7.8.16
NASA projects
My learning partner said the NASA projects like the moon etc were scaled back because they were forced to hire blacks and Muslims that were incompetent and causing disasters. Diversity killed the Mars project.
medicine
My parents said not to take medicine unless it has been on the market for 50 years.
I should mention that modern medicine has two aspects. One is proved and tried techniques. The other is speculative and presented as true and tied but it is not. It is important to discern the difference.
I should mention that modern medicine has two aspects. One is proved and tried techniques. The other is speculative and presented as true and tied but it is not. It is important to discern the difference.
Gemara, Musar, Physics, Math, Music and Survival
The reason my idea of a yeshiva having Gemara, Musar, Physics, Math, Music and Survival Skills, is to some degree based on the Rambam but also experience. [The Rambam's opinion about the importance of Physics is well known but ignored. So to bring it up would make no difference. If they ignore the Rambam already then why what I say make any difference.]
But the experience I have shows me the Torah alone approach rarely results in any kind of decent person. Sometimes you will have elevated people like Bava Sali, but that is rare. The general result of Torah alone is not very good. Religious fanaticism at the cost of being decent human beings seems like a bad trade off.
Plus the religious fanaticism does not result in Torah anyway, rather in fetishes like "zniut" and obsession with sex of other kinds of religious obsessions which have nothing to do with Torah. And then they expect to get paid for their religious fetish and idiotic behavior. And then condemn anyone that does not conform their their confused sick ideas of what Torah is about.
Ultra-religious does not equal righteousness nor holiness. It just results in sanctimonious jerks.
I am not saying one should interrupt his Torah study to make money. Rather if one is in a situation where he can sit and learn Torah, then he should do so and trust in God to take care of his needs. [However I do consider the above six subjects to be a part of a Torah education as the Rambam also held.]
But the experience I have shows me the Torah alone approach rarely results in any kind of decent person. Sometimes you will have elevated people like Bava Sali, but that is rare. The general result of Torah alone is not very good. Religious fanaticism at the cost of being decent human beings seems like a bad trade off.
Plus the religious fanaticism does not result in Torah anyway, rather in fetishes like "zniut" and obsession with sex of other kinds of religious obsessions which have nothing to do with Torah. And then they expect to get paid for their religious fetish and idiotic behavior. And then condemn anyone that does not conform their their confused sick ideas of what Torah is about.
Ultra-religious does not equal righteousness nor holiness. It just results in sanctimonious jerks.
I am not saying one should interrupt his Torah study to make money. Rather if one is in a situation where he can sit and learn Torah, then he should do so and trust in God to take care of his needs. [However I do consider the above six subjects to be a part of a Torah education as the Rambam also held.]
6.8.16
excommunication that the Gra signed was valid.
In terms of getting ahead of the curve ball, I went to two yeshivas. [It was clear to me the secular world lacked numinous value]. It was not to get a living or anything but for the sake of Torah. But I thought also that it was important to be part of the Torah world.
For all I knew this would have remained the case as long as I was part of the Torah world. That is the social context made a big difference. Somehow we left the Lithuanian yeshiva world and then the context changed. The world we joined was low in IQ and character. And certainly not moral. That caused everything to fall apart. And then all my ex wife could think about all the time was how to get revenge on me and hurt me and talk about how all that matters is money to the children. So the children grew up in a kind of low environment--very different than the kind of world I had hoped to raise them in. What to do about it now?
Of course all the trouble could have been avoided if I had simply assumed the excommunication that the Gra signed was valid. Problem solved. Don't associate yourself with lowlifes and criminal scum that pretend to be holy.
Someone noticed that Deuteronomy 22 in fact seems to imply that simple sex with an unmarried girl makes her one's wife.
Someone noticed that Deuteronomy 22 in fact seems to imply that simple sex with an unmarried girl makes her one's wife. If you read it with no thought in mind about the gezera Shava "devar Erva" al kal devar."
