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  • in reply to: Watching movies made during WWII? #726138
    nfgo3
    Member

    TheGoq: You seem awfully familiar with a movie that you think you should not watch. And by the way, does anyone know why this movie is so popular among people who participate in toeva marriage? I do not know.

    in reply to: Is this cheap? First date at night by train #726295
    nfgo3
    Member

    Without knowing the train dater’s financial circumstances, it is meaningless to speculate about his choice of date or his need for unfinished bottled water. From reading many of the posts here, it seems that an unwritten rule of dating is that, at least on the first date, the prospective chosson must “put on the ritz.” If the point of dating is to get married, putting on the ritz is a waste of time, as an important aspect of marriage is how the couple are going to sustain themselves financially.

    in reply to: Older Guys in Shidduchim #775415
    nfgo3
    Member

    Without accurate numbers from a reliable source, this discussion, like many other shidduch crisis discussions, is too speculative to be meaningful. First of all, as L613 reasonably asked, how old is “older”? And what makes the number of unmarried “older” men “terrible”? That is a strong word for an unknown number.

    I think part of the problem, as perceived, is that there is no allowance in the estimates of the “crisis” for persons (of both sexes) who choose to marry later than age 22.

    Second, if there is in fact a crisis, I believe that part of the reluctance of young couples to commit to marriage is the untenable economic situation required to support a learning chosson who has not attended college and acquired the skills needed to earn a living. I think that time is running out because the supply of parents willing and able to subsidize married children – which in the post-World War II boom in the US led to unprecedented levels of wealth – is dwindling, especially since the bust of 2008. I expect that this will prompt a rethinking among frum Jews of their “economic model” of life in which a chosson learns and his kallah supports him and raises his children. The subsidies from the prior generation are drying up.

    in reply to: Should We Start Up With This Again? #725161
    nfgo3
    Member

    The answer to the question set forth in the title of this thread is either: No, because this is a site for frum matters, whereas the medical evaluation of autism is beyond the scope of this site, OR Yes, as long as the posters are quoting from clearly identified scientific journals or other clearly identified scientific sources, not something they heard at a simcha or read at some unidentified or anonymous web site.

    in reply to: MAJOR Mazel Tov!! #725428
    nfgo3
    Member

    If someone can figure out who are the subjects of the initial post, which was apparently made without the consent of the subjects, this post should be removed promptly. Instead, let this thread be a discussion of the halacha of personal privacy.

    For one thing, achosid has usurped the subject parents’ joy of making the announcement – if they want to – themselves.

    My real disappointment is that I thought this thread would be about a high-ranking officer in the IDF.

    in reply to: Popularity of Bourbon #731435
    nfgo3
    Member

    haifagirl: Make up your mind, please. You first advise us to stick with a single-malt scotch, but then you say the best scotch you ever had was Royal Salute, which is a blended scotch. As for the Advoscotch-Fresca cocktail, it would taste better without the Advoscotch, but, admittedly, it won’t give a buzz.

    As I have said, the differences in taste among whiskeys is inconsequential and undetectible. If you want a buzz, any alcohol will do. If you want something that tastes good, have a pizza.

    in reply to: Best Modern invention/discovery by a Jew?? #725720
    nfgo3
    Member

    Abe Cohen: satin basketball shorts.

    Another Abe Cohen: Duane Reade drug stores.

    in reply to: Too Much Money #1123148
    nfgo3
    Member

    TMB: You should be careful about revealing personal information in your opening comment on this thread. We now know your real identity, Mayor Bloomberg, and we are surprised that you are a reader of this web site.

    in reply to: Tipping a delivery boy – Mandatory or Optional? #920300
    nfgo3
    Member

    Real-brisker asks what Webster’s Dictionary is. It is a dictionary, i.e., a compilation of words and how they are used in the the English language. There is an ongoing debate among lexicographers about whether a dictionary should be prescriptive, i.e., an authoritative set of definitions of the correct and permissible meanings of words, or descriptive, i.e., a compilation of how words are actually used, without purporting to distinguish correct from incorrect meanings. Webster’s straddles these two poles.

