Yakov, I was not as aggressive as this until the day my two sons joined the IDF. AND they are not jobniks. I feel pride and pain and worry about them constantly. They serve their country with pride and dignity. They have more compassion about their country than any of these skunks that call themselves Jews. It just makes me sick to think they are out looking after people who think this States owes them. They continually take and dicate and NEVER give back. I'm tired of them. I also resent knowing that the huge amount of tax I have to pay goes towards their studies. When a high court decision is made to uphold a Law that should never have been passed in the first place really makes me even more angry. I wish you peace and happiness and really, I'm not that bad!!!!

I know one thing, right now you cannot eat poultry for fear of bird flu, you cannot eat cow for fear of Mad Cow disease, you cannot eat fish because water is becoming more polluted. Hmmmm that just leaves our friend Porky the Pig. Now, maybe you should go away and try to find the divine message in their somewhere. Look hard, look deep.

Actually, I have lived in Israel. Living in Israel does not give you a seat in righteous judgment over anyone. However, I am glad you know your geography! The haredim are a very diverse group of people, just as are the hilonim. There are cruel and wonderful haredim just as there are cruel and wonderful hilonim. Your comments say more about where you fall on that continuum than they say about anyone else, dear.

'You have lived in Israel'? WOOPDIDO! This conversation should be over right now. However, let me add that the haredim are ALL as bad as each other. They are all bigots who want to dictate how the rest of Israel should live and behave and dress and eat. They give absolutely NOTHING BACK to this country. Good ones? Let's see now, are they the ones who riot in the streets? uh huh! are they the ones who fly first first and dictate what everyone should wear on a flight, uh huh! are they the ones demonstrating in Beer Sheva on SATURDAY (the holy day)?? UH HUH! Sorry, can't see anything righteous about that. Maybe they are all from the same 'cruel' family. However, if I ever do meet a 'wonderful haredim' I'll be sure and let you know. But don't wait around. So, you continue your goodwill work but try and focus it in the country you live, the land of the free. Toodleloo.

Yakov, I am surprised that you are encouraging this woman. (1) Talula, I have no objection to aggressive language, but a big, frothing mouth persuades nobody but those who are already true believers. For the record, I am secular. (2) Your suggestion that living in the US prevents one from knowing what is going on in Israel is absurd. In the first place, living somewhere hardly means that one knows much about one's government, or even about the people outside of one's circle. There are plentiful data to support this claim. I agree that those who live outside of Israel, on average, will know less about what goes on there than those who live in Israel. But those who respond to Talkbacks are hardly average US citizens on issues involving Israel. We all process politics indirectly via media and personal communications. Therefore, we are all mostly removed from direct experience of what goes on. (3) Your conflation of "observant Jews" and "haredis" shows a basic confusion. In Israel, data show that the majority are not "secular," and that "secular" does not mean "atheist." Unfortunately, far too many Israelis seem to have your same confusion, which, in part, is why they hate the "settlers" so much. (4) In #34 You say that there are NO "wonderful haredim." Are you saying, then, that those who do fight (e.g. Nahal) are NOT an exception? Are you saying that those who do paid work are NOT at least a partial exception? (5) I keep tabs on Ynet coverage of Haredim, and I think the quality of the reporting is deplorable. I virtually never see real, validated data in a "news" report. Now, Israel does not have a truly free press, as can be seen by the forced closure of Arutz 7. So I have no idea whether the information on which you base your claims is any good. However, if you can demonstrate with real evidence that even a plurality of haredim engage in violent demonstrations (for example), I would be pleased to see it. Since you say that the haredim "give absolutely NOTHING BACK to this country," you should also provide evidence that none of them work for pay or pay taxes. (6) Personally, I think haredim should serve, and so do "observant Jews" like Moshe Feiglin. (7) If you have a problem with someone from the US commenting here, tough. Stay on Hebrew web sites.

I suspect that one big reason why Shas has such power is that the Israeli political system as a whole is so anti-Jewish. Where exactly are the more observant Jews supposed to go? An anti-Jewish government like Sharon's and Merlot's will need to be koshered or fall. Shas is the price you pay for Kadima. Furthermore, every one of you who supported the expulsion/retreat/pogrom and helped destroy the political base of Orange Israel has also supported Shas, because you have weakened the segment of Israel that offers a religious alternative to it. Furthermore, only someone who knows his Judaism can argue against haredi privileges like draft avoidance. It is interesting that Feiglin does not see the need for religious parties in a Jewish democratic governmnet, and does not think that anyone should be exempted from the draft. Go figure.

OK, here we go: 1. OK you are secular and you don't like my frothing mouth. Consider my wrists slapped. Moving on... 2. Doesn't prevent you knowing, it does however prevent you from fully understanding. This is pretty much blah blah. Moving on... 3. Preaching (again). Moving on... 4. So now you want me to give them a pat on the head for serving their country and doing a days work? Uh huh! I don't think so. That is called being a decent citizen. Moving on... 5. Refer to point #2 Moving on... 6. Agree. So why are you getting all bent out of shape? 7. No problem at all with that. You can come here and blabber to your heart's content. There, short and sharp. Happy now?

Affixing a number to a nonargument does not turn it into an argument or even into a response. Nor do your claims to special knowledge mean anything at all to me. One more thing: it seems that even your claim about having sons in the IDF is a lie. A lying leftist - talk about a redundant construction. How is that for brevity?

You don't seem to know when to quit! What a mean person you are and frankly I would rather read what Talula has to say than you. Obviously you have a few much used phrases in an attempt to SEEM intelligent, but you are only a BULLY.

You are just irrelevant. Simple as that.

Once again, I absolutely couldn't give a flying fuck what you think. You like to put yourself across as an intellect. But we ain't buying it. Infact, I pity you, you only come here to mouth off because there isn't anyone around you that will listen to your gibberish, overbearing and pompous chit-chat. So, go and stick a pin in your puffed up ego and go find someone else to bore. Run along.

We have quite the potty mouth, don't we?

Usually I don't bother to reply to phantoms. This time I will, even though it wouldn't surprise me if Talula is behind your respose. Talula/Dorothy Friend makes a career out of vicious comments about groups of people. In the talkbacks for this story, "her" mouth resembles a raw sewage outflow pipe. What's more, in http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3251016,00.html "she" offers fictional sons to give her cover during another of her cruel rampages (not that it would make a difference to me if her sons were real, but it makes a difference to others). The Talmud says "He who is merciful to the cruel is destined to be cruel to the merciful." Talula is in fact the bully, and she has gotten precisely what she deserves. If you, no-name, enjoy reading her (to learn some new words?), feel free.

I thought you do examine what people write before you publish it. It is a shame, and takes away from the standard of your column to let people like "talula" in #19 get it on line!!!! Shame

BITCH-SLAPPED!!! I heard it

I think what you heard was your boyfriend giving you a spanking.