Libby to leak Iraqi info. Libby was not prosecuted for that, at the end, only for perjury.

Also, it seems that the letters from brother Kim mamash were part of items that Trump had and already returned to Archives. I wonder what is the purpose of secrecy here – these are written by NK president! Are we to keep them secret from Chinese or from NY Times?! Did Kim classify them and did he transmit them secure? Maybe he needs to be prosecuted also.

RebE,
I am not sure why you refuse to acknowledge my arguments, but that’s OK. I would like to mention that we just read in the last parsha that we should behave such that the nations should acknowledge how wise we, and our laws, are. This seems like exactly an approach I am proposing – build something small and let people emulate rather than force them. This even applies not towards other nations, but within also. As R Salanter said – one should always argue for Yiddishkeit, sometimes even with words.

(at least) two major religions emulated us, but both made a similar mistake: they try to force the world to follow their religion. A lot of wars and inquisitors came out of this.

Gadol,
I am referring to Dersh not because his opinions are absolute but because, contrary to yours and mine, his opinions are based on legal knowledge. So, if he is (politely) asking to clarify a need for a raid rather than milder legal approach, there is something there.

I personally don’t want to go into eternal whatabouts “but” 🙂 Hillary and haverah clearly stalled investigation, refused access to hardware, deleted evidence, and were treated nicely during polite meetings with authorities. Before the server, you may want to read IG report on Hillary’s state department that mentions that unfortunately participants left government employment and can not be compelled to testify to answer all IG questions. Oh, well.

> You’re ruining their narrative!

I am helping them to get to a better narrative before they reach a point of no return on their trip to the black hole, H’V.

er > Trump argued he had the “absolute right” to share anything with Russia.

er, I presume your are a Candian er, so you may not be aware: Trump had serious Anti-Russian policies. For example, he demanded from Germany to cancel NordStream-2 project, build LNG terminal, and increase defense funding. Germans finally agreed to LNG and then reconsidered after Trump lost election to someone. They are now claim to reconsider again without admitting that they were wrong.

There is no reason to switch from your parents’ customs unless there is a very good reason. But you need to understand your minhag properly.

for example, many Sephardim hold by “when in Rome …” (not my words, afrom a Sephardi Rav). Thus, they had a turban in Baghdad, and their children will follow their minhag by wearing a black hat in Lakewood.

Chasidim forefathers switched from other minhagim to become chasidim, so they should not complain that their children switch to yeshivish or other chasidus.

People whose parents rebelled against religion, will respect their parents’ minhag and rebel against their non-religiosity.

OP focused on the rare exception: – Litvishe is most coming from people who were stubborn against modernishe, chasidishe, goyishe, etc, so there is a good reason to stand by their dress without changing. Those who do follow previous renegades, but disrespect their elders who chose not to change against all odds.

I did not ask original question, but the request to count “gedolim” leads to lists and protests, not just by me. (I think) I usually bring names in discussion of certain issues, and controversy starts with someone saying that you can’t quote this guy or that gal … I think it is OK to quote Torah positions even to people who disagree with an authority – at least, there is a chance that all sides will expand their horizons by learning more about the positions than the caricature they have in their minds. To the degree I did participate in mindless name-bringing, I apologize for the bizayon.

Gadol, you can’t appeal to history of “same gave over” with a straight face, can you? We had about a 100 of claims and impeachments, each of them outrageous to begin with and then disappearing, as Syag is describing. This, unfortunately, desensitizes all of us to any kind of aveiros. Please ask the guys on your side to be more selective and pursue only the most promising leads. Not only this is tiring but also destroys the moral fabric of the country.

(Not) incidentally, Alan Dershowitz is already out with an OpEd in WSJ making a good argument why “what about Hillary” sentiment should not be laughed at: if we have punishing laws applied selectively, the country will be destroyed. And he brings some examples there. He then politely requests Mr. Garland to explain in more detail what exactly makes this search warrant different from all other cases. See there for legalese.

Syag, I agree – he is saying that others are saying so and he is responding. I find an interesting nekudah in his explanation: some people are looking for an excuse to not deal with the problem, and saying AA is not kosher is just an easy way for them to deny … In other places, he makes a point relevant to many entrenched positions here, whether on politics or anything else: the smarter the person is, the easier it is for him to convince himself in the correctness of his ways despite all the evidence to the contrary. The smart person can always explain the facts away.

Back to yoga, I don’t know enough to know how much “non-denominational” value is there. I just feel there is no urgent need to consider kashering it, other than keeping up with the Joneses/Cohens. you can walk, bike, swim, do calisthenics, I never heard of diseases that yoga is the only way to deal with. I typed “yoga cure for” into google and first suggestion was “diabetes”, it is all about relaxation and mindfulness, something that a Jewish person could achieve within the Jewish tradition. Without eating sugary cakes, in this case.

no novi required, we have chachamim – spend on yourself less than your income, on your wife more than your income. So, find out how much your wife spends on clothes, and spend way less.