    My household copy of Webster’s is “Webster’s Seventh New Collegiate Dictionary, Based on Webster’s Third New International Dictionary,” copyright 1963. As you may recall, Webster’s Third was considered by many lexicographers as more descriptive than its two predecessors. It defines the noun “tip” as: “a gift or small sum of money tendered for a service performed or anticipated”. There is no mention in my Webster’s of “voluntary”. If you are invited to a wedding or other simcha, I am sure that you would give a “gift,” and I am sure you would not consider withholding the gift because it is not explicitly required. I think the same principle applies to tips for delivery personnel. My point, however, is that dictionaries are not guides to courteous or moral or ethical behavior, they are merely guides to the meanings of words.

    One other point in this thread: Mr./Ms. Trying My Best says Reverend Jesse Jackson would spit in his customers’ food when he was a waiter. To my knowledge, Rev. Jackson never worked as a waiter. He did, many years ago, advocate the practice of spitting in food in retaliation for wrongs which I can no longer recall, but I do not believe he ever actually did what he advocated. He did draw a reaction from restauranteurs and black waiters, who complained that his public remarks would discourage people from availing themselves of the services of black waiters and cost them their jobs. It is important to remember that there is a material gap between Rev. Jackson’s words and actions. Another example: he never performed surgery on presidential candidate Barack Obama, contrary to something he unknowingly whispered into a live microphone.

    in reply to: What's up with the kookie glasses? #809984
    nfgo3
    Member

    Without photos or illustrations, this discussion might as well critique mimes.

    in reply to: How much should one spend on dates? #725214
    nfgo3
    Member

    If the boy is learning, start of cheap and work your way down. Or better yet, ask her father to cover the cost of the third and subsequent dates. If he balks, she’s not the girl you’re looking for.

    Winny1 – if she’s really lean, you can go to $8.99 a pound.

    in reply to: Popularity of Bourbon #731420
    nfgo3
    Member

    rt: if so many Yidden are discussing this, maybe it’s not a goyishe topic. 🙂 [Does the smiley guy to the left of the beginning of this sentence have a buzz, or is he drunk?]

    in reply to: Tipping a delivery boy – Mandatory or Optional? #920286
    nfgo3
    Member

    Real-brisker: You misunderstood the delivery “boy” (referred to in your first comment). You misinterpreted the inquiry of the delivery “boy” when he asked about change – he was actually being courteous to you, he was not asking for a tip. A 15% tip on a bill of $26.25 would be about $3.90, and you were owed (assuming no tip) only $3.75 in change. The delivery “boy” reasonably (and perhaps with chesed) assumed you were like most people and did not expect change, but he had the courtesy to offer you an opportunity to make clear your intention not to tip him. Tips may be optional according to Webster, but Webster is no Rashi. Many, if not most, delivery people work only for tips, and you should recognize that before you avail yourself of their services. Your objection that the restaurant advertised “free” delivery is a phoney excuse for your discourtesy. And if you are going hungry, as you stated, there are many charities that can help you, and I suppose you don’t have to tip them if they bring the meal to your home.

    If you habitually do not tip delivery personnel, and if you ever serve delivered food to guests, perhaps you should warn them that their food may have been adulterated by an untipped delivery man or woman.

    in reply to: Tipping a delivery boy – Mandatory or Optional? #920275
    nfgo3
    Member

    elik writes, in part: “if a jew he needs the money…. if a non jew its a chillul hashem not to tip!” Your conclusions are correct, but your reasoning puzzles me. Since when has any delivery man/woman not needed money? Do you know why there are no rules in Park Avenue coops prohibiting the purchase of apartments by delivery men? Because they can’t afford them anyway.

    in reply to: Popularity of Bourbon #731401
    nfgo3
    Member

    ZosHaTorah and Yeshivabochur123: If and when Sacrilege sets a place, time and date for a blind test, I hope you will be there to see how wrong you are about the tastes of different whiskeys.

    in reply to: The Liberals' True Face #768574
    nfgo3
    Member

    The “anecdote” in the opening post on this thread is not an anecdote. Rather, it is a parable, or a joke (and a good one, even if you disagree with its meaning). An anecdote must be factual, and if I am not mistaken, the “anecdote” in the opening post is merely an old joke.

