Redleg

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  • in reply to: dont you just LOVE the NYT #1028807
    Redleg
    Participant

    Charlie, there aren’t two realities, one D and the other R. There is only one reality and partisanship does not alter it. The simple fact is that Iraq did posess WMDs and the current news proves it. Whether that was sufficient justification for invasion is arguable (I never thought it was the main reason, but that’s another story). Your buddy John Maynard Keynes was famously quoted in the following exchange. When taken to task for changing his position on a particular issue, he is reported to have said, “When the facts change, I change my mind. What, sir, do you do?”

    in reply to: dont you just LOVE the NYT #1028799
    Redleg
    Participant

    Um…Charlie, what lies were they? Do you mean the lies about the WMDs that the very same NYT is reporting have fallen into the hands of ISIS? I guess sarin and mustard gases aren’t really WMDs, are they? Oh, and don’t give me that business about Bush lying about Iraq’s nuclear weapons. He never said thaey had nukes. He did say that Iraq had WMDs and that the concern was that they could end up in the hands of terrorists. Golly!! Ya think?

    Redleg
    Participant

    Emmet, I strongly advise you to find another therapist. This one sounds as if she needs a therapist herself. You engaged her, I assume for her professional advice. If you want to follow her Rav’s advice, you don’t need her.

    Redleg
    Participant

    Chazal prohibit a parent from striking a grown child als lifei iver. The fear is that the grown child might strike back and be guilty of a capital offense. That reasoning would seem to apply in this case. Taking such drastic action against his son would, quite possibly, cause the son to react is such a way as to over an issur missah, C’S.

    in reply to: Do you know the words of the natural anthem? #1023125
    Redleg
    Participant

    Oomis, you’ve made a common mistake. The line isn’t, “THE bombs bursting in air” It’s, “Bombs bursting in air.”

    My favorite is the last stanza:

    Oh, thus be it ever when free men shall stand

    Between their loved homes and the war’s desolation

    Blest with victory and peace, may the heav’n rescued land

    Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation

    Then conquer we must

    When our cause, it is just

    And this be our motto

    In G-d is our trust

    And the Star Spangled Banner in triumph shall wave

    O’er the Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave.

    in reply to: Help! date emergency #1022483
    Redleg
    Participant

    There are no fun places in Crown Heights

    in reply to: A Safety Reminder For Parents Everywhere! #1022226
    Redleg
    Participant

    Based on the advice given by the posters above, I think we should wrap our kids and ourselves in bubble wrap, start IVs in all of us and never leave the house. C’mon people! Summer is the time for fun and adventure. A little common sense is what’s needed. Yeah, drink when your thirsty, bike carefully, don’t lock you kids or animals in a closed parked car for hours. You know, of all the “safety” tips handed out it seems to me the most important was left out. Teach your children to swim,(Chazal knew what they were about) and yourself if you don’t know how. Drown-proofing saves countless children and adults. Summer is the time for swimming either in a pool or a lake or the ocean. Of all common recreational activities, swimming is by far the most dangerous and results in the most child deaths(Okay, rock climbing and BASE jumping may be more dangerous but I said “common”). Ocean swimming is particularly dangerous. Never swim where there isn’t a lifeguard and don’t go in the water if he (or she) says not to.

    in reply to: Crazy Speed At Parts Of Davening Blow My Mind #1022794
    Redleg
    Participant

    I, too, am put off by lengthy Shabbos davening. Note to Sheluchei Tzibbur: Kedushah has a nusach. Use it. I don’t know how ancient the nusach is but it probably predates MBD.

    in reply to: Hunting and Judaism #1022662
    Redleg
    Participant

    Perhaps I wasn’t clear enough but I was essentially citing the NB. There is an issur of tzar b’alei chaim but it does not apply letzarech adam.

    in reply to: Hunting and Judaism #1022653
    Redleg
    Participant

    “If you can aim like Reb Yona Bar Tachlifa then you may hunt birds.”

