Lipa Schmeltzer Goes To College – And He Wants You To Go, Too

“I never got an education other than biblical stuff,” reported Schmeltzer. “I called up someone in New Square and he got me a paper saying I had graduated high school.” Not surprisingly, the registrar at Rockland Community College, a two-year school which is part of the State University of New York system, informed Schmeltzer that the paper he was holding was of little value. As English is actually Schmeltzer’s second language, he spent eighteen months working towards his high school equivalency diploma, taking classes at the Rockland County Board of Cooperative Educational Services as well as studying with private tutor Chaim Glovinsky in order to pass the series of five tests which would award him a General Equivalency Diploma and allow him to enroll in college.

Lipa Schmeltzer

Originally published at 10:08 pm CST 12-27-2012

The Jewish Press reports:

…[Lipa] Schmeltzer’s dream of obtaining a higher education began approximately two years ago as he drove past the local community college and began to contemplate the possibility of earning a college degree. Stopping off at the registrar’s office, Schmeltzer inquired as to the enrollment requirements and was told he needed a high school diploma.

“I never got an education other than biblical stuff,” reported Schmeltzer. “I called up someone in New Square and he got me a paper saying I had graduated high school.”

Not surprisingly, the registrar at Rockland Community College, a two-year school which is part of the State University of New York system, informed Schmeltzer that the paper he was holding was of little value. As English is actually Schmeltzer’s second language, he spent eighteen months working towards his high school equivalency diploma, taking classes at the Rockland County Board of Cooperative Educational Services as well as studying with private tutor Chaim Glovinsky in order to pass the series of five tests which would award him a General Equivalency Diploma and allow him to enroll in college.

Now completing his first full semester at RCC, the 34-year-old Schmeltzer is a firm believer in the value of proper schooling.

“I never had the opportunity to get an education,” explained the superstar. “It’s not fair what is going on in many communities today. People are getting married yet they have no way of supporting themselves and one day they wake up and realize they can’t manage. Even if someone disagrees with the idea of going to college there are still programs which can provide a college degree so that they can make something of themselves and support their families.”…

But the rabbis who fear things like college can rest somewhat easy – Lipa is also studying for smicha, rabbinic ordination. However, he's doing that through an online program via Skype.

[Hat Tips: HeathenHassid, ZIY.]

Comments

[Christopher Hobe Morrison]

What they used to do at SUNY New Paltz was get people to enroll as continuing education studens for two semesters. That's what I did, and then I just enrolled through the continuing education department and wasn't eligible for student aid but I was a vocational/educational assistance client in those days, so they paid for tuition and fees, textbooks, and even a transportation allowance. I did my two semesters and maintained a 3.75 cum, and I was able to matriculate for my third semester and get all my student aid, plus I kept the vocational assistance. My third year I switched to independent study at Empire State College and kept the vocational assistance. That was where I graduated from.

To do this you need to be motivated and be able to work without much support although it is possible to get people to support you when you need it. Mostly you need to be able to work hard and many times it seems like it is going nowhere, but if you just keep going you can do it and at the end you will be glad you did. So if there is anybody like that reading this, good luck to you and always remember you can do it and there is nothing to be afraid of.

[Bruce J Cooke]

A Jewish education that does not provide the student with training to earn a living is not a Jewish education.The Holy books say that amongst other things a parent must provide for his son is the skills to make a living(teach him a trade).If this is not done you are teaching him to steal.How else will he be able to survive?

[ca]

I hope he stays frum so he can be an example to other frum yiddin that you can get an education and keep your faith so that others might follow in his foot steps.

[David]

Amazing that the frumma have degraded and perverted Judaism to the point that a frum Jew graduates from Jewish "school" as an illiterate, innumerate individual with no way to earn a living as required by Torah.

What a chillul Hashem for "the people of the book".

Best wishes to Lipa but may I respectively suggest he does something about the tie.

[David]

.The Holy books say that amongst other things a parent must provide for his son is the skills to make a living(teach him a trade).If this is not done you are teaching him to steal.How else will he be able to survive?

Posted by: Bruce J Cooke | December 27, 2012 at 11:06 PM

(My emphasis.)

Indeed. Hence the high proportion of stories about uneducated Charedi criminals in this blog.

