beslove@osu-eddie.UUCP (Adam Beslove) (05/23/85)
*** REPLACE THIS LINE WITH YOUR 67 BUG ***
Q. How many Labuvicha(sp?) Jews does it take to change a light bulb?
A. Three. One to change the light bulb and two to hold the picture of the
rebbie.
>>>>Adam Beslove (c)1985 (aka Odious Verity)
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(UUCP: ...!cbosgd!osu-eddie!beslove)
(CSNet: beslove@ohio-state) The world is my sandbox,
(ARPA: beslove%ohio-state.csnet@CSNET-RELAY) humanity my playmates.meth@csd2.UUCP (Asher Meth) (05/28/85)
In response to the lightbulb 'joke' - I think that it was "sick"; that was the first word out of my mouth upon reading it. The next few are - repulsive, in poor taste, etc. (should I add immature ?). Especially considering the time of year (as I wrote in the d'var torah for Parshas Emor) - we have just finished counting the Omer for 49 days and celebrated the chag of Shavous (Shavout). The period of Sefirah reflects an element of mourning, in commemoration of the students of Rabbi Akiva who died during this period. The reason that they died was - "sheloh nahagu kavod zeh lazeh", they did not act with sufficient honor toward each other. I can take a good joke, and laugh a good laugh; it helps if the humor is real, and is not there to just poke fun at someone else (who, by chance, may not be your type). Think about this, Mr. A. B., the next time you think about telling such "jokes"; especially before posting them to a public forum. To shame another in public is a very serious matter. Notwithstanding the mentions of such in the Talmud and other sources, common decency dictates that we be very careful to weigh our actions and our words. Your words are your own only before you utter them; your teeth act as a guard to stop the tongue from prattling; use your teeth a little more judiciously in "guarding your tongue." Asher Meth ....... meth@nyu-csd2.arpa ....... allegra!cmcl2!csd2!meth
meth@csd2.UUCP (Asher Meth) (06/03/85)
I previously wrote, in reference to the lightbulb 'joke' : >Think about this, Mr. A. B., the next time you think about telling such >"jokes"; especially before posting them to a public forum. To shame another in >public is a very serious matter. Notwithstanding the mentions of such in the >Talmud and other sources, common decency dictates that we be very careful to >weigh our actions and our words. Your words are your own only before you utter >them; your teeth act as a guard to stop the tongue from prattling; use your >teeth a little more judiciously in "guarding your tongue." I received a 'flame' concerning this response, and will respond publicly. I wrote my response to the net (and not in private) because of the implications of the posted article (as I quote above from my response). I felt that the matter was serious enough to warrant a public outcry against such 'jokes'. (Furthermore, lest this be taken as the norm and as an accepted, sanctioned mode of behaviour, by any person or society, I felt the need to respond.) Consider, especially, that the 'joke' itself was viewed, and probably laughed at, by many people out there. What does that say about the sensitivities of the readers? Of those being written about? Of those writing? Have we sunken to such depths that these considerations are not included in our daily lives? Or do we think about these things only when we are on our best behaviour, and are interested in impressing someone? I am not one who 'sticks in my two cents' on every issue that comes up on the net. When something is blatantly wrong with a posted article, and leaves great possibility for a misimpression out there, I feel it necessary to respond. Doesn't everyone out there realize that other people look at their every action and interpret them as the "Jewish thing to do". Especially, the written word appearing in a public forum gives another the license to extrapolate to the "accepted Jewish norm". As far as the possible implications of my article (re : shaming others publicly; one might construe my words as attacking the respondee and shaming him in public) : I am not / did not "undertake to give myself a psak din (rule of the court) that I may now write articles about him to the net". Further, I did not mean to leave room for such an inference. I, just as everyone else, must be aware of the possible inferences of what I say, and take them into account before saying them. I apologize (here, publicly) and ask for forgiveness. Again, the reason that I responded so sharply was a feeling of "how can anyone say such things ? Don't we think of ourselves as being proper, nice, sensitive human beings ?" Maybe these things just bother me more than they do the rest of you out there. (By the way - I am not a Lubavitcher. You should not think that THAT was the reason for my sharp retort.) I am more the type who cannot stand all the silly bickering that goes on. I also like to think that I fight for that which is right. One of the high priorities on that list is the Torah and its precepts. To borrow a line from a different posting, Shalom : and I mean peace. The misnah in Pirkei Avos (Avot) tells us of Aharon Hacohein (Aaron, the High Priest, brother of Moshe - Moses) that he was "oheiv shalom verodeif shalom" - a lover of peace, and one who would run after people to ensure and to promote peace. May we all learn a lesson from this. Asher Meth ....... meth@nyu-csd2.arpa ....... allegra!cmcl2!csd2!meth