    in reply to: Alcohol at Tishes #723667
    nfgo3
    Member

    A state prohibition on alcoholic consumption by minors which interferes with a sacramental requirement of the minor’s religion would be unconstitutional under the New York State and US constitutions, regardless of any provisions or lack of exemptions in the statutes. That leads us to the question of what kinds of alcoholic consumption are protected religious activity. Wine at Shabbos kiddush, wine at a Pesach seder, are surely religious. Scotch on Friday night – I don’t think so.

    in reply to: a jewish president #723854
    nfgo3
    Member

    There seems to be something missing from the question posed by always happy27. Surely if a goy ran for president “who shared all your beliefs and principles regarding politics,” one would vote for him/her. Why would the same principal not apply if this candidate – “who shared all your beliefs and principles regarding politics” – were Jewish? Unless always happy27 thinks that there are many anti-Semites on this web site, the question posed – as written – has only a single, obvious answer, not the sort of question for the Coffee Room.

    in reply to: Popularity of Bourbon #731391
    nfgo3
    Member

    Sacrilege: I didn’t say anything about betting, but … you name the place (in the 5 Boroughs) and I’ll bring the whiskeys.

    in reply to: Popularity of Bourbon #731389
    nfgo3
    Member

    Sacrilege: I’d be surprised if anyone can do it.

    in reply to: Popularity of Bourbon #731387
    nfgo3
    Member

    Doesn’t anyone want to know how I know what nail polish remover tastes like?

    Sacrilege: When I said “truly blind taste test,” I did not mean visually impaired. What I meant was: pour 3 or 4 different whiskeys in different glasses, and see whether you can identify which is which by sipping, smelling, looking and tasting each.

    Mod-80 makes a good point about different people having different taste and olfactory receptors. But for most people, most whiskeys taste like nail polish remover.

    in reply to: Communities for Baalei Tshuva #723913
    nfgo3
    Member

    Why would any frum community not welcome baalei teshuvim? And how can a community consider itself frum if it fails to observe the mitzvah of Ahavas Yisrael?

    in reply to: Popularity of Bourbon #731375
    nfgo3
    Member

    I do not believe that anyone can taste the difference between most whiskeys. Its all pretension and fakery. In a truly blind taste test, no one can distinguish 21-year old single-malt Glen Goniff scotch from 4-year old mass-produced Old Zeyde bourbon. All whiskey tastes like nail polish remover, and the only reason people drink it is to be polite, sociable or intoxicated … not that there’s anything wrong with that.

    According to a passage in “The Autobiography of Malcolm X,” Mr. X opined that African Americans prefer scotch, so if you expect them at your simcha, be sure to have some available.

    in reply to: Should a Yid own a sports car? #724400
    nfgo3
    Member

    There’s a joke I heard 30 years ago that answers your question:

    This Jew buys a Corvette and takes it to a Conservative rabbi, and asks the Rabbi for a brucha for the Corvette. “I don’t know a brucha for a Corvette.”

    So the Jew goes to an Orthodox rabbi, asks the rabbi for a brucha for the Corvette. And the Orthodox rabbi asks, “What’s a Corvette?”

    So the Jew goes to a Reform rabbi, asks the rabbi for a brucha for the Corvette. And the Reform rabbi asks, “What’s a brucha?”

    in reply to: Where's The Mentchlichkyt?! #738203
    nfgo3
    Member

    One other thing: Would Oomis 1105 and metrodriver please get together and tell me the correct spelling of “mentchlichkyt”.

    in reply to: Where's The Mentchlichkyt?! #738202
    nfgo3
    Member

    Thank you, metrodriver. My feelings are not hurt.

    Oomis 1105: Chivalry is a culture and set of beliefs that is quite dead as the fashion of wrought iron armor. That some people hold doors open for others means that Chesed is alive and well, and will be as long as there are Jews, we can all agree, will be until Moshiach comes. Just to be clear, when a Jew helps someone whom he/she is not directly obligated to help, he/she is being a good Jew, not a good Samaritan.

    in reply to: Palinmania: Please, Not Another Obama #721537
    nfgo3
    Member

    Well, Dave Hirsch, I will oblige you:

    Obama’s “rock-star status” is a characterization which I have seen only in right-wing attempts to blame the news reports they do not like for Mr. Obama’s popularity, first as a candidate and then as President. It is not worthy of a comment. It is also also an attempt to overstate his talents, for the purpose of bringing him low when he does not walk on water.

