Falash Mura End Hunger Strike

1500 Falash Mura were forced by police to end their 3-day hunger strike protesting the extremely slow rate of aliya to Israel. The Falash Mura were saddened because no Jewish communities contacted them during the strike.

Comments

[MP]

end of hunger strike? too bad...
scott, maybe you need to go on a hunger strike yourself?

[rebeljew]

This is sad, not just in that no one contacted them, but that no one has made a descision on them. If they were paskened Jewish UNIVERSALLY, the communities would help. If they were paskened goyim, at least we would have the intellectual ground of saying that they are not our problem, more than any other human rights victims. But we have left them safek. Thus, we must help, but they must forever remain on the backburner. They can never demand the resources of other "glatt" Jews, even in their most desparate hours.

Look at the dinim of a "safek grushah" or a "safek mamzer" or an "asufi". While it is considered halachically a "kulah", it turns out that they have the least connection to anything.

Can Rav Yosef find in this a reason for Hurricane Rita?

[Contributor]

Their plight is dispicable, as is the plight of many Jews in Israel (not including the Pharasites, whose poverty is self-inflicted), yet the government has no Jewish values and the Orthodox are too preoccupied with extracting what they can for their own factions.

Shmarya, I think it's about time that you put the post for Boruch back at the top of your blog. He is your friend and a Jewish hero. He deserves priority over the Hurricane victims. Also, you should add a post explaining how much more money is needed (people are less likely to donate after seeing that $20,000 was received).

The halachah is shelcha kodem leshel chavercha and aniyei irecha kodmin. I read a responsum from a prominent posek, I think it was Reb Moshe, your Reb Moshe (who ruled that the Ethiopians must be rescued) - but I havn't been able to locate it because I don't have a searchable disk of his rulings. I tried looking through his responsa but I could not find it. Nevertheless it was certainly a great posek. He wrote to a man whose sister had lost a considerable amount of money and could no longer maintain her standard of living. The man asked whether his money should be spent on Jews suffering real poverty or whether his money could be used as charity to help his sister with her standard of living. The posek ruled that his sister, a relative, takes priority even in this instance and he should use his charity money to help support her. I wish I could find the responsum for you but I do not have the time-saving resources to locate it. I hope you take me seriously though, Boruch's plight is certainly of greater priority than the Katrina victims' - certainly from your standpoint.

One last thing, the hunger strike is not such a bad idea. You don't even need to go on a full-fledged hunger strike. Just cut down on your caloric intake and get some excersise. Should I mention that this is also a matter of pikuach nefesh? Obesity is the second greatest cause of premature death in the united states. It is just as essential that you take these steps as for you to take Maalox - in fact, much more essential.

[Shmarya]

"The posek ruled that his sister, a relative, takes priority even in this instance and he should use his charity money to help support her."

This is basic halakha.

As for Baruch, he had his transplant a few weeks ago. It didn't take at first, it took almost two wweks for the kidney to work, and we've been waiting for an all clear from the doctors before we announce it. That will probably happen this week. We raised just over $42,000 for the transplant.

[Contributor]

Kol ha-kavod. I hope Baruch receives a refu'a sheleima and that we hear good news from you soon.

[shmuel munkes]

that's right scotty - put an anonymous article in the Jewish Press (which you hate) soliciting money for a cause you feel strongly about- have the checks made out to some phony foundation (trying unsuccessfully to peddle your ancestral tomes but you know what I'm talking about) - why don't you link your site to thee articles? you hate the charedi b/c they love the g'dolim (who you also despise) and you hate the chabad for reasons you don't hide

so the million dollar question - what then makes you different from chabad? is it jealously? by your logic then you're both hookers the only difference being they're $1,000 a night call girls and you're giving bjs in the port authrity bathroom for cigarettes and pocket change

[Shmarya]

1. I have never written an anonymous article for the Jewish Press.

2. Only two articles are on the web. The transplant website is linked to the most comprehensive of the two.

3. Baruch asked for a few weeks to recuperate before publicity. We honored his request. Unfortunately others did not.

[shmuel munkes]

that's a rather hollow denial - so you put some shill up to it - that's kinda like honoring Jeff Goldblum wouldn't you say
why no denial in connection with the phony foundation?
apparently you can take scotty out of chabad but you can't take the chabad out of scotty

[Shmarya]

The foundation has been in existence for more than 5 years and is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. It's not "phony."

[Shmarya]

Jeff Goldblum is inter-dating and has been intermarried. he does not attend any shul, He is not involved in any Jewish organizations. He has done nothing worthy of honor. Yet Chabad's Jewish Childrens Museum – an organization dedicated to Jewish education – honored him. Pretty sick if you ask me.

[shmuel munkes]

so chabad is a 501c3 and has existed for 10 times as long - yet you claim they're phony - face it - it cuts boths ways - you cant cry foul and engage in the same conduct you fault them for
BTW how many ancestral seforim has your "foundation" moved? do you believe in transparency as well or do we have to use the FOIL?
and why when your workers are not getting paid (in the good ole college days) were you insisting on buying cases of champage for senators and congressmen who supported your position rather than make payroll for your overworked underpaid staff?

[shmuel munkes]

the gemara says "kshat es atzmcha v'achar kach k'shat acheirm" check out your own skeletons before yelling at others

[Shmarya]

1. The foundation raises money and then distributes it. No one working for it gets paid.

2. Unlike Chabad which is exempt from IRS filings because it claims it is a synagogue [the law was not intended to exempt educational and social activity, only actual prayer services], the foundation files with the IRS every year.

3. Our first sefer should be finished this fall. It is completely reset, reorganized by topic rather than date of teshuva, has a new index, a concordence to match up page and teshuva numbers from the 1878-1884 editions to the new sefer, and it has a biography of the author written by a leading expert in the field.

4. Champagne? I once suggested that we send one bottle of champagne to VP Bush and President Regan after Operation Moses and its follow up. This would have been in May of 1985. As for staff and our finacial situation, we all inherited that problem from the previous administration and were very limited in what we could do about it. I worked very hard without pay for many years. No staff member will say anything different than this.