25 Jan SPEAK YOUR VUES WITH THE VUES MASTER
VACATION
Dear Vues Master:
I’m so glad that so many people are away this
week. It feels like it’s summer time. I can find
parking spots wherever I go & the stores are
empty. I feel bad for the store owners but it hap-
pens every year at this time of year.
KN
Vues Master’s Note: I heard that the store own-
ers open up pop up stores in Florida!
MASHIACH
Dear Vues Master:
For many years winter/yeshiva break meant that
everyone went to Florida, an island or Israel.
It seems that the new place for people to go to
this year is Panama. I’ve been told that Panama
has over 45 kosher restaurants. That is amazing!
Klal Yisrael is everywhere now. What will hap-
pen when Moshiach comes? Will everyone live
in Israel? Will there be enough room for every-
one?
ML
Vues Master’s Note: The Mishna says no one ever
said that Yerushalayim was too packed. There
will be enough room. Let’s get to this problem!
EXPIRATION DATES
Dear Vues Master:
I just found out that my passport expires in 2
months & because of that I won’t be able to fly
to Israel until I get my passport renewed. I was
supposed to go to Israel in two weeks and come
back in 4 weeks & I still can’t fly. Why is that?
My expiration says March 15 and I plan on com-
ing back the second week of February & I still
can’t fly. Why is it so misleading?
BH
Vues Master’s Note: It is just a way for the gov-
ernment to make more money!
INJUSTICE
Dear Vues Master:
Moshe Rabbeinu is a leader because he protested
when he saw injustice. As a result of his protest,
he ran for his life and was imprisoned; this is
part of the reason people don’t protest. When
you stand up for good the bad guys are going to
try to stop you. Many times, they are successful
because they have a network of people that paint
you as the bad one; however, learn from Moshe
that you should do it anyway. Alienated fathers
are afraid to speak up because it is them against
everyone else. I had to deal with my ex-wife, her
husband, her brothers, father, and Yeshiva. They
try to put doubt in my mind, but the more I stand
up for myself the more I see their falsehood. I
met someone, a few years ago, from Monsey at a
parental alienation meeting. He was well dressed
and religious. He spoke up during the meeting
and I went to him afterwards and asked what he
was doing here. He said he hasn’t spoken to his
son in over twenty years and all he knows about
him is that he is some kind of doctor and lives in
Woodmere. I asked him which yeshiva he went
to, and he told me CCY. His ex-wife got remar-
ried to someone from that yeshiva as well and
the rest is history. I enlightened him about the
yeshiva and told him how the Rosh Yeshiva and
his brother tried to bully me into submission.
The Rosh Yeshiva threatened to alienate my son
from me. He called me names and even told my
son he doesn’t have to do kibbud av. After I fin-
ished my story, the person was bewildered and
said he doesn’t believe me. I told him I have it
in writing and on recording. He said he didn’t
believe me because he loved the Rosh Yeshiva
because he tried so hard to help him. I told him
that this is how he gets away with it, he puts thi
facade of being humble and helpful
in front of the parent(s) and tells his
students, behind closed doors, to stay
away from you. This father was re-
jected by his son, and he doesn’t want
to contemplate that the Rosh Yeshiva
also rejects him. So he bends the truth
for his own emotional well being.
However, he is doing himself, his
son, and his grandson a disservice by
not publicizing this. One day, if not
already, he will be accused of being
an absentee father and the stepfather
will take credit for raising him. The
father’s misplaced humility is what
the Rosh Yeshiva takes advantage of.
This son, the doctor, works in Staten
Island so anyone who knows him,
please tell him to call his father. It is
a disgrace to see people in “yeshiva”
acting like animals. My rebbe, Rabbi
Shlomo Brevda, would talk about ye-
shiva students that learn all day, but
they never change as a person. This
doctor is a good example, and it re-
flects on the yeshiva as well.
DG
Vues Master’s Note: I am mocheh on
the kavod of the Rosh Yeshiva You are
doing an injustice with your tirades.
Shame on You!
