14 Dec SPEAK YOUR VUES WITH THE VUES MASTER
Please note that the author of Speak Your Vues is in no way affiliated with the publisher of
this paper. The author of this column is an independent third party contributor. The views and
opinions expressed by this author may not reflect the views and opinions of the publishers. If
one has any issues with any of the views, please write a letter to the Vues Master.
BDE R’ BZ WEISS
Dear Vues Master:
I just wanted to acknowledge what a great person &
baal tzedakah R’ Ben Zion (BZ) Weiss was. He was involved
with so many tzedakah and organizations & will
be missed by his family, the community & all of Klal
Yisrael. Yehi Zichro Baruch.
SR
Vues Master’s Note:We will all miss his great avodas
haKodesh!
HATE
Dear Vues Master:
This past weekend marked 3 years since the Jersey City
attack that left 4 dead, including a cop, two Orthodox
Jews, & a store employee. I remember visiting the scene
hours after the attack. Volunteers were still scrubbing
blood out of the sidewalk, & there was a lingering evil in
the air. In the aftermath, we couldn’t imagine antisemitism
would ever again be allowed to flourish. Instead,
3 years later, it has gotten worse. Hate crimes are up.
Celebrities are using their platform to spread Jew hatred.
Holocaust deniers are having dinner with a former
president. There’s no quick fix to solving antisemitism
or hatred, but there are things that we can do as a society.
1. Do not give attention to rabid antisemites. You’re
fueling their hate. 2. Do not politicize hate. Be honest
when it is within your own party. Consistency is key. 3.
Do not “other” Jews, or perpetuate the myth that Jews
benefit from special treatment. (I’m looking at you, @
nytimes.) 4. Build bridges, not fences, among people
who are different than you. May G-d bless the memories
of all who have lost their lives because of Jew hatred.
C D
Vues Master’s Note: Chaim well written letter! Thanks!
OP ED TO THE OP ED
Dear Vues Master:
In last week’s Jewish Vues you published an OP Ed by
Hillel Fuld under the banner “Now Is Not The Time For
Excuses. It’s Time to Come Home.” In the middle of
this article are the words “Just because it is hard for you
to come here, does not mean you need to tell yourself
that America is safe and good for Jews. You might be
comfortable, but that comfort is coming to an end and
it’s happening faster than you or I could have imagined”
I have to wonder on what basis Mr. Fuld makes these
assertions. There is no question that anti-Semitism is
on the rise in NYC. The number of anti-Semitic events
in NYC increased by 125% for November 2002 when
compared to November 2021. However, according to
the IDF: Terrorism in Israel, Judea and Samaria rose
by over 300 percent in 2022! Truth be told, there is
probably no place in the world that is completely safe
for a Jew today. In light of this, I cannot understand
how Mr. Fuld can make the assertions above about
America and imply that if one moves to Israel one will
be safer. I note that Mr. Fuld does not deal at all with
the “spiritual” aspects of moving to Israel. Many years
ago I asked Rav Dovid Kronglass, ZT”L, mashgiach of
Ner Yisroel, about moving to EY. He told me that the
land of EY has Kedusha. As a result, whatever Mitzvah
one does there is more than doing the same Mitzvah
in Chutz L’Aretz. However, whatever Aveira one
does there is much worse than doing the same Aveira
in Chutz L’Aretz. “You just don’t go to Eretz Yisroel.
You have to be on the proper spiritual medraga to go
there.” he concluded. I suspect that Rabbi Kronglass’s
statements above are based on a Gemara in Brochos
57a.. This Gemara as given in the Artscroll Mesechta
Brochos is “ R’Zeira said, ‘I did not ascend from Babylonia
to the Land of Israel until I saw the favorable sign
of barley in a dream.’” The Artscroll commentary on
this is “”Taking this as a sign that he had achieved a
new level of purity, he now felt worthy of living in
the elevated spiritual environment of the Land of Israel
(Avnei Nezer to Yoreh Deah vol 2 §552; cf Maharsha).
“ Is this not precisely the point that one must be on the
proper spiritual level to live in Eretz Yisrael? Thus, any
call for mass movement of Jews from the US to Israel is
out of place unless it includes a call for real Teshuva and
a deep and all encompassing chesbon hanefesh. Thus,
in my opinion, Mr. Fulda’s OP Ed in last week’s issue
of the Jewish Vues is most misleading.
Professor Yitzchok Levine
Vues Master’s Note: Could there be two opinions and
both have a ring of truth to it?
BD”E R’ BZ WEISS
Dear Vues Master:
I just wanted to acknowledge what a great person & baal tzedakah R’ Ben Zion (BZ) Weiss was. He was involved with so many tzedakah and organizations & will be missed by his family, the community & all of Klal Yisrael. Yehi Zichro Baruch.
SR
Vues Master’s Note: We will all miss his great avodas haKodesh!
RABBI LAVI GREENSPAN
Dear Vues Master:
Everyone knows and loves Rabbi Lavi Greenspan & the article that Ari Hirsch wrote on the chosson two weeks ago in The Jewish Vues was fantastic. It’s such a great story! Keep up the great work! I just want to wish Lavi & his kallah Nechama a big Mazel Tov from all your friends in Flatbush!!
BS
Vues Master’s Note: I second the motion! Love these letters!
BALL
Dear Vues Master:
I loved Rav Schachter’s article in the Jewish Vues called “A Kiddush Hashem?.” It was obvious that it was referring to Ryan Turel from the YU Macs that is now playing in the G League for Detroit. I want to know what Rav Schachter would pasken as far as Ryan wearing a kippah on Shabbos. We all know that he shouldn’t be playing on Shabbos because it’s not shabbosdic, but if he does play, is it better for him to be wearing the kippah on Shabbos or taking it off? Maybe he shouldn’t be wearing a kippah all the time. His teammates might question him why he wears his kippah all week long and not on Shabbos. Someone should ask Rav Schachter because it really wasn’t clear in the article.
HF
Vues Master’s Note: There is no answer! Rabbi Schachter will only answer the person himself. For us this article was a wake-up call!
EXPENSES
Dear Vues Master:
Why do Yeshivas have so many add on expenses after charging so much for tuition? They charge extra for Shabbatons, Yearbook ads, trips, swag etc. It’s really not fair for parents that struggle to pay the high tuition price tag to begin with.
AC
Vues Master’s Note: Because Yeshivas can’t cover their expenses even after all this extra income.
KIBBUD AV
Dear Vues Master:
Rabbi Elazar ben Azarya said: Torah scholars increase peace in the world – Tamid 32b A while ago I went to my son’s Rosh Yeshiva and asked him how come my son must do chazarah the moment I want to learn with him on Shabbos? He gave me a blank look!? I’m not asking him to carry my books to shul (carrying on Shabbos), I’m not even asking him to do something insignificant (getting me water), I’m asking him to learn with me (Talmud Torah, chavrusa and kibud av). Looking at me with a poker face!? I pay over $300 a month for his health insurance so what about hakarah hatov (gratitude)? Zombie look!? I host him for Shabbos and it says you are supposed to listen to the baal habayis (the host); three reasons to be with me and it is every three weeks. expressionless he says, what’s wrong with chazarah? incredulously, I said, I didn’t say anything is wrong with chazarh, he can do that later. Instead of trying to make peace he gave me a stone face until I just left. Looking back, I could have retorted, from Nadarim 37b, A father fulfills oneg (pleasure on) Shabbos when he is with his children and the Ran says a fathers can disturb his son’s chazara because it can be made up later. I don’t think that would have made a difference because he wasn’t interested in brokering peace between me and my son. I know because he only wants peace that benefits his wallet and honor and that is with my ex-wife who pays him to do her bidding. I will be borrowing an expression from one of my son’s rabbis: I HATE TO SAY THIS, but now I know where my son learned to become stoic. The reason, I hate to say this, is an anathema to me is because it’s a subtle way of ignoring and cancelling someone without them knowing. For example, my son’s teachers said to me, “I hate to say this, but you are crazy.” Being shocked, I’m thinking what do I say to that? Well, he is being organic and telling me what he thinks even though he really doesn’t want to. The best retort would have been, you have three fingers pointing back at yourself, but this was at the beginning of my journey, and I still thought he was a rabbi.
DG
Vues Master’s Note: Wow! You just don’t stop. You think we respect you when you bash Rabbonim?