    I do not know what you are referring to in this statement. I will say that I am not questioning your honesty, only your grasp of the facts. As for my arrogance, I would like to know what I wrote that shows you my arrogance. As for my “liberal way of spinning things … “: Spinning is neither conservative nor liberal, it is a rhetorical device. Which of my statements do you consider to be “spinning.”

    DH and I discuss Obama’s drug use: First, I have not read either of Mr. Obama’s books. I haven’t read a book by Palin, or George Bush or Bill Clinton. I don’t read politicians’ books until they are dead, and I do not read them for the truth of the matter stated therein, but only to see how they tried to explain themselves and then compare their claims to what they actually did. Politicians’ books tend to be bunk. Perhaps the books of Messrs./Ms. Palin, Obama, Bush, and/or Clinton are the exception to the rule, but I do not care to waste my time reading their books. If I want to waste my time, I argue with people in the Coffee Room. 😉

    DH’s objection to my “megillah” comment: I was not purporting to characterize your post as a violation of the Coffee Room rules, I was simply asking for an opinion from the moderators, and one of them provided comments which indicate that (i) the mere posting of a comment does not mean that the post complies with the rules, and (ii) your particular comment does comply with the rules. That is all I wanted to know. You continue to fail to see the illogical nature of your understanding of my comment.

    DH’s comment about my comment about Christine O’Donnell: is, as written, a non-sequitur.

    Do you mean to say that I am a “rank” liberal, or a “ranking” liberal. The latter would imply that other liberals hold me in high regard. The former would imply that you hold all liberals in low regard. I don’t know what other liberals think of me, but I am confident that I am not rank.

    DH writes, in response to my praise of Mr. Obama’s education and intelligence: “How do you know his intellect and education, have you seen his college transcripts? If all he was able to do was being a lecturer and a ‘quitter’. “

    You evidently think that the only way to judge a person’s education and intelligence is to view his college transcripts. No, I have not seen them. I have heard him speak, I even read his speech on race delivered in Philadelphia, and it is excellent – not for its political effectiveness but for the understanding it reveals of American history. As for his being a “quitter”: I don’t think his election as president shows any quitting tendencies. And his other career choices shows that he had an interest in public service. And there are very few unintelligent or uneducated members of the Harvard Law Review. You (and, not incidently, I) might not like their political opinions, or their career choices, but they are, as a group, intelligent and educated. (And I’m not one of them, in case you were thinking of accusing me of that. And please don’t use this statement as a set-up for an insult such as: “Don’t flatter yourself – I don’t think you ever received such an academic honor.”)

    DH writes: “Show me a capital business that hires a CEO based on his education.”

    Actually, I do know of one business that hired a guy as CEO because he had brassy educational credentials and no executive experience, and he was awful. Yes, I am agreeing with you that brassy education credentials do not necessarily make good chief executives of private companies (which is what I think you mean by “capital business”). You never thought a rank liberal would agree with you about anything. Is this going to get you kicked out of the rank conservatives’ club? I hope so, for your sake.

    I’m tired. I think I’ll watch the second half of the Jets game.

    in reply to: Palinmania: Please, Not Another Obama #721536
    nfgo3
    Member

    Well, Dave Hirsch, I will oblige you:

    Obama’s “rock-star status” is a characterization which I have seen only in right-wing attempts to blame the news reports they do not like for Mr. Obama’s popularity, first as a candidate and then as President. It is not worthy of a comment. It is also also an attempt to overstate his talents, for the purpose of bringing him low when he does not walk on water.

    I do not know what you are referring to in this statement. I will say that I am not questioning your honesty, only your grasp of the facts. As for my arrogance, I would like to know what I wrote that shows you my arrogance. As for my “liberal way of spinning things … “: Spinning is neither conservative nor liberal, it is a rhetorical device. Which of my statements do you consider to be “spinning.”

