Religious Jews tell the Beit Shemesh nutjobs off: Aish.com’s editors wrote a great letter about the jerks who spit on a little girl who wasn’t dressed they way they wanted her to be dressed.
How dare you call yourself a Hareidi, God-fearing Jew? Your despicable actions are diametrically opposed to Judaism. You are a thug and a hooligan whose conduct, in the words of the statement from Agudath Israel of America “is beyond the bounds of decent, moral – Jewish! – behavior.”
How dare you put us in a position where we need to state loud and clear that we condemn your loathsome actions. We do not share the same theology; we resent having any association with you that necessitates our stark denunciation.
Read it in full. Aish.com is my go-to place when I need to do religious research. It is not Judaism Lite. And while you’re there, check out this wonderful story about the religious rabbi who came home to find his house covered in Christmas decorations by his kind-hearted but unknowing Christian domestic. Compare and contrast: Judaism is truly the religion of tolerance.
Get them before they get you: Israel took out some more terrorists. For kicks and giggles, check out the AP and NY Times versions. The Times says that the Gaza offensive “killed 1300 people”. The AP still goes with the same boilerplate: “killed some 1,400 Palestinians, including hundreds of civilians”, even though Hamas admitted that they lied about how many civilians were killed.
One for fisking: Think I’ll take a stab at this article later, but boy, can the CSM slant against Israel or what? Just a taste:
Although Hamas continues to reject Israel’s existence, it has attempted to keep a tense peace with Israel by trying to rein in rocket fire from more radical groups in the Gaza Strip, The New York Times reports. The efforts mean little to some Israeli military officials.
“We shoot when we’re being shot at,” one security official told Reuters Friday. “It’s clear that Hamas does not have an interest in fanning the flames at this time, but it’s not dousing them either.”
The rest of the article talks about how Khaled Mashaal was lying when he said Hamas is trying to stop the rocket fire. And yet, the reporter uses the words “The efforts mean little to some Israeli military officials.” Gee. I wonder why they’re not impressed with words that say the rocket fire will stop when, in fact, the rockets keep falling? Go figure. Damned Israelis, always against peace with terrorists!
The story about the Irish maid is indeed heartwarming; the rabbi acted in the best traditions of Judaism. Those traditions are one reason why when someone who doesn’t know me (or even someone who does) wishes me “Merry Christmas,” my usual reply is, “Thank you, and the same to you.”
Unfortunately, the story ends with the editor telling the rabbi that there will never be an editorial critical of Israel in the Detroit Free Press. Let us say merely that this was an editor who has been long gone. Just the other day on page two they had a substantial story, with pictures, about the creeps who spit on the little girl–opposite was a story saying that women in Saudi Arabia will get to vote and drive cars and hinting that complete liberation is just around the corner.
As to the rest, Meryl, you know as well as anyone else that when it comes to “Hamas” the word “truce” means “not firing as many rockets as before,” and when it comes to Israel, “responding to these attacks to protect its citizens” means “sadly, the cycle of violence that besets this war-torn land has broken out again.”