Consider the following headlines from the Times of Israel on Thursday, April 24, 2014:
Ex-head of NY aid agency for poor Jews pleads guilty to larceny
5 Hasidic men charged with assault on gay black man
The same day the Times had a story about a former driver for Netanyahu charged with sex crimes on minors.
Of the three articles, the last, the driver's sex crimes, is the least egregious; it was a crime of "passion."
The first article, about the Ex-head of NY aid agency for poor Jews pleads guilty to larceny is all about greed. The ex-head was found guilty of depriving his constituents more than $7 million; $7 million stolen from The Met Council that provides employment services, crisis intervention, emergency food and other programs for poor Jewish households in New York.
The state's penalty for his greed was a requirement to pay back (only) $3 million - making a nice profit of $4 million - and a 3 to 10 year stay in a state prison; where he will be clothed, fed, and all is medical needs covered.
The second article, "5 Hasidic men charged with assault on gay black man flies again and again in the face of Torah and HaShem's commandments.
Most minorities in the U.S. know that most Jews only pay lip service to their plight.
Minorities are "OK" as long as they are not in "my" neighborhood.
One reader's comment to the article states: "Diversity is such a wonderful thing…we brought it upon ourselves, thanks to secular Jews everywhere who have no moral code or honor; This disgraceful excuse for a human being flaunting his mischief and degeneracy got just what he expected by his "in your face" attitude in one of our communities. I can not wish him well, he is an affront to all that is Holy! These valiant defenders of Torah will not be sent to prison or jail…righteous acts and actions have their own reward."
Never mind that nothing in the article even hinted that the victim was "flaunting his mischief and degeneracy" - in fact, the article reports that the victim, a 22-year-old student at the New York City College of Technology, simply was walking through the heavily Orthodox neighborhood of Williamsburg on his way home to a nearby neighborhood when more than 12 Hasidic men attacked him.
"Hasid," lest you are unaware, means "pious." If attacking a person just because he is passing through your neighborhood is "pious" than I hope never to be pious, certainly not like the 12 men that caused the victim to suffer a broken eye socket, torn retina, blood clotting, and cuts and bruises to his knees and ankles.
Perhaps the pious men of Williamsburg were taking a leaf from the pious men of Mea Sharim and Bene Brak and other black hat communities in Israel where even young, modestly dressed girls are spat upon and where black hat rabbis from the U.S. have their hats knocked off because a "pious" Jew feels the foreign black hat isn't equally pious.
It's sad and bad enough that there is a "religious" war developing in the "holy land" between the extremists and both the religious and secular Jews in Israel (and I fear it will cause us to lose the state once again), but apparently the mentality is exported to the U.S. - but from where? Europe? Israel?
People who behave as the thief and the "hasidim" are NOT Torah Jews, certainly not Torah ba'al pei.
I'm ashamed.
I’m ashamed as a Jew.
I'm ashamed as an American.
I'm ashamed as an Israeli.
Maybe the mashiach is ashamed, too, and that's what's causing the delay in his arrival.