A BRACHA
Dear Vues Master:
Someone said, according to the Meiri, one should go to a Rosh Yeshiva for a bracha over a Rebbe because the Rosh Yeshiva is certainly a talmid chacham. My experience shows this to be just the opposite. The Torah says a talmid chacham brings shalom to the world and my son’s RY doesn’t even bring shalom between me and my son. The only shalom he cares about is between him and his students, at least the Rebbe cares about bringing peace to parents as well. Rav Avigdor Miller wasn’t a Rosh Yeshiva or a Rebbe, but he was a true talmid chacham. He wasn’t beholden to anyone and could speak the truth; truth is another characteristic of a talmid chacham. Besides having truth, he brought shalom to the world. For example, he was the only leader to adjourn his congregation not only to vote for Reagan but to also wear a button supporting him. If he had one thing to tell this generation, he would tell them to go home for Shabbos and get a blessing from your father.
DG
Vues Master’s Note: Now you are Rabbi Miller’s spokesman? How do you know what he would have said? You are consumed with hatred. You have no objectivity here. Neither do I but I don’t say that this is what Rabbi Miller would have said! I am not a navi and neither are you!
HEADACHE
Dear Vues Master:
A woman came to see her shul’s Rabbi, complaining that she walks around with a constant headache from the tzuros she has from her husband and children, from her poor living conditions and from ill health. She moaned and cried for what seemed like hours. After getting her troubles off her chest, she declared: “Rabbi, it’s a miracle. My headache is gone.” “No,” the Rabbi responded, “it’s not gone. I have it now.”
MF
Vues Master’s Note: Maybe he should have worn a mask!
COST
Dear Vues Master:
A woman told her husband that she bought a new hat. When he asked her how much it cost, she said $600. “It’s a sin to spend that much money on a hat,” he said. “Dear,” she said, “that sin will be on my head.”
BM
Vues Master’s Note: You hat to go there? Sins you did already will have to absorb the cost!
DONUTS
Dear Vues Master:
I have no idea why so many people make such a big deal about these expensive donuts during the week of Chanukah. I like the traditional jelly donut/sufganiyah. To pay $10 for a donut is crazy!
YP
Vues Master’s Note: Hey the word signifies it Dough you pay a lot of Dough and if you do so you are Nuts!
OLYMPIC LIES
Dear Vues Master:
The government of Qatar reportedly has been pressuring Hamas—which it finances— to refrain from launching rockets into Israel during the World Cup soccer matches presently underway in the Gulf state. Sound familiar? The use of temporary deceit as a political weapon has a long and ignoble history. It originated with Grigory Alexandrovich Potemkin, a Russian cabinet minister who is said to have built fake villages—or deceptively redecorated existing ones—along the route traveled by Czarina Catherine II, during her visit to Crimea in 1787. As a result, Potemkin’s name has come to be associated with this particular kind of deceit. Soviet dictator Josef Stalin was a master at this game. In the 1920s and 1930s, Western visitors to the USSR were taken to see “Bolshevo,” which was presented as an example of a “progressive” Soviet prison that needed no walls or guards, because criminals were educated and inspired to become productive citizens. The Nobel laureate author George Bernard Shaw, duped by this fiction, claimed the only problem in dealing with a Bolshevo prisoner was “inducing him to come out at all” when his jail term concluded. In reality, Bolshevo had been created to impress foreigners. It was populated largely by informers whose reward was to live in the fake prison. Thus the slave labor camps of the Soviet gulag remained hidden from foreign eyes. During the Holocaust, the Nazis used Potemkin-style deception to help camouflage the mass murder of the Jews. In June 1944, Hitler invited a delegation from the International Red Cross to visit Theresienstadt (Terezin), the Jewish ghetto that had created in Czechoslovakia as a transit point for Jews being shipped to the gas chambers of Auschwitz. But the Nazis told the Red Cross that the camp was an “Endlager,” a final destination where Jewish prisoners lived happily. In The Terezin Diary of Gonda Redlich (edited by the late Prof. Saul S. Friedman), a Theresienstadt inmate described the Nazis’ preparations for the Red Cross visit: “They rain down order after order. Kindergarten children are to sing during the visit, the workers are to return home. Plays and cultural events and sporting activities must take place. Even the few lambs left here roam about on the grass around the city. The children, the workers, the sheep — a perfect idyll.” Another prisoner recalled: “A playground was laid out with sandboxes and swings, a
‘children’s pavilion’ was built and painted
from inside with big wooden animals as
toys. Behind a glass veranda you could
see a dozen cribs. It was like a story book
— but children were only allowed to enter
this little paradise on the day the commission
visited Theresienstadt.” Houses were
freshly painted—but only the portions that
would be visible to the Red Cross inspectors.
