B"H
Once again, Israel's secular press expresses its hatred against haredi society. The two biggest secular newspapers, YEDIOT ACHARONOT as well as MAARIV publish facts and stories against Haredim. The usual stereotype subjects: Haredim don't go to the army, they are lazy and don't work and secular students get less benefit than haredi Kollel students (relig. institution for married men).
Israeli haredi websites see their secular counterparts as a further attempt for spreading hatred against Haredim. Why always the Haredim ? Because they don't write wild comments to the secular media ? Because they keep quiet ?
In a way it is disgusting how our secular press works: They are so much in favour of foreign workers and their children. Gentile children have a right to stay in Israel. Even more than the Haredim because those children from Philippina and African workers would go to the army afterwards. Haredi kids don't.
Such comparisons make me sick and I start asking myself why those journalists don't move abroad. If they prefer a Gentile society so go to wherever you are happier and eat your pork.
The same with regarding the Middle East conflict. If you don't like Israel and don't want to buy products made in the settlements, so go and immigrate to Gaza. The Hamas will be extremely "happy" seeing all this Jewish Israeli journalists streaming in.
Our government including Jerusalem's Mayor Nir Barkat are doing their best to turn Israel into an assimilated country. No further Jewish concepts but democracy and tolerance. We have to be like everyone else and those who are bothering have to vanish.
I think that more Haredim should go to the army. And yes, haredi society doesn't have the best school education and it needs to be improved. And yes, more Haredim should go and work because not too many are such Talmidim Chachamim. In fact, many Haredim are bored in Yeshiva but continue due to society pressure. More Haredim have to get educated and there already has been a rise in enrollments for haredi academic institutions. More and more Haredim want to get educated, own a computer and try to learn English and science.
However, the hate our secular press is trying to cause is almost on the same primitive level as "Der Stuermer" (anti - Semitic magazine from the Nazi Julius Streicher during the Third Reich). Only negative stories are being presented and nothing positive about society. Secular university students work in order to finance their studies, go on reserve duty and raise their children in case they are a parent. Haredi married students just behave like parasites although many of them have joined the job market.
Why always the haredi issue ? Why are there no further reports on how many illegal Africans are streaming into our country on a daily basis ? And why is there no further report an the increase of poverty ? It really looks like that there is an interest in getting rid of religion. Now it is the Haredim and, later on, the national religious.
Further Details:
Hysterical in tone and difficult to follow. I like your blog but this post is confused. Comparing press articles you don't like to Der Strumer is difficult to stomach. Then,to top it all you appear to agree with the criticisms of haredi society!
ReplyDeleteThe truth is, as many "moderate" haredim will tell you, the Gen Gurion agreement of subsidies and exemptions from army service was intended to be a temporary measure after the holocaust. It was not intended to last this long and it is clearly economically unsustainable on this scale. It is also morally impossible to justify - why should some fight, die, pay taxes etc so that others can do nothing?
B"H
ReplyDeleteNothing hysterical and not confused but in line with public opinions in Israel, as there are different sides and facts.
Ben Gurion agreed to exempt the Haredim from the army because there weren't so many then. Only a few hundred. Today we have thousands not going to the army. Not all of them study in Yeshivot but are enrolled. However, they prefer to work but tell the army that they study.
Haredim do pay taxes. When they work they pay income taxe and they do have to pay the city tax Arnona.