Stay in Brooklin, we don't take kindly to your kind here!

in tel aviv, everyone is welcome. The religious leadrs should sit in a Hoshen presentation before judging. They are very good and it is about discimination and not sex.

They need to include a class on current treatments for homosexual habits and sexual addiction.

What is wrong with these morons who label everyone who disapproves of their lifestyle a "homophobic"? No, but they are too simple minded and stupid and full of intolerance -themselves- to admit that there is nothing wrong with not being in love with the gay community. If I believe in the Torah, does that make me "homophobic"? NO. It means I honor the Law and the Prophets. It DOES NOT mean there is something wrong with me. Where is the "Tolerance" for people who choose a life based on Torah?

I hope everyone is clear on this point: everyone who points the finger at you and calls you "homophobic" is also implying that the reason you are homophobic is that you are afraid you might be gay yourself, or that you have your own latent homosexual tendencies, and that is why you hate homosexuals. So in other words, when they label you "homophobic" what they are really saying is that not only are you gay yourself, but you are also a coward afraid to identify yourself as gay. THAT is what they mean by "homophobic".

Homophobic refers to the fear, disgust or discomfort with same-sex attraction and then using those emotions to discriminate or make others feel less. What Choshen does is tries to stop kids from using the word 'homo' as a pejorative term, understand that gay people are born gay and are in every society in the world (including the religious ones). They teach accepting the other. You can still believe in the Torah, not believe that sex between two men is kosher and not be homophobic. I think you need to speak to gay people to know what we want (equal rights and treatment).

This is long overdo, but i guess better late than never. All schools should teach that hating someone who is BORN different is wrong, just like it is wrong to hate Jews for being born Jews! The Haredim should read modern scientific and medical data that clearly point to gay people being born gay; it's not their fault and they have nothing to be ashamed of any more than someone born albino, black, or Jewish for that matter!

No one is asking you to "love the gau community". Teaching against antisemitism ,for example, in schools in Europe or the US does not mean people are teaching goyim to "love Jews" or be Jewish, they only teach them NOT to hate people born different to them. No one is teaching sex in schools by the way, you are only being intellectually dishonest and disingenuous in your argument for the purpose of propaganda, provocation, and deliberate disinformation in order to teach that hating gay people is ok. you are sick and should be ashamed of yourself for calling yourself a someone who believes in our Torah! You sound more like a jihadist or Christian fundamentalist than a Jew.

As far as I know, most religions, including Judaism, condemn homophobia, even though they consider the actual homosexual act an "abomination". They condemn the sin, not the sinner. Therefore I do not understand why the religious would be against a curriculum that teaches tolerance of the homosexual. I am sure that they think this will somehow "promote" homosexuality among heterosexuals - something which is absurd. A little education on sexuality and the development of sexual identity would be a great step foreward in helping the religious to make a more informed decision. Ignorance can be very audacious!

No one says that homophobes are gay themselves, they are saying that one should not hate those who are born different than the majority! You argument is absurd- stop reading medieval Orthodox junk and read a modern scientific/medical journal! It's the 21st century after all and rabbis who never so much as lifted a book other than the talmud obviously have no idea what they hell they are talking about! ... and furthermore, you wouldn't want jews to be hated for being born jewish, so why are preaching hate toward gay people who were born gay? you should be ashamed of yourself! Would you want your children hated for being born different, say albino, etc? I know its hard for the Orthodox heard to think independently, but you should try it once in a while...

from someone who different than you, what people do with their feelings is something else the education can't stop people from being afraid from someone who is different, the best you can call it is to learn how to except someone who is different, you can't tell people what they should feel otherwise you creat distorted reality. a good word of advice, you really wanted acceptance adress it on national scale otherwise it will be waste of time to anyone, people will tag TA residences as Gay friendly.

seculars to learn religious studies on the highest level.

at least the kids will have to learn a little about what the torah says

In teaching a course about homophobia one teaches tolerance and that is the essence of Torah. For those who think there is a cure for being homosexual I recommend a journey to the 21st Century where no legitimate medical or psychiatric institution agrees with you. People do not suddenly decide "today I'll be gay! It will be fun." Just as people do not say suddenly "today I will be straight." People are born one way or the other. To think otherwise is to prove ignorance and a major need for this proffered course!

It is a shame that schools are also not offering a course on AIDS prevention and tolerance for those already infected! Israel has a growing heterosexual population infected with AIDS and so far the education and societal systems prefer to stick their heads in the proverbial sand. When Israel becomes so infected that it resembles Sub-Saharan Africa it will be too late.

Listen, people get sick and tired of any lifestyle or bahavior that they don't identify with being shoved in their face every day. It is exactly the same as anything else, and it DOES NOT make someone a homophobe because they don't want to or need to hear about it anymore. Just shut up about it, and keep it to yourself? Why do I have to hear about every time I turn around? If I tell everyone in my office every day that I'm a rock musician, I was a rock musician since I was born and they need to accept me as a rock musician, and blah blah blah, I demand equal rights for my lifestyle and a parade in Jerusalem every year, and I make certain everyone everywhere at all times knows I'm a rock musician, you know what? People are going to get sick and tired of hearing about -that- too. It does not make them "rockstar-phobes", it makes them NORMAL. Where are my equal rights to speak out for rock musicians? Why do we have to play only for people who come to our shows? Why do so many people not like us? What about all the musicians who have to dress in a suit and tie for work? We deserve our own way of life too! You people need to stop suffocating and oppressing rock musicians, you rockstar-phobes!!! Any lifestyle or behavior or group that continually demands the spotlight claiming oppression or need for consideration is eventually going to wear thin, especially when the people you are clamoring at don't have anything to do with it in the first place.

You choose a lifestyle that I do not agree with. Based on the fact that I do not agree with your choice, I am labeled a "whatever-phobe". By definition, a phobia is an IRRATIONAL fear. So excuse me, but exactly why am I expected to not take offense when someone calls me irrational?

You are clearly someone who needs to be targeted for this type of education. There is housing, job, political and religious discrimination against homosexuals in Israel (and around the world). This became severe enough last year that homosexual children were murdered in a place they assumed was safe in a city they thought accepted them. Your tirade about rockstars is offensive. (Though you've every right to say it). It shows that you prefer people to hate a group for being who they are rather than consider education as a means to halt this discrimination. Had this been 70 years ago the topic of education might just as well have been Jews. I suppose we should allow racists to continue teaching that Jews are sub-human? After all if we continue to proclaim for Jewish rights and equality we may start annoying the people around us who aren't Jewish!

"There is no other authority which funds the gay community like Tel Aviv Municipality," Huldai said in an interview. I really can't understand why any community is deserving of special funding just because of its sexual preference. Is that not just absurd?? And Huldai seems to be proud of this shameful spending. Shocking.

If Israel wants to know why so many Jews would like to make aliyah but do not follow through is because they are appalled and really apprehensive about the intolerance and influence by the so called religious minority. These potential new Israeli citizens who generally if they come from western democracies would never feel comfortable in an environment that is so prejudiced and intolerant of the sexual orientation of other human beings. If the truth be known there is a proportion of gays in the orthodox community which equates to the proportion in the general secular population; the only difference is that the orthodox delude themselves and the unfortunates within their stifling community suffer the agony of sexual ambivalence and the trauma that accompanies it.