Rabbi Berel Wein has written a piece (off-line) about the Slifkin Ban:
Orthodox leaders have to finally make up their minds as to whether they really are committed to outreach and spiritual help to other Jews - most of who are unfortunately far distanced from Torah and tradition. If such a true commitment is present, then the tactics of bans and personal attacks upon those whose views differ from those of the banners have to be severely modified if not entirely abandoned. This is truly a difficult reconsideration but I am convinced that it is one that should be considered and analyzed by the leaders of Orthodoxy.
In other words, because so many Jews are estranged from the primitive world of ultra-Orthodoxy, primitive edicts like book bans will be misunderstood by them. Rather than seeing bans for what they really are – God's word expressed through his popes, ehrrr, gedolim – Jews will persist on seeing bans as primitive, anti-modern, anti-science, anti-truth edicts and will reject Torah as a result.
To prevent that rejection, Rabbi Wein is calling for a temporary suspension, a hudna of bans, so to speak. Later, when cult indoctrination methods (a.k.a., "outreach" and "kiruv rechokim") are successful and Jews have been turned into mindless zombies, we can go back to banning any Spinoza or Slifkin wannabee that dares to raise up his horned head.
The Slifkin Ban is not an aberration. It is the haredi world at its most normal, and right-wing, Rabbi Hershal Schachter-led modern Orthodoxy as its dutiful lackey.
Perhaps it is time for the haredi world to start its biggest and most important outreach project to date: Kiruv Tannaim, Amoraim, Geonim and Rishonim. After all, on most important issues these misguided Jewish leaders of past generations are at least as far away from authentic haredi-right-wing-modern-Orthodox Judaism as today's non-haredi Jews.
[Rabbi Berel Wein hat tip: Godol Hador.]