Update: A commentor suggested a very nice text for a Halloween letter to trick-or-treaters that will be adopted. Just wanted to make sure that hit the text of this post.
Seems the J-blogs are all discussing what to do about Halloween. For the past decade and a half, I can't recall seeing any trick-or-treaters. Maybe neighborhood trick-or-treating is reclaiming popularity. Honestly, I wouldn't know. I get the feeling that the non-Jewish children in my heavily Orthodox neighborhood head to the mall for a more sanitized version of trick-or-treating.
Amongst the suggestions of how to deal with Halloween is this one which appeared on Hirhurim/Torah Musings. I have to say, it floored me. Here is the posted letter and my response, which I hope I kept respectful because clearly the Rav who employs this method is a far more refined and learned than I will ever be:
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ATTENTION
ALL TRICK OR TREATERS!!!!
Instead of taking money to buy candy and treats to give to all of you, our family takes that money and gives it to an organization which takes care of poor and sick children.
We do this because we want to help other wonderful kids who are not as lucky as you because they don’t have enough money to buy fun things (like Halloween costumes), because they are sick, or because their parents don’t live with them anymore.
For each kid that signs below, we will give $3 to help poor and sick children. The more kids who sign, the more money we give, so please sign!
THE [Name deleted] FAMILY
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
With all due deference, I find the letter to be rather patronizing, to say nothing of insulting. Unless I am mistaken, those who live amongst us see our children dressed in their costumes on Purim and delivering massive quantities of nosh in fancy baskets. They might see our children hopping from Sukkah to Sukkah where they are plied with sweets. Perhaps they see our kids collecting from the shul candy man weekly. Certainly they see us celebrating our holidays and Sabbath in style, from bringing home treats to dressing up in pricey clothing, shoes, and accessories. They may well work for kosher caterers, kosher groceries, or in kosher bakeries, which would make them well aware of our consumption habits. . . habits they likely could never emulate.
To write a letter informing the children/parents that you have no interest in giving them a measly Hershey's Kiss or two because they are lucky enough to have been able to afford a costume and there are children starving in Africa doesn't strike me as an effective way to educate others about the importance of tzedakah. (And, who is to say that the trick-or-treating children come from intact families? Who is to say that they have enough food on their tables just because they are wearing a costume? (L'havdil) On Purim, when a person asks for tzedakah, do we tell them they must not be in need because their child has a costume on which must have cost money? I think a touch of dan l'chaf zechut might be helpful here.)
Many charities use Halloween as a time to promote their charity. I can't imagine any of them saying, don't spend $5-$20 on candy because there are children starving in Africa.
Perhaps I'm just in a bad mood, but so long as my children get to enjoy the ridiculous amounts of candy and junk, guilt-free, at Shabbat kiddushes, Sukkah Hops, and Purim parties, I have a hard time viewing such a notice as anything but insulting. I'd say that if one is so inclined to acknowledge Halloween, why not let the cute clowns, babies, princesses, ballerinas, Buzz Lightyears, and Superheros have their lolly pops, mini-candy bars, and kisses without a big show. If you have a cause close to your heart, do as some of my non-Jewish friends do, and attach a note to the candy that support military vets, medical research, or cancer patients. If you are not inclined to acknowledge Halloween, turn off the lights and refrain from any participation.
Showing posts with label Social Commentary. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Social Commentary. Show all posts
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Friday, August 06, 2010
Do I Have a Responsibility?
Dear Orthonomics,
You really do have a responsibility to report on the breaking news about the corruption regarding the Rubashkin sentencing judge. Things are really looking ugly, as I surmised.
Signed,
[Name Omitted]
The above is the text of a letter I received from a reader. I'm not quite certain why I have a responsibility to report on the breaking news, which I believe refers to a Press Release from the defense team stating that the judge unlawfully presided over the trial because she participated in the planning of the raid. The Press Release was posted at VIN and YWN.