The visitors’ final report to Red Cross
headquarters characterized conditions in
the camp as “relatively good.” Nobody
seemed to wonder why the population of
Theresienstadt at the time of the visit was
30,000 less than what the Red Cross knew
it had been just a few weeks earlier. In
the 1950s, the North Korean regime built
a village called Kijong-dong in the demilitarized
zone separating North Korea from
South Korea. The North Koreans called it
a “peace village” that supposedly was inhabited
by two hundred families, but to this
day Kjong-dong actually has no civilian
residents; it houses soldiers, artillery and
underground bunkers. A Washington Post
correspondent who visited the area in 1998
reported that “if you squint through your
binoculars, you’ll see that the buildings [in
Kjong-dong] don’t even have glass in the
windows. It’s a lie, a huge Potemkin village.”
The sidewalks are empty; automatic
timers turn lights on and off in the buildings
in order to create the illusion that people
live there. Perhaps the closest historical
analogy to Qatar and its soccer matches
was the Berlin Olympics of 1936. For
Hitler, the Olympics were an opportunity
to make the Nazi regime seem reasonable
and distract from his oppression of German
Jews. The antisemitic newspaper Der Sturmer
was briefly removed from newsstands
and “Jews Not Wanted” signs that had been
posted along major thoroughfares were
taken down. Once the games were over, the
signs and the newspapers returned. Likewise,
the Olympics hosted by China earlier
this year gave the ruling regime a chance to
turn the world’s attention away from what
the U.S. has said is China’s genocidal persecution
of its largely-Muslim Uyghur minority.
In advance of the games, according
to the Washington Post, the Beijing government
even temporarily closed some of the
notorious “re-education centers” where an
estimated one million Ugyhurs have been
interned. By now those centers undoubtedly
have been reopened. We can expect the
same thing from Qatar and Hamas. The Qatari
government, which is the world’s largest
financial supporter of Hamas, evidently
has no problem with the firing of rockets
from Gaza into Israeli nursery schools.
The problem is merely a matter of timing.
When the World Cup matches are over, the
rocket attacks from Gaza undoubtedly will
resume. Qatar has learned from Hitler, and
too many other historical precedents, that
the Free World is easily fooled.
RM
Vues Master’s Note: Could not have agreed
with you anymore!
PRICE
Dear Vues Master:
The prices for a sufganiyot are insane this
year. A donut should not be selling for
$4/$5 each. I know everything is more expensive.
I know about inflation. But $5 for
a doughnut? What does it cost a store to
make a doughnut? This is robbery!!
KT
Vues Master’s Note: I got no response for
the price of sufganiot! For the price of Donuts
see my response in a previous letter!
GIFT
Dear Vues Master:
Should a boss give a holiday gift to a worker
that just started working for his company
within the last 6 months?
LP
Vues Master’s Note: That would depend if
the boss wants some extra effort!
WEIGHT LOSS
Dear Vues Master:
Is it ok for people that lose weight to brag
about it to their friends? I find it to be annoying.
LP
Vues Master’s Note: Well I am on a see
food diet! I brag about it and it is getting
easier and easier to see it. My stomach can
now be seen even without glasses! To me I
don’t say to food Weight and see it!
THE IMPORTANCE OF
PROTECTING LANDLORDS
& LAW-ABIDING TENANTS
Dear Vues Master
While cashless bail and repeat offenders
rule our streets, the City Council wants to
force potentially dangerous criminals into
the homes of law-abiding New Yorkers,
including those looking to rent out their
property. A bill called Intro. 632 would prohibit
landlords from running criminal background
checks on those applying to rent,
buy or sublease apartments, effectively
masking any potential danger some evicted
felons bring with them. Yes, that includes
murderers! If the bill passes, it would compromise
the safety of New Yorkers as other
tenants can end up living next door to serious
criminals. The city would be stripping
landlords of the ability to determine who
they allow to live on their property, a right
they should legally have. Landlords should
be allowed to decide if a murderer can rent
an apartment next to a family with five
young children. I understand that might be
a hard pill for some to swallow, but for most
people, it is what we call common sense. I
believe in second chances and would love
to support a bill that prevents landlords
from discriminating against those with a
cleared record, especially with minor and
non-violent offenses. However, this bill is
not about second chances, it is about blindfolding
landlords and law-abiding tenants
by not allowing them to vet who moves in
next door. This bill will disproportionately
harm middle-class families, many of whom
make a living by renting out their homes.