Ujm, AA started as a religious “non denominational” program and has references to G-d, the way, presumably, they understand Him. Quoting from THE TWELVE STEPS AND JUDAISM article by R Twersky, 1993:
“A.A. is Christian because meetings are held in church basements,” say some. While it is true that the majority of A.A. meetings are in churches, it should also be mentioned that few Jewish facilities have welcomed A.A. … If more rabbis and community leaders would overcome their resistance and denial, there is no question that more meetings will be held in Jewish institutions.

“A.A. meetings involve Christian liturgy,” say others. While A.A. meetings generally close with the Lord’s Prayer, there is no rule in A.A. that precludes substituting a Jewish prayer. While others are reciting the Lord’s Prayer, one may say the 23rd Psalm or any other Jewish prayer.

“All the available literature on spirituality in recovery has Christian origins,” is another common complaint. Like the first objection, this is not inherent in A.A… lack of awareness about alcoholism among Jews is responsible for the absence of literature on spirituality.

He then goes thru 12 steps, explaining how each of them fits into Judaism, such as:
Step Two: Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity. The Talmud states “A person’s temptations becomes more intense each day, and were it not that God helps him, it would be impossible for him to resist.” (Sukkah, 52b). This statement is universal, applying to all people, great or small, wealthy or poor, learned or unlearned.

Step Five: Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs. All the works of Jewish moralists and ethicians are replete with need for cheshbon hanefesh.

Step Nine: Made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others. The Shulchan Aruch, or Code of Jewish Law, states that all the atonement possible is ineffective if an individual has harmed another, unless forgiveness from the victim has been sought. If the wrong action resulted in financial loss, then adequate restitution is required.

He ends with a statement pertinent to a lot of threats here:
It has been said that new ideas often have a three-stage course. At first, the idea is thought to be anti-Jewish. Then it is decided it may be compatible with Jewishness after all. Finally, it is declared that Jews thought of it first. This theory notwithstanding, it is difficult to see how anyone can point to any conflict between A.A. philosophy and Judaism.

R Twersky highly recommended AA despite the religious origin. What if I just stand on my head with crossed over legs – without even knowing where this comes from? Not in shul , of course.

On the other hand, why would one need yoga other than sound fashionable? You can walk for exercise and meditate before davening.

Theory behind deficits as used by Reagan:
government programs are hard to eliminate. Every benefit relates to a specific group of people with whom it is popular. At the same time, cost is dispersed. It is just $2 for every citizen. So, every program has a voter block that will defend it, and fighting to close these programs one by one is hard.

Instead, you reduce the total amount of money available to the government. Here people see substantial savings and support it. This leads to immediate deficits but eventually forces government to live within the means. This is like instead of convincing your teenager that ice cream is bad for him, you simply reduce the allowance if money is not spent well.

So, your real disagreement with Republicans is not “deficits” but whether we need more or less government involved in economy. Obviously, the right place is somewhere in the middle – we don’t want people without charity help, and we don’t want to live in Communist China. As to American reality, I think there is this place of compromise by having multiple layers of government and private charities. Each state, city, community is capable of doing a lot of things on their own. Then, people can choose where to live. I understand people who want to have political decisions different from my own, whether to the left or right. What I don’t understand when people want to restrict themselves and others from having peaceful choices. Especially those who had hasdei Hashem to escape totalitarian world. Another Hungarian, von Neumann, who witnessed (a little) both Nazi and Commie powers, became very committed helping US Army rather than participating in world socialists dreams as many educated people of his generation did.

I think the problem with discussing movements and institutions, that one uses personal knowledge of one side and an external, based on papers or other lashon hara. No surprise, such fair comparison confirms your original bias.

So, to be fair, one needs to have personal experience in both, or be equally clueless about both! Or simply be a little more tolerant to other opinions.

When we talk about colleges, we need to define the terms. 80 years ago, 3% of US 20 y.o. population was going to college. This was an elite thing. In 1970 maybe 30% of men and by 1990, 30% of women. Now, it is 60-70%.

So, first, an “average” American now goes to college and work prospects for those who do not are diminishing both in quantity and quality.

Second, college education is not what it was to be, 90% of it is simply preparing people for routine jobs, not engaging in medieval philosophy. So, issues are completely different from what R Feinstein, R Hutner, etc were confronting.

This sounds like a high stake poker. We have to presume that DOJ knee how public this going to be, so they got to have good reasons.. Trump also knows what he has and doesn’t want to get in real legal trouble for no reason because of some nuclear codes that he will get back soon anyway. So something else is playing out. For example,. Trump knows he doesn’t have anything there and he sends a fake informant to the feds to help him launch the campaign and clear away the competitors. Or/and bidenistas are misjudging reaction same way they did in Kabul and Ukraine.. for example, yesterday they were asking to open the warrant saying; see T himself is afraid. That sounded as a brilliant political move by supposed career politicians.. for less than 24 hours