WORDS
Dear Vues Master:
The word “flip out” is a positive word
among students in yeshiva and it de-
scribes a person who goes to yeshiva
and becomes more religious than their
father. However, they fail to realize
that this was coined by parents who
see their kids being taken advantage
of. One reason fathers can’t have a
normal conversation with their chil-
dren is because they don’t know the
true meaning of words. Rav Brevda
said that children are not more reli-
gious than their parents. This is a par-
ticularly important concept to teach
children as anyone can come along
and flatter a child by telling him how
holier he is than his father. The offi-
cial definition of “flip out” is to be-
come crazy or suddenly lose control.
Besides this term one should sit down
and read George Orwell’s 1984 with
their son. Here are some other use-
ful terms that can help make your
son more discerning: “Doublethink”
is used to describe one’s capacity to
hold two contradictory beliefs at one
time. For example, flip out which is
negative and positive. “Newspeak”
is used to control what people are ca-
pable of thinking. A father would like
to know what are the pros and cons of
someone who flips out? “Unperson”
refers to someone whose existence is
denied due to a political or ideologi-
cal crime. Is this person, who flipped
out, making his father an unperson?
I will coin the term “unfather” to de-
scribe a son who denies the existence
of his father due to frumkeit.
DG
Vues Master’s Note: Again you have a
one track mind!
RADIO
Dear Vues Master:
There has been much discussion late-
ly about people listening to Hatzolah
calls without permission. People get
a hold of radios, find out the chan-
nels and listen in as an elderly man
with dementia is treated, a call is an-
swered regarding a mother in distress,
or a kid who swallowed poison, r”l.
These are just some of the examples
of the hundreds of calls Hatzolah
takes every day. Unlike the need for
the community to find a missing per-
son or general awareness of health is-
sues in our community, specific calls
are none of our business. It’s chilling
to think that someone should feel un-
safe calling Hatzoloh because some-
one might be listening in. There has
been debate about Hatzoloh treating
women, for example. I am all for Hat-
zoloh, but it has to find a way to close
down its radio transmissions snd keep
a tight grip on what gets out. Worse
yet is the possibility that people will
potentially talk on the line or clog the
transmissions with traffic. This is a
privacy issue and a safety issue. As
Jews, we answer to a higher calling.
A violation of privacy raises theft and
modesty concerns. So the next time
you hear the sirens don’t answer “that
call-” unless you’re a Hatzolah mem-
ber.
CYM
Vues Master’s Note: I think that Flat-
bush Shomrim has a radio signal no
one can listen to!
SHALOM BAYIS
Dear Vues Master:
An elderly woman was speeding
when she was stopped by a police-
man. “License and registration,” he
said. “What did he say?” the wom-
an asked her husband. “He said he
wants your license and registration,”
the husband replied. “Do you realize
how fast you were going?” the officer
asked. “What did he say?” she asked
her husband, who repeated the ques-
tion for her. The officer then looked at
her license and remarked “I see you’re
from Brooklyn. I once dated a woman
from Brooklyn. She was the most dif-
ficult woman I ever met.” Again, the
woman asked her husband “What did
he say?” “He said he thinks he knows
you.”
MB
Vues Master’s Note: I Hear.
TEFILLIN
Dear Vues Master:
והיה לאות על -ידכה ולטוטפת- בין עיניך
שמות י“ג:ט“ז
כל הקורא ק“ש בלא תפילין כאילו
מעיד עדות שקר בעצמו
ברכות י“ד ע“ב
When the Chasam Sofer learned with
his תלמידים Parshas בא and Parshas
ואתחנן he made sure to wear his Tefil-
lin*. ג :ד“פ ס“חת מנהגי*
MF
Vues Master’s Note: This is important
for those that don’t make zman krias
Shema!