    Actually, there were, and are still, special arrows for hunting birds in flight. It has a wide, crescent-shaped head sharpened on the outer edge. It is intended to cut the throat of, or decapitate, flying birds.

    in reply to: Animal rescue #1021986
    Redleg
    Participant

    RY, no snark intended but how many homeless animals have you adopted?

    in reply to: 3 Israeli teens were an eye opener #1022131
    Redleg
    Participant

    Hey Charlie, where are you? Jump in here and defend the President!

    in reply to: Hunting and Judaism #1022652
    Redleg
    Participant

    The issur of tzar b’allei chaim prohibits causing unnecessary pain or suffering to an animal. The key word is “unnecessary”. For instance, shechting a cow certainly causes pain to the animal but the shechita is necessary and, therefore, muttar. Likewise, hunting for any halachically legitimate purpose should be permitted. While one can clearly not hunt for food (unless you could somehow capture a kosher animal alive, and shect it) if, say, you wanted the dear skin for a klaph, or a bear skin for a rug, or you wanted to shoot coyotes for their fur, It seems to me that such hunting would technically be muttar.

    P.S. I don’t think some posters are clear about what “hunting for sport” is. To my knowledge, all big game hunting is for food in that the meat is never wasted. In America, almost all hunters are meat hunters, that is they butcher and eat their prey. On guided big game hunts in Alaska, the hunter can either keep the meat for him or herself or it gets distributed among the local villages. In Africa the meat is always distributed among the local population. All the hunter gets is the pelt.

    in reply to: Obama Wins ;-( #1021822
    Redleg
    Participant

    Cool your jets, Charlie. No need for ad hominem attacks. You’ve obviously been on the blogs for a long time and picked up some bad habits from the trolls. WWII was a war we had to fight as was the Civil war. Is it your position that Gulf War i wasn’t justified? My point was that Republicans aren’t anymore blood thirsty war mongers than Democrats. Here’s something to think about. If Kennedy hadn’t stolen the election in ’60, we would never have gotten involved in Vietnam in the first place and if Goldwater had won in ’64 we would never have escalated to Johnson’s 500,000 troop blood bath.

    The particular case in point is that McCain might not have made a better President than Obama, although I think he would have, but he couldn’t have been a worse one.

    in reply to: Obama Wins ;-( #1021817
    Redleg
    Participant

    Dial, that’s only true for low information voters. thinking folks support issues, not laundry lists. For instance, I voted for McCain and Romney for President and Cuomo for Governor, not because I agreed with them on everything (I vigorously disagree with Cuomo on his idea of Gun Control) but because I felt that they would do the best job overall. I was right about Cuomo and I’m confident that I was right about McCain and Romney.

    in reply to: Obama Wins ;-( #1021814
    Redleg
    Participant

    Charlie, I’m curious as to what 4 to 6 Countries do you think McCain would have had us at war with. Historically, it’s been Democrats that have gotten us into wars, going all the way back to James K. Polk who went to war with Mexico. Republican Abraham Lincoln did go to war against the South but I assume you would have supported that war. Democrat Wilson, an excellent example of why we should never elect academics, got us into WWI, Roosevelt into WWII, Truman into Korea and your buddy Kennedy, whom I have to thank for the hole in my lung, into Vietnam.

    I have previously remarked on the inexperience and ineptitude of President Obama and his administration of amateurs and ideologues. The current mess in Iraq is solely his doing. In 2011 Obama proclaimed that he was drawing down troops in a stable and democratically growing Iraq. The current crisis is directly attributable to Obama’s inept attempt to negotiate a remaining forces agreement with Iraq. His requirement that the Iraqi Parliament ratify any agreement guarantied it’s failure. If he had left sufficient forces, about 20,000, as his generals recommended, the current crisis would have almost certainly been avoided.

    You know, Charlie, when Obama was elected I recall that I had very mixed feelings. I was proud of America for electing our first Black President, but I was sorry that it wasn’t Colin Powell.

    in reply to: Driving Age #1012480
    Redleg
    Participant

    NFGO3: While my comment was written somewhat tongue-in-cheek, the comparison is, in fact, quite sound. Current Chareidi tradition often disregards metzius. A example of that is something with which we all had to deal with recently. I speak of kitnios, the determination of which is irrational and solely based on arbitrary tradition but, be that as it may, if getting a driver’s license depends on actuarially determined risk then there would also have to be a maximum age as well as a minimum age. Frankly, I do not think that manageable risk should be a criterion for obtaining a drivers license. If one can understand the rules, pass the tests and is physically capable of operating a motor vehicle, a condition that most kids reach around the age of 16, than they should be entitled to drive on public roads. (N.B. No license is required to drive on private property. A twelve year old could legally drive a Ferrari at 180 MPH on your 1200 acre ranch).

