Swallowing the Bait: The Gullible Ortho-jblogger

Ocasionally I read posts on Ortho-jblogs from outside of Israel, particularly from the U.S.A., that cause me to shake my head with disbelief and ask myself: How can seemingly intelligent people be so gullible?

Now you, dear reader, are probably scratching your head and wondering what in the world is Cosmic X talking about. I'll describe a typical scenario:

Ortho-jblogger is a God fearing Jew that is interested in Israeli current events. Where does he get his news? He reads Ynetnews, Haaretz or Jpost. He comes across an item where religious Jews are described as doing or saying something outrageous. Ortho-jblogger immediately gets into a tizzy. How could religious Jews do such a thing? He starts blogging about the latest scandal. Sparks fly from his keyboard as he eloquently expresses his indignation. He is incensed at the desecration of the Divine Name! He is shocked by the insanity that has taken hold of his coreligionists! How could Rabbi Ploni do/say this or that? He publishes his post, feeling that he has done his duty in defending the honor of Torah and Judaism as he understands it. However, Ortho-jblogger does not realize that he has been had. He has swallowed the bait: hook, line and sinker.

Ortho-jblogger doesn't understand is that the sources that he gets his news from are not always accurate, and that's an understatement. Often the writers or the editors are promoting an anti-Torah agenda. They intentionally distort events and/or quote things out of context. Frequently their ignorance of Torah causes them to err. Sometimes a faulty translation of an article from Hebrew to English is at fault. In any case Ortho-jblogger is lacking the facts, an his rant is for naught. Not only that, but he will often disparage other Jews and even Torah scholars based on the erroneous information that he has received.

If Ortho-jblogger took his blogging more seriously, indeed, if he took his Judaism more seriously, he wouldn't hit the publish button so fast. He would consider the reliability of his news source. Do they have a particular agenda that may cause them to skew their reporting? Are they more interested in selling newspapers than in telling the truth? How would he rate their knowledge of Torah and Judaism on a scale from one to ten?

Ortho-jblogger would check out other news sources, such as Israel National News. True, INN has a right-wing religious agenda, and this influences their reporting. However, my experience is that they are for more accurate than any other source of news from Israel. Moreover, they are learned, God fearing Jews. When a rabbi says something or makes a halachic ruling they understand the issue. When INN errs they are not afraid to publish a correction.

Ortho-jblogger might also want to consult with the Ortho-jbloggers that live in Israel before he flies off the handle. There are quite a few of us. He will be better informed. His blog will become a source of information instead of a disseminator of disinformation. In this way he could save himself and the rest of us a lot of grief.

Here is What Ynetnews Won't Show You

Ynetnews recently published an article about a "gilui daat" poster. The article is a "work of art", a masterpiece of taking quotes out of context in order to make a media spin. Ynetnews did not provide the full text of the poster or even a high quality image that can be read.

Here is what Ynetnews wants to hide from you. Click on the photo below to see an enlargement that is readable. For those of you that do not understand Hebrew, I am sorry but I just do not have the time to translate this:

Here is my translation of the poster. Additions for the sake of style and understanding are included in square brackets:

With the assistance of Heaven

A Revelation of the Opinion of Torah
after the murder of eight holy young men in the Mercaz HaRav Yeshiva in Jerusalem

The terrible situation of "For, behold, Your enemies are in an uproar, and they that hate You have lifted up the head"[Psalms Chapter 83] is a direct result of the lack of a fit government.

A fit Jewish government needs to act according to the fundamental rule that is that is adjudicated in the Jewish Code of Law (OC 329) that it is forbidden to compromise with gentiles that are coming to harm Jews or Jewish property, since every [act of] weakness invites additional violence and murderousness, as the Lubavitcher Rabbi vehemently warned.

The current ruling establishment in the land of Israel is walking on a path of increasing compromise to the Arab enemy, to those inside [the land of Israel] and to those outside, and in this way it is nourishing and inflating in their midst the illusion that they will be able to destroy the existence of Jews in the Holy Land, God forbid. Moreover, not only are they acting in weakness and compromise with regards to the Arab enemy, they also say that he [the enemy] is right, and thus give him more substantive power to harm us, God forbid. And what is most severe from all [of the above], they even supply weapons to the enemy that is directed towards the spilling the blood of Jews.

True Jewish leadership knows how to send the nation to war with the recognition of the justice of a war against the enemies of Israel, that they are the enemies of God that are coming to harm "Israel, my first born"[Exodus 4:22] and to steal the inheritance of God.

When going to war ,the Priest Anointed for War [see Deuteronomy Chapter 20] turns to the nation and infuses every soldier with the awareness that he is going to fight against enemies and not brothers. Therefore it is forbidden to have mercy or pity on the other side. Rather one must act out of the "holy strengths" of hating evil. Everyone is required to describe to himself what the enemy devises to do to us and to apply [this] to him "measure for measure". "Don't have mercy on them for they will not have mercy on you."