[Account Deleted]

Congratulations, he is thinking out of the narrow box of the Canharedi and Frumma clans.
sadisticstevestrong

Ignorance is the mother of tyranny. Religious fanaticism it's evil father.

[Moishy]

Nebech it took him 18 months... I took classes for a few weeks and got great marks on my GED.

[Atheodox Jew]

People are getting married yet they have no way of supporting themselves and one day they wake up and realize they can’t manage

I imagine though that Lipa CAN support himself without having to go to college.

Which means he's getting his education "lishma". And that's also a good thing!

[Jake24]

@Moishy

I know him personally and he is smart and motivated. If you had the same background that he did it would have taken you far longer to reach a basic level of skills needed for the GED.

[Yochanan Lavie]

Kol hakavod and yashar koach.

[Mike]

I'm actually attending RCC at the moment myself, I've met him once and he seems really eager to get an education. He might want to do something in psychology if I'm not mistaken. Very down to earth- hope it works out well for him.

[Russian PhD]

Fake or semi-fake high school diplomas would be half-problem. I am personally aware about dozen of BA and even MA degrees “granted” to 18-19 years old Haredi boys and girls from “important families” by “phone call” as Lipa describes.

[Jerk]

What a great cause... I had a similar background, graduated college and have an excellent career. That being said, it was tough when I started. I had to have the dictionary in front of me and I had to look up every second word and I was 10 pages behind the guy sitting next to me. Not to mention that my level in math was that of a 9 year old child.

I wish there would be a movement for education in the Chasidic community. I think that it will solve lots and lots of problems and they will be able to answer with sincerity the first question asked by God when they get up there. I was told in Yeshiva that the first question asked is “were you honest when you did business”. Based on my experience most Chasidim cannot answer yes on this question….

[Avi]

Good for him. This way with his college diploma he will be able to get a better paying job.

I wish him luck!

[jancsibacsi]

Fantastic came to his senses and see reality kol hakavod to leipa.

[jancsibacsi]

Moishy-Nebech it took him 18 months... I took classes for a few weeks and got great marks on my GED.
DI bist a ligner,your are a big liar.

[Rochel]

Many years ago, before everyone had access to word processing and photoshop programs, someone from the charedi community came to a (Jewish but not religious) friend of mine and asked him to create and print a document. My friend showed it to me and I immediately realized that this document was intended to be a college diploma (because I was able to understand the Hebrew words written with the English alphabet). The charedi have diploma mills and routinely print fake diplomas to make their yeshiva education sound like a four year high school or college.

[Moshe aron Kestenbaum, Williamsburg]

Way To Go. Lipa you're a hero,you are a responsible example for other chassidim to imitate you and have a better future

[Yoel Mechanic]

>I wish there would be a movement for education in the Chasidic community. I think that it will solve lots and lots of problems

right on!

[Ari]

@ Rochel
Giving out fake diplomas isn't new.

Perhaps I’d show respect if the degree is from an accredited college, but yeshiva or seminary students should not be allowed to put a Bachelors degree on their resumes to secure a job. That is unethical and unfair to those who worked their ass off to obtain a real college degree.

Colleges like Yeshiva University and Touro give out degrees to students who are less prepared for the major they have chosen.

[Adam Hasheni]

But the rabbis who fear things like college can rest somewhat easy – Lipa is also studying for smicha, rabbinic ordination. However, he's doing that through an online program via Skype.

You can't get smicha over skype! That would require you to use the interwebs!

[Jerk]

Colleges like Yeshiva University and Touro give out degrees to students who are less prepared for the major they have chosen.

What the hell are you talking about. I am in the real world with a real profession. Touro students can easily compete with students of other colleges.

[mendel]

Which means he's getting his education "lishma". And that's also a good thing!

Education is not, as some suppose, the mere acquisition of skills and knowledge. More importantly, it is the inculcation of ethics and morals with which to equip children to be decent and productive citizens. An amoral, value-free education can lead to an egocentric, self-centered lifestyle, resulting in a dangerous indifference to one’s obligations to society. An education which imparts only knowledge, and gives no direction as to how that knowledge is to be applied usefully and constructively, is not worthy of the name education. Technical skills are essential instruments for later life; but when unaccompanied by education in ethics and morality to form character, to learn right from wrong, they are dangerous tools. Although they may be used for good, they can also destroy. The failure to instill in children an awareness of G-d, an omnipresent real G-d Who sees and judges, has inevitably produced the selfish, egocentric lifestyles so prevalent today -- the "Me" generation.
[cut and pasted by Mendel as a prescient spot light by the Lubavitche Rebbe on Sandy Hook's Adam Lanza and other mis-educated/mal-educated mass murderers.
http://www.sichosinenglish.org/essays/14.htm

[Ari]

The failure to instill in children an awareness of G-d, an omnipresent real G-d Who sees and judges, has inevitably produced the selfish, egocentric lifestyles so prevalent today -- the "Me" generation.

I doubt that is the cause of the ME generation.

[Yakov]

Biblical studies
Wow your so lucky .In my Yeshiva the rebbeim were chasidish and all they did was slap us all day .Starting 3rd grade we studied gemara ,and most of the time was spent just getting beaten up like in the Nazi concentration camp.
At least lipa can boast about getting biblical studies.

[mendel]

I had a similar background, graduated college and have an excellent career.
In the Midrash it says that the Egyptians often put the bodies of
Jewish children into the walls and bricks of the pyramids. So too
today; Jewish parents want their children to be not only 'drowned' in
but totally 'part' of modern society.
We should realize that these are all the ideas of Pharaoh to destroy
the Jews and Judaism first spiritually and then physically (through
intermarriage). And the only solution is to stand firmly and educate
our children in the spirit of true Torah and Mitzva observance.
This means teaching them Torah for the sake of the Torah and not
worrying about the future.
One of the spiritual diseases of our time is worrying about income
and comparing ourselves with others; the size house or car, this one
has a son that's a doctor, another, a lawyer etc. While the Torah
doesn't teach us how to make money, not even to shine shoes!
But the truth is that such a line of thought is destructive to the
Jewish soul and body and is certainly not the message of Judaism to
the world. The message of Judaism is that G-d is the creator, the
ruler and provider for all His creations and that if we do what G-d
wants; teach our children Torah and to speak the words of Torah
constantly then we can be certain that G-d will provide for our and
our children's needs.
http://www.chabad.info/images/notimage/16994_en_1.pdf
[cut and pasted by Mendel on the idol worship that is the college diploma].

[S M L]

"...the only solution is to stand firmly and educate
our children in the spirit of true Torah and Mitzva observance.
This means teaching them Torah for the sake of the Torah and not
worrying about the future......teach our children Torah and to speak the words of Torah constantly then we can be certain that G-d will provide for our and our children's needs"

Teach all the Torah you like but teach secular subjects as well so you can earn a living. G-d in the guise of the American taxpayer is getting sick and tired of supporting you and yours while you debate pilpul and contribute nothing to the country that provides you with the safest haven any Jew has ever had. If you're too uneducated in anything but Torah to perform white collar work then you can bend your back and do stoop labor and we can send some illegals home and pay you to do the dirtywork.

[Low pop]

Schmeltzer is no less sheigetz than Matisyahu, But really more so becuse he comes from a genuine frum family unlike Matisyahu! Atleast Matisyahu went public and stoped the bleeding, unlike Schmeltzer who continues his shtik.

[mendel]

and contribute nothing to the country that provides you with the safest haven any Jew has ever had.
Sounds like the Pharoe's view of the source of their livelihood being the Nile and his rationale to destroy us as well.
SML, were you out to lunch when I made the post above? Or are you a latter-day Egyptian?
Hitler too, chmak shmo, would be proud of you.

[Devorah]

Kudos to Lipa, but I hope they don't try to burn down his house while he's sleeping (for thinking out of the box.)

[Jake24]

@Low pop

I am in RCC with Lipa and know him well. Just because he doesn't want to be part of a cult which has held him back his entire career doesn't make him a "sheigetz." As I believe the article says he has a shul in Airmont and he is studying to become a Rabbi!

[Yochanan Lavie]

I went to Touro's modern Orthodox liberal arts division in the 80's. I received an excellent secular education, with a rigorous humanities requirement. I went on to NYU for grad school and competed just fine. I can't speak for anyone else's experience, but my Touro experience was very positive.

[jancsibacsi]

mendel -You think everyone is like you ,everyone is a unique individual who needs to decide for themselfs how they should live and work i dont beleive that you went to clledge and telling everyone to immerse themselfs tottaly in torah alone you are a fraud.

[jancsibacsi]

mendel -With youre kind of thinking you are destroying judaism more then our enemies or any intermarriage you are a shoite if you think only youre way to learn alld ay is right as i wrote before you are a phony fraud fanatic.

[mendel]

everyone is a unique individual who needs to decide for themselves how they should live and work.
jancsibacsi, " A wise man learns from the mistakes of others, a fool learns from his own mistakes."
So much for freethinking.

[mendel]

jancsibacsi--
everyone is a unique individual who needs to decide for themselves how they should live and work?
But not me? IF I believe I have an obligation al pi Torah to remove a stumbling block from before the blind?
Where is "your live and let live" philosophy where Jews like me are concerned?

[nj]

Colleges like Yeshiva University and Touro give out degrees to students who are less prepared for the major they have chosen.

Posted by: Ari | December 28, 2012 at 08:28 AM
trolling from a library near New Square today?

I myself went to a Seven Sisters (thankfully you wouldnt know about that) but know an entire town's worth of YU grads who did well, went on to top tier graduate schools, and are licensed working professional. The education at YU is damn good and the number of religious drop outs from YU is probably no less than from Chassidic cults anyway. I know more than one woman with a Brooklyn frum education who is now "faking"the religous act.

[nj]

Posted by: mendel | December 28, 2012 at 10:18 AM

are you actually comparing killing babies by putting them in place of bricks on a wall to educating one's mind?
Clealry your mind has been "educated" with garbage if that analysis was somehow your point. Obviously the college you claim you went to is the kind where you call for a diploma when its time for a job.
No sense in responding to any of your ridiculous and outright silly points but here's something to ponder:
1.outside your world, many many people study Torah L'shma AND get a secular education- unbelievable I know but there have been many reported AND documented cases....

[jancsibacsi]

mendel-With youre kind of toireh, you can go and wipe youre behind with it .

[mendel]

are you actually comparing killing babies by putting them in place of bricks on a wall to educating one's mind?
And learning Torah is no longer considered educating one's mind?

[nj]

@mendel

does your reading ability stop at the first sentence of any paragraph? did you read the entire comment or are you afraid if what's written there?

[S M L]

Posted by: mendel | December 28, 2012 at 10:40 AM

"...and contribute nothing to the country that provides you with the safest haven any Jew has ever had.
Sounds like the Pharoe's view of the source of their livelihood being the Nile and his rationale to destroy us as well.
SML, were you out to lunch when I made the post above? Or are you a latter-day Egyptian?
Hitler too, chmak shmo, would be proud of you..."

What utter insulting rubbish and no, I'm not out to lunch.

You wrote:

"So too today; Jewish parents want their children to be not only 'drowned' in
but totally 'part' of modern society. We should realize that these are all the ideas of Pharaoh to destroy
the Jews and Judaism first spiritually and then physically (through intermarriage). And the only solution is to stand firmly and educate
our children in the spirit of true Torah and Mitzva observance. This means teaching them Torah for the sake of the Torah and not
worrying about the future...."

You make my point for me. If you're not going to worry about their future then who's job is it to do so and to provide them with food, clothes and a roof over their heads while they do nothing but study Torah? They won't have a place in the economy and won't have even a modest income allowing them to live unostentatiously while indulging themselves in Torah study. Is it the responsibility of the non-frum and non-Jews to provide cash and goods to you and your able-bodied offspring who sit and debate and daven all day? They can still be frum and work without being materialistic and without immersing themselves in the worst of American popular culture. There is a middle ground. They don't need to intermarry or lose their Yiddishkeit. The thing is: I and others like me who work and pay taxes owe no more to you and yours than we do to any other able-bodied adults who could work but choose not to, which is nothing at all. Get jobs and study Torah at night.

[ah-pee-chorus]

An amoral, value-free education can lead to an egocentric, self-centered lifestyle, resulting in a dangerous indifference to one’s obligations to society.Posted by: mendel |

exactly!! thats why all charedi yeshivas should be closed down.

[jancsibacsi]

mendel-You sound just like a dictator sounds you keep repeating this absolute nonsense that toireh is the solution to all our ills you cant dupe no one orblind no one with youre fanaticism stop youre childish infantile antics youre kind of thinking does not get us anywhere only to a disfunctional society its a no brainer.

[mendel]

are you actually comparing killing babies by putting them in place of bricks on a wall to educating one's mind?
Yes, once again here is what the Rebbe says:
Perhaps the most important change in the face of our society is the information revolution. Superior knowledge has become the hallmark of superior cultures, a dynamic force fueling our economies and inspiring creativity. And this is not merely an abstract matter, it is affecting every dimension of our lives. To cite the most obvious example: Probably 90% of the people reading this book are employed in either creating, processing, or selling information.

To better understand the role of knowledge today and in the future, it is worthwhile to take a brief lesson from the past: About 200 years before the Common Era, there were two cities in Western society renowned for their wisdom: Athens and Jerusalem. Athens produced poetry, philosophy, art, and drama. In Jerusalem, rabbis bent over scrolls studying the Law, thinking about how to apply that Law within the changing context of their contemporary experience.

Superficially, the Greek civilization looked more alive, more open-minded, more attuned to humanity. But an interesting thing happened when the two cultures interacted - the Greeks revealed an underlying narrowness and rigidity. When the Jews refused to adopt the Hellenistic lifestyle, the "liberal, enlightened" Greeks sought to destroy them, killing even mothers and babies because they wouldn't accept the allegedly superior Greek ideas and ideals.

Let's come closer to the present. At the turn of the 20th century, the world leader in philosophy, arts, and the sciences was Germany. Jewish wisdom had not disappeared, but was again viewed by many as more restricted, and perhaps a drop stale. The scrolls had been printed as books, and the number of books had proliferated, but the rabbis were still concerned with the same questions: What is the source from which a law is derived? And how can the Law be applied within the changing context of contemporary experience?

But as before, the culture which appeared more humane and advanced was built on the sands of pride. Its "wisdom," "knowledge" and "enlightenment" were all too easily perverted by the equally "human" and more compelling qualities of arrogance and brutality. Germany used its scientific knowledge to develop a fine-tuned murder machine which killed millions - attempting to offer a final solution to the questions confronting Jewish wisdom.

A clear message emerges. Wisdom is not enough, not even wisdom with humanistic values. Before it can serve as the basis for a synergistic society, human wisdom must itself be judged against the backdrop of an objective, external standard of good. And this standard must allow for the protection of wisdom, so that it cannot be abused by people or nations. Wisdom can then reach beyond itself toward spiritual goals.
[cut and pasted by Mendel]
http://www.sichosinenglish.org/books/as-a-new-day-breaks/04.htm

[Ari]

Good for him. This way with his college diploma he will be able to get a better paying job.

I wish him luck!

Posted by: Avi | December 28, 2012 at 06:53 AM

You are kidding. He is probably making more than a gaggle full of doctors.

[mendel]

you're kind of thinking does not get us anywhere only to a disfunctional society its a no brainer.
Now that you have read my post about the "brainy" 'functional society of the Greeks and Germans, which ones would you prefer theirs or ours?

[jancsibacsi]

mendel-You sound like you have the answer to a perfect world this is the delusion and illusion that you are putting forth here you are nothing but adel;usional idiot that thing he can solve the worlds ills as i wrote before you are playing with youre own and others emotion and mind you are the most dangerous of them all.

[mendel]

What utter insulting rubbish
And what you posted wasn't insulting?
American taxpayer is getting sick and tired of supporting you and yours while you debate pilpul and contribute nothing to the country that provides you with the safest haven any Jew has ever had. If you're too uneducated in anything but Torah to perform white collar work then you can bend your back and do stoop labor and we can send some illegals home and pay you to do the dirt ywork.

[Moishy]

@Jake24

I do have the same background.

[Sholom]

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I was sent to Oholei Torah for most of my childhood and adolescence. In that miserable excuse for an educational institution, I did not learn a single useful skill, nor did I learn anything that directly caused me to become a better person or a better Jew.

I stand before you as an adult, having been free of the shackles of frumkeit for well over a decade now.

I study mathematics, am close to graduating with a GPA over 3.5 from a reputable research university in the Midwest. Actually, my degree will be a double-major in mathematics and German studies, with a minor in Judaic studies.