    A further thought: Freedom, in general, implies risk. There is always a tension between freedom and safety. How much freedom are you willing to give up for an undetermined amount of safety? To continue the automotive example, it is an intuitive fact that driving 55 is safer than driving 75 (the limit on most Interstates in the U.S.) so why don’t we bring back the 55 limit? And, surely, 30 mph is safer that 55 so why don’t we insist on a national 30 mile an hour limit (which was, in fact, the national limit during WWII)?

    The answer, of course, is simply that we all are willing to accept the increased risk, both to ourselves and others, in order to gain more freedom and utility. So, yes, young drivers and old drivers are involved in more accidents than, say, 30 to 40 year old drivers but outside of urban areas with good mass transit (New York and Boston) the utility and freedom gained by 16 and 70 year old drivers outweigh the increased risk.

    P.S. The discussion of why things are and aren’t kitnios is a good subject for another thread. Was there one such?

    in reply to: How we relate to Chillonim vs Neturei Karta #1012676
    Redleg
    Participant

    There is a vast difference between being anti-Zionist and actively giving aid and comfort to an avowed enemy of, not only the State of Israel, but of all Jews everywhere. Could anyone on this blog imagine the late Satmar Rav, Rav Yoylish, who was known for his strongly anti-Zionist views, visiting and giving support to Ahmedinijad?

    Also, it is a grave mistake to believe that Chilonim as a group, hate Chareidim. the recent survey of attitudes in Israel indicates that the overwhelming majority of Chilonim simply don’t care one way or the other about Chareidim. The so called “War against Torah” is a fabrication of militant Chareidi factions who use it to recruit and energize their followers in order to maintain the Government benefits. All of the grievances of the Chareidi community could be dealt with by dialog, discussion and negotiation with the Government and the Hamon Am but, apparently the Chareidi community and leadership isn’t really interested in getting what they want from the rest of the Country. They are more interested in maintaining what amounts to a state of war with the Government and People of Israel as a means of maintaining control of their own flock and gullible fellow travelers.

    in reply to: Speaking between mincha and maariv on yontiff #1012580
    Redleg
    Participant

    Yontiff is legitimate Yiddish for Yom Tov

    in reply to: YOU HAVE THE POWER TO STOP CANCER!! #1012513
    Redleg
    Participant

    What bothers me is our morbid fascination with cancer. Cardiovascular disease disables and kills far more people than cancer does. Why doesn’t anyone ever offer a segula to eliminate cardiovascular disease?

    in reply to: Is it only me.. #1012272
    Redleg
    Participant

    Froggie, I’m 70 years old. At my age I don’t have to avoid temptation, Temptation avoids me.

    in reply to: Driving Age #1012476
    Redleg
    Participant

    nfgo3, driving at 16 is a time honored American tradition. Jews everywhere recognize that tradition often trumps a “factual answer”. Anyway, accident rates of various age groups should affect insurance rates and do so. The ability to drive safely and courteously is not necessarily a function of age as anyone who lives and drives in Monsey, BP, Flatbush or Willy can observe for themselves.

    in reply to: Is it only me.. #1012261
    Redleg
    Participant

    Froggie, what’s wrong with just ignoring it? These days it is virtually impossible to avoid everything, adverts included, that may be offensive. One kind of ad that I find offensive are the ones that, for a specific donation amount, 40 “tzadikim” will daven at the Kosel for 40 days and 40 nights which is a sure segula and cure fore everything from cancer to athlete’s foot.

    in reply to: What should I do? #1012043
    Redleg
    Participant

    MYOB!!!

    in reply to: S or T #1012206
    Redleg
    Participant

    Actually the original pronunciation was closer to the “th” sound in “think”.

