WolfishMusings

is being macho ok for a bochur?

I’m far from a bochur, but if I’m only going a short distance, I, too, will often not bother with a coat. It’s more laziness (ok, that’s not great either) than machismo.

The Wolf

I personally think that you are misinterpreting the Rambam (and I have the feeling that you would agree with me), and possibly misapplying the words of Rav Miller, who was trying to warn the kehilla of the dangers of television to our soul, not pointing to specific people and saying, “You sir, Plonie, are bound for Gehenim.”

Maybe, maybe not. All I know is that if I ever dare suggest that the Rambam or whoever isn’t meant to be taken literally or may have a different application in today’s world, I manage to generate enough people saying the equaivelant of “the Torah is eternal and always applies the same in every age and how can you say the Rambam (or gadol X) means differently.”

The Wolf

How did the judge know to call Georgie out of all the wig makers in NY,,??

The woman gave the judge the receipt for the sheitel (the judge held it up at the end of the case) to prove its value. Presumably the receipt had the address and phone number of the store.

The Wolf

but inertia won out.

Inertia? Or ennui? 🙂

The Wolf

Or is it perhaps because it is the SEASON ??

“Happy Friday” is heard in my office on Fridays all year round. Nothing to do with the season.

The Wolf

Is this TV show real or is it made up, like wrestling?

Generally, it’s real. They take people who have cases pending in small claims court and have them agree to settle their dispute on the show. Both parties are paid for their appearance.

While I’m certain that production values are taken into account, the general procedure is real. I’ve seen postings from people from unrelated cases who have been on the show and they confirm that the cases and outcomes are real.

The Wolf

Being that I can’t see youtube, can someone summarize the video please?

A frum couple is suing a dry cleaning establishment for $3000.

Frum couple claims that their child accidentally tossed a $3000 Georgi wig into the dry cleaning bag. When the dry cleaners saw it, they called the customer to ask what to do with the wig. Plaintiff says that they told them not to wash the wig, defendant says she was told to wash, but not dry the wig. In addition, there were clearly language issues during the phone call.

Wig comes back ruined. The frum couple says that the wig is a total loss. They took the wig to three places to see if it could be repaired, but do not have any documentation of this.

The judge calls a recess and takes the wig and the woman’s receipt for the wig into her chambers. When she comes back from recess the judge says she called Georgi and confirmed that the woman did, indeed, buy a $3000 wig from them — but that it was a long wig — the wig the woman was wearing to court. The wig that was damaged was a short wig and not even sold by Georgis based on the model name. Judge gave the frum couple a tongue lashing and dismissed the case.

The Wolf

i apologize to wolf by implying that he would poke fun at anyone. this is not something he generally does.

No need to apologize to me. I can understand why you might think I was engaging in satire, but in this case I wasn’t. While I do make jokes from time to time, I generally don’t poke fun at people (and certainly not at people like the Rambam!).

But as I said, I can understand that you would not necessarily realize this. No apology is needed or warranted.

The Wolf

Who said Wolf meant himself?

Thanks, eclipse, but to be fair, I was referring to myself.

As for why — well there are several reasons. Please note that I don’t want to actually debate any of them here — as this is not the thread for it. Nonetheless:

According to the Rambam, I am an apikorus because I don’t believe that our sifrei Torah are letter-for-letter the same that Moshe received on Sinai (the gemara that we are not baki in chaseiros/yesiros is proof enough for me) — and according to the Rambam, an apikorus has no chelek in Olam Habah.

The Rambam also says that a person who calls someone else by a nickname has no chelek in Olam Habah. I routinely use nicknames with my wife and kids — and I don’t regret it.

R. Miller says that a person who owns a television has no chelek in Olam Habah.

My high school rosh yeshiva maintained that a person who routinely davens without a hat/jacket, who doesn’t wear the yeshivish levush (i.e. white shirt, dark pants), etc. does not have a chelek in Olam Habah.

Many authorities have maintained that one who doesn’t believe in the literal interpretation of B’raishis (i.e. someone who is not a Young Earth Creationist) is an apikorus — see above re: apikorsim not having a chelek.

Quite a few people have maintained that Zionism is Avoda Zara — and according to the Rambam, someone who worships avoda zara has no chelek.

I’ve read “outside books” (however you want to define that — Apocrypha, portions of the Christian Bible, Stephen King, whatever…) and according to Rabbi Akiva, one who reads such books has no Chelek.

So, I have plenty of reasons to say that I have no chelek in Olam Habah. I’m never going to believe in YEC, so there’s no point in saying that I should “do teshuva” on that. I don’t regret reading anything I’ve read. I don’t regret my belief that it’s possible (probable?) that today’s Torahs are not letter-perfect copies of Moshe’s. I don’t regret using nicknames for my wife and kids.