    DH and I discuss Obama’s drug use: First, I have not read either of Mr. Obama’s books. I haven’t read a book by Palin, or George Bush or Bill Clinton. I don’t read politicians’ books until they are dead, and I do not read them for the truth of the matter stated therein, but only to see how they tried to explain themselves and then compare their claims to what they actually did. Politicians’ books tend to be bunk. Perhaps the books of Messrs./Ms. Palin, Obama, Bush, and/or Clinton are the exception to the rule, but I do not care to waste my time reading their books. If I want to waste my time, I argue with people in the Coffee Room. 😉

    DH’s objection to my “megillah” comment: I was not purporting to characterize your post as a violation of the Coffee Room rules, I was simply asking for an opinion from the moderators, and one of them provided comments which indicate that (i) the mere posting of a comment does not mean that the post complies with the rules, and (ii) your particular comment does comply with the rules. That is all I wanted to know. You continue to fail to see the illogical nature of your understanding of my comment.

    DH’s comment about my comment about Christine O’Donnell: is, as written, a non-sequitur.

    Do you mean to say that I am a “rank” liberal, or a “ranking” liberal. The latter would imply that other liberals hold me in high regard. The former would imply that you hold all liberals in low regard. I don’t know what other liberals think of me, but I am confident that I am not rank.

    DH writes, in response to my praise of Mr. Obama’s education and intelligence: “How do you know his intellect and education, have you seen his college transcripts? If all he was able to do was being a lecturer and a ‘quitter’. “

    You evidently think that the only way to judge a person’s education and intelligence is to view his college transcripts. No, I have not seen them. I have heard him speak, I even read his speech on race delivered in Philadelphia, and it is excellent – not for its political effectiveness but for the understanding it reveals of American history. As for his being a “quitter”: I don’t think his election as president shows any quitting tendencies. And his other career choices shows that he had an interest in public service. And there are very few unintelligent or uneducated members of the Harvard Law Review. You (and, not incidently, I) might not like their political opinions, or their career choices, but they are, as a group, intelligent and educated. (And I’m not one of them, in case you were thinking of accusing me of that. And please don’t use this statement as a set-up for an insult such as: “Don’t flatter yourself – I don’t think you ever received such an academic honor.”)

    DH writes: “Show me a capital business that hires a CEO based on his education.”

    Actually, I do know of one business that hired a guy as CEO because he had brassy educational credentials and no executive experience, and he was awful. Yes, I am agreeing with you that brassy education credentials do not necessarily make good chief executives of private companies (which is what I think you mean by “capital business”). You never thought a rank liberal would agree with you about anything. Is this going to get you kicked out of the rank conservatives’ club? I hope so, for your sake.

    I’m tired. I think I’ll watch the second half of the Jets game.

    in reply to: Palinmania: Please, Not Another Obama #721531
    nfgo3
    Member

    One other other thing: The most polarizing president ever is not Barack Obama. That distinction belongs to President Abraham Lincoln – his election and subsequent actions in defense of the authority of the federal government led to The Civil War. Mr. Lincoln is also considered by many as one of the three greatest US presidents. What is striking about this error by Mr. Hirsch is his readiness to attribute horrible qualities to Mr. Obama and his presidency, without considering simple and widely known facts.

    A related flaw in Dave Hirsch’s thinking is his calling Mr. Obama a “messiah”. I have never read or heard an Obama supporter call Mr. Obama a “messiah,” but he is regularly called, facetiously, a “messiah” by his extreme right-wing critics, for the porpose or with the effect of insulting Mr. Obama’s supporters by alleging that they overrate his competence. I fully understand President Obama’s limits, but overall, I am satisfied that he is doing as well or better than anyone else could do in the current circumstances.

    in reply to: Where's The Mentchlichkyt?! #738177
    nfgo3
    Member

    I am not fluent in Yiddish, but I think there are some errors of Yiddish usage in the opening post. First of all, I believe the correct spelling of one key word is mentschlichtheit. I think the gender (in the grammatical sense of “gender,” not the euphemism for sex) of mentsch is male, and therefore the word cannot be used in reference to women and girls, such as the girl holding (and then not holding) the door in the opening post. And the failure to hold the door was not an absence of mentchlichtheit (if that spelling is correct, it is a nuisance to type), it was just plain rude.

