DOVBEAR
Monday, March 24, 2025
Minimizing the Madness: Why Rabbi Efrem Goldberg’s Pesach Cleaning Claims Don’t Add Up
Tuesday, July 30, 2024
Exposing the Misinformation: A Fisking of Efrem Goldberg's Bogus Criticisms of Kamala Harris
I’m struggling to convey just how inaccurate and misleading Efrem Goldberg’s criticisms of Harris’s recent remarks about Israel are, as they seem to be driven more by political agenda than by a genuine concern for the truth. Perhaps a good old fashioned fisking will do the trick. (As he has me blocked please share this with him)
This is why Efrem Goldberg blocked me on Twitter
NOTE: some might misinterpret this as an endorsement of Kamala Harris, but what I truly value is the truth. Rabbi Goldberg and others: If you can't challenge her effectively by presenting accurate information, perhaps it's time to reconsider your position
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Rabbi Goldberg’s full remarks with my fisking:
For anyone who loves Israel, knows the truth about this war to think this is somehow supportive of Israel, let alone accurate, balanced or fair, lacks self-respect and pride and lowers the bar to a dangerous level!
Supporters of Trump should not feign concern for honesty. Trump is the greatest liar in the history of politics. if you cared about truth as much as you say you do, you wouldn't support Trump - or at least you'd occasionally criticize him for his non-stop lying. Clearly, truth isn't something that actually matters to you.
From her “balanced” remarks criticizing Hamas and pivoting to Israel, you would have no idea that one party are barbaric terrorists and the other a democratic ally.
Complete nonsense. Look at the very first thing Harris said, in the remarks he is criticizing:
From when I was a young girl collecting funds to plant trees for Israel to my time in the United States Senate and now at the White House, I’ve had an unwavering commitment to the existence of the state of Israel, to its security, and to the people of Israel.
I’ve said it many times, but it bears repeating: Israel has a right to defend itself, and how it does so matters.
Hamas is a brutal terrorist organization. On October 7, Hamas triggered this war when it massacred 1,200 innocent people, including 44 Americans. Hamas has committed horrific acts of sexual violence and took 250 hostages.
You would have no idea one was the aggressor and the other the victim
Complete nonsense. Look at what she said first
Hamas is a brutal terrorist organization.
You would have no idea that the only reason Palestinians are suffering, the only reason any damage has been done or lives have been lost in Gaza is because of Hamas not Israel.
Only if you were illiterate, or not fluent in the English language, or somehow unaware of everything Biden and Harris have said on this subject since October 7 such as the fact that she's part of a government that continually resupplies Israel with war materiel.
In all of her remarks, including this one, Harris clearly identifies Hamas as a brutal terrorist organization. From her early efforts supporting Israel to her current position in the White House, she has consistently affirmed her commitment to Israel’s security
Harris has also repeatedly condemned Hamas for triggering the conflict by committing atrocities on October 7, including the murder of 1,200 innocent people and the taking of 250 hostages. Her comments always make it clear that Hamas is the aggressor, while Israel has the right to defend itself, and this set of remarks was no exception.
In her pledge to “not be silent on Gaza suffering,” she is utterly silent on the ongoing suffering of Israelis who continue to be bombarded by rockets and of displaced families from the North.
She has not been silent about any of those things!!
She is more concerned with the rioters calling for a ceasefire knowing she “hears them” then letting those who know that the IDF is just, moral, and more concerned for civilians losses than America ever was, feel heard.
This is probably the most egregious lie in Goldberg’s entire comment, because Harris put out a statement STRONGLY CONDEMNING THOSE PROTESTERS.
LOOK AT WHAT SHE SAID:
Yesterday, at Union Station in Washington, D.C. we saw despicable acts by unpatriotic protestors and dangerous hate-fueled rhetoric.
I condemn any individuals associating with the brutal terrorist organization Hamas, which has vowed to annihilate the State of Israel and kill Jews. Pro-Hamas graffiti and rhetoric is abhorrent and we must not tolerate it in our nation.