I will be attending graduate school next year; I'm also starting a consulting firm and conducting some interesting and potentially rewarding research.

I share all this personal information in order to make the following point.

It is precisely outside of the confines of the Yeshiva system where I learned the necessary skills to earn an honest day's pay, where I picked up the necessary humanist education that I use to better myself as a person, and where I engaged with my traditions in order to better myself as a Jew.

Mendel, טו מיר א טובה און גיי טרען א דריי-פוסענ׳דיקע ציג.

Thank you.

[dd]

good idea , smart move . but lipa should cut his curls and loose 50 pounds . he will look better . he should stop eating potato kugels, potato pancakes and all kinds of kugels baked in oil and extremely fattening . he should stop eating at simchot , too tempting . he should exercise to be shapy . for a talented and gifted man , he looks dumb . his eyes expression is rather dull. i like the funky glasses and the tie . he seems to be a nice fellow . why does he need a college education for ? what is he studying ? anyone knows ? he is doing pretty well in the 'show biz' .

[MM]

"everyone is a unique individual who needs to decide for themselves how they should live and work?
But not me? IF I believe I have an obligation al pi Torah to remove a stumbling block from before the blind?
Where is "your live and let live" philosophy where Jews like me are concerned?

Posted by: mendel | December 28, 2012 at 11:17 AM"

Nu, Mendele, the problem with "live and let live" where Jews like you are concerned is that Jews like you have somehow gotten the idea that it is the duty of non-Chareidi Jews and non-Jews to pay your bills while you pursue your chosen lifestyle of all learning, no earning.

None of us would care what meshugas you believe if your beliefs (a) didn't include the proviso that the rest of us have to pay the living expenses of your enormous families, including the tuition bills for your worthless yeshivah "educations"and (b) if your lot weren't constantly running around trying to cram your meshugas down other people's throats.

We would all be happy to live and let live if you lived on your own dime and kept yourselves to yourselves--which you collectively don't.

Indeed, Mendele, do you even have the capacity to think for yourself and express yourself in your own words? Everything you post is identified by you as a cut and paste job from the deatkless prose of the deathless Menachem Mendel Schneerson. Other than his horde of acolytes, no one else is impressed with what the "Rebbe" had to say, for many of us quite the contrary. Schneerson's writings may be scripture in your eyes, but I doubt if they are so considered by anyone outside Lubavitch-Chabad.

[ah-pee-chorus]

MM-

well said.

[Apostate]

Well, this guy seriously needs a haircut, a shave and a visit to the GAP, but at least he's making an effort to be a useful member of society. Kudos to him.

"The message of Judaism is that G-d is the creator, the ruler and provider for all His creations and that if we do what G-d wants; teach our children Torah and to speak the words of Torah constantly then we can be certain that G-d will provide for our and our children's needs" says Mendel.

"G-d" would be providing jack-sh!t if it wasn't for the taxpayers.

Yes, yes Mendel, the Jews are victims. You told us.

[Jake24]

@Moishe

Not to diminish your accomplishments in any way I highly doubt you have the same lack of education that Lipa did simply because I don't think it's possible to be less educated then he was.

[Jeff]

None of us would care what meshugas you believe if your beliefs (a) didn't include the proviso that the rest of us have to pay the living expenses of your enormous families, including the tuition bills for your worthless yeshivah "educations"and (b) if your lot weren't constantly running around trying to cram your meshugas down other people's throats.

I would add: "And if you weren't habitually preying upon other people's children."

(Although I would still care, as they'd still be crippling their own kids and holding back whatever little progress humanity is able to make.)

People, arguing with mendel is pointless. This isn't mere delusion; it's clearly a psychosis, a complete inability to apprehend consensual reality.

[Apostate]

"People, arguing with mendel is pointless. This isn't mere delusion; it's clearly a psychosis, a complete inability to apprehend consensual reality."

Mendel seems to have little else to do besides praying all day and trolling here for amusement. He'd be a lot quieter if he had to venture into the world and work for a living.

[jancsibacsi]

Sholom -I dont think mendel understand yiddish that good,and by the way why 3 fisedike tizigele:)?