    Secondly, failure to hold the door was not an act of chutzpah. I think chutzpah carries an implication of preposterous reasoning or gall, not simply rudeness, laziness or lack of chesed. The killer of his parents who asks for mercy because he is an orphan shows chutzpah. The murder was criminal, but the reasoning supporting the killer’s request for mercy shows chutzpah.

    in reply to: Palinmania: Please, Not Another Obama #721530
    nfgo3
    Member

    charliehall: If you are correct that the recently approved tax package ensures President Obama’s re-election, then it’s not irony – it’s very skillful politics. I hope you are right, but I am wary.

    One other thing: why do we Jews use “megillah” as slang short-hand for a too-long comment or too-long statement or too-complicated situation. The Five Megillos are holy writings. Shouldn’t we refrain from using “megillah” as a negative term. Perhaps the Coffee Room moderators could lead the way be removing the word from the CR rules.

    in reply to: Palinmania: Please, Not Another Obama #721526
    nfgo3
    Member

    charliehall: your post about the productive session of Congress that ended 12/22/10 understates the contributions of President Obama and overstates the contributions of the Congress. Republicans in the Senate invoked filibusters at a record-breaking pace, and their leader, Senator Mitch McConnell, stated unequivocally that the role of the Senate Republicans is first and foremost to prevent the reelection of President Obama. I do not recall ever hearing that from a Congressional leader, and it gives the lie to any Republican claim that their primary concern is the well-being of the nation. The Senate Republicans have been – dare I say it – divisive, solely for the purpose of advancing their own interests. While I was disappointed with President Obama’s compromise on taxes, it apparently was the key to getting any worthwhile legislation out of this Congress.

    in reply to: Palinmania: Please, Not Another Obama #721521
    nfgo3
    Member

    I don’t know where to start repudiating Dave Hirsh’s refudiation, as it is so wrong in so many ways. So I’ll start with a few points.

    First, as for DH’s comments headed “Moderating”: Yes, I know your post was posted, and therefore was either (i) approved or (ii) not disapproved by the moderators. The fact of its posting does not, however, conclusively establish that it is not a “megillah” in violation of the Coffee Room requirement for brevity. The rule you quoted uses the term “megillah” to refer to proposed posts which are unduly long and says they “probably” will be deleted, not that they absolutely will be deleted. In other words, the rule says explicitly that some unduly long posts will get posted notwithstanding the work of the moderators, and so my question about your “megillah,” and my implication that your post is too long under Coffee Room rules, is reasonable, and your refudiation is not only incorrect but illogical. The rule you quoted uses the term “megillah” as short-hand for “too long to post,” much as Americans use the term “separation of church and state” as short-hand for the text of the First Amendment of the US constitution which prohibits Congress from establishing religion or prohibiting the free exercise of religion. But, of course, a Palin supporter such as former Delaware senatorial candidate Christine O’Donnell does not understand the difference between (a) the words and meaning of the US constitution, and (b) a short-hand phrase to refer to a provision of the US constitution. Your misunderstanding of “megillah” represents the same inability.

    Second: your discussion of Obama’s youthful drug use. I stand by my explanation, i.e., he was youthful and youths do stupid things. He outgrew it. His explanations are consistent – and more detailed, and more personal – than my explanation, but mine is correct and helpful in evaluating the adult’s fitness to be president. As for your statement that “other legal substances” refers to alcohol: that is dead wrong outside Utah. Maybe you are from Utah, in which case I can forgive the confusion.

    Third: Barack Obama’s “anemic experience”. Mr. Obama’s intellectual gifts, education and experience enabled him to win a hard-fought primary and a US election. That does not per se mean he would be a good president (we’ve had bad presidents who won elections, and I’m not even counting W, because he did not win his first election0, but Mr. Obama clearly figured out how to get from no where – i.e., South Side of Chicago, or Hawaii, or Indonesia – to the White House. As for Ms. Palin’s experience, being mayor of a village of 9,000 people, or governor of a state of 600,000 (which state receives substantial federal aide and has oil tax revenue that enables it to pay cash subsidies to its citizens) is hardly adequate preparation for governing a nation of 308,000 000 people, and Ms. Palin’s policy statements (e.g., I can see Russia) hardly indicate that she learned anything on the job.