    in reply to: Driving Age #1012474
    Redleg
    Participant

    I got my Farm License at 14. I think 16 is a good age for a driver’s license for kids who live in rural or suburban areas. City kids who tend not to be car savvy should wait until maybe 18. I’m an old geezer. As a general observation, I think the country was in better shape when the drinking age was 18 and the voting age was 21.

    in reply to: Dr. Watson is brilliant! #1009727
    Redleg
    Participant

    The characters Of Holmes and Watson were fixed in the public mind by their early movie portrayal by Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce respectively. The movie made two major errors in bringing Conan Doyle to the screen. First is Bruce’s portrayal of Watson as sort of a bumbling Colonel Blimp. The second, and less obvious, is the portrayal of Holmes and Watson as in advanced middle age. Both issues are major diversions from the characters as written by Conan Doyle.

    In fact, When we first meet Holmes and Watson in “A Study in Scarlet”, Holmes in in his late twenties and Watson is a couple of years older. Watson is returning from service in Afghanistan (!) and answers an add for a roommate. The advertiser is Holmes. Far from being a bumbler, Watson is the man of action while Holmes is the cerebral sleuth. In there adventures, Holmes always asks Watson to accompany him when there is a the threat of danger and to bring his gun.

    Ben David, it is fairly well known that R’ Yaakov Kaminetsky, ZTL, read Sherlock Holmes in Russian translation and was a fan. If Holmes was frum enough for Rav Yaakov, he’s frum enough for me.

    in reply to: skeletons #1008673
    Redleg
    Participant

    The problem is that the past often refuses to stay buried. Past peccadilloes, no matter how long past, how deeply regretted and completely atoned, have a way of popping up at inopportune times. Then what?

    I’m not speaking of real addictions of the sort remarked by Syag. I mean the kind of bad behavior, even crimes, that would be, at least, deeply embarrassing or even damaging if found out. It’s a dilemma! Do you bury the past and hope it says buried or do you tell your prospective (or actual) spouse and trust him/her to believe you when you say you’re a changed man/woman and there is no danger of you repeating your previous bad behavior. I submit that if, indeed, you are “healed” you need a spouse that trusts you and believes in you. A spouse, potential or actual, that would give up on you for trusting them is not one worthy of your trust.

    in reply to: Modernised Purim Story #1007782
    Redleg
    Participant

    Well done

    in reply to: maybe we all should stop getting drunk on purim #1056662
    Redleg
    Participant

    First, a story. I was 14 when my parents, OBM, sent me away to yeshiva. The first Purim in yeshiva, with no supervision, I spent about half an hour that night drinking beer, wine, schnapps and getting good and drunk. I spent the next three hours in the bathroom calling Ralph on the big, white phone, not to mention the incredible hangover I had the next morning. It was an important life lesson and the lesson is one that manifests itself in folklore and physical science (Newton’s Third Law comes to mind) actions have consequences. I still enjoy a l’chaim now and again, I have no trouble with arba kosos or drinking on Purim but I have never again gone beyond the limits of good judgment (not to mention not driving).

    As to drinking on Purim: There are Ovdei HaShem and there are menuvalim, even without drinking. For an Oveid HaShem drinking on Purim can intensify his spiritual experience and kavanos. On Purim I have seen these fellows benching b’kol ram with great and intense kavanah. I have seen bachurim in front of the Aron, tears streaming down there faces, saying vidui. Menuvalim, on the other hand, become bigger menuvalim with the diminution of control that drinking causes. But the fact is that they were

    menuvalim to start out with.

    In our communities, thousands of Jews drink moderately and rejoice l’shem Shamayim on Purim. To say that “we all” need to stop drinking because there are a few menuvalim who can’t control themselves is an insult to those thousands.

    in reply to: Ben Ish Chair terr #1006600
    Redleg
    Participant

    My Zeide, O”H, always used to say that if one wants a berachah he should do chesed for a poor person and ask that “oruman” for a berachah because the Eibishter listens to the prayers of the poor.

    in reply to: quote from Charedi soldier at Atzeres #1006714
    Redleg
    Participant

    ZD, congress can also pass special bills allowing certain individuals to immigrate. Congressmen usually go along with each other as a favor in this kind of legislation. I don’t think though that anyone could pass a special bill for a group.

