My Search for Counter-Balance

Mobius (the Orthodox Anarchist) wrote an interesting article about Jewschool’s raison d’e tre. He said,

“Jewschool provides counter-balance to the dominant voice of mainstream and institutional Judaism that infests practically every Jewish publication both on- and-offline.”

As a believer that Judaism is essentially quiescent, I think it is critical that questions are raised about popular beliefs within our own community, instead of focusing on what is wrong with the world at large. I am shocked to see the fervor and interest of so many bloggers and periodicals in repeating the same party line to one another and pretending they are effecting change.

To just LOL each other over how right we are and how everyone else is an idiot (or worse) is not an environment of discourse - it is a support group.

Un-Orthodox Jew is of a similar mindset to Mobius. Though different than Mobius in outlook and values, he challenges commonly held notions popular by the black hat communities he is a part of.

Just as their issues are different than each others, mine are different than theirs.

These are the popular issues I feel I am a dissenter, and wish to challenge within my Jewish community.

1) That traditional Judaism is reconcilable with secular egalitarian notions, this can be refuted without even resorting to halacha, averting the babbling that halacha on this issue can “change” and “evolve”.

Biggest proof in my favor - Male Only Circumcision.

Worst Offender: Most Jewish women (and men) who consider themselves both traditional and feminist.

2) That what is good for Israel is good for the U.S. It is not.

Biggest proof in my favor - terrorism.

Worst Offender - The Neocons.

3) Holocaustism - that through “educating” the world about our holocaust and continued musuem proliferation we will somehow stop anti-semitism, and systematically labeling those people who disagree with us “anti-semitic” productive. It is a waste of resources, and frequently invokes resentment.

Worst Offender - The Simon Wiesenthal Center

Biggest (but not only)proof in my favor - The world hates Jews more every day.

There are certainly many positions where I am in line with the mainstream Jewish community, and some of these positions are in sharp contrast to the majority of the world.

But I don’t see the need to kvetch about them as much.

Not on a Jewish blog, targeting a primarily Jewish audience.