Best idea is to avoid spiritual stuff, philosophy, politics.

When people are extra sensitive to spiritual values  that implies an extra ability to absorb wrong energies also. This idea is more or less based on Kelley Ross of the Kant/Fries philosophy.
At any rate, the idea is once one is sensitive to one area of value, that can deteriorate into it opposite area of value.
This shows why Litvak yeshivas like Shar Yashuv or the Mir in NY tend to discourage and over amount of interest in spiritual values.
So people that are aware of the delusions in the spiritual side of things then often go off into Philosophy or Politics to find meaning.  Both of which are dead ends.

Best idea is to avoid spiritual stuff, philosophy, politics.

[In politics I favor free market and freedom as practiced in the USA and Israel. But I also realize the need for the USSR --the kind of Hegelian stat that is needed in extreme cases. After the fall of the USSR all those same problems are beginning to rise again very fast.]

I see in Vietnam they brew the coffee for a few minutes in a sock. See this website: https://freenorthcarolina.blogspot.com/

 However I just put the coffee grains and tea grains directly into the pot. [both coffee and tea together. later in the day to put in green tea also.]

In any case I heard in fact from my mother in law Rita Finn to have to coffee simmer for at least 30 seconds in order to get the strength out it.

I saw the drip idea but that did not make any sense to me.

The main thing about coffee is to get it into the pot itself. None of the drip nonsense.

There are different kinds of diversity.

To me it seems that President Trump is getting things back on track. Not just that but also there is a significant fact that a lots of Americans voted for him. That seems to suggest that Western Civilization is not lost.

"The squabbling is mainly over diversity. Diversity was the catalyst for the creation of leftist thinking - motivation is hatred of the white race." Missey


I think: There are different kinds of diversity. One kind brings everything up. The other kind brings everything down.

Therefore it is impossible to say diversity is good. Everything depends on who is diverse.

Musar would perhaps have been a good idea.]

The way to learn Torah that I was taught in Shar Yashuv [Far Rockaway, NY] was to not spend time on introductions. Rather the approach was to get into Gemara and Tosphot.
That approach apparently helped me a few year later when I was accepted at the Mir in NY.
This went against the grain and desire of most of the new students that were more interested in introductory material.

My impression is that that approach [of Shar Yashuv] was correct. And that is what I think applies to anyone.

The degree this was taken in Shar Yashuv was in fact even more Litvak than most other Litvak places in that they did not learn Musar. And there was a general disapproval of signs of overt devoutness.

[Looking back however I think a drop of Musar would perhaps have been a good idea.]

State of Israel

My original idea of  coming to Israel was based on the Ramban--[Rav Moshe ben Nahman]. He counts settling in the Land of Israel as a positive commandment. That means an obligation.
The importance of settling in Israel is also brought by the Rambam.
The question that was not clear at the time was: how does one look at the State of Israel? I had not really looked at the question at all. There is also the point that many people have made about the establishment of the State is what is called "The beginning of the Redemption." And that seems perfectly valid to me.

[The idea of the "Beginning of the Redemption" has to do with the coming of a new level of consciousness into the world.]
But the political aspect seems to have been needed in order to have a state at all. One can over-do the importance of a state as Hegel does. But you can also under-do its importance.

One can list the abuses of a Hegelian state as was the USSR, but also not notice that without the USSR there were also terrible abuses that the USSR came to correct.
Same with the State of Israel. All human good and flourishing requires a state. Without a strong state, everyone would be easy prey to criminals.

The kind of state that Israel is now is now closer to the USA form of government.
[In any case, I am not in Israel now, but I feel that if God would have mercy on me and help me to get there again, I would like to never leave there again.]

[In one house where Jews were staying in the time of the last czar, they had made a tunnel under their house--a mile long and reinforced with bricks. That is how terrified they were.]


It seems to me that the whole question is can I gain enough appreciation to decide to get to Israel and stay there once and for all and never leave again.

music for the glory of God

U-100 E Flat Major This is a midi file You might notice the quarter and then an eight. I would not use this idea unless I had seen it in the Renaissance. [I saw this idea in two pieces from the Renaissance.]

[Again I have to apologize that I can not turn this to mp3 ]

V-1 a Midi File

V-2

V-3

learning Torah and good deeds

Between Everyman  and Musar there are many of the same points. No one is disagreeing that one's portion in the next world depends on good deeds. However  Everyman does not think knowledge goes with one to the next world.

[What defines good deeds however is all too clear. When people want to know the right thing to do, the answer is usually clear. If not, there is an idea of asking God directly for guidance.]


In Musar however learning Torah [i.e. Gemara in depth and Musar] have a value beyond the grave.
Furthermore you can see in medieval Musar that gaining wisdom all and in itself is part of good deeds. In fact, in the Yerushalmi Gemara it is considered that every single word of Torah is equal to all the commandments.

And wisdom in itself is considered a separate category than learning Torah. You can easily miss this point in most Musar books unless you are looking for it. But in מעלות המידות it is explicit.

Also as is well known in Litvak Yeshivas in NY there is the whole subject of לשון הרע כנגד כולם -that slander nullifies all of one's good deeds.

[However this emphasis on not speaking slander seems to be mainly in Musar Litvak Yeshivas. I mean there are Litvak yeshivas which do not emphasize Musar;- and  not speaking slander is not thought to be a major subject. In fact, that is a good argument all by itself to have Musar in yeshivas.]