samet@sfmag.UUCP (A.I.Samet) (02/18/85)
> > Thus the issue is halachic not political. (Asher Schecter) > No, the issue is political and the fact that it has "halachic" aspects > is irrelevant because the parties do not agree on what constitutes > "halacha." (J. Abeles) This attempt to squelch discussion from an halachic perspective entails a double standard. One side is free to posit definitions and viewpoints, tacitly or openly, un-selfconsciously, without burden of justifying assumptions. The Orthodox, however, are not allowed to make assertions before "the shape of the table" is agreed upon. If they violate this unilateral, tyrannically imposed, rule of "debate", they are condemned as tyrants, for "imposing views, beliefs, etc." This is genuine sophistry. I try to look at issues from an informed halachic perspective. If some people try to obfuscate the meaning of the term halacha, that's not my problem. If someone thinks that I'm internally inconsistent then I'm eager to listen. Tell me where I'm violating my halachic approach or principles. If someone evades that type of sincere debate with endless semantic tactics, I suspect that he is really trying to mask incompetence. There is a world of difference between philosophizing about halacha and knowing which way to hold a sefer. Yitzchok Samet