    More importantly: You correctly stated, “The job of the President of the United States is the toughest in the world.” I would add, and I think you would agree, that no job can adequately prepare anyone for the job of president of the US. It takes extraordinary personal gifts of intellect, education, determination, organizational skill and reasoning ability to execute the job well. As between Mr. Obama and Ms. Palin, there is no comparison between their personal qualities as to who is better equipped to fulfill the duties of the office.

    One other point: The comparison of Mr. Obama’s vs. Ms. Palin’s fitness and qualifications for the office of president is in some respects meaningless, because no one favoring Mr. Obama would consider a woman (qualfied or not) of Ms. Palin’s political views; and, likewise, no one favoring Ms. Palin’s views would consider Mr. Obama. A more meaningful comparison would be between, say, Ms. Palin vs. Mitt Romney, or Newt Gingrich, or Mitch McConnell, or even Dave Hirsh. Many Republicans have publicly expressed their doubts about Ms. Palin’s fitness for office, so you don’t have to take my word for it. And please note, some of the Republicans who have doubts about Ms. Palin have no intention of running for the Republican presidential nomination in 2012. Mr. Obama’s primary opponents in 2008 had other interests in suggesting that he was not the best person for the job.

    in reply to: Finding girls Shiduchim should be attended to as seriously as Kiruv #720488
    nfgo3
    Member

    Does anyone have any hard facts from reliable sources about the “shidduch crisis”? Has the percentage of unmarried young frum women increased in the last few years? Are the bochurim who should be marrying the BY graduates going off the derech? Are the BY graduates marrying non-frum men, or goyim (i) in preference to bochurim, or (ii) because no bochurim are available?

    in reply to: Annoying Telemarketing Calls #719637
    nfgo3
    Member

    a. Lobby your government representatives to end the exemption for charities from the prohibitions of the DO NOT CALL registry (donotcall.gov).

    b. Ask the caller to send something to you by mail. When you get the mail, write back asking them to drop you from the call list. You may have to repeat this process before getting results, but it helps.

    c. Tell the callers you’ve become a goy.

    in reply to: Palinmania: Please, Not Another Obama #721509
    nfgo3
    Member

    Does this post comply with the Coffee-Room rule against “megillahs”? If there were a rule about getting the facts right, it would certainly be in breach of that rule. For example:

    “Barack Obama had a distressed youth: moving across the globe and growing up without parents, he used drugs and other illegal substances to alleviate his pain.” Where did “David Hirsh” get this from? Moving around is not necessarily stressful, and Mr. Obama learned from the broad variety of his childhood experiences. He did not use drugs or “other illegal substances” – whatever that is – because of the stress in his life. He tried drugs as a youth because that is what a lot of youths do.

    “Barack Obama, often called divisive and partisan by his critics, has a populist approach and used a grassroots campaign to become president.” Yes, it’s true Mr. Obama is called divisive by some of his critics, but those critics are lying liars. It is not divisive to propose a policy that some people don’t like. It is divisive to suggest that Sarah Palin is not an American citizen – oh, wait, no one, not even the “divisive” Mr. Obama, alleged that about her. I must be thinking of someone else.

    As for the “similarity” between Ms. Palin and Mr. Obama: the similarity is non-existent. Mr. Obama advanced himself to high levels of academic and scholastic achievement – an Ivy League college and law school, top honors in law school, vs. Ms. Palin’s intellectual mediocrity and simple-minded opinions about a complicated world. Ms. Palin does not begin to grasp the complexity of the problems facing the US and the world today, and she has demonstrated – in her 2 years in the public eye – that she does not have the education or experience to address anything more complicated than skinning a large dead mammal.

    in reply to: Big fancy house in simple neighborhood #718674
    nfgo3
    Member

    Torah tells us not to covet, and so those of us “simple people” who object to our neighbor’s having a bigger house should remind ourselves of that. Torah also tells us to be modest, but if Hashem has blessed us with many children and the means to house them comfortably, and we are discreet in our design, there is no Torahic reason not to build a big house anywhere.

    nfgo3
    Member

    When are you tax cut shtarkers going to specify the spending cuts that will support your proposed tax cuts. Yes, sometimes lower tax rates increase revenues, but sometimes they do not. I personally think Hashem is telling us something when He caused the (human and false) theory that tax cuts always yield revenue increases would be illustrated by something called the “Laffer curve”.