I condemn the burning of the American flag. That flag is a symbol of our highest ideals as a nation and represents the promise of America. It should never be desecrated in that way.
I support the right to peacefully protest, but let’s be clear: Antisemitism, hate and violence of any kind have no place in our nation.
And who exactly is she lecturing about stopping the war and having a ceasefire? Hamas has rejected every deal. Where is her call on Hamas to free the hostages and end the war?
You would need to have paper-thin skin to view her comments as a “lecture.” See them here for yourself: https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/speeches-remarks/2024/07/25/remarks-by-vice-president-harris-following-meeting-with-prime-minister-benjamin-netanyahu-of-israel/
Harris has met with hostage families and, in the very remarks Goldberg is criticizing, she specifically called for the hostages to be released. I don’t understand why Goldberg can’t acknowledge this truthfully - especially right after he piously, longed for more truth-telling in politics!
She made these remarks about humanitarian suffering on a day that Israel heroically rescued 5 bodies of hostages that were buried in a tunnel in a humanitarian zone, an example of how complicated something she grossly oversimplifies actually is.
Its really gross how Frum Jews always react so badly whenever anyone expresses concern for the civilians in Gaza.
This isn’t about politics, parties or particular candidates. It’s about truth, fairness and understanding the dangerous consequences that can come from candidates or leaders on either side who deliver lip service to standing with Israel and pledging Israel’s security, while using the very language and arguments of those who seek her demise.
It's about truth and fairness, yet (a) Goldberg's comments were completely false and untrue, and (b) Goldberg is promoting these lies in support of someone known for his dishonesty. Please spare us the hypocrisy about truthfulness.
Friday, January 05, 2024
The true explanation of the Chamushim Midrash
Found in the Mechilta, the midrash hinges on the word "chamushim" in Exodus 13:18. Literally meaning "armed," it appears throughout the Tanakh in reference to weaponry. Even the modern Hebrew word for ammunition stems from the same root (tachmoshet). The Mechilta itself acknowledges this, and tells us at the start that this is real meaning of the word.
But based on the word play, the Sage suggest "chamushim" could also mean "one-fifth."
Many folks jump to conclusions with this midrash, using it to draw grand lessons or fuel pre-existing agendas. For instance, I recently came across a statement suggesting that all diaspora Jews today are akin to the 4/5 of the Jews who chose not to leave Egypt - which seems like an overly simplistic and one-dimensional way to discuss other people (not to mention nasty!).
But before we all go down that rabbit hole, let's take a closer look at the text itself.
Here's the catch: The actual Midrash references other rabbis who offer varying numbers – one-fiftieth, one-five-hundredth, even one-five-thousandth! (And the part about the stay-behinds dying during the plague of darkness doesn't apply to the 4/5 but to the 4999/5000!!)
So, what's the real deal? The point seems to be all about emphasizing the exceptional nature of the survivors. Picture it like a grandparent saying, "You're one in a million!" – it's not meant to be a literal statistic, but an expression of how special you are. The idea seems to be that the people who made it to the end of the exile were survivors who had done something exceptional.
Those people who busy themselves wondering what happened to the 4/5 (or the 4999/5000!!!) are exactly like the overly concrete thinker who hears the expression "you're one in a million" and then devotes time and energy and imagination trying to figure out what happened to the other 999,999.
Tuesday, September 26, 2023
Yom Kippur 2023
Start: 8:00 AM
Finish: 3:00 PM
Break: 90 minutes
Neillah: Ended late
Break Fast: Cake, then soup, followed by pasta
Quality of the music: better than ever.
Quality of the introspection was not bad but MYOB
Quality of the Koren: Amazing. Burn your Artscrolls, and don't look back!
Big discovery: There was a hot shot German philosopher named Franz Rosenzweig who decided at the age of 27 to convert to Christianity. This wasn't a big deal, because he had never been much of a Jew. But he wanted to be a Jew before converting. He didn't want to convert as a pagan, but as a Jew. So he went to Yom Kippur 1913 and came out a changed man, dropping the idea of converting.
