Sunday, May 9, 2010

Work? Horrors!

An article was recently read in the TRS-le7 household which we thought should be allowed some wider circulation. Unfortunately, the actual text is not available online, so you'll have to trust my description of the contents.

There is a mother in Israel who merited to raise a large family of boys. She also merited to marry those sons off. She also merited that her mechutanim paid for the costs of those weddings, so she is not in debt. She also merited that her daughters' in law have well paying jobs, so her sons can be the budding gedolei hador that they are.

This sounds like the perfect life, eh? Well, it appears that all is not well in this particular woman's garden of eden. Yes, the snake has reared its ugly head again, this time in the guise of... her daughter's in law! Apparently, they spend so much time working that they have no time for their children or husbands. Horrifically, their husbands are forced to abandon their buddingness and head home to take care of the kids and the general household chores. Apparently, it is a terrible thing for a son to iron his shirts.

This poor woman has a daughter who fell into the same trap as her sisters' in law- she became an accountant, and has by and large abandoned her husband and children. Now, the mother declares:

We are looking for a kallah for our next son, and we've learned our lesson. Torah is acquired with bread and water, financial pressure, and sufficing with little. We are looking for a kallah who will be a mother and wife, not a gold mine.

Touching thought, isn't it? Apparently, in the chareidi world, you either have to starve or else have no life. We thought that one suggestion would be for these women to start working third shift, but determined that the husband would still be short changed.

Any suggestions?

47 comments:

Anarchist Chossid said...

Why can’t they hire babysitters and maidens and shirt-ironers with all that extra income the women are bringing in?

Anarchist Chossid said...

Sorry, I meant “maids”, not “maidens”. Whether the maids are also maidens is irrelevant.

Just like a guy said...

Ahh yes, I knew I was forgetting an important part of the story. They do hire people to help, but then they're kids are being raised by strangers.

Anarchist Chossid said...

Well, so, why won’t they hire a professional to study for the father, and the father can spend time with the kids? Better yet, the father can work, the mother can spend time with the kids, and the professional can learn Torah for them.

Just like it was in Europe — most men worked for a living, most women raised a family, and only a select few (the super-intelligent ones) learned Torah, being supported by the majority. So, if the father’s Torah learning doesn’t support the family, obviously, it’s not worthy enough. Otherwise, someone would pay him for it.

Just like a guy said...

Hey, I don't have answers for all the questions about parasites.

Anarchist Chossid said...

Define a parasite.

Just like a guy said...

http://www.google.com/search?q=define%3Aparasite

Anarchist Chossid said...

A band from Surrey, England were formed in 1998?

I bet they sing with Birmingham accent.

bonne said...

Ah, see the convenient aspect of painting is that you can do it with a kid strapped to your back.

Just like a guy said...

CA: how much do you wish to bet?

Sara: excellent point- but do they bring in the moola cha chas?

bonne said...

Maybe when they're old enough to be sold as slaves.

Just like a guy said...

I meant the paintings, but excellent point re: the kiddies.

sarabonne said...

Oh. Probably not. Ideally I'd like to just horde them up to be found only after I'm long gone, but that's not very profitable either.

sarabonne said...

Um, horded paintings that is...not children.

Anarchist Chossid said...

I am willing to bet a mouse skull.

Anarchist Chossid said...

Wait, what are gambling over?

Anonymous said...

Zionism is a term that has multiple meanings and a myriad of implications and connotations; simply and ignorantly using, misusing and conflating the word whenever it suits you, is intellectually dishonest. Case of point: The cornerstone of Zionism, that “being a nation like all others” is in itself an admirable quality and something we should strive for, has been deemed to be unholy and foreign to Judaism to virtually all Orthodox leaders since the inception of Zionism (even Rav Kook did not agree with this notion, but held that it is “still worth it” for many other considerations). The reason for this is that Zionism is predicated on the concept that we should impress and curry favour in the eyes of the nature of the world by embracing the secular value system and excelling in its precepts. Jews have a value system that has been transmitted from generation to generation dating back to Sinai. We look at the Torah, not, G-d forbid, at others for moral guidance. Additionally, the guidelines of Kidush Hashem is delineated by the Torah. (For example: if ones host country decides that indulging in sushi is a sign of intelligence, would we now be requited to replace the gefilte?)