Up until this post, the word Rubashkin had been used by me in one single post on this blog. In other words, I basically ignored this case until I felt compelled to make the following comments which can be summed up as the following:
1. I believe it is a big mistake to put alleged, indicted, and/or convicted frum persons on a pedestal. Creating such icons and role models of Yiddishkeit is short-sighted in my opinion.
2. I believe it is a big mistake to conduct loud, broad based campaigns on behalf of alleged, indicted, and/or convicted frum persons. I think it far more appropriate to conduct campaigns in a quieter, more modest fashion. I have no idea if the Defense's charges against the judge will turn out to be fruitful or much ado about nothing. If anything, I see no need to make a big splash at every turn in the trial and appeal process.
3. I believe it is a big mistake of Jewish Organizations and Publications to continually stir emotions and allegations of anti-semitism. The judicial system is far from perfect, but the rule of law protects me and you, our lives, our children, and our property. We live in a glorious country where cases can continuously be appealed and new evidence can be brought forward. We live in a glorious country when charges of corruption can be brought against judges and government officials. The Orthodox community has limited political amunition and I'm not sure the cases I addressed is the best place to use that amunition.
After I posted my single post that mentioned Shalom Rubashkin, I posted the words of Rav Shimon Schwab on what should be the approach to allegations of persons in our communities.
The court will hear out the Rubashkin Defense Team's allegations against the judge, as they well should. And perhaps the courts will find evidence of impropriety, or even corruption. But the "breaking news" doesn't impact my own assertions that loud, public campaigns might not be the tactic the community wants to pursue in the name of justice, that turning alleged and convicted criminals into icons of Yiddishkeit perhaps isn't the direction we want to go in, and that making an enemy of a justice system that protects us might be short-sighted.
I have never once dedicated a post to the proceedings of the trial. I don't plan to dedicate a post to the twists and turns in the future. There is plenty of information and opinions available in Jewish print for interested parties to read. I simply provided a little social commentary on an pattern and approach that I believe to be short-sighted and problematic. And even if the Defense does show that the judge acted improperly and is as corrupt as they come, I still do not believe the approach of late is the proper approach to be repeated next time (and I do hope there will never be a next time).
Readers, do you think a single mention of the Rubashkin Case makes me responsible to report "Breaking News"?
You really do have a responsibility to report on the breaking news about the corruption regarding the Rubashkin sentencing judge. Things are really looking ugly, as I surmised.
Signed,
[Name Omitted]
The above is the text of a letter I received from a reader. I'm not quite certain why I have a responsibility to report on the breaking news, which I believe refers to a Press Release from the defense team stating that the judge unlawfully presided over the trial because she participated in the planning of the raid. The Press Release was posted at VIN and YWN.
Up until this post, the word Rubashkin had been used by me in one single post on this blog. In other words, I basically ignored this case until I felt compelled to make the following comments which can be summed up as the following:
1. I believe it is a big mistake to put alleged, indicted, and/or convicted frum persons on a pedestal. Creating such icons and role models of Yiddishkeit is short-sighted in my opinion.
2. I believe it is a big mistake to conduct loud, broad based campaigns on behalf of alleged, indicted, and/or convicted frum persons. I think it far more appropriate to conduct campaigns in a quieter, more modest fashion. I have no idea if the Defense's charges against the judge will turn out to be fruitful or much ado about nothing. If anything, I see no need to make a big splash at every turn in the trial and appeal process.
3. I believe it is a big mistake of Jewish Organizations and Publications to continually stir emotions and allegations of anti-semitism. The judicial system is far from perfect, but the rule of law protects me and you, our lives, our children, and our property. We live in a glorious country where cases can continuously be appealed and new evidence can be brought forward. We live in a glorious country when charges of corruption can be brought against judges and government officials. The Orthodox community has limited political amunition and I'm not sure the cases I addressed is the best place to use that amunition.
After I posted my single post that mentioned Shalom Rubashkin, I posted the words of Rav Shimon Schwab on what should be the approach to allegations of persons in our communities.