That is you have the guy coming to court saying he did not find his bride a virgin. If the parents can't produce the sheet with blood, then she is stoned. We have the Sages that depend on a drasha that she can't be married without two witnesses, but still the simple explanation of the verses seems clear. Add to that the end of the Parsha when a girl is raped and she thus has to be the wife of the person that rapped her. It does not say he has to marry her because she is thus already married. Rather it says he can not divorce her. Looking at the simple Peshat of the verses clearly indicates that there is no reason to stone the poor girl simply because she was not a virgin. Rather the stoning is because she is considered married to the first gut that had sex with her. Thus a married woman that intentionally had sex with someone else later.
Thus question: is there someone else in the Old Testament that would seem to contradict this?
The girl friend thing we find might mean no ketubah. There is a hekish between marriage and divorce so like one needs two witnesses so the other. still I wonder about a drasha that seems to be contradicted by the simple explanation of the verses.
(Of course even of it would mean she is married he still could be required to give a divorce document that would set her free.)
The idea of a זונה would seem to contradict the whole idea also.
That is you have the guy coming to court saying he did not find his bride a virgin. If the parents can't produce the sheet with blood, then she is stoned. We have the Sages that depend on a drasha that she can't be married without two witnesses, but still the simple explanation of the verses seems clear. Add to that the end of the Parsha when a girl is raped and she thus has to be the wife of the person that rapped her. It does not say he has to marry her because she is thus already married. Rather it says he can not divorce her. Looking at the simple Peshat of the verses clearly indicates that there is no reason to stone the poor girl simply because she was not a virgin. Rather the stoning is because she is considered married to the first gut that had sex with her. Thus a married woman that intentionally had sex with someone else later.
Thus question: is there someone else in the Old Testament that would seem to contradict this?
The girl friend thing we find might mean no ketubah. There is a hekish between marriage and divorce so like one needs two witnesses so the other. still I wonder about a drasha that seems to be contradicted by the simple explanation of the verses.
(Of course even of it would mean she is married he still could be required to give a divorce document that would set her free.)
The idea of a זונה would seem to contradict the whole idea also.
Men in the USA have trouble with women. on the site Dalrock I saw someone mention about the Ukraine [and Russia] and that seems right to me. [My impression of women in China and Japan is also very positive but I have no experience in that area. On the other hand with Ukraine and Russia, there is no question.]
Here is a comment that I think is 100% correct:
Here is a comment that I think is 100% correct:
5.8.16
I have been looking at the trial of Joan of Arc for the second time. And I think it is perhaps the most disturbing document I have ever seen outside of the Guide of the Rambam. It is hard to know which one bothers me more and for what reasons.
The Rambam I have not looked at for some time so for now perhaps I will limit myself to a few random thoughts on the trial.
I think the most disturbing part of it is that some of the approach of the church authorities seems true.
If it would be all cut and dry--a righteous girl sentenced by evil judges, then there would be nothing more to contemplate.
The worries about schismatics seems that she herself agreed with. Of everything that they said to her there seems to be little that she herself would not agree to--except the point that the judges did not accurately represent the way things are in heaven.
The way Western Civilization has gone down the tubes since then seems to indicate at lot of what they were saying is true. Visions can come from the Sitra Achra.[The dark realm]. The worry about the weakening of faith in the church has led to an atheistic Europe and USA and a protestant church that seems to be problematic- to say the least. At least one can say that nothing Luther did led anyone to be a better human being. If anything it led to a complete destruction of faith. And Joan would be the first person to jump up and agree with me.
From a strictly halachic point of view, it is clear that the Catholics preserved Divine Simplicity. The schism that produced the Protestants clearly is uninterested in that. [That is Catholics believe like us that God is simple and not a composite and has no material aspect or substance. They have a hard time defending this but they still try to.]
{I am not saying the Catholics got everything right. Rather they are the closest to belief in the Torah. The better approach is of course the Litvak yeshiva.}
The Rambam I have not looked at for some time so for now perhaps I will limit myself to a few random thoughts on the trial.
I think the most disturbing part of it is that some of the approach of the church authorities seems true.
If it would be all cut and dry--a righteous girl sentenced by evil judges, then there would be nothing more to contemplate.
The worries about schismatics seems that she herself agreed with. Of everything that they said to her there seems to be little that she herself would not agree to--except the point that the judges did not accurately represent the way things are in heaven.