No one should ever be forced to make the
hard choice between safety and economic
stability. Our city is in desperate need of
an economic revival and increased safety.
The intentions of this bill may come from
a good place, but the outcome is going to
be disastrous for New Yorkers. To not even
allow a landlord the option, the opportunity,
to see what kind of crime somebody
has committed in the past is completely
unreasonable and all it does is it puts the
lives and safety of law-abiding citizens in
danger. Instead of economic growth, the
housing market will take another hit, one
that we can no longer endure. Our politicians
are tasked with creating commonsense
policies that improve our city for everyone,
not outlandish theoretical ideas that
will never work in practice and create great
harm for our citizens. I hope to work with
my colleagues on a revised version that will
provide past offenders with a real second
chance, while at the same time upholding
our promise to protect the people of our
great city.
Councilmember Inna Vernikov
PARTNER
Dear Vues Master:
Many years ago, three young immigrants,
an electrician, a plumber and a tailor, came
to the United States to seek their fortunes.
They agreed to meet 5 years later to see
how they were doing. The electrician drove
up in a Chevy, the plumber in a Ford, and
the tailor on a bicycle. After reminiscing,
the tailor asked them for the secret of their
success. Get a partner they told him; it
can make all the difference in the world.
He thanked them for the advice, and they
agreed to meet ten years later. This time the
electrician drove up in Lincoln, the plumber
in a Caddy and the tailor in a Rolls Royce.
Stunned, the electrician and plumber asked
the tailor “What happened? How did you
become so successful?” He responded: “I
decided to take your advice and get a partner.
But I didn’t know whom to take. So, I
said ‘Lord whom shall I take as a partner?’
and He answered ‘I’ll be your partner.’ So,
we named the business Lord and Taylor.”
GM
Vues Master’s Note: This story never gets
old! I chuckle every time I read it or hear it!
THE LIGHTS OF THE MENORAH
ATTRACT THE JEWISH SOUL
Dear Vues Master From a Chabad Shliach….
Awesome story.. Happy day after
Chanukah! I’m still tired from the whirlwind
of activities but I had to share this
story with you. It was Saturday night around
Midnight and our Chanukah booth in the
Branscomb Residence hall was booming.
My son Mendel (age 11) and I were dishing
out hot crispy latkes, gelt, and big smiles
to everyone who walked by and also offered
people the chance to light their own Menorah.
Over 150 students participated between
9:30 PM and 1AM! Around midnight, while
the Menorah table was glowing with a dozen
lit Menorahs; a young man with distinctive
Middle Eastern features walked over and
started taking pictures of the Menorahs. He
didn’t say hello or make eye contact. There
could be many reasons why he wanted pictures,
some not too pleasant. There was only
one thing to do at that moment. I gave him
a big smile “Happy Chanukah- Welcome!
Would you like to participate? Well, he said.
I’m from Gaza. My father is an observant
Muslim … but my mother is from Jerusalem
and Jewish but she doesn’t practice. I
was raised Muslim. I asked him more about
himself. His name is Osama, his family
moved to Nashville, he goes to Tennessee
State, and is a security guard at Vanderbilt
during weekends. He was surprised to
learn that according to the Torah he is Jewish.
Once again there was only one thing to
do in the moment. “Osama, would you like
to light the Menorah? Can I get you some
crispy Latkes?” This was Osama’s first time
lighting the Menorah and he took a picture
of himself lighting to send to his Jewish
grandmother who lives in Jerusalem. He
was so happy to do the Mitzvah; he gave me
his phone number and wants to get together.
The lights of the Menorah attract the Jewish
soul and awaken the Jewish soul – no matter
where it may be.
Vues Master’s Note: Great story just in time
for Chanukah! Thanks for sharing!