tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-185009702011-04-21T11:26:23.596-07:00cookiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17302294066508147934noreply@blogger.comBlogger341100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18500970.post-1154532370501590192006-08-02T08:12:00.000-07:002006-08-02T08:26:10.520-07:00

Hezbollah rockets are raining on Israel at a typical pace of what, over 100 a day? Hezbollah operates, like the terrorist group it is, out of civilian areas. Lebanon cannot or will not disarm this terrorist group. What exactly is Israel supposed to do - say, "Shoot me"? Just take the kidnapping and rocket fire and it's business as usual? I sure don't wish I lived in a country where air raid

cookiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17302294066508147934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18500970.post-1144694844598467612006-04-10T11:40:00.000-07:002006-04-10T11:47:24.613-07:00

A book Gil reviewed caught my eye at the Judaica store recently. Is there anyone who believes that there is really going to be a one-size fits all solution to this problem? Chanoch l'naar al pi darko is all a person can do to honestly say, after 120, "I've done mine." But bechirah will still always exist in the hands of the individual.Wishing you a wonderful Chag Hacheirus, v'ein l'cha ben

cookiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17302294066508147934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18500970.post-1144347982401233252006-04-06T11:26:00.000-07:002006-04-06T11:26:23.110-07:00

Ben celebrates a belated Purim. Sh'koyach!Mo-C gets wikied. Mazel Tov!PT explicates on Chillul Hashem. Just remember, if the fellow burning garbage is your brother (allowing you to rank him out), then the fellow who was manhandled is your father. Shoe's on the other foot. Wear it.

cookiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17302294066508147934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18500970.post-1143047194761586002006-03-22T09:06:00.000-08:002006-03-22T09:06:35.026-08:00

Finally checked out this blogWe sometimes make the assumption that parenting determines how a child will turn out. But if you think about it, it's actually very unusual for all the children in a family to have similar personalities, even though they have the same parents.I am looking forward to reading more of this. Two points: 1. Parents cannot, in my belief, change temperament. But good

cookiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17302294066508147934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18500970.post-1143044881030813962006-03-22T08:18:00.000-08:002006-03-22T08:28:01.076-08:00

A serialized book that Mishpacha ran for a little while, Hearts of Gold, recently ended. Mishpacha took a lot of flak for running this story, both while it was running and after it finished. I commend them for braving it, and also for the elegant way they resumed when condemned in middle of running the story. A few thoughts about this book remain in my head, here goes (spoilers ahead/some of

cookiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17302294066508147934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18500970.post-1141930200939486772006-03-09T10:49:00.000-08:002006-03-09T10:50:00.956-08:00

The ides of March draw near. Fair is foul and foul is fair in the hester panim of Purim. (Knowing my limits I won't try to pull an Ishbetzer off on you.)It's an interesting puzzle as you try to be aware of what's beyond the surface and yet retain the good eye, viewing things in a positive light even as you see them for what they are intrinsically. Nothing is as it seems. Richard Cory. The clown

cookiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17302294066508147934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18500970.post-1141159053640992392006-02-28T12:35:00.000-08:002006-02-28T12:37:33.670-08:00

A recent letter to Mishpacha from an anesthesiologist reminded me that I really wanted to post about the whole epidural meshugass. The doctor has the good sense to admit that there is room for both natural and pain-relieved childbirths. It is astonishing to read and listen to the opinions from some advocates of natural childbirth. Don't get me wrong. I am strongly against unnecessary

cookiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17302294066508147934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18500970.post-1140709276684110102006-02-23T07:32:00.000-08:002006-02-23T07:41:16.720-08:00

Psycho had me literally laughing out loud with his siyum history...donuts sounds really cold, though....MoC is also annoyed with Bluetooths, and I have to add that people wearing them look incredible weird. We used to have a name for people who walked around talking to voices only they could hear....

cookiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17302294066508147934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18500970.post-1140540438125080182006-02-21T08:38:00.000-08:002006-02-21T09:08:08.726-08:00

I know I will probably read Unchosen, and I'm expecting it to be a tearjerker. I hope that the book does not rely on emotion in the place of scientific analysis. Still, I know (based on this review) that there are things I'll be looking for, which probably won't be there. Someone else hasn't found something which might have been of interest, but at least it was not on the menu. Josh Harrison

cookiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17302294066508147934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18500970.post-1139948223792995512006-02-14T12:17:00.000-08:002006-02-14T12:17:53.133-08:00

Money quote: Part of married happiness is realizing that your spouse is doing a lot more settling than you are.

cookiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17302294066508147934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18500970.post-1139332886313221792006-02-07T09:21:00.000-08:002006-02-07T09:21:26.383-08:00

By Trep.

cookiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17302294066508147934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18500970.post-1139331822161961152006-02-07T08:51:00.000-08:002006-02-07T09:03:42.183-08:00

The Blogger Rebbi reminds me of a question I would like to ask regarding metzitzah.As I understand it, the obligation to circumcise a baby boy rests on the father. Fathers, not necessarily being skilled at performing this procedure, may request the services of a mohel. Still, the mitzvah is best performed by the father. I suggest that we teach fathers to perform metzitzah. This gives us the an

cookiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17302294066508147934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18500970.post-1139327621586357452006-02-07T07:53:00.000-08:002006-02-07T08:50:57.643-08:00

A prominent Iranian newspaper said Tuesday it would hold a competition for cartoons on the Holocaust to test whether the West extends the principle of freedom of expression to the Nazi genocide as it did to the caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad.Good. And when they are shown the civilized response that the West will provide, will they undo the arson and resuscitate the people killed in the

cookiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17302294066508147934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18500970.post-1138331831949758882006-01-26T19:17:00.000-08:002006-01-26T19:17:11.950-08:00

Slowly restoring old posts...for your reading pleasure.

cookiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17302294066508147934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18500970.post-1136434773218946532006-01-04T20:19:00.000-08:002006-01-04T20:19:34.020-08:00

The huge stroke suffered last night by Prime Minister Ariel Sharon of Israel, caused by uncontrolled bleeding into the brain, is likely to be devastating and nearly impossible to treat because Mr. Sharon, 77, is taking blood thinners, neurologists say.Although Mr. Sharon was taken to surgery to try to remove the blood pouring into his skull, it was a desperate move, neurologists said.Hemorrhages

cookiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17302294066508147934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18500970.post-1136419175689597132006-01-04T15:59:00.000-08:002006-01-04T15:59:35.723-08:00

J ERUSALEM — Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon suffered a massive stroke Wednesday and was on a respirator after falling ill at his ranch. Doctors operated to drain excess blood from his brain.Powers were transferred to his deputy, Vice Premier Ehud Olmert.Dr. Shlomo Mor-Yosef, director of Hadassah Hospital in Jerusalem, said Sharon suffered 'a significant stroke,' adding that he was 'under

cookiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17302294066508147934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18500970.post-1135884310327177932005-12-29T11:15:00.000-08:002005-12-29T13:04:59.790-08:00

Many defeated by the fewYet the celebration is all about the oil. You might have even missed the war theme if you weren't the praying type. The oil seems to be all about the vindication. The unpopular stance - they would call you the unsophisticated, uncultured; barbaric, even (circumcision!)....a little jar of oil and it's all right again. Ah freilichen Chanukah.

cookiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17302294066508147934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18500970.post-1135133395511063782005-12-20T18:49:00.000-08:002005-12-20T18:49:55.533-08:00

If you always had what you wanted, could you ever know that you're jealous?

cookiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17302294066508147934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18500970.post-1134276778662132372005-12-10T19:41:00.000-08:002005-12-10T20:52:58.743-08:00

Some translations courtesy of ArtScroll.---I have been trying to make tefillah more meaningful by paying attention to what I'm saying (never a bad idea). In the middle of Hashivah Shofteinu one day, I found myself trying to understand how the phrase, "v'haser mimenu yagon va'anachah," (remove from us grief and sighing) fits into this paragraph that seems to be about justice. So I went on a

cookiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17302294066508147934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18500970.post-1134009669753350992005-12-07T18:39:00.000-08:002005-12-07T18:41:09.753-08:00

But what is reality if not a mere consensus on perception? Perhaps more to follow, another day.

cookiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17302294066508147934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18500970.post-1134009486336275642005-12-07T18:06:00.000-08:002005-12-07T18:38:06.360-08:00

Finally got around to updating my links bar. It's like hope (the good kind), nostalgia, and appreciation in one wicked brew. This is for Aidel because I think she is awesome. Awesome and inspiring.This is for Arye because some people are so good at writing they should be encouraged at every opportunity. Even if I don't understand a blessed thing he is saying half the time, I enjoy his stuff.

cookiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17302294066508147934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18500970.post-1133280572735336372005-11-29T08:08:00.000-08:002005-11-29T08:09:32.750-08:00

For the most part, I am pretty laid-back about speech. At the same time, I feel an obligation to raise my children to abide by socially accepted standards of speech. Other parents see red when their kids say "stupid"; it takes "retard" or "meshuggeneh" to make me mad. And I don't see anything wrong with hell (as long as you're not telling someone to go there). But one of the words I am very

cookiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17302294066508147934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18500970.post-1132806645128727802005-11-23T20:30:00.000-08:002005-11-23T20:30:45.133-08:00