The court will hear out the Rubashkin Defense Team's allegations against the judge, as they well should. And perhaps the courts will find evidence of impropriety, or even corruption. But the "breaking news" doesn't impact my own assertions that loud, public campaigns might not be the tactic the community wants to pursue in the name of justice, that turning alleged and convicted criminals into icons of Yiddishkeit perhaps isn't the direction we want to go in, and that making an enemy of a justice system that protects us might be short-sighted.
I have never once dedicated a post to the proceedings of the trial. I don't plan to dedicate a post to the twists and turns in the future. There is plenty of information and opinions available in Jewish print for interested parties to read. I simply provided a little social commentary on an pattern and approach that I believe to be short-sighted and problematic. And even if the Defense does show that the judge acted improperly and is as corrupt as they come, I still do not believe the approach of late is the proper approach to be repeated next time (and I do hope there will never be a next time).
Readers, do you think a single mention of the Rubashkin Case makes me responsible to report "Breaking News"?
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
The Criminal Element Takes Another Public Seat at the Dais
Crime and punishment is as old as the Torah itself. But it seems that in the past year that prominent communal organizations and segments of the Orthodox community have become very loud and bold in their public defense of convicted criminals within/affiliated somehow with the Orthodox community. So called pidyon shuvuyim campaigns to collect for the legal defense and make life more manageable for the wife and children of the convicted is nothing new. But large scale, broad based, and loud public support seems to be a new trend that has developed, I would say, in just the past year. It appears to me that there is a hashkafah of sorts that is developing and it reads like this: Hands off US.
I don't remember rallies or mass letter writing campaigns in support of the drug/money laundering rings of the mid-90's that spanned from NY to LA, but the issue wasn't exactly on my radar. There was a time where I owned a pair of pink tinted glasses and I'd like them back, thank you very much! And while there must have been some behind the scenes lobbying for President Clinton's pardons of the New Square group, when the news hit of the pardons (Jan. 2001), I believe it was the first that most people in the Orthodox community became aware of the crime (granted, the internet was only in its infancy). But my recollection of the aftermath was that most hung their heads in shame. But, I could be mistaken.
In 2009, the Agudah organized a number of business Asifas. These spawned from the arrest and subsequent conviction of the Spinka Rebbe and the New Jersey and New York stings in which arrests for money laundering were made in Deal and Brooklyn. Despite comments on blogs to "hang the mosser[s]" the public reaction of the Agudah leadership was not to organize letter writing campaigns, protests, or fundraisers. One could question is inviting the Rebbe to speak as an honored guest at a business asifa dedicated to promoting integrity was in good taste (I'd vote no since too much blame was placed on a "lack of education" when it is obvious to someone educated in such matters that you have to know exactly what you are doing to pull off massive fraud schemes***), at the very least there was some show of contrition, even if it was perfunctory. At the time of the Spinka arrests, Rabbi Adlerstein, wrote that there was a Silver Lining to the LA Scandal. He hoped that this case would be used to "reexamine issues of personal honesty and integrity" and pointed to some mussar shmoozes. I disagreed with the conclusion that these crimes were borne of insularity^^^, but shared the hope that in the internet era where stories
Well, here we are mid-2010 and it seems that promoting integrity and adherence to American Law and Choshen Mishpat might be a thing of the past. Early 2010, the Grossman Circus rolled into town. A number of Orthodox Communal Organizations, not just the usual suspects (!), banned together in a campaign that loudly called for staying the execution of a man who brutally murdered a young park police officer. The organizations involved even called in the Pope! From coast to coast, Orthodox Jews were asked to write sign petitions, write letters, and call the Governor of Flordia's office to try and stop the execution. And the community followed orders. Certainly leadership was aware that there are more than a few loose cannons that would come out of the woodwork, and the loose cannons didn't disappoint, harassing the Park family and continuing the circus with a funeral fit for a Rebbe and emotional hespedim. Treated a ba'al teshuva of high caliber (the words "ahavas yisrael" follwed his finaly Shema) despite the fact that he never was able to connect the words "I" with the "events" (i.e. murder) before his execution. On Tisha B'Av, his headstone was laid and the labels of HY"D, kedush, and hopes he will be a matzliach yosher continue. Not an ounce of tzniut was evident in this campaign!
