It's Now or Never - Final

So what can we do? It seems that there is a demographic inevitability to where these issues with the fanatics are going. They do not work so all they can do is have kids. There more kids they have the more money the government provides. In addition, it does not seem that either the right ( Likud, Jewish Home, and Yisrael Beiteinu) or the left ( Zionist Union, Meretz and Yesh Atid) can form a government without the participation of either the Arabs ( which will never happen) or the fanatics. The only chance is for a unity government that recognizes the true danger and works together to change it.

Unfortunately that is unlikely to happen. Both sides still presume ( incorrectly I think) that the issues with the Palestinians are the biggest problem. I don't want anyone to misunderstand me. The problem with the Palestinians is a big problem. One that needs to be dealt with but I do not think it is the existential problem that others do. In my mind the taking over of the country by a segment of society that for the most part does not contribute anything to it's advancement  ( not for their own people or anyone else) is the problem that must be dealt with. We need the politicians to see this as more than a social issue ( who can get married , who can shop on Shabbat) and make them realize it  is a real threat.

Also, diaspora Judaism, which so many people here think doesn't mater, has to start making this a priority. Last week, Daniel Gordis, published a very controversial  article ( http://blogs.timesofisrael.com/israelis-dont-care-that-youre-insulted-an-open-letter-to-american-jews/). Please take the time to read it. In short he calls for a boycott by diaspora Jews of Israeli institutions ( such as ElAl and hospitals). Many people got upset because they likened it to BDS. They are not entirely wrong. However the idea can be made more targeted. The diaspora community needs to stop funding the communities that are working against their interests in Israel. I now ask two questions of people looking for contributions from me. The first is if they or their children have served in the Israeli army. The second is if they support the drafting of Yeshiva students. Those are my questions. Other people will have others. The point is that we can not keep supporting nice guys who do good work for that reason alone. There are many nice guys here doing amazing things. These nice people need to go to their leaders and tell them that they lost large donations because the leaders do care about the issues of the donors.

Another thing we can do is help the organizations that are trying to make a difference in the fanatic world. I truly believe that most of the people who are living in these communities want to work. They don't want to live in poverty. They want to educate their children so they can take care of themselves and given the chance they would become fully functioning citizens of the State. We need to understand that the pressure for these people to conform is very great. Any deviation can mark an entire family as not being kosher enough.

I am looking for those organizations and have a list I want to visit ( I would take recommendations). One that I did visit was Friends of Nahal Haredi. As I have mentioned in my previous posts, when a boy in this community decides to go to the army many times they are shunned and cast out by their families. This not only drives them away from their community but also the entire belief system they grew up with. If you want to know more visit their website ( http://nahalharedi.org/about-us/)

You can see that they have many programs. One that appealed to me was the housing for lone soldiers. The traditional definition of a lone soldier is on that does not have parents in Israel. For these boys it includes those that can't go home. The FNH have several apartments around the country where these boys can go when they are off duty. When I was meeting with them they mentioned they were running out of money to keep the one in Ramat Gan open. It houses eight boys at a time at a cost of around $40 - $50 K a year. This includes rent, food an Av Bayit ( grownup in charge) and other incidentals. If anyone is interested in helping I have spoken to some people and we are half way there but I would like to help them raise the other half. If you are interested please go to the website and donate. Earmark the money for the Ramat Gan apartment. Tell your friends.

I want to apologize for the seriousness of the last three posts. As I mentioned at the outset, this blog is a catharsis for me. I can tell by the lack of responses it did not appeal to most of you which I guess is the issue.

I will return with interesting observations that are less heavy