Gratitude is more than a popular argument for patriotism. It is the very foundation of any society. The Sefer Hachinuch, a 13th century work, sees gratitude as the foundation of all relationships, including belief in God. This view is adopted by many of the great thinkers of the Mussar movement. Indeed, in a gratitude free world, pessimism reigns. And pessimism is a harsh corrosive, with

cookiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17302294066508147934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18500970.post-1131681692817643282005-11-10T20:01:00.000-08:002005-11-10T20:01:32.826-08:00

Sometimes I think that these parshios discussing our genealogy are there to remind us that our best and our brightest came not from what you'd call the best stock. It's not so much what you're given as where you take it.

cookiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17302294066508147934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18500970.post-1130787069867695022005-10-31T11:05:00.000-08:002005-10-31T13:39:36.510-08:00

Teshuvah is commonly defined as repentance, but it is probably more accurate to define it as return. A return to G-d (or a return to the way things were, for the nostalgic). I was thinking recently about the fact that we begin again with Bereishis, the sefer dealing with Creation, soon after Yom Kippur. We learn that teshuvah was created before Sheishes Yemei Bereishis, the Six Days of

cookiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17302294066508147934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18500970.post-1143775983675892772003-09-10T19:32:00.000-07:002006-03-30T19:39:25.703-08:00

I am the Tin Man. Find me my heart.

cookiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17302294066508147934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18500970.post-1143775876410613812003-09-09T19:23:00.000-07:002006-03-30T19:39:04.223-08:00

Of course we knew they ran away.Me, playing some argumentative person:Reaction: Of course, they live such repressive religious lives. What do you expect?Cookie Monster: Mhm. And this song was all about children leaving repressive religious lives. Right.9: It’s because they don’t have sufficient education, as young women in such a community.C: Rare, in my limited knowledge, is the girl who runs

cookiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17302294066508147934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18500970.post-1143775407729795932003-09-09T19:19:00.000-07:002006-03-30T19:23:27.740-08:00

Browsing fellow bloggers' pearls is always edifying. Josh had something interesting to say about the chiloni/charedi (secular/religious) dynamic in Israel. At least prior to the newthink (may it have a long life, at least 120 years…) inspired by the blowing up of bus #2.Josh says:"…these are very secular Israelis who don't particularly like Chareidim and at times can be downright nasty in their

cookiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17302294066508147934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18500970.post-1138333128300031502003-09-08T19:34:00.000-07:002006-01-26T19:38:48.300-08:00

I've got readers! :-"Better make sure my words are soft, I may yet have to eat them one day....

cookiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17302294066508147934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18500970.post-1138332955333705662003-09-05T19:34:00.000-07:002006-01-26T19:35:55.333-08:00

So I'm learning that a good blog should have titles, and a properly good one should have outrageous ones. We'll strive for good first.Those kebab-cleaver-wielding foul-mouthed spectators. [Ed. link dead by now] Gotta luv em.Have a Good Shabbos. Don't snore during the rabbi's sermon, please. At least we get a variety of sermons, not a one-size-fits-all from the Department of Religion.

cookiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17302294066508147934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18500970.post-1138332874202670152003-09-03T19:34:00.000-07:002006-01-26T19:34:34.203-08:00

Just realized that my new template has no links capability auto-built-in, which meant that when I tried to insert a column of links, it ended up at the bottom of the web page. Yuk. So I switched again. This is like socks. Joy.

cookiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17302294066508147934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18500970.post-1138332806999309902003-09-03T19:23:00.000-07:002006-01-26T19:33:27.013-08:00

Okay, people (this blog reminds me of the Philosophy 101 question: if the tree in the forest falls out of earshot, has it made noise? But who wants to make noise? Isn't there enough noise where you live?)First, a warning: I will be changing identifying details. I prefer that my identity not be discovered, or is it that my identity be not discovered?Second, I haven't really figured a lot of stuff

cookiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17302294066508147934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18500970.post-1138332117138608342003-08-31T19:21:00.000-07:002006-01-26T19:21:57.140-08:00

Oh yeah. A word of warning, I'm new to this blogging thing, so I'm still playing around with stuff, templates and such. The orange in the old template was just offensive. It had to go. Please don't miss it.

cookiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17302294066508147934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18500970.post-1138331766863012652003-08-29T12:15:00.000-07:002006-01-26T19:22:42.183-08:00

I'm thinking this is a funky way to vent. First of all, there are all these crucial issues in the universe that need to be reassessed, reevaluated, and redigested. I may choose to use this forum to add my .02 to the discussion. Not that you asked for it.After thinking it through over the weekend (such is the power of the electronic word, or byte, or bit, or whatnot), I've decided my second idea

cookiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17302294066508147934noreply@blogger.com