I went down the rabbit hole last night trying to find out what exactly happened, but no one seems to know. The smarter sources say he never told anyone, while the dumber ones say it was a "mystical experience." Either way, he went on to commit himself to Judaism (not sure exactly how far he went observance-wise) before dying at the age of 42 of ALS.
So... make of that what you will.
But along the way, he wrote "Star of Redemption," which some smart people online call a masterpiece. I have started to investigate it, and I'm not deep into it yet, but it seems fascinating so far.
Your turn?
Tuesday, September 05, 2023
Why do bad things happen to good people?
Jill: Your premise is wrong. Where does it say anywhere that people who do chesed will be rich? And who says being rich is a reward? Being rich can frequently lead you to sin, or cause you to suffer.
Friday, September 01, 2023
The Moral Lens of Interpretation: Understanding Chazal's Approach to Interpretation
Question: What prompted them to do this?
Answer: According to their own sense of morality it was unacceptable to kill children for trivial crimes. So they re-read the verse.
However, I do not think they viewed their reinterpretation of the Torah as a case of their moral judgment superseding God's divine wisdom.
I assume they held a fundamental belief in God's inherent goodness. When they encountered passages in the Torah that appeared morally questionable, they didn't question God's morality; rather, they assumed they must be misunderstanding the text.
In their view, their reinterpretations and glosses on the Torah weren't an act of correcting God, but rather an attempt to uncover what they believed was the true, moral essence of the text.
They saw their role as interpreters, striving to align the Torah with their own moral standards.
So, it wasn't a matter of saying, "This law is immoral, let's change it," but rather, "At first glance, this law may seem immoral, but how could the Torah be immoral? Let's uncover its deeper, morally sound meaning through interpretation."
Halivai Rabbis of today did this, too.
Thursday, May 11, 2023
Fortunate and Hopeful: Rabbi Akiva's Response to the Loss of the Temple
Monday, February 06, 2023
Shirat Hayam is certainly poetry
Tuesday, December 27, 2022
Three Oaths
Thursday, October 13, 2022
Prayer might prevent you from getting what you want.
Sunday, July 31, 2022
Tisha Bav Trends I do not like
Wednesday, July 27, 2022
Fulds Dumb Article About Anti Semitism
Wednesday, June 15, 2022
Who says the world was created?
Aristotle didn't think it was created. Rambam thought it was, but acknowledged Aristoteles argument had force and that he couldn't prove creation was true. All he could do was show the flaws in Aristotle's argument, one of which is this:
Aristotle's underlying assumption was that "will" is evidence of imperfection and therefore a perfect God couldn't have suddenly willed the creation of the world. However, while its true that human will is aroused by a lack or a need or some external factor, divine will might be different. Divine will might be independent of those things. In fact when we speak of human will and divine will we might be speaking of two entirely different things, that are alike only by analogy. As Rambam says (paraphrase) a men might decide to build a house because he's cold, or decide not to build the house because he doesn't have tools. So his will is contingent on these surrounding external factors.
If God's will to create the world is uncaused by anything outside of God we are talking about a very different type of will. If God's will to create the world is uncaused by anything aside for the will itself, this would not be evidence of any imperfection on Gods part as He is not changing in response to anything outside of himself.
Thursday, May 12, 2022
J. David Bleich's terrible anti-abortion essay
"Craven political correctness is no defense for the indefensible. We should not seek to curry favor with, or the approbation of, the so-called intelligentsia. I daresay that no Jewish woman died as a result of legal restraints prior to Roe v. Wade. No Jewish woman is likely to die in the wake of its repeal. Abortion for medical need will continue to be available in most, and probably all, jurisdictions. If any lives are lost it will be because of inability to afford the expense of travel, not because of constitutional impediment."
Craven political correctness is no defense for the indefensible.