Gil said:
"You are being naive. It [WTGs] is a major move in the chess game of Jewish politics."
Rahel answered:
Wow. Reading some of the comments here has been quite an eye-opener for me. I've found out that WTGs, in which I've been a devoted participant for years, are actually a major move on the political chess board, part of some dark and sinister plot against -- what, exactly? No matter. The painful fact is that no one has ever taught me the secret codes or invited me to the clandestine inter-WTG meetings that surely must be held in some dimly lit (formerly smoke-filled) back room to discuss our nefarious agenda.
Like I say about the worldwide Zionist conspiracy: if there is one, then I want my villa, limousine and Swiss bank account. Or could it be that I'm just an unaware peon in the service of a higher, secret cause?
Well, I don't think so. Not at all.
I suppose this is a neat and painless way for some to deal -- or, more accurately, not deal -- with the issue. Just keep saying that WTGs are a political act, a conspiracy, that those who
participate in them do so not out of personal devotion but are actually out to destroy Judaism, that rabbis who support them are not sufficiently learned, etc. This way you never have to confront any issues of women in Judaism. After all, there are no problems anywhere in Orthodox Judaism, we all -- especially women -- should be happy with things exactly as they are, and there has never been any change in halakha since Sinai.
Right? Of course, right.