And in practice: First and foremost it is incumbent upon all of us to devote ourselves to the main and fundamental repair and to act for the establishment of a fit Jewish leadership. This in addition to blessed local actions, and in addition to the necessary repair that starts in everyone's private home: to cease to employ and to provide for the Arab enemies and to switch over to "Hebrew labor" and trade with Jews.

And may we merit to "the Jews gathered themselves together in their cities... to lay hand on such as sought their hurt"[Esther Chapter 9]. In those days at this time.

Rabbi Yaakov Yosef
Rabbi Daniel Stavsky
Rabbi Yitzchak Shapira
Rabbi David Drukman
Rabbi Ido Alba
Rabbi Gadi Ben-Zimra
Rabbi Shmuel Yaniv
Rabbi Uzi Sharbaf
Rabbi Yigal Shendorfi
Rabbi Yehuda Kroizer

The public is invited to hear how fit Jewish leadership speaks

in a gathering with Rabbi Yitzchak Ginzburg
in honor of 6 Adar the Yahrzeit of Moshe Rabeinu may peace be upon him

that will take place on 6 Adar Beit (after the seven days of mourning) at 20:00 in Heftzadi Hall (21 Yirmiyahu St.) Romema Jerusalem

What Really Happened In RBS B

While ynetnews continues to reach new depths of shoddy journalism, Rafi lets us know what really happened in RBS B.

Can You Do Math?

If you can, see if you can tell me what is wrong with this statement:

When Ramat Beit Shemesh B was built, most of the residents arrived from the overflowing extreme haredi communities in Jerusalem: Neturei Karta, Toldot Aharon and Satmar. Out of a total 5,000 haredi families in Beit Shemesh, 1,500 families are from these sects.

Motorcycle Accident Revisited

Last week I blogged about the MVA near Tel Aviv where moped driving instructor Moshe Hai Yisraeli lost his life. I complained about the ridiculous treatment the accident was receiving in the MSM, who were claiming that drivers bypassed 'the "obstacle," the dying man on the road, rather than stopping to offer assistance.'

Today I saw an article on ynetnews by B. Michael that dealt with the accident and the way it was treated in the press. You should know that B. Michael is a writer rooted firmly in the extreme Israeli left, and as such is someone that I rarely agree with. However, this time we are in full agreement. Here is a little of what B. Michael had to say:

Perhaps there's no need to recount what this story is all about, but nonetheless following are the details: A terrible road accident occurred at the Azur intersection in Holon south of Tel Aviv this week. For some unknown reason Moshe Hai Yisrael (may he rest in peace), who was riding a moped, was hurled under the wheels of a cement mixer. He was squashed to death and remained lying on the road alongside his mangled moped.

A security camera positioned on a nearby roof by Channel 10 News aired the footage which shows the 10 seconds where traffic continued to flow normally without a single car stopping and without a single person coming to the casualty's assistance.

And indeed, immediately after the footage was aired the festivities began. Everyone was quick to accuse one another, to cry over the demise of Israeli society, to wail, to be shocked, to wring their hands in obvious desperation and to impressively sound voices of calamity and lamentation that looked and sounded good.

In short, it was a festivity crammed with satisfaction.

However there is only one problem with this festivity: It's synthetic, it is false. It is artificial and affected, but mostly it is dangerous in its ability to teach drivers to act like a herd of curious idiots, instead of as responsible citizens.

Firstly, a few facts should be noted, perhaps not concealed intentionally but not highlighted either:

* The driver of the cement mixing vehicle stopped on the spot, got out of the vehicle, directed traffic and apparently called the police or the Magen David ambulance service, just as he should have. (I personally passed the scene of the accident about an hour after the accident and the cement mixer had indeed stopped near the site. - CX)

* According to reports, at least 20 of the drivers passing by called the emergency services, just as they should have.

* According to eye witnesses, the injuries inflicted on the moped rider were so severe that there was not the slightest doubt that Moshe Hai-Yisraeli had died instantly. (Someone where I work told me that his brains were outside of his skull, which isn't surprising since he was crushed by a cement mixer - CX)

Read the rest.

While B. Michael got it right, it seems that Israel's Internal Security Minister Avi Dichter got it wrong:

In the middle of the day, in the heart of the country, Moshe Hai Yisraeli was hit by a passing truck and critically injured as he was hurled onto the road. For a minute and a half, which seemed like eternity, he bled on the road of a busy junction and no one stopped to offer assistance. Moshe bled to death in front of passing drivers who saw what was happening and drove on.

Dichter goes on to malign the nation by accusing us of being indifferent:

Something has happened in Israel. My soul can find no comfort and my stomach has been turning since watching the inconceivable footage. My heart keeps asking what have we come to? Where will the indifference and apathy take us? What is this screen that has plastered our eyes shut so that we do not see or hear the groans of death?

Unfortunately, I saw that certain elements in the Israeli ultra-Orthodox Jewish press also swallowed the MSM bait, hook, line and sinker. Anyone who learns Gemara should have known better!

In any case all of the people that used this incident to preach morals to the nation from their pedestal of ignorance owe the nation an apology.