The Lubavitcher Rebbe took a position that was unprecedented in Torah Judaism. He felt that currying the favour of the gentiles is worth in and itself. When Rav Shach, who used to relate how he witnessed a Jew whose entire fortune was expropriated by the poritz break out in a dance because “the goy can never take away my Jewishness” and hence did not feel that persecution was inherently detrimental because that means “they don’t respect us” – was ridiculed by the Rebbe, who maintained that it is a “bizoyon” for a Jew to bend his head to a goy. The Rebbe, and his predecessor, felt that large parades of mitzvah tanks is valuable even if no Jew sees it, we are giving a positive message to the nations of the world.

In Chabad, their understanding and appreciation of the virtue of self – sacrifice is limited to what can be understood by the talibans. They comprehend why one should clandestinely create schools for their children in Russia not unlike how an Arab would appreciate someone secretly indoctrinating their youth to Muslim fundamentalism in North Dakota. They can appreciate why one should endure hardship in a foreign county – just to spread his ideology – just like the Mormons understand it. Yet, they fail to understand why one should spend hours just for a slightly advantageous interpretation of a Rashbah.

Anarchist Chossid said...

I think this would be an excellent musical accompaniment to the post (also sefira-friendly): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7W0G1c8fJ0

Anarchist Chossid said...

In my opinion, there are great advantages of replacing gefilte fish with sushi even without the urging of the nations.

Just like a guy said...

Sara: Who wants to die a penniless artist? Much better to sell out to the man.

CA: Whether they sing with a Birmingham accent or not.

Anon: This has got to be the weirdest piece of spam ever. Besides, I know many Lubavitchers who have spent hours explicating Rashbahs in order to gain better understanding thereof.

CA: Correct. Except the guy in the beginning explaining the piece was way too eager for my taste.

Gefilte fish and sushi are both wonderful.

e said...

This was not a new article, was it? I think I bumped into it many moons ago and duly disgusted and distrubed.

Just like a guy said...

Correct, it's about eight months old.

Anarchist Chossid said...

Like a newborn baby, it just happens every day.

Just like a guy said...

CA: Eh?

Modeh B'Miktsas said...

TRS: My suggestion is עיין פירה"ם להרמב"ם אבות ד:ה
The language is even stronger than the infamous piece in the yad.

anon: apropos of what, exactly?

CA: Chochma bagoyim taamin. THere is a pun.

Dowy said...

i thought we discussed the Birmingham accent thing...
btw i tend not to read the hamodia, and avoid these kind of issues.

Anarchist Chossid said...

TRS: I see people turn their heads and quickly look away.

Just like a guy said...

You're referring to that acapella guy, right?

Anarchist Chossid said...

Hmm?

Just like a guy said...

Well, is that what you meant with that comment?

Anarchist Chossid said...

I am not sure. Who is the acapella guy?

I see the girls walk by dressed in their summer clothes
I have to turn my head until my darkness goes

(Very good propaganda for tzniusdik behavior, btw.)

Just like a guy said...

You linked to a bunch of guys singing.

How did girls come into the picture?

What do you mean, "my darkness goes".

Just because you're a prude doesn't mean people should dress tzniusly.

Anarchist Chossid said...

No, they have nothing to do with it.

How do girls normally come into picture?

I assume it means until his darkness goes. Until unpleasant or painful memories subside.

No, they should do it out of self-respect or respect of G-d’s Will.

Just like a guy said...

Well, normally they're not just inserted randomly into conversation.

And this applies to you viewing flesh how?

The latter, I think, is the generally accepted form.

Anarchist Chossid said...

And the former? Should goyim not dress in a tzniusdic manner?

Just like a guy said...

Who said it's self respecting to dress in modest attire?

Anarchist Chossid said...

Logic. The good old grand-daughter of Truth.

Anarchist Chossid said...

When you are dressed tzniusdicly, people don’t see you mostly as your body.

Someone wrote on TRP’s FB Wall about a musician who was always commented on how beautiful she looked and not as much on her playing abilities. Actually, in most cases that means one sucks as a musician (the same way, when someone says that the bride is very intelligent, it means she is ugly), but barring that, my advice was: wear a long skirt.

Just like a guy said...

Logic is related to truth?

Anarchist Chossid said...

Maternally.

Just like a guy said...

Surrogate?

Anarchist Chossid said...

IVF.

e said...

and thus another conversation devolves into frivolity.

Just like a guy said...

It took a while, but I knew it would happen eventually.

e said...

The TRS law of increasing entropy.

Anarchist Chossid said...

We can bring it back to the main topic. What were we talking about? The horrors of Chareidi society, right?

Just like a guy said...

e: How does that work?

CA: Sounds about right.