The article writer forrgot one HUGE purpose the haredim serve - they keep the Jewish birthrate up, in the face of a sky-high Arab birthrate! If it wasn't for the Haredim, the Arabs would have out-bred us by now. The Haredim are a god-send that keeps Israel Jewish majority!!!

And I'm not one who usually agrees with his opinions. Israel is a fast-changing and complex society, and this is just one of many changes that will take place over the next few decades. It will unequivocally be known as a theocratic country, and I have a feeling that we're not far from achieving that state.

I read some of the comments here. Our army is better than theirs because it has God (am I still allowed to write that word?) on its side. Fortunately they do not suggest we fight by blowing shofars. They also maintain that the Holocaust was the result of Jews not being religious enough. Then I switched to Haaretz. There the Jew-haters on the talkback were almost begging Iran to annihilate Israel. Yes, I am really worried

The only way for Israel to maintain itself in the sea of fanatic Islam, is the scientific edge that Israel has over it’s Islams surroundings, the haredi world does not produce science, among the 196 jewish Nobel prices there was only one scientific half haredi, if you count on learning torah to save Israel, instead of science you are wrong, Israel is doomed to disappear this way

essay is the most stupid one which I have read till now.Every jewish child is dear to me and I hope that this land is filled up with them regardles if they are secular , haredi or national-religious.

I hope you are right. But it would be much better if they start now, and not wait until the last minute.

'if we do not eliminate the Diaspora then it will eliminate us" Beards, sidelocks, funny hats and all the other paraphernalia of the ultra orthodox are symbols of the Diaspora. They shall be the ruination of Israel. Thank you Yaron.

Don't you have it upside down? You probably don't know much history about the 2nd Temple. Actualy it was the Tsedukim who invited the Romans, not Prushim. The Tsedukim were what we will call today Conservative Jews, even a bit of Reform.

to believe that the Creator or that "chance"is ruling the world?

"Les conseilleurs ne sont pas les payeurs" [french saying] The advisers don t pay.

Demography need not be destiny. An Israel committed to remaining democratic, modern, secular and rational instead of collapsing into a lunatic medieval mess like Iran needs to adjust its education system to increase Israeli reasoning capacity, remove every single privilege granted to the Haredim and defeat every single one of their endless challenges to and abuses of democracy. They have been getting away with undermining the state only because they've been allowed to; if they continue to be allowed to, they will kill it.

First: When you subdivide and fight among yourselves, you are doing the Muslims' job for them. Second, this is Wrong: "After the Holocaust, they claimed that it constituted a punishment for shunning our Torah." Blaming the victim for the Shoah is not just Wrong, it is something that would be a _reducto ad absurdum_ example of why blaming the victim is wrong. Finally: why are anti-Zionists living in Zion? That would be like me moving to Mecca. I _really_ don't understand this one. Why would anyone live in a country they fervently believe should not exist? Except of course for the Muslims who are there because they are trying their hardest to make you go away. I'll read the scores of talkbacks for this, but for now I'm both confused and troubled.

Before there were divisions in Judaism there was just a Jew, lets get back to that . PLEASE!!!!

what israel needs are jews that don't have a problem hating our enemies and who are not confused about their enemies being the good ones and us being the bad ones. this is what is needed more than good fighter pilots because without this, no fighter pilot could save israel and with it we can fight our enemies.

No nation will survive if it doesn't have children. Just look at Europe. The countries there will be almost empty of Europeans in coming generations. Only the Moslem immigrants there are having several children per family/person. It is said that Russia has such a negative birthrate that there will be few people there in the not so far future. A nation without children dies out. So, say thank you to the charedim and other religious Jews in Israel. One more thing: Jews in the Diaspora are disappearing due to assimilation, intermarriage, and low birthrates. It looks like our only future is here in Israel.

I applaud your sentiments. However, many times it seems that haredi don't agree with you.

Mr .London-your final line is absolutely disgusting. How can a fellow Jew even state such a vile assumption?Your dislike of the haredi lifestyle borders on total hate of another fellow jew

It;s in human hand to try and pray. It's in god's hands to give us success. The problem of our society is that haredim has chosen only to pray and most of seculars have chosen only to work. We need both of them to do both the things. Haridim are multiplying and not working, not contributing and expects tax payers to provide their 8/9 kids who will have another 8/9 kinds each. Country will collapse. You want to bring children, then brings them when you can provide them bread/butter with your own money and don't make them burden on state. Stop being fanatic and accept few good modern rules like equality to woman, studies including English, mats and science. We are a democratic country, so stop stoning those who drive on Saturday. Haredi community has a lot to work on . Even seculars must stop posting naked woman in ads and no harm done if we follow shabbat.

I dont understand why ynet publishes something like this. and it's not true about all the rabbis around the world, it is just that jews that are in the diaspora decided to live there, so what no synagogues out there, no mikvehs, no one to do a bar mitzva or brit milah in the diaspora???...

Alexander Yanai strengthened Sadducees over Pