Charedi Anarchy
Shutting down the country, causing immense damage - "it's a Kiddush Hashem!"
Originally this post was titled “Charedi Anarchy Day.” Then I realized that pretty much every day in charedi society is anarchy. Today was just more extreme.
The car demonstration, in which over a thousand vehicles headed out from 19 cities around Israel and drove slowly to converge to a military prison, was actually coordinated with the police. The arrangement was that they would drive at 30mph in the right-hand line, allowing traffic to pass on the left.
Of course that’s not what actually happened. Many of the chareidi protestors stopped their vehicles, got out, and stopped traffic entirely. Much of the country was brought to a standstill, and endless thousands of people were severely inconvenienced, or worse. One pregnant woman collided with a car in front that had suddenly stopped due to the protest convoy and was seriously injured.
This event was not merely the extremist Peleg faction. R. Moshe Hillel Hirsch, the Lithuanian “Gadol HaDor,” backed it. And Yitzchak Goldknopf, leader of UTJ, led one of the convoys, driving slowly in a government car with a flashing siren (which is supposed to only be used in case of emergency). The Prime Minister, of course, had nothing to say.
In Jerusalem, rioting charedim caused over 120 million dollars in damage to the Light Rail. That’s the proceeds of an entire Keren Olam HaTorah tour of the USA, except that they won’t be giving the money to repair the damage.
Meanwhile, here’s a lovely poster from one of the cars in the protest:
“We will not enlist in the enemy army.” I’m fine with charedim rating the state as the enemy, as long as this cuts both ways - the state should not fund its enemies.
One leading rabbinic figure (I forget who) said he hasn’t been able to sleep at night due to the charedim who were put in prison for draft-dodging. If only he had lost some sleep over the thousands of soldiers who were killed and injured rather than spending a few nights in a safe cell, maybe he would understand why people want the universal draft to be applied universally.
A lot of charedi apologists were saying that if the Kaplanists (those who protested the judicial reform) had the right to shut down roads, surely charedim do too! To which I would personally answer that the Kaplanists also fulfilled their responsibilities to serve in the IDF and support their families. If you’re not interested in emulating the responsibilities of the Kaplanists, it’s a chutzpah to demand their rights.
The organizers of today’s anarchy considered it to be a great success. I even saw it described as a “Kiddush Hashem”! I wouldn’t agree to that, but neverthless, as far as I’m concerned, this terrible thing is actually a good thing. The charedim are making it increasingly clear to people that they are not some holy community providing spiritual strength to Israel, but rather a freeloading dangerous anarchist sect that, left unchecked, will hollow out the country until it collapses. Hopefully enough people will gain clarity to vote accordingly.
If they lived a week under Muslim rule they, and their mothers, sisters, and daughters, would know the meaning of the words “enemy army.”
If they keep this up, they may end up experiencing it. God forbid.
They are playing into the hands of the enemies of the Jewish People and of their beloved Torah.
Decades ago, in the United States, there was a saying; “America, love it or leave it.” It was on bumper stickers everywhere.
In Israel, which, for better or worse, has the Law of Return, perhaps bumper stickers should say : “Israel, do your service, or get your money elsewhere.” Stop giving them money.
The only other solution I can see (which comes from their Muslim allies) is a boycott. Boycott charedi-owned businesses, institutions, etc. Boycott their hechsharim, their tefillin, their mezuzot. If they block traffic, stop selling them gasoline. Impound their cars. It’s not just a nuisance, it’s endangerment.
Discourage Americans from giving money to their meshulachim, and schools, yeshivot, and institutions that support them.
I have the exact same reasoning regarding those who are argue that if it was ok for the Kaplanists to protest it's ok here too: if you served the country you have a democratic right to an opinion about it's future. If you are living off handouts from the "enemy" country on purpose (in service of an Avoda Zara called "Torah"), you have a right to shut up, get the hell off the street, and honestly you don't even have a right to vote.