The way Western Civilization has gone down the tubes since then seems to indicate at lot of what they were saying is true. Visions can come from the Sitra Achra.[The dark realm]. The worry about the weakening of faith in the church has led to an atheistic Europe and USA and a protestant church that seems to be problematic- to say the least. At least one can say that nothing Luther did led anyone to be a better human being. If anything it led to a complete destruction of faith. And Joan would be the first person to jump up and agree with me.
From a strictly halachic point of view, it is clear that the Catholics preserved Divine Simplicity. The schism that produced the Protestants clearly is uninterested in that. [That is Catholics believe like us that God is simple and not a composite and has no material aspect or substance. They have a hard time defending this but they still try to.]
{I am not saying the Catholics got everything right. Rather they are the closest to belief in the Torah. The better approach is of course the Litvak yeshiva.}
I mentioned in passing to someone about my connection with the Bava Sali family and they asked me for more details. It is perturbing to me to be reminded about Bava Sali because it reminds me of my responsibilities that I have not fulfilled and can't fulfill. Learning and keeping Torah and helping others also to do so.
Litvak yeshivas seem to me to be the best way to go about getting close to God.
I think that it was by spending a few years in two Lithuanian yeshivas that helped me that when I got to Israel that I gained a kind of spiritual light that helped those years be really amazing.It is not that I had any kind of "Ruach Hakodesh" [holy spirit] or anything like that. It was simply a kind of feeling of attachment with God that was really intense.
At some point, I rebelled against it, so I do not expect it to return. But I can at least recommend to others the amazing path that helped me --that is the basic simple straight Torah approach you find in almost any Litvak Yeshiva. [The best one are obviously Ponovitch and the regular Litvak NY yeshivas.]
Litvak yeshivas seem to me to be the best way to go about getting close to God.
I think that it was by spending a few years in two Lithuanian yeshivas that helped me that when I got to Israel that I gained a kind of spiritual light that helped those years be really amazing.It is not that I had any kind of "Ruach Hakodesh" [holy spirit] or anything like that. It was simply a kind of feeling of attachment with God that was really intense.
At some point, I rebelled against it, so I do not expect it to return. But I can at least recommend to others the amazing path that helped me --that is the basic simple straight Torah approach you find in almost any Litvak Yeshiva. [The best one are obviously Ponovitch and the regular Litvak NY yeshivas.]
I know my concept of including Physics, Math Music and survival skills into a yeshiva is radical departure of the approach of those that think all secular studies are bad. There is on the other hand those that think all secular studies is a great thing and that is obviously quite terrible as we can see.
My approach is that that having some secular studies is a good thing, but most of it is bad. The fact that people pursue secular studies for the sake of a vocation does not turn bad into good.
I asked Rav Zilverman [Old City of Jerusalem] once about electrical engineering and he thought that it is in the category of natural sciences that the Rambam recommended.
i might mention that
Even though physics is not among the subjects that my parent emphasized. Still, I believe they are important. My mother emphasized marrying a nice Jewish girl and to be a mensch (good character) , and my father emphasized and to be self-reliant. I think my mother thought “a nice Jewish girl” are synonyms, however I think they are two separate requirements.
My approach is that that having some secular studies is a good thing, but most of it is bad. The fact that people pursue secular studies for the sake of a vocation does not turn bad into good.
I asked Rav Zilverman [Old City of Jerusalem] once about electrical engineering and he thought that it is in the category of natural sciences that the Rambam recommended.
i might mention that
Litvak approach
I think the Litvak approach can be contrasted with the approach of the "pursuit of happiness."
I think the Gra's approach that forms the foundation of Litvak yeshivas is the "pursuit of morality."
The fact that limiting the amount of time spent on Musar in from the European Musar Yeshiva which spent enormous amounts of time on Musar to the American version which spends much less time is more based on the fact that the amount of time does not seem to increase the effect. It is the law of limited returns. That is there is a limit of how much you can learn it per day that increases any good effect. In fact there might be a maximum point. After that perhaps learning more Musar begins to detract and start to create immorality? I think there is plenty of evidence to that fact. We all know Mashgichim [teachers of Musar in Litvak Yeshivas] are pretty poor examples of human beings. Therefore the best idea is the 20 minutes and the 15 minutes of Musar in the afternoon and evening and the ret of the day Talmud [Gemara] Tosphot Maharsha and after that the basic achronim Pnei Yehoshua, Reb Chaim of Brisk, Rav Shach's Avi Ezri.
