When Charedim sacrifice Yeshiva Students

Who they force into the IDF, who they keep out

Thanks to the determined efforts of the charedi rabbis and politicians, a whole bunch of yeshiva students are going to be in the IDF rather than in yeshiva, while another bunch of non-yeshiva students are going to be bumming around rather than being either in the IDF or in yeshiva.

Allow me to explain. My son and his friends from yeshiva are nearing the end of their prescribed service in Lebanon and Gaza, and were very much looking forward to returning to yeshiva and continuing their learning. However, my son just told us that it seems that their service will be extended for another few months. The reason for this is very simple: There are not enough soldiers to protect the country.

Now, of course there are plenty of young men available. You see them all around the country in their white shirts, hanging out, smoking, having fun. Some of them are currently on break from yeshiva, but many of them - estimated in the several tens of thousands - are never even in yeshiva, except on paper. They could enlist, and then my son and his friends could be learning in yeshiva. And for many of these guys, enlisting in frameworks such as Chashmonaim would likely keep them more attached to Torah and mitzvos.

But the Gedolim™ and the charedi political leaders are not interested in making that happen - in fact, they are dead against it. Because it’s not about Torah. It’s not even about keeping people religious. It’s about keeping charedim, all charedim, as part of a sociopolitical entity, the charedi community. But meanwhile of course the Gedolim™ and the charedi political leaders want to keep themselves safe, so they support (including their MKs voting for) the IDF maximizing the enlistment of everyone else.

So the Gedolim™ and the charedi political leaders are keeping thousands of young men, such as my son and his friends, out of yeshiva. Keep that in mind next time you hear them piously and self-righteously talk about the importance of yeshiva students learning Torah.