September 2007 Archives

A few odds and ends today from non-work life:

• Last night I posted my Rosh Hashana derasha which was a fun challenge to write and deliver. R. Schnaidman gave me a time range of 30-35 minutes which is normally beyond how long I can talk, so for the first time in many years I had written out most of it beforehand and spoke both from the sheets and extemporaneously. Feedback was positive, though one person asked if it was intentional that I didn't cite any Zohar or Ba'al Shem Tov.
  
  I said yes, and politely explained that I was following my mesorah. After all, it was Rosh Hashana...



• As certain individuals know, we had some now resolved issues with my landlord. Apparently, lots of other people had worse experiences: there's a class action suit against them.



• I know this is late for Rosh Hashana, but this song seems relevant (music starts at 2:18) even if it doesn't count as an official zemer.



• Speaking of simmanim, the line between what is an innocuous simman and outright avoda zara is somewhat complicated. I gave a shiur on it some time ago, and based on far too many conflicting sources, couldn't reach a definitive conclusion. I did conjecture that the degree of seriousness which one takes these simmanim is likely proportional to the potential issur, with the litmus test being how one one would feel if the simman wouldn't be performed. For example, R. Tendler once told us that a woman came to him Erev Yom Kippur looking for a chicken to do kapparot because if she didn't, she would die that year. That, he said, was avoda zara.
  
  Regarding the simmanim of Rosh Hashana, I'm beginning to think that most are fine given that most are simply puns - some even bilingual puns. In other words, they seem more for entertainment purposes rather than a magical act. For another R. Tendler example, I first heard from him the one "lettuce, half a raisin, celery" = let us have a raise in salary.
  
  If you still take these seriously, then in addition to avoda zara problems, you likely have no sense of humor - which could pose problems when people start calling you an idol worshiper.



• In what should some as no surprise, I don't do kapparot following Shulhan Aruch's admonition that it's darkhei emori. I also have never been a fan of tashlich especially since a former Hindu co-worker once asked me, "what was that thing where you pray to the river."
  
  However, for efficiency's sake I suggest that next year we could work on combining the two practices during the asseret yemei teshuva by simply flinging chickens into the water - perhaps even feeding them bread first. I'm sure God would really appreciate that much more than doing them separately as it would double the mehillah power.



• And on a more serious note, through a great set of hashgachic circumstances (and the ubiquitous chords directory I will soon be teaching an Introduction to Jewish Guitar. Even with some nervousness, I'm really looking forward to the entire experience which I hope to recount afterwards.

If I don't post before Yom Kippur, Gemar Tov to all. Looking back at what I last year I don't think I can even hope for less erratic blogging given my new work schedule. Despite the infrequent or sporadic posting, we still had an eventful year with preliminary thoughts and detailed rebuttal of the Conservative Teshuva on Homosexuality and the aftermath, a conflict and conversation in Washington Heights, the RCA's gerut policies, and of course, the Negiah.org fiasco. However, I can and still will ask forgiveness if I have inadvertently or unnecessarily offended people through carelessness or laziness. Although I do stand by what I write I freely admit everything could use more editing, not just for typos, but for tone or imprecise syntax.

Naturally I have no idea what the next year will bring, but I do hope to at least maintain the status quo of quality (if not quantity). Thanks again for reading, commenting, and reminding me why I'm still at this nearly five years later.¹

Shana Tova,
Josh

Update: I will be sans computer for a few days while it's being repaired, and as such may be slower in responding to e-mails or the like.

1. Yep, it's been that long; the forthcoming retrospective should be fun.

Delivered with some variations between Minha/Maariv on 1 Tishrei 5768 at Mt. Sinai Congregation

First let me take this opportunity to wish everyone a Shana Tova, a good new year.

I'm sure that by now most of us are familiar with our traditional formula of Rosh Hashana. We stand before God in judgment. We reaffirm his kingship over us, ask him to remember us favorably, and sound the shofar in anticipation of redemption. We may also be familiar with our tradition's dramatic narrative of the day. We pass before God like sheep to be judged individually. We have our spiritual accusers and defenders, though according to the Talmud we can confound our accuser by varying the shofar blasts (B. Rosh Hashana 16b). Based on our merits or shortcomings, on Rosh Hashana our fates for the year are written, and on Yom Kippur they are sealed (B. RH 16a).

In light of the recent subway outage I actually decided to fill the MTA's rider report cards for the trains I take most frequently. Overall I'm not terribly impressed with the A's sporadic service especially during off hours, but I've generally found the 2-3 and 4-5-6 to be pretty efficient.

A better question would be if the MTA actually takes these things seriously since there is little incentive to improve. In free market economies competitions drives innovation and a greater concern for customer service as dissatisfied consumers would simply take their business elsewhere. But for many New Yorkers, the MTA is the only realistic option for transportation. Cars are too expensive with purchasing, ownership, insurance, and parking. Cabs and car services are not only expensive but their service is unpredictable depending on the neighborhood. Bicycles are a cheaper alternative, but are more dangerous, require physical stamina, and are impractical for transporting packages. We also cannot ignore the elderly population, many of whom are physically unable to drive or bike or are on fixed incomes and could not afford the other alternatives. Because of people's dependence on public transit, the MTA could hike fares with only political opposition as opposed to facing a consumer revolt.

Furthermore, I'm skeptical how much the MTA can improve its service. Aside from management being politically motivated, the reliance on union labor and its regulations ensures that even mediocre (or incompetent) employees will be overpaid for as long as possible (not to mention pension obligations).

My guess is that just like every other year the NYPost and Daily News will write a few stories on the pluses and minuses of each line, there will be editorials bemoaning the negatives and life will go on as usual. Then again New Yorkers are never shy about sharing their opinions - usually unsolicited - so go ahead and let them know what you think.

Bonus: Try filling one out in Hebrew or Yiddish.