I think the Gra's approach that forms the foundation of Litvak yeshivas is the "pursuit of morality."
The fact that limiting the amount of time spent on Musar in from the European Musar Yeshiva which spent enormous amounts of time on Musar to the American version which spends much less time is more based on the fact that the amount of time does not seem to increase the effect. It is the law of limited returns. That is there is a limit of how much you can learn it per day that increases any good effect. In fact there might be a maximum point. After that perhaps learning more Musar begins to detract and start to create immorality? I think there is plenty of evidence to that fact. We all know Mashgichim [teachers of Musar in Litvak Yeshivas] are pretty poor examples of human beings. Therefore the best idea is the 20 minutes and the 15 minutes of Musar in the afternoon and evening and the ret of the day Talmud [Gemara] Tosphot Maharsha and after that the basic achronim Pnei Yehoshua, Reb Chaim of Brisk, Rav Shach's Avi Ezri.
It is possible to understand the idea of idolatry in a Kantian sense. I might try to give some background about what I mean but the basic idea is simple. God is one, not two or three and he is not a composite. According to the Torah he is not the world nor is the world him. He is the First Cause that caused everything that exist to exist. That is to say he is transcendent and one and ideas of form and substance do not apply to him.
With Schopenhauer we get further that he is the only unconditioned reality, though that is not like Kant.
What you get from this is a kind of clarity about God but also you get the idea of a limit how far human understanding can go about him. That is the apt title of the Critique of Pure Reason.
This helps to understand the idea of idolatry--which I found very difficult to understand. The major help I found about idolatry was reading the book of Daniel and later learning pages 62b in Sanhedrin and on-ward. [ie 62b -circa 64]. Of course the Nefesh HaChaim was helpful to some degree in the place where he deals with the problem of worship of people.[That is the chapter where he explains the idea of service of God as intending to get attached to God through prayer (I think.) I don't have t to be able to look it up.]
So in short unconditioned reality is unconditioned reality and thus idolatry is simply trying to make it concrete.
With Schopenhauer we get further that he is the only unconditioned reality, though that is not like Kant.
What you get from this is a kind of clarity about God but also you get the idea of a limit how far human understanding can go about him. That is the apt title of the Critique of Pure Reason.
This helps to understand the idea of idolatry--which I found very difficult to understand. The major help I found about idolatry was reading the book of Daniel and later learning pages 62b in Sanhedrin and on-ward. [ie 62b -circa 64]. Of course the Nefesh HaChaim was helpful to some degree in the place where he deals with the problem of worship of people.[That is the chapter where he explains the idea of service of God as intending to get attached to God through prayer (I think.) I don't have t to be able to look it up.]
So in short unconditioned reality is unconditioned reality and thus idolatry is simply trying to make it concrete.
4.8.16
Litvak Yeshiva
I have been trying to think of a good argument why a Lithuanian Navardok Musar yeshiva is a good idea. But the whole day I have not been able to come up with any argument.
My major motivation for trying to argue my point is I already know that a Litvak yeshiva is an amazing experience. I would in fact call it perhaps the peak experience of my life if not for later on being in Israel and raising a family there.
But that in itself is not an argument because there are people I have encountered who had less than happy experiences in yeshiva, and not all yeshivas are created equal. But I also have not even wanted to argue for the great two yeshivas that I was in Shar Yashuv and the Mir in NY.
What motivates me to argue for Navardok is the idea of a Litvak yeshiva that places emphasis on trust in God. My reason is that I see myself in my own life that when I trusted in God everything went my way. When I stopped trusting in God and started doing השתדלות human effort, everything fell apart.
Many years later I was doing some review of some books of Ethics [Musar of Reb Israel Salanter] and I was surprised to see the that Reb Israel, and his disciples and the Musar Book Obligations of the Heart all preached the idea that if one can not make it with God, then the best advice is to help others get close to God's service.