Update: Just saw this from Ha'aretz:

Several passersby who saw Hai-Yisraeli after the crash later told police that they kept away because of the gruesome appearance of Yisraeli's body after the truck crushed his head. "It was obvious the man was dead anyway, so there was no point in attending to him," they said.

There it is black on white: Moshe Hai Yisraeli's head was crushed. He was dead and there was nothing that any of the drivers could have done to help him. Avi Dichter proved that he is unworthy to serve in any position of authority memah nafshach: If he knew the facts about the accident and lied about them in order to gain political mileage he is beyond contempt. If he did not know the facts about the accident and started blabbing away in ignorance he is simply irresposible.

There is a lot of mussar that we all can learn from this incident. We have to be careful in passing judgment. How misleading is the film of the accident! We don't see what happened just beyond the scope of the camera. The condition of the moped rider after the accident cannot be discerned from the distant camera shot. Wise men, be careful with your words!

Motocycle Accident Near Tel Aviv

Last Wednesday I wrote about the abundance of motorcycles in Tel Aviv:

It seems that the Tel Aviv traffic jams have made motorcycle travel attractive for those that have to get where they are going fast...

A Jerusalemite should be very careful when walking the streets of Tel Aviv. Even though all of the cars on the street have stopped, a motorcycle is liable to pop out of nowhere in an attempt to circumvent a snarl-up.

The Jewish Blogmeister commented on the post saying, "I would love to own one but I value my life too much...."

Today ynetnews reports about an moped accident that happened
yesterday:

Moshe Hai Yisraeli, a 62-year-old driving instructor, was killed Monday in an accident when he tried to bypass a truck.

This accident could have become no more than another figure in the gloomy road-accident statistics in Israel. However, a video camera, located at the junction where the accident occurred, showed drivers bypassing the "obstacle," the dying man on the road, rather than stopping to offer assistance.

The truth is that if you look at the video a little over a minute after the accident people are arriving to try to offer help. When you think about the amount of time that one needs to park in a safe place, get out of the car and get to the scene of the accident, that is not such a big delay. Also take into account that some of the people who saw it were probably in shock, while others probably felt that the best thing that they could do was get out of the way and call the police.

By the way, I passed the scene of the accident about an hour after it happened. Moshe Hai Yisraeli z"l (already covered with a white sheet), his moped and helmet were still lying in the street. Apparently they were waiting for a traffic investigator of the police to arrive before moving anything. The cement mixer had stopped not to far from where the collision took place. An ambulance and MDA staff stood around helplessly. A Hareidi guy from ZAKA was also on the scene. Leave it to the nirganim of the Israeli MSM to speak badly of our people.

Street named after Kahane irks residents Ynetnews

Ynetnews descends to new lows with this article, accusing Rabbi Meir Kahane z"l of racism. Apparently they believe that if you repeat a lie enough times then it becomes truth:

All of this well-documented racist behavior, however, didn't stop Or Akiva from naming a street in his honor, causing residents to respond with outrage.

I've already blogged that Rabbi Kahane was not a racist. Not only that, but here is the "documentation" mentioned in the article:

Kahane founded Kach, a party which advocated transferring Palestinians out of the territories for monetary compensation and annexing those territories as part of an ideology believing in the concept of 'a greater Israel .'

The party won one seat in the 1984 Knesset and was subsequently banned from participating in future elections after the Election Law was amended to bar lists that incite racism.

He also founded the Jewish Defense League (JDL), which is listed by the FBI as a terrorist group.

Kahane was murdered by El Sayyid Nosair in 1990 after a speech in New York.

Wow, what great documentation!

The remarks of the mayor of Or Akiva contradict the entire essence of the article:

Or Akiva Mayor Simcha Yosifuv responded to the outcry on Monday, saying that "the decision to name a street after him was made 15 years ago. I wasn't the mayor then. It's a dead-end alley and in the four years I've been mayor not a single person has come forward to complain about it.

"He was a Jew who was murdered by fanatics because of his opinions. If any resident has a problem with the street we will bring the matter to the city council for discussion."

Yawn Of The Day

The ynetnews headline screams:

Olmert on settler violence: I am ashamed

I think to myself, "What happened? Did the big bad settlers throw stones or beat up an Arab?" I read further:

Prime minister watches video clip published in Ynet in which Jewish woman settler in Hebron attacks Arab family: 'This is brutality, arrogance, and contempt that can't be come to terms with.' Settler doesn't show for interrogation, summoned again for Monday.

Again I think to myself, "What did this woman do?" I continue to read:

Prime Minister Ehud Olmert responded for the first time Sunday to the incident in the Tel Rumeida section of Hebron in which a settler woman verbally attacked an Arab family.

Am I supposed to laugh, or what? The jokers at ynetnews included a video of the "violent" incident as well. Do the people over there really want us to take them seriously?

Update: David Wilder, the spokesman for the Jewish community of Hevron weighs in.

Update: Hevron Jews Protesting Probe of Heckler

Cyberjews

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Kol HaKavod!