Summer 2010, Lakewood hosts massive asifot for Rubashkin, raising upwards of $300,000 for his defense. Ten thousand are reported to have attended the men's gathering and another 3,000 the women's rally. We can argue whether or not the sentencing was excessive, and it may well be (I'm not a legal scholar, but I do know that it was within legal guidelines). But what is the ultimate message of such public and loud campaigns? What kind of society are we going to create when instead of dipping our heads in shame we loudly proclaim the great righteousness of the convicted? What kind of society are we going to create when week after week publications reinforce the notion that we live in tzarist Russia and are simply being persecuted for being Jewish? As far as I am concerned, the message being given is that corners can be cut (so long as you give plenty of tzedakah, bring the community together in achdus, or engage in great displays of Yiddishkeit).
Even worst, during the 3 weeks, a Yated columnist went so far as calling those who don't rally behind Rubashkin as having a "Goyishe Kop": "If I would not know better, I would say that they have stopped thinking in the traditional thought pattern of Yiddin throughout our galus." I'd counter that perhaps those of us with a "Goyishe Kop" are simple people who have no interest in mental gymnastics. While we have compassion for a fellow Jew, we don't act out of sheer emotion. We want to live our lives in a straightforward way where we represent ourselves in dealing with simple straightforwardness. We don't care to engage in mental gymnastics where we convert the distasteful and wrong into a mitzvah. We believe that callousness to financial crime indicates a breakdown in society and do not choose to gloss of things that are "if anything is a white collar crime." We understand the ramifications of our actions as they have consequences far beyond that of a single person and we understand that failure to recognize the rule of law will eventually bite us in the butts!
And so it has. July 28, 2010, Chabad annouces a public rally for a man who was brought to justice by those in his own community. (Background stories at VIN). And note that the ramifications of such a rally extend far beyond providing the $300,000 needed to continue paying the lawyer for legal defense. The ramifications are societal. There is callousness towards other people's money and property. There is an attack on the rule of law, a rule of law that protects me and you, our lives, our children, and our property. Try this on for size and if you watch this video, tell me what background piano music you are hearing)
"Him sitting in prison will not help anybody pay their bills. We have a moral duty to help him reunite with his family speedily."
"No children deserve to grow up without a father, especially such young children, and an oldest child who sacrificed himself for Jews in Eretz Yisroel, losing his arm in Gaza." [Really, no children!?! When will the gatherings be for the thugs that are sitting in prision for beating a Jew? Stealing from a Jew?]
Let's realize the consequences of our actions before we dig a hole so deep it is impossible to emerge from it. The message I'm getting from this year of public displays is me, me, me. Public displays of achdus might feel good, but quiet behind the scenes campaigns where appropriate will keep emotions at bay and preserve a sense of wrong and right. I'm not a sociologist, but I sense a change in the direction of certain elements within the Orthodox community and I think some reflection as to what this changes means for the community at large is well in order because actions always have consequences.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
****What I wrote at the time: Setting up a tax fraud scheme where hundreds of individuals "donated" millions of dollars and then itemized those donations when they knowingly received an 80-95% rebate is planned, deliberate, intentional, malicious, and illegal criminal activity. This isn't giving in to a small temptation such as deducting the price of your tickets to a Chinese Auction. This took massive manpower. Such a scheme perpetuated from the top and joined in by a hundreds of people speaks volumes about the lack of integrity, the worship of the dollar, and the precarious financial situation of the Orthodox Community as a whole, as the Chassidish community in particular.
^^^What I wrote at the time: "insularity combined with ignorance can bring out the yetzer hara for small crimes, but arrogance combined with desperation is the brainchild behind such complicated schemes as we have been continually witnessing for at least 20 years."