What occurred to me was this new idea. That maybe this works for individual things. That is- if I am lacking some good character trait, and I can't seem to get it no matter how hard I try, then perhaps helping others get to that trait might help me by way of reflection?
The only modification I would make would be to add Physics and Math to the regular Musar and Gemara approach. And of course Music and survival skills.
These six things I see as pretty essential. Most of the other stuff I learned in High School today seems to have been a waste of time. And even then it did.
My major motivation for trying to argue my point is I already know that a Litvak yeshiva is an amazing experience. I would in fact call it perhaps the peak experience of my life if not for later on being in Israel and raising a family there.
But that in itself is not an argument because there are people I have encountered who had less than happy experiences in yeshiva, and not all yeshivas are created equal. But I also have not even wanted to argue for the great two yeshivas that I was in Shar Yashuv and the Mir in NY.
What motivates me to argue for Navardok is the idea of a Litvak yeshiva that places emphasis on trust in God. My reason is that I see myself in my own life that when I trusted in God everything went my way. When I stopped trusting in God and started doing השתדלות human effort, everything fell apart.
Many years later I was doing some review of some books of Ethics [Musar of Reb Israel Salanter] and I was surprised to see the that Reb Israel, and his disciples and the Musar Book Obligations of the Heart all preached the idea that if one can not make it with God, then the best advice is to help others get close to God's service.
What occurred to me was this new idea. That maybe this works for individual things. That is- if I am lacking some good character trait, and I can't seem to get it no matter how hard I try, then perhaps helping others get to that trait might help me by way of reflection?
The only modification I would make would be to add Physics and Math to the regular Musar and Gemara approach. And of course Music and survival skills.
These six things I see as pretty essential. Most of the other stuff I learned in High School today seems to have been a waste of time. And even then it did.
Not everyone is equal nor should be treated equally.
The problems with the Enlightenment were noted by Allen Bloom and he also said that the problems that arose were inevitable outcomes. His only stated solution was in regard to university education and it was specifically to get people to read Plato's Republic. That is the only solution that he proposes in his entire book. Needless to say, Plato was thinking about Sparta. [Though Allen Bloom did not mention this.] [See The Closing Of The American Mind.]
[Allen Bloom I think must have walked a middle line between the Kind of Republic in the USA based on Enlightenment principles and respect for Plato and Sparta and Hegel. He must have thought the contradictions were too great to come up with any solution and yet saw good in both systems.
I grew up in the USA when it was a highly decent and wholesome and moral society. And it was based on the Constitution. So I accepted the basic ideas of the Constitution as being right. Plus I did not like tyranny when I saw it in other places.
[Allen Bloom I think must have walked a middle line between the Kind of Republic in the USA based on Enlightenment principles and respect for Plato and Sparta and Hegel. He must have thought the contradictions were too great to come up with any solution and yet saw good in both systems.
I grew up in the USA when it was a highly decent and wholesome and moral society. And it was based on the Constitution. So I accepted the basic ideas of the Constitution as being right. Plus I did not like tyranny when I saw it in other places.
It was only recently my learning partner expressed some reservations about the basic principles of the USA that I started to wonder.
In any case I would have to agree that the whole French revolution was a very terrible thing.
My basic approach used to be this: The French Revolution was based on Rousseau and the General Will--no individual rights. Therefore it was bad. The American Revolution was based on John Locke and individual rights, Therefore good.
My basic approach used to be this: The French Revolution was based on Rousseau and the General Will--no individual rights. Therefore it was bad. The American Revolution was based on John Locke and individual rights, Therefore good.
My idea for London and Germany. Porked Earth Policy. [Instead of Scorched Earth Policy invented by General Sherman] "weaponized lard''
I think pork is a great idea. Someone should come up with creative ways to use it. Have pork spray. And Pork paved streets. Make perhaps pork dust and go up in an airplane and spread it all over Los Angeles [as in crop dusting] . And while you are at it get a Catholic priest up there with you to spread holy water all over LA and California. And especially one should porkify Muslim graveyards with pork dust.
In particular San Bernardino County.
