Wednesday, October 7, 2009

Bosor B'cholov or Not?



Is kosher meat with Kosher cheese heated in a microwave, considered real authentic bosor bicholov?

Every time I try I always have a wise guy tell they both must be kosher food and cooked together.

Is a microwave considered cooking? According to whom is it not considered cooking? If you go according to that shita that holds that microwaving isn’t kosher, AND technically the hotdogs are already cooked, so according to the Rashal ……

Tuesday, October 6, 2009

Chosid=Loser

(The names, dates, and ages have been changed)
So I was 12 or 13 years old and it on Shabbos afternoon. After the Davening in 770 finished I was walking together with my father, brother, and some random people to a Kiddush where a friend of the family was celebrating something. The sun was out and shining in my face although it was chilly outside.

The weather was uncomfortable and the atmosphere was glum for just a few months ago the beloved Lubavitcher Rebbe had passed away....

Always the inquisitive one, I would make sure to walk near the adults so I could listen in to their passionate effusive conversations, besides it was always more interesting then what the kids my age were saying.

I overheard a conversation that has affected me until today. Moshe, a contemporary of my father, asked my father "Dovid, do you think Reb Avrohom is a Chassidishe Yid?” I strained my ear as best possible to hear the response, after all that’s exactly what I wanted to be, a "Chassidishe Yid", that was the ultimate! "Yes" was my fathers unwavering opinion. "Why?" Asked Moshe, "He's a Chassidishe Yid," my father explained “becomes he has nothing- no money, no family… er hut gurnishet".

Let's put away the concepts of success, happiness, alpha male, Chavreman, go getter. I am at a loss of words to explain how, don’t know what work to use, loserish was.

In my experience this horrible outlook on life wasn’t only felt and taught by a few, but sadly it is a concept that permeates the community as a whole.
With the backdrop of its history, Chabad has a lot to be proud of and continues to personify the self sacrifice of Russian Jewry etc. I am extremely proud that not so distant relatives actually saved people during the holocaust at the peril of their own demise.

However, to bring up a whole generation with this pathetic outlook and negative thirst toward not enjoying the basic accomplishments of the human being and even worse to to promote
a looser as a Chasid,
having a crazy wife as a good Mashpia,
making crap out of someone as a Farbrengen,
ruining someones property as a "good Farbrengen", is plain wrong.

I for one want to be the biggest loser in the eyes of the community!

Weird

I sit in your sukkah- I am one of you.
I eat at your Shabbos meal - I am one of you.
I agree with your vort - I am one of you.
I sing the niggunim - I even inspire you.


I hate you and all that you stand for.
I will destroy you and all that you consider holy.
You are bad you are nil.
You make me sick, you make me ill.

L'chaim.... mir zul (TAKEH) veren chassidim!

Sunday, October 4, 2009

"Ah Shvereh Leben"

In Yeshivah they always promoted a hard life, lack of sleep, and lack of enjoyment.

The historical basis for this propensity comes from a nostalgic desire to relive the hard days of communist Russia. Starting with the 1917 communist revolution followed by the purges of the 30s, religious Jews and Chassidim in particular were targeted by the communist government. It was a hard life for Chassidim, and many were actually killed for trying to preserve Jewish life.

Fast forward to the end of the 20th century go into the halls and minds of the Chabad Yeshivah system you will find that the ongoing overall outlook on life has a foundation which is deeply rooted on reliving that difficult past. They are so impressed and inspired by the stories of "Mesiras Nefesh" (self sacrifice) that they feel guilty for not facing these same challenges on a daily basis.

For example, examine the simple thought process that would play itself out with this type of looserish self deprivation. The Yeshiva boy thinks to himself “After all, if Mendle Futerfas "mistakenly" fell off a boat just to go to the Mikveh, then how dare I enjoy a good night sleep, put on warm clothe, and go to the Mikveh with a clean towel?” Another demented train of thought, “If some Chassidim (supposedly) broke ice in the early winter morning, in Shtetelgrad, just to go to the Mikveh before Davening, how dare I drink coffee before Davening and enjoy it with sugar.”

This sick pathetic injustice that has been done to a generation is not only sad but eternally damaging. I sit down to study math and it’s going well, but all of a sudden I have this (not so subconscious) feeling of guilt about being so comfortable and not struggling, I am having it too “easy”.

I realize that I may never truly get away from this negative, difficult, self-destructive outlook, so my personal revenge is to break Shabbos and piss on everything holy. Not that the two equate, but what ells am I suppose to do? Besides, it feels good and it believe it or not, it helps!

This is my rant