    The idea that tax cuts always lead to revenue increases is as plausible as the tooth-fairy story. Deficits grew under Reagan, Bush Sr. and Bush the Dim. Deficits disappeared under Clinton (thanks, in part, to the “new taxes” that Bush Sr. supported, which ended the Republican party’s support for him). Fiscal policy is difficult, and sloganeering, e.g., Reagan’s “government is always the problem, never the solution,” is a poor substitute for careful analysis and hard choices.

    nfgo3
    Member

    I thought there was a Coffee Room rule against posting a “megillah.”

    in reply to: double standards in the workplace #720645
    nfgo3
    Member

    There’s more wine on this thread than on all the dinner tables in Boro Park on Seder nights.

    in reply to: How do you let someone know they are not wanted? #718260
    nfgo3
    Member

    10-Luchos: There are no term limits for New York State Assemblymen, so you will just have to wait until Mr. Silver loses an election. Same is true for most public officials.

    in reply to: Inappropriate Opposite Gender Interactions in the Workplace #1075603
    nfgo3
    Member

    I have never found that anyone objects to being addressed as “Mr.” or “Ms.” or “Mrs.” in the work-place. Those terms are called “honorifics” for a reason – they show respect. Admittedly, some people will think it a little odd at first, but after a while, they accept your courtesy and even grow to like it.

    The only time I can remember an objection to the form of address of honorific plus last name was when I was in the 8th grade, in a public school, and some students objected to the science teacher’s formality of using “Mr. Luckman” or “Miss Fox.” (This was before anyone thought of using “Ms.” as an honorific.) Of course, 8th graders are adolescents and resist being treated like, or behaving as, adults.

    in reply to: failing the driving test #943993
    nfgo3
    Member

    I am surprised that no one mentioned Torah or halacha in connection with driving an automobile. A car that is driven improperly – particularly in dense urban areas where many of us YWN readers live – is an instrument of death. The Torah therefore imposes special conditions on driving an automobile. Driving with Chesed is more important than driving with confidence, or getting where you are going on time. Drive as if your life, and the lives of those around your, depends on your driving properly, and you will do fine on your test. And your liability insurance rates will stay low.

    in reply to: Gift Ideas for Men #1000500
    nfgo3
    Member

    This is an odd time of year to ask about gifts for men on a frum web site. Are a lot of boys born in December, so that everyone is wondering what to give them for their birthdays? Chanukah ended almost a week ago, so it can’t be that. That leaves … Tu B’Shvat? No one ever gave me a TBS gift.

    in reply to: Why not Obama? #715181
    nfgo3
    Member

    Why not Obama? Because he has failed to stand up to the Republican Party of No.

    in reply to: Siamese Twins #714567
    nfgo3
    Member

    This question has been authoritatively answered by at least one of the gedolim in the 20th century. At the moment I cannot recall who addressed this question, but I believe that his answer was that if one of the twins is likely to die if not treated, and separation will allow the other twin to live, then the separation surgery is permitted – and required.

    in reply to: Frum Population Boom #708202
    nfgo3
    Member

    I cannot understand why the growth of the frum population in EY should make the non-frum afraid of their footwear. The frum should be concerned about the relative shrinkage of the working population of the State of Israel – someone has to pay the taxes and serve in the IDF. Hashem put us in this world, in part, to provide for ourselves.

    in reply to: Recipe For Low Fat Potato Kugel? #708240
    nfgo3
    Member

    If it’s low-fat, it’s not potato kugel. Unless you follow WIY’s suggestion.

    in reply to: Bais Yaakov Boro Park Tuition Crisis #694883
    nfgo3
    Member

    Something puzzles me about all the discussions of the “tuition crisis”: As far as I know, few if any schools publish budgets or financial statements for the general public. How, then, can so many people have so much to say about the “tuition crisis” if there is no reliable information about the subject under discussion, i.e., the financial condition and operating costs of yeshivas and Jewish private schools? If there are budgets or financial statements available to the tuition-payers, can someone tell us where we can get that information?

    in reply to: Stray Dog #670785
    nfgo3
    Member

    Why did your sister buy the dog if she wants it to go away?

    The title of the thread is “Stray Dog,” not “Bought Dog.” -77

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