ANALOGIES
Dear Vues Master:
A new record may have just been
set—for the most Hitler analogies in
a 24-hour period. From Moscow to
Mar-a-Lago, public figures this week
were inappropriately invoking Nazi-
related terms to denounce develop-
ments that did not at all resemble
those of the Nazi era. Russia’s foreign
minister, Sergei Lavrov, declared that
the United States and its European al-
lies are attempting to solve “the Rus-
sian question” in the same way that
“Hitler wanted a ‘final solution’ to the
Jewish question.” Meanwhile, more
than five thousand miles away, for-
mer president Donald Trump tweeted
that the FBI agents who recently re-
moved classified government docu-
ments from his Mar-a-Lago residence
were “the Gestopo” (as he spelled
it). Before the news cycle was done,
a former Israeli attorney general
called proposed judicial reforms in
that country “a pogrom,” and New
York Times columnist Thomas Fried-
man described those proposals as a
“putsch,” the term commonly associ-
ated with Adolf Hitler’s failed coup
attempt in 1923, known as the Beer
Hall Putsch. Whew! If such outbursts
were an aberration, it would be bad
enough. But there have been numer-
ous such remarks flung about in public
discourse in recent months—just not
all in a single 24-hour period. Film-
maker Ken Burns, speaking on CNN
about Holocaust-era immigration
policies, said the decision by Flori-
da’s governor to fly fifty migrants to
Martha’s Vineyard was “straight out
of the authoritarian playbook.” Not to
be outdone, the Republican nominee
for governor of Illinois, Darren Bai-
ley, declared that “the attempted ex-
termination of the Jews of World War
II doesn’t even compare on a shadow
of the life that has been lost with
abortion.” And Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
said last year that America’s Covid
vaccination policies are even more
dangerous than Hitler’s policies,
since in Nazi Germany there was (he
claimed) the option of “hiding in an
attic, like Anne Frank did.” At least
Kennedy retracted and apologized for
his comment. That’s rare among those
who use Nazi analogies as political
weapons. Five years ago, the United
States Holocaust Memorial Museum
announced that it “unequivocally re-
jects efforts to create analogies be-
tween the Holocaust and other events,
whether historical or contemporary.”
It issued that statement after one of its
staff historians, Rebecca Erbelding,
expressed support for the claim by
Rep. Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez that
U.S. immigration facilities resemble
“concentration camps.” Erbelding’s
statement was made “in a personal
capacity” and “does not reflect the po-
sition of the Museum,” the museum
emphasized. Given the sudden prolif-
eration of comparable statements by
public figures, at home and abroad,
this might be a good time for the Ho-
locaust Museum to publicly reiterate
its opposition to Nazi analogies. Such
analogies both exaggerate contempo-
rary controversies and minimize what
the Nazis did. Policies concerning is-
sues such as immigration, abortion, or
Covid restrictions naturally generate
intense debate. But it should be pos-
sible to discuss even the most sensi-
tive issues without resorting to absurd
and insulting historical comparisons.
Abortion is not another Holocaust.
America’s immigration facilities do
not resemble Dachau. And Mar-a-
Lago is not on the way to Auschwitz.
Rafael Medoff
Vues Master’s Note: You are so right!
MARRIAGE
Dear Vues Master:
Marriages are made in Heaven, but
the details are fought out here on
earth.
LM
Vues Master’s Note: I can’t argue with
you as I don’t want to get into a fight!
PLANE
Dear Vues Master:
After boarding the plane, taking their
seats and awaiting takeoff, the pas-
sengers heard the flight attendant an-
nounce: “There will be a short delay.
We are waiting for the pilots to arrive.
We are sorry for the inconvenience.”
Looking out of the windows, the pas-
sengers saw two men dressed in pilot
uniforms and accompanied by seeing-
eye dogs approaching the plane. Not
knowing what to make of this, most of
those on board assumed its some kind
of joke. When the two men entered
the cockpit with their dogs, nervous
chuckles could be heard throughout
the cabin. Although the plane taxied
to the runway, picked up speed and
began its takeoff in a normal fash-
ion, the passengers looking out the
windows saw that it was nearing the
end of the runway and not lifting off.
Immediately, sensing impending di-
saster, the entire cabin began scream-
ing desperately. With only seconds to
go before plunging into the water, the
plane finally took off. In the cockpit,
the pilot turned to the co-pilot and
said: “You know, one of these days
people are going to scream too late
and we’re all going to die.”