[mendel]

MM--
Indeed, Mendele, do you even have the capacity to think for yourself and express yourself in your own words? Everything you post is identified by you as a cut and paste.
I couldn't care less what you and your ilk think of me. And I will continue to cut and paste from the words of the greatest Torah scholar of our generation,the Lubavitcher Rebbe shlita,rather than become your whipping boy.
You can attack me me, but that doesn't mean that I have to descend to the level of your ilk's vituperative invective against me with any rejoinders which would only add fuel to your fire.
Why would I deign to dignify your baseless hatred with my own responses.

[S M L]

Mendel:

If the shoe fits, wear it. If you find what I wrote insulting then maybe it's hitting uncomfortably close to home.

Work.

Support yourself and your family.

Pay taxes.

Study all you want BEFORE and AFTER work.

It's that simple.

[Sholom]

בכדי אז ער זאל די פירטע פוס אינ׳ם תחת זיינעס אריינשטעקן קענען.

[Jeff]

I couldn't care less what you and your ilk think of me. And I will continue to cut and paste from the words of the greatest Torah scholar of our generation,the Lubavitcher Rebbe shlita

Why are you here? You aren't converting anyone. No one here agrees with you. No one here is going to agree with you. Everyone thinks you need to be hospitalized. You seem to have some sort of compulsion to keep cutting and pasting your propaganda.

You aren't trying to convince us; you're trying to convince yourself.

[dh]

Mendel, great scholarship doesn't mean the absence of idiocy, morality or false conclusions. It doesn't mean a wide breadth of subject matter or experience.

It means someone learned alot, hopefully in more than a single area of study.

No truly great scholar who is also a great human being would foreclose on the ability of others to think, learn broadly with different kinds of society and the ability to make decisions for themselves instead of internalizing the scholarship of a single individual and be ruled by him, even posthumously.

You are imprisoned.

[Shmarya is of Khazzer Descent]

dd - Lipa is a small, slim man, 5 ft 6 inches tall at the very most and certainly less than 140 pounds. 50 fewer pounds and he'd be in intensive care chas vesholom. Anyone who's seen him on stage can see how much energy Lipa has and that he is in perfectly good shape, unlike, for instance, Shmarya.

mendel - At best you're a kid who doesn't even understand what the Rebbe meant - at worst, you're a troll trying to make us look bad.

Either way, it does not pay to explain things properly here, as this is the cesspool of the erev rav. If you are who you are, just read it, cry for the poor Yiddishe neshomos who have fallen into the cesspool, and remind yourself ashreinu, ma tov chelkeinu, uma noim goiralenu.

If you're trolling, you're kind of third rate as trolls go.

[Jeff]

At best you're a kid who doesn't even understand what the Rebbe meant - at worst, you're a troll trying to make us look bad.

As opposed to the stellar job you're doing of representing your world.

And our neshomos are just fine, thanks. Life can be very fulfilling when you don't have to run to a rebbe or consult a holy sefer every time you need to go the bathroom.

[Apostate]

Mendel is pitiful because he's likely a davenboy with no marketable job skills or education. He needs a lot of help standing on his own two feet, but he has to want that first. Wanting that takes courage. The subject of this article was similarly disadvantaged, but he has a lot of cojones for trying to make something of himself.

Mendel, praying all day is a hobby, not a job. You would be homeless and starve to death if you weren't being supported by taxpayers. Do you know how to spell parasite? P-A-R-A-S-I-T-E

[mendel]

Everyone of your posts betray the utter ignorance and, and as a result, abysmal explication skills on this or any other topic you discuss which is above your collective pay grade.
That is clearly why you almost never deal with what I cut and paste from the Melech Ha Moshiachs-- it is too cerebral for anything more than your brainless ad hominem calumnies.

[Jeff]

That is clearly why you almost never deal with what I cut and paste from the Melech Ha Moshiachs-- it is too cerebral for anything more than your brainless ad hominem calumnies.

Deal with the question that was put to you: WHY ARE YOU HERE?

[dh]

You don't get to ask that, Jeff, if you are a "visitor." So dust off your FM Fanclub Card, ignore LaC, retake your oath and STAY.

[Apostate]

Mendel needs remedial English classes, first thing. Yiddish and Hebrew won't cut it in today's job market.

This issue is all about control. As long as they are kept helpless and ignorant they'll be too scared to stray from the yeshiva. Men and boys like Mendel are prisoners in a way.

[dh]

The Thought Police.