i think it might make sense to mention that I had a really wonderful time in shar Yashuv and the Mir in NY. {I had however to leave on sour notes. The Rosh Yeshiva I think had noticed my wild side and so the shidduch with his daughter Penina was called off. In the meantime, my future wife Lea Finn was actively pursuing me and happily I gave in to her request of marriage. I think without her active pursuit of me and her never giving up, is the only reason that I have any children at all.} But at some point, I decided to come to Israel, and even then I could have continued in the kollel system but I was somewhat restless and had discovered Rav Nachman’s advice about talking with God as one talks with a friend and so when I got to Safed I spent most of my day in that sort of activity and neglected learning Torah except when I got home at night and my wonderful wife make dinner with spaghetti or other dishes and after the meal would sit at the table and do about one daf page gemara and one page of the major works of Rav Nahman. But I was not doing what you would call in depth learning iyun. and I really was not able to do iyun either. In spite of my years in three great yeshivot I never caught on to what it means to “learn in depth.” [I think you need talent for that, and IQ also.] It was only when I got to Uman many years later, and David Bronson accepted me a a learning partner that I lowly began to understand what it means to learn in depth. Hi path I might mention was close to shar Yashuv. The hedgehog model- close to the ground. The Mir in NY was closer to the Eagle model of looking at all of shas from a global perspective from there to the subject at hand. I agree that both paths are important. In fact, I have tried to continue in the way David showed me of electron micro-scoping tosphot but at the same time looking at rav shach. The Rav shach approach is continuation of the Brisk approach

ממה שאני זוכר במעורפל אני חושב שהשלחן ערוך אומר שאם מי שהוא מדליק אש בחצר שלו וזה גורם שם נזק לרכוש של שכנו שגר באותה חצר, אז הוא אחראי הן לנזק שנגרם לגלוי וטמון. אבל אם יש קיר והאש קפצה מעליו, האחריות היא רק לנזק באמצעות רכושות היינו רק לגלוי. בחצר האחריות תהיה גם על דברים פתוחים וגם על דברים נסתרים, אבל מחוץ לחצר, רק על דברים פתוחים. אבל זה לא יהיה כמו הגמרא ששם רבא אומר אם יש קיר אז אין אחריות לנזק מחוץ לכותל (אפילו גלוי) שכן זה לא היה רשלנות

I am not sure and I have not been by the Litvacks for a few days, so I have not looked at the Gemara on pg 23 in Bava Kama nor the Tosphot nor the Shulchan Aruch where the Gra bring his idea. But from what I vaguely recall i think the Shulchan Aruch says that if one lights a fire in his own courtyard and it caused damage there to his neighbor’s property who live in the same courtyard, then he is liable both for his arrows and his property but if there a wall and the fire jumped over it then the liability IS only for damage by mean of hi property. On the courtyard the liability would be for both open and hidden thing but outside the courtyard only for open thing. But this would not be like the gemara where Rava says if there is a wall then there is no liability for damage outside the wall since it was not negligence,---------------------------I am not sure and I have not been by the Litvacks for a few days, so I have not looked at the גמרא on pg. כ''ג in בבא קמא nor the תוספות nor the שלחן ערוך where the גר''א bring his idea. But from what I vaguely recall I think the שלחן ערוך says that if one lights a fire in his own courtyard and it caused damage there to his neighbor’s property who lives in the same courtyard, then he is liable both for damage caused by his arrows and caused by his property. But if there a wall and the fire jumped over it, then the liability IS only for damage by means of his property. In the courtyard the liability would be for both open and hidden things, but outside the courtyard, only for open things. But this would not be like the גמרא where רבא says if there is a wall then there is no liability for damage outside the wall since it was not negligence

Frankly I have no more patience with Islam, even though certainly there are individual Muslims who are decent people. But in terms of Hamas and Iran, I have no more patience. a far as I am concerned the right of Israel of self defense against these barbarians takes precedence [However, most spiritual phenomenon Is, I believe, due to the infinite human capacity to believe in anything; like the queen in Alice in Wonderland said, “I can believe in six impossible things before breakfast.” Do not expect human to behave rationally. Rather take the advice of Alexander of Macedon –to do no what need to be done now and not delay. Get rid of Iran’ nuclear facilities now.

hidden levels below apparent reality and above.

I have a belief that there are hidden levels below apparent reality and above. But that one's effort should be directed toward God alone the sole Creator. What seems like miracles are often phenomenon of dark forces. In the Middle Ages I think there were alchemists and mystics who were able to tap in to hidden realities to make changes in physical reality. That however has nothing to-do with service toward God. But what then is service toward God? I think that is best defined by my parents. For my mother service toward God mean to marry a nice Jewish girl (two separate qualifications) and to be a mensch. To my father that mean self reliance.

learning Tosphot, learning the Avi Ezri

The way that yeshivot are oriented is that the centrale feature is the lecture (shiur clalli) on Tuesday where a lesson I given to the whole yeshiva based on the global approach of Reb Chaim of Brisk. This is global and bring in sources from all over shas and the rishonim. And I admit this is important. In fact, I try to continue this a much a I can by learning the Avi Ezri of Rav Shach and later go to a Litvak beit midrah where I can try to learn the sources of his lectures. And I would like to recommend this approach to others. But I also want to mention that my learning partner David Bronson held the belief that a lot more effort must be devoted to learning Tosphot. And I think this was also the belief of Rev Friefeld of Shar Yashuv my first yeshiva}.

one has to find the objective set of moral principles to stick with

Authentic morality I think depends on finding the right set of basic principles to stick with at all cost. To go through life as the majority of people, doing whatever seems to provide the best chance of personal gain and pleasure, is not a way to get to Gan Eden. For the majority people, if one is in a politically active community, that means to adopt the principles of that community. For example, in the USA where 99 percent of women are radical leftist that means to find wife one has to adopt the most absurd radical principles. If one is in some other kind of community, that mean to adopt their insane principles in order to get ahead. But to be a n authentic moral person who has a chance of getting to Gan Eden in the next world one has to find the objective set of moral principles to stick with that will sometimes help him or her to fit in with the crowd, but most often will not. My own belief is that he main principle to stick with at all cost is to speak the truth. ------My own son held that one should learn fast, but with review. [i.e., Izhak held with Rav Nachman of Breslov who held that one should learn as fast as possible –saying the words and going on. However, my son also knew that after that, one need review]