But there is an upside to all of this. The upside is that I get to do the mitzvos without worrying about whether I’ll be rewarded or not. Since I know I have no reward awaiting me, I can simply do the mitzvos and not have to cheshbon “am I doing this solely for the reward or because I truly believe it’s the right thing to do?” If HKBH wants to take the mitzvos I’ve done and throw them away because of my beliefs or things I’ve read, then that’s His business. But at least, at the end of the day, I’ll be able to say that I kept the mitzvos I kept.

As I said, I don’t want to debate any of this here — this isn’t the thread for it.

The Wolf

I believe the maximum time in gehenim is 11 months.

In fact, now that I think about it, I’m sure it’s not true at all.

The reason why a person says kaddish for a parent for only 11 months is because the maximum time for a “normal” person is 12 months, not 11. During the last month kaddish is not recited so as to not give the impression that the son thinks his parent was a total rasha.

That being said, I’m sure that there are those for whom even 12 months is not the maximum. In fact, I know one such person who has no chelek in Olam Habah (which would imply an eternal punishment).

The Wolf

this is the second time i agreed with you recently, wow 🙂

I wouldn’t be bragging about agreeing with me. It’s a further sign that I am corrupting you (or anyone else who agrees with me).

The Wolf

If you think that going on a date with someone who is not a good conversationalist is a “terror,” then I think you need to learn the definition of the word “terror.”

The Wolf

Of course, there’s also the question of designing clothing that is not tznius (at least with regards to public wear), but yet can be worn by Jews.

The Wolf

Can one imply from those who hold of the mitzvah tantz that it is obligatory (i.e. from the term “mitzvah”) and that those of us who do not do so are acting incorrectly?

Or is the term “mitzvah” here being used colloquially?

The Wolf

Yes, Homeowner, that Yid is far higher than the lowly Theresa.

If you say so, but I know who’d I rather have living next door to me (hint: it’s not the child molestor).

The Wolf

Either you know who Ender is or you don’t.

Say hello to Peter and Valentine for me.

The Wolf

wolf i know how much you hate nitpicking, but still, knowing your mathematical prowess, isnt the convention usually to have point B between point A and point C.

Perhaps. Feel free to relabel the points as you like — as long as I don’t get stuck somewhere. 🙂

The Wolf

Wolf, how did you look in that sheitel?

🙂

Truth to tell, the sheitel went to Eeees. I guess that’s only fair since I pretty much took exclusive possession of the megillah. 🙂

The Wolf

Unfortunately, I’ve heard far too many “horror” stories of people who say the worst things to parents in these situations including “you’re young and can have more children…” or “HKBH needed him up in shamayim…” or “he fulfilled his purpose here…” and the like.

The people saying these things generally don’t mean to be insensitive — on the contrary, they were sincerely trying to console/comfort the bereaved parents and would never dream of hurting anyone — let alone bereaved parents coping with the loss of a child. Nonetheless, perhaps because of their (blessed) inexperience with such matters they end up saying things or perhaps because they just didn’t know what to say but felt the need to say *something* they inadvertently say things that are insensitive.

My advice (FWIW) is to just go and be there for the parents. Let them lead the conversation (if any). Or say simply “I’m so sorry… I just don’t know what to say.”

The Wolf (who hopes no one should ever have to suffer through this type of tragedy).

I have no experience in this area, but I suppose you have to ask yourself this question…

If the business relationship turned sour (and potentially nasty), would you still be able to continue your normal family life?

Once you have the answer to that question (and only you can truly answer it), you’ll have most of your answer. That’s not to say that there aren’t other possible issues, but that’s the biggie IMHO.

The Wolf

How about a silver menora?

Sure. When can I pick it up? 🙂

The Wolf

THey were 50% off from $45 to $21.95

That’s not 50%. It’s actually about 51.3%. 🙂

(Yeah, I know, nitpick, nitpick nitpick) 🙂

The Wolf

I would be surprised if you mistakenly thought the OP had an actual case that he was presenting to the CR for a final determination.

No, I did not think that. But I also think that this case is far more complex than a “standard” question that may arise on this board.

In short, I would be surprised if there were anyone here who could really even discuss the issue with any semblance of expertise so as to not hopelessly muddle the waters.

But what the heck do I know?

The Wolf

Considering that this is probably an extremely complex question and one that *truly* deserves the attention of a gadol, why do you think anyone here in the CR would know enough to give you an answer?

The Wolf

Its a waste of time. Complete waste of time.

I beg to differ. While my preferences run towards board games (as described above) and not video games, I believe the same principle applies.

The time I spend playing board games with my kids is not a “complete waste of time.” Aside from the fact that the games I mentioned above teach strategy, tactics and abstract reasoning, there is also the important parent/child interaction.

The time I spend playing board games with my kids gives us a chance to bond and connect. It gives me an additional way to relate to my children. It also gives them (hopefully) pleasant memories of the time we spend together and increases our ability to socially interact with each other. Personally, I consider that very important and not a “complete waste of time.”

Your opinion may vary, of course — but even if you hold it’s a complete waste of time, I’ll still play board games with them. 🙂

The Wolf