I don't remember rallies or mass letter writing campaigns in support of the drug/money laundering rings of the mid-90's that spanned from NY to LA, but the issue wasn't exactly on my radar. There was a time where I owned a pair of pink tinted glasses and I'd like them back, thank you very much! And while there must have been some behind the scenes lobbying for President Clinton's pardons of the New Square group, when the news hit of the pardons (Jan. 2001), I believe it was the first that most people in the Orthodox community became aware of the crime (granted, the internet was only in its infancy). But my recollection of the aftermath was that most hung their heads in shame. But, I could be mistaken.
In 2009, the Agudah organized a number of business Asifas. These spawned from the arrest and subsequent conviction of the Spinka Rebbe and the New Jersey and New York stings in which arrests for money laundering were made in Deal and Brooklyn. Despite comments on blogs to "hang the mosser[s]" the public reaction of the Agudah leadership was not to organize letter writing campaigns, protests, or fundraisers. One could question is inviting the Rebbe to speak as an honored guest at a business asifa dedicated to promoting integrity was in good taste (I'd vote no since too much blame was placed on a "lack of education" when it is obvious to someone educated in such matters that you have to know exactly what you are doing to pull off massive fraud schemes***), at the very least there was some show of contrition, even if it was perfunctory. At the time of the Spinka arrests, Rabbi Adlerstein, wrote that there was a Silver Lining to the LA Scandal. He hoped that this case would be used to "reexamine issues of personal honesty and integrity" and pointed to some mussar shmoozes. I disagreed with the conclusion that these crimes were borne of insularity^^^, but shared the hope that in the internet era where stories
Well, here we are mid-2010 and it seems that promoting integrity and adherence to American Law and Choshen Mishpat might be a thing of the past. Early 2010, the Grossman Circus rolled into town. A number of Orthodox Communal Organizations, not just the usual suspects (!), banned together in a campaign that loudly called for staying the execution of a man who brutally murdered a young park police officer. The organizations involved even called in the Pope! From coast to coast, Orthodox Jews were asked to write sign petitions, write letters, and call the Governor of Flordia's office to try and stop the execution. And the community followed orders. Certainly leadership was aware that there are more than a few loose cannons that would come out of the woodwork, and the loose cannons didn't disappoint, harassing the Park family and continuing the circus with a funeral fit for a Rebbe and emotional hespedim. Treated a ba'al teshuva of high caliber (the words "ahavas yisrael" follwed his finaly Shema) despite the fact that he never was able to connect the words "I" with the "events" (i.e. murder) before his execution. On Tisha B'Av, his headstone was laid and the labels of HY"D, kedush, and hopes he will be a matzliach yosher continue. Not an ounce of tzniut was evident in this campaign!
Summer 2010, Lakewood hosts massive asifot for Rubashkin, raising upwards of $300,000 for his defense. Ten thousand are reported to have attended the men's gathering and another 3,000 the women's rally. We can argue whether or not the sentencing was excessive, and it may well be (I'm not a legal scholar, but I do know that it was within legal guidelines). But what is the ultimate message of such public and loud campaigns? What kind of society are we going to create when instead of dipping our heads in shame we loudly proclaim the great righteousness of the convicted? What kind of society are we going to create when week after week publications reinforce the notion that we live in tzarist Russia and are simply being persecuted for being Jewish? As far as I am concerned, the message being given is that corners can be cut (so long as you give plenty of tzedakah, bring the community together in achdus, or engage in great displays of Yiddishkeit).
Even worst, during the 3 weeks, a Yated columnist went so far as calling those who don't rally behind Rubashkin as having a "Goyishe Kop": "If I would not know better, I would say that they have stopped thinking in the traditional thought pattern of Yiddin throughout our galus." I'd counter that perhaps those of us with a "Goyishe Kop" are simple people who have no interest in mental gymnastics. While we have compassion for a fellow Jew, we don't act out of sheer emotion. We want to live our lives in a straightforward way where we represent ourselves in dealing with simple straightforwardness. We don't care to engage in mental gymnastics where we convert the distasteful and wrong into a mitzvah. We believe that callousness to financial crime indicates a breakdown in society and do not choose to gloss of things that are "if anything is a white collar crime." We understand the ramifications of our actions as they have consequences far beyond that of a single person and we understand that failure to recognize the rule of law will eventually bite us in the butts!