ES
Vues Master’s Note: Not funny!
TICKETS
Dear Vues Master:
This week, the New York State Sen-
ate passed legislation (S-1242) spon-
sored by Senator Simcha Felder (D-
Brooklyn) that protects New Yorkers
from hefty gotcha fines for expired
inspection stickers. The law will re-
quire the Department of Motor Vehi-
cles to provide drivers with advance
notice of their upcoming annual ve-
hicle inspection date requirement
and provide a five-day grace period
before a ticket may be issued. Cur-
rently, the DMV does not provide any
notice to motorists regarding their
vehicle inspection. The parking fines
for expired inspection sticker tickets
contribute to over $565 million in
revenue to NYC. Under the new law,
DMV would notify drivers via postal
mail or e-mail thirty days before their
vehicle inspection sticker is set to ex-
pire. “For hardworking New Yorkers,
these GOTCHA tickets are infuriat-
ing! I am proud to continue my leg-
acy that began with my first bill ever
signed into law creating the 5-minute
grace period for parking meter tick-
ets. NYers are not a cash cow,” said
Senator Felder. Rachel N. in a call to
Senator Felder’s office said, “I got
a ticket for expired inspection on a
Saturday and the inspection station
I trust was closed on Sunday. I was
so upset that I made this expensive
mistake, but even worse was watch-
ing my husband worry about getting
another ticket before we could get an
inspection. A notice in advance would
save such a headache!” After pass-
ing Senator Felder’s bill, for the third
time in recent years, the Senate sent it
to the Assembly, where it has previ-
ously stalled. “Every business that ex-
pects payment from a customer sends
an invoice and New Yorkers deserve
no less from their government agen-
cies. Give people a fair warning, with
a pinch of grace, and they will get it
done without always reaching into
their wallet first,” said Senator Felder.
ST
Vues Master’s Note: Now if we can
only get rid of the camera tickets!
TEETH
Dear Vues Master:
A distinguished Professor was stand-
ing at the lectern in front of a roomful
of people waiting to hear him speak.
However, the Professor just stood
there, not opening his mouth. When an
attendant approached him and asked
why he didn’t begin, the Professor
explained that he forgot his dentures
at home and his assistant went to get
them. As soon as the assistant arrived
and gave him his teeth, the Professor
began speaking. He went on and on
for hours without pause until finally,
the attendant approached him and
asked why he doesn’t
complete his talk. The
Professor responded:
“My apologies. My
assistant brought me
my wife’s teeth in-
stead of mine.”
DA
Vues Master’s Note:
Imagine if he would
have gotten someone
else’s wife’s teeth?
SWEAR
Dear Vues Master:
I could not believe my eyes that the
Jewish Vues would put in the letters
F-K Israel while quoting a Hamas
follower cursing a Jew. I’m melamed
zchus that they meant the word Frank?
They should have written that it was a
four letter curse word, and not spell
out the two letters which when pro-
nounced will sound like the real four
letter curse word! I am so surprised
that the editors missed that one. I
enjoy the Jewish Vues but they have
to be more careful what they print if
our Tzon Kodshim, our Tinokos Shel
Bais Rabim are being exposed to four
letter curse words! Abaya in the Ge-
mara says that the motzi hevel shel pi-
hem are holier & have more kedusha
than our learning Torah shel Baal peh,
since they don’t speak nivul peh! We
have to protect what children & adults
are exposed to!
RMS
Vues Master’s Note: Thanks for
bringing it to our attention. We will
be more careful in the future!
BETTER OR WORSE
Dear Vues Master:
Fifty percent of marriages end in di-
vorce. But the other fifty percent end
in death. Who’s to say which ones are
the lucky ones? Fifty percent of mar-
riages end in divorce. But the other
fifty percent end in death. Who’s to
say which ones are the lucky ones?
LK
Vues Master’s Note: I heard that all
divorces follow after a wedding cake!