    in reply to: maybe we all should stop getting drunk on purim #1056607
    Redleg
    Participant

    What bothers me is that whenever someone gets a katz Im kup about drinking on Purim or tznius or secular music or whatever it’s alway’s “we all have to do something”. OP, take care of yourself. If you think that drinking on Purim is going to be a problem for you, don’t drink. Don’t be so quick to point out yennem’s aveiros. Take care of your own.

    in reply to: Were we all Sephardic once? #1006890
    Redleg
    Participant

    Persian Jews were never Sephardim. The Persian (Iranian) Jewish community is the oldest continuous Jewish community having been in existence in present day Eastern Iraq (the city of Susa is Shushan) and Iran since Churban Bayis Rishon.

    Jews from that part of the World, Iraq, Iran, the Arabian peninsula are properly called Eastern (Mizrachi) Jews and have their own nusach and minhagim and many are very maqpid on shiduchim. Mashadi Jews (from the Iranian city of Meshad) are reputed to only be meshadach with other Meshadis.

    in reply to: Swiss Cheese #1086471
    Redleg
    Participant

    SL, OOPS! you’re right of course. As a matter of fact, stam vinegar in the U.S. is made from apples but still needs a hechsher.

    in reply to: Gefilte Fish #1106428
    Redleg
    Participant

    ZD, the Yiddish you hear today in Yeshivas should properly be called American Yiddish. The pronunciation is similar to sort of Litvishe Yiddish but any one who ever heard R’ Moshe, ZTL or R’Yaakov, ZTL or, for that matter, my father and mother, A’H speak can instantly hear the difference.

    in reply to: How much is a woman's Torah worth #1006321
    Redleg
    Participant

    Gentlemen, I stand by may statement that most of “learning” is rote memory.

    DY, Lomus is certainly a a part of learning and a reasonably rigorous (but not overly so) intellectual exercise, but it’s hard to do Brisker synthesis without memorizing the shitos that you’re synthesizing. As far as MAS”G. I did review the sugya. You’re right, but I thought I’d just throw the idea out there.

    PBA, I’m not sure what you’re talking about. My opinion is based on my experiences in the Beis Medrash. Perhaps your experience was different and that forms your opinion. I have opinions and you have opinions. You know what they say about opinions.

    My basic point is that there is no physical or mental reason that a woman could not attain the same levels of Torah scholarship as any man. The issue is solely whether and to what extent a woman may learn or be taught Torah and what, if any, schar she receives for doing so.

    in reply to: Swiss Cheese #1086467
    Redleg
    Participant

    DISCAIMER: The following is just my understanding of the issue based on my study. For this and any other halacha l’maaseh issue, consult your own Rav or RH.

    It would seem to me that any cheese, like Swiss cheese, that uses a coagulating agent requires hashgacha. The gezeira on gevinas akum is separate from the gezeirah on chalav akum. Although the reason for the gezeira isn’t really clear from Shas and Rishonim, the general consensus is that the rennet used as a coagulating agent is the concern and hashgacha must ascertain that it comes from a kosher animal. In fact, almost all commercial cheese made in the U.S. use microbial rennet (grown from yeast) instead of animal rennet. Nevertheless, most contemporary poskim opine that hard cheese needs a hechsher.

    Soft cheeses such s farmer cheese, cottage cheese and cream cheese generally don’t use a coagulating agent at all or use vinegar. As such, many poskim hold that such cheeses do not need a hechsher.

    N.B. The reason that many are meikil in this issue is the fact that true cheese only be made from the milk of a kosher animal. The preceding, however, does not apply to “processed cheese foods” and one must be wary.

    in reply to: Gefilte Fish #1106426
    Redleg
    Participant

    Sweet fish? Feh! Our gefilte fish was always made with salt an pepper and always from fresh ground, never from a loaf.. When I was married, my mother,O’H had to teach my kallah how to make proper gefilte fish as her family was from south of the Gefilte Fish Line (look it up) and always made sweet fish (did I already say feh?).