And so it has. July 28, 2010, Chabad annouces a public rally for a man who was brought to justice by those in his own community. (Background stories at VIN). And note that the ramifications of such a rally extend far beyond providing the $300,000 needed to continue paying the lawyer for legal defense. The ramifications are societal. There is callousness towards other people's money and property. There is an attack on the rule of law, a rule of law that protects me and you, our lives, our children, and our property. Try this on for size and if you watch this video, tell me what background piano music you are hearing)
"Him sitting in prison will not help anybody pay their bills. We have a moral duty to help him reunite with his family speedily."
"No children deserve to grow up without a father, especially such young children, and an oldest child who sacrificed himself for Jews in Eretz Yisroel, losing his arm in Gaza." [Really, no children!?! When will the gatherings be for the thugs that are sitting in prision for beating a Jew? Stealing from a Jew?]
Let's realize the consequences of our actions before we dig a hole so deep it is impossible to emerge from it. The message I'm getting from this year of public displays is me, me, me. Public displays of achdus might feel good, but quiet behind the scenes campaigns where appropriate will keep emotions at bay and preserve a sense of wrong and right. I'm not a sociologist, but I sense a change in the direction of certain elements within the Orthodox community and I think some reflection as to what this changes means for the community at large is well in order because actions always have consequences.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
****What I wrote at the time: Setting up a tax fraud scheme where hundreds of individuals "donated" millions of dollars and then itemized those donations when they knowingly received an 80-95% rebate is planned, deliberate, intentional, malicious, and illegal criminal activity. This isn't giving in to a small temptation such as deducting the price of your tickets to a Chinese Auction. This took massive manpower. Such a scheme perpetuated from the top and joined in by a hundreds of people speaks volumes about the lack of integrity, the worship of the dollar, and the precarious financial situation of the Orthodox Community as a whole, as the Chassidish community in particular.
^^^What I wrote at the time: "insularity combined with ignorance can bring out the yetzer hara for small crimes, but arrogance combined with desperation is the brainchild behind such complicated schemes as we have been continually witnessing for at least 20 years."
Sunday, May 02, 2010
So What Can We Expect?
I probably should not have started my previous post with my commentary on the very wishful thinking that mass kollel could be preserved if everyone just started driving older cars, living in smaller digs, and cutting back on conspicuous consumption (read: weddings), because my musings really had less to do with kollel and more to do with lowered expectations and how lowered expectations impact character and community. Let's not fool ourselves into thinking that the root issues addressed re: supporting young kollel couples are not issues in the modern Orthodox community as well as American society at large! Lowered expectations indicate a loss of character which is certainly not a promising sign as we face the unknown in terms of the economy, national security, and more.
What I really thought to be the crux of the post was this quote (emphasis mine): "In this day and age, it is unrealistic to expect young couples to abstain from eating fleishigs throughout the week and to subsist on a can of sardines or a small piece of chicken on Shabbos. Nor can we expect very large families to be crammed into one-room hovels without heat, like many who learned Torah mitoch hadechak in previous generations (even here in America)."
I've heard enough about what we can't expect and I'd like to start hearing more about what we can expect.
What I really thought to be the crux of the post was this quote (emphasis mine): "In this day and age, it is unrealistic to expect young couples to abstain from eating fleishigs throughout the week and to subsist on a can of sardines or a small piece of chicken on Shabbos. Nor can we expect very large families to be crammed into one-room hovels without heat, like many who learned Torah mitoch hadechak in previous generations (even here in America)."
I've heard enough about what we can't expect and I'd like to start hearing more about what we can expect.
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