I don't eat pork. The thing about diet is that mainly the problem is with meat products. That is pork is not as serious an issue as regular meat which needs to be slaughtered properly and also the forbidden fats need to be extracted. In any case, pork is fine to use in the above circumstances. If fact, I believe the British used it in exactly that way when they were in the Middle East and were having some trouble with Muslims. One British captain would take lard and smear it under the grave of any Muslim terrorist and then above it. and then bury a pig with the Muslim, as if to say: "No more 72 virgins for you"
Answer to me: Well, the commandments in the Pentateuch / Torah are fairly explicit, though, as to what kinds of animals, depending on whether their hooves are cloven, they chew the cud, etc. I forget the specifics, because as a Christian, I am not bound by Jewish dietary law, since the New Testament has indicated that all meats can be lawful, now, for God's people (who include both Jews and Gentiles, the Covenant having been expanded and renewed).
I any case I am not sure how easy it would be to convert lard to dust to make crop dusting possible with it.
Socially Extinct
I imagine the lard would need to be thoroughly dried or desiccated. I imagine the water constitution of lard is pretty high so it would render down to nothing. Not sure how much lard you would need to produce dust in volumes high enough to "weaponize" it.
Porked Earth Policy.
Avraham rosenblum That sounds about right. They have a lot of lard in the Ukraine. maybe it would make more sense to make a large order and ship it in to the USA instead of producing locally. Then one could do the reduction process in the States.
In particular San Bernardino County.
I don't eat pork. The thing about diet is that mainly the problem is with meat products. That is pork is not as serious an issue as regular meat which needs to be slaughtered properly and also the forbidden fats need to be extracted. In any case, pork is fine to use in the above circumstances. If fact, I believe the British used it in exactly that way when they were in the Middle East and were having some trouble with Muslims. One British captain would take lard and smear it under the grave of any Muslim terrorist and then above it. and then bury a pig with the Muslim, as if to say: "No more 72 virgins for you"
Answer to me: Well, the commandments in the Pentateuch / Torah are fairly explicit, though, as to what kinds of animals, depending on whether their hooves are cloven, they chew the cud, etc. I forget the specifics, because as a Christian, I am not bound by Jewish dietary law, since the New Testament has indicated that all meats can be lawful, now, for God's people (who include both Jews and Gentiles, the Covenant having been expanded and renewed).
The Brits weren't so wise in dealing with natives and their taboos when they ruled India; you probably are aware of what touched off the Sepoy Rebellion:
My answer: The fats covering the stomach are very very serious. Much more than pork. But as you noted most people are not bound by the dietary laws of the Pentateuch. Right about that. I heard from my learning partner that the Brits at the beginning were very apt in dealing with the natives in India. Maybe later they got sloppy and less careful. I am not sure as I did not get a chance to study the subject in detail.
I should mention here that this is one area that I think people are thinking wrong. The Laws of the Pentateuch are forever. No later revelations can nullify the commandments as Saadia Gaon and the Rambam noted.
Socially Extinct
I imagine the lard would need to be thoroughly dried or desiccated. I imagine the water constitution of lard is pretty high so it would render down to nothing. Not sure how much lard you would need to produce dust in volumes high enough to "weaponize" it.
Porked Earth Policy.
Avraham rosenblum That sounds about right. They have a lot of lard in the Ukraine. maybe it would make more sense to make a large order and ship it in to the USA instead of producing locally. Then one could do the reduction process in the States.
Also London and Germany are close to the Ukraine. They could make a large order of lard and perhaps even produce weaponized lard in sufficient quantities to spray dust it all over Germany and London and especially all existing Mosques and Muslim grave yards. They could also get a Catholic Priest at the same time to sprinkle holy water over London and Germany as an extra bonus.
Navardok and Trust in God. Start Navardok yeshivas again.
I would like to apply the dual nature of reality to the idea of trust in God. That is we have going back to the חובות לבבות [Obligations of the Heart by Bachei ben Pekuda] this contradictory thing that we are supposed to have total trust in God with no measure or limit. Yet we are supposed to do effort.
This was a famous theme in yeshivas. Not just Navardok. This came up all the time in Shar Yashuv and in the Mir in NY in reference to shiduchim [going on dates in order to find a proper marriage partner] and also parnasa (making a living).
This dilemma is also brought up in the מדרגת האדם [The Level of Man] by Joseph Horwitz itself.