    Incidentally, the Gefilte Fish Line is also the demarkation between proper Yiddish pronunciation and Galitzianer pronunciation.

    in reply to: How much is a woman's Torah worth #1006312
    Redleg
    Participant

    Logician, Don’t you think that reading comprehension is important to learning? In my experience it does not seem to require more than average intelligence (average for Ashkenazi Jews) to be successful in learning. What is required most is hasmoda and desire. Most of what is called “learning” is really nothing more than rote memory.

    That is not to say that there aren’t true illuyim in the Beis Medrash but illuyis isn’t required for greatness in Torah. Many of our gedolim, past and present were not illuyim. They attained gadlus by dint of hard work and dedication.

    edited

    It has already been long established that, when the tenor of the times requires it, women may be taught Torah (can you say “Beis Yaakov”?). As to the latter, why would a woman’s learning be less valuable or less worthy than her listening to shofar or benching esrog as mentioned previously. Here’s a thought. Since learning Torah is not a mitzvah shehazman grama, why wouldn’t a woman be just as mechuyiv in it as a man?

    in reply to: How much is a woman's Torah worth #1006307
    Redleg
    Participant

    Golfer, most studies agree that women are generally better at verbal skills and reading comprehension than men. It would therefore seem that women would be better than men at Torah learning. There is no physical, psychological or emotional reason that women could not do as well as men in learning, sefarah and drush. The issue isn’t whether they can, the issue is whether they may.

    in reply to: what is your worst language? what's ur favorite? #1006503
    Redleg
    Participant

    Some comments on language:

    Because of what Notasheep points out, English has the largest and most precise vocabulary of any language on Earth. English is also the most commonly spoken language on Earth. N.B. Mandarin is the most common native language but more people speak English as a first or second language. English is the language in which the World’s business is conducted. It is the global lingua franca of art and science. While English grammar and spelling may seem difficult, English is, in fact, one of the easiest languages for non-speakers to make themselves understood in because the grammar an pronunciation are secondary yo the meaning of the words themselves. Try mispronouncing French to a French speaker. All you’ll get is a blank stare.

    After English and Mandarin (which no one outside of Chine actually speaks) the next most commonly spoken language is Spanish. Spanish is very regular and relatively easy to learn. Spanish speakers can understand you even if you mispronounce the words.

    French is (or should be) a dying language.

    Actually, one of the easiest languages to learn to speak is Japanese. It’s simple and regular. On the other hand, Japanese is probably the hardest language to be literate in – three alphabets.

    One of the reasons that Yiddish speakers back in the day were able to learn English so quickly is the similarity of English and Yiddish. For you Yiddish speakers out there, translate the following English sentence into Yiddish: My brother says, “Open the door and thank him for the fish”.

    in reply to: #1005865
    Redleg
    Participant

    Back to the OP’s query, I’d like to be a great-grandfather. Hope I make it.

    in reply to: #1005864
    Redleg
    Participant

    Psikreisha, I’d leave wrestling a polar bear for last.

    in reply to: What is Chestnut Ridge, New York all about? #1003043
    Redleg
    Participant

    “What is Chestnut Ridge NY all about.”

    It’s about two square miles.

    in reply to: Awkward kashrus situation – advice? #1002972
    Redleg
    Participant

    I have a basic question. I understand that you have what you consider to a high standard of kashrus. Why did you assume that the Hillel rabbi didn’t met them? I know folks who won’t eat in anyone’s house but there own. Is that your hanagah or your family’s hanhagah as well?

    in reply to: Ear Piercing #1002143
    Redleg
    Participant

    Okay, that covers women having their ears pieced. What about men? When I was a young man, a man with an earring/s was outlandish. Nowadays it’s quite common to see men with pierced ears wearing masculine style earrings. what say you all?

    in reply to: Torahs with different texts #1001728
    Redleg
    Participant

    Charlie I do agree with your post but I hasten to point out that questioning the divinity of Torah (H”V) does not necessarily make one nihilistic.

    in reply to: Sephardi and Ashkenazi couple #1002389
    Redleg
    Participant

    Sorry, KB613, brown eyes and dark complexion are dominant traits.

    in reply to: Unconditional love #1013719
    Redleg
    Participant

    Trust, WIY is right. Love of one’s spouse always comes before love of one’s child. See my previous post.

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