What I think is there are two parallel levels of reality, objective and subjective. They are parallel but neither causes the other. Quantum Mechanics is subjective. Neils Bohr: "Nothing exists until it is measured." If you measure the electron it is a particle with a specific place and time. If you do not measure it, it is a wave.
I think trust works in the same way. If one trusts in God totally then the out reality corresponds to that trust. If one does not, then outer reality corresponds to that level.
Thus what comes out from this is that one can sit and learn Torah and not worry about shiduchim or parnasa and both will come to him. The outer reality will correspond to the inner reality.
[[I am being a little short in this essay. I really meant to say that QM is radically subjective. But some people have wanted to give up on locality instead. That is they want reality to be only objective and give up on locality. And they choose to give up on locality. But we know locality is true from experiments done daily using predictions of Special Relativity and General Relativity. Therefore only one option is left. Locality is true and nature is radically subjective. Just for one small example: GPS depends on both Special Relativity and General Relativity. It would be off by several miles if not for the fact that both SR and GR are true. I mean to say the satellites are moving faster than the observer because they are above his head going around the earth from his perspective. So their clock goes slower. But they are further out from the source of gravitation so their clock goes faster. Combine both effects and you have to adjust the clock in the satellite to compensate for both effects. If you would not adjust the clocks in the satellite they would show ones position to be miles off target every day.]
This was a famous theme in yeshivas. Not just Navardok. This came up all the time in Shar Yashuv and in the Mir in NY in reference to shiduchim [going on dates in order to find a proper marriage partner] and also parnasa (making a living).
This dilemma is also brought up in the מדרגת האדם [The Level of Man] by Joseph Horwitz itself.
What I think is there are two parallel levels of reality, objective and subjective. They are parallel but neither causes the other. Quantum Mechanics is subjective. Neils Bohr: "Nothing exists until it is measured." If you measure the electron it is a particle with a specific place and time. If you do not measure it, it is a wave.
I think trust works in the same way. If one trusts in God totally then the out reality corresponds to that trust. If one does not, then outer reality corresponds to that level.
Thus what comes out from this is that one can sit and learn Torah and not worry about shiduchim or parnasa and both will come to him. The outer reality will correspond to the inner reality.
[[I am being a little short in this essay. I really meant to say that QM is radically subjective. But some people have wanted to give up on locality instead. That is they want reality to be only objective and give up on locality. And they choose to give up on locality. But we know locality is true from experiments done daily using predictions of Special Relativity and General Relativity. Therefore only one option is left. Locality is true and nature is radically subjective. Just for one small example: GPS depends on both Special Relativity and General Relativity. It would be off by several miles if not for the fact that both SR and GR are true. I mean to say the satellites are moving faster than the observer because they are above his head going around the earth from his perspective. So their clock goes slower. But they are further out from the source of gravitation so their clock goes faster. Combine both effects and you have to adjust the clock in the satellite to compensate for both effects. If you would not adjust the clocks in the satellite they would show ones position to be miles off target every day.]
3.8.16
The Nefesh HaChaim is about service of God in a comprehensive way.
The Nefesh
HaChaim is about service of God in a comprehensive way. It is about learning Torah
and prayer. To avoid modern day idolatry and Monotheism. I do not know if there
is translation. But even if there was it would probably be Politically Correct. [This is the Musar book by a disciple of the Gra]
Monotheism is mainly the idea that God is one, not a composite, and He is not the world, and the world is not him.
I might mention that I think part of the reason the Rambam went with Aristotle was that people had been wrestling with neo platonic thought and monotheism for a thousand years. Neo Platonic thought was the default position but it was hard to get it to go along with simple Torah Monotheism. So the Rambam just jettisoned a lot of Neo Platonic thought and went straight with Aristotle.
So God would be defined as the First Cause. It makes everything amazingly simple. Nothing is godliness except God.
This is important because knowledge of this fact can save one from idolatry. And that in itself is great thing because כל הכופר בעבודה זרה כאילו מודה בכל התורה כולה anyone that denies idolatry is as if he agrees with the whole Torah. That is the Whole Torah can be more or less condensed into that one command do not do idolatry. And when one has fulfilled this then he need not seek for tikunim {other corrections} for things. For the the Torah is life and the good.
Monotheism is mainly the idea that God is one, not a composite, and He is not the world, and the world is not him.
I might mention that I think part of the reason the Rambam went with Aristotle was that people had been wrestling with neo platonic thought and monotheism for a thousand years. Neo Platonic thought was the default position but it was hard to get it to go along with simple Torah Monotheism. So the Rambam just jettisoned a lot of Neo Platonic thought and went straight with Aristotle.
So God would be defined as the First Cause. It makes everything amazingly simple. Nothing is godliness except God.
This is important because knowledge of this fact can save one from idolatry. And that in itself is great thing because כל הכופר בעבודה זרה כאילו מודה בכל התורה כולה anyone that denies idolatry is as if he agrees with the whole Torah. That is the Whole Torah can be more or less condensed into that one command do not do idolatry. And when one has fulfilled this then he need not seek for tikunim {other corrections} for things. For the the Torah is life and the good.
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I would advise you to focus on getting debt free so that you can afford to take 3 months to go there. Slavery to money/debt is SO bad for us.
You cannot expect to start a decent relationship in a couple weeks, so having at least 6 weeks there would be good. Especially since the first woman you pick to pursue may not be appropriate/serious anyway. When I was there, women actually made an effort, or gave openings, to spend time with me. And these were women upon whom I had spent very little money, not even dinner, so there was not an immediate gold-digger motivation. For example, one woman went for a walk with me through her city. The only monetary benefit she received was the rose I gave her. And she wanted to get together again. Another met me, and I paid only for a few flowers, a salad, water bottle, and a couple games of ping-pong. After that, she really wanted to get together again. If you are really interested, just go. Trying to find/communicate with a woman before you get there is just a way to line the pockets of unethical companies. As a guy who will get no financial benefit from you regardless, I can tell you: Many women there ARE in fact vastly superior. It is not just marketing hype.
I am thinking of going next spring, so if you want company/help, maybe we can arrange to go at the same time. Most companies that offer to help are massively overcharging, or are outright frauds.One problem you will have that you do not have in North America is that the women are very feminine/beautiful, so this will be very distracting for you unless you firmly hold to your reason/mind. (At least, it was a problem for me.)Have a short list of what is important to you, and then you can run through the list and pass on the women that, while strongly emotionally/sexually appealing, are not appropriate for marriage with you. E.g., I want: – woman not married to her career; if she’s not prepared to ditch school/career so she can invest her time in our children, I don’t want her. Similarly, she must have investing time in her marriage as a life priority. – she accepts that we will read the Bible together almost daily and obey it. (As opposed to churchians who say the right “Christian” words, but do not live it out — read Matt 21:28-32. I am not too concerned about her past “religious” experience, just her obedience.) – 2 mandatory physical characteristics that are important to me. Tough beans to the feminists/churchians who claim that we are all equal and the outside should not matter – feminine in the areas of her appearance that she can control (clothes (deut 22:5), hair length (1 Cor 11), not fat (Titus 2:3-5)) – easy to talk with and pleasant. Able to have fun with me.
– under 29, preferably about 25, give or take a few years. I want kids from my new wife, not menopause. Plus the “wife goggles” would be a benefit to the marriage.Oh, and living costs there are very low. A private apartment is about $33 US a day, less if you pay by the month. A week’s worth of groceries is maybe $26, if you plan to eat “high on the hog”. Six games of bowling, with shoe rentals, is about $5 US."Human relations are in God's hands as far as I can see and rules that apply in one case change for another. No two people are alike. Still as far as the general nature of that comment about the Ukraine and Russia I have to agree. The women are far, far, superior to anything one can find in the USA in character and looks. Just avoid those dating sites at all cost. Learn Russian and go there. Period.I mentioned before this the various reasons why this is allowed even if not preferable. The basic reasons are: the incident with Rav Asi in Avoda Zara. There was a woman that people were saying that she was not Jewish. Rav Asi said did not she go to the Mikvah? Rashi says it is enough to go to the mikva for the sake of marriage to become Jewish. My other reason is the Raavad (and most of the Baali HaTosphot) that a girl friend is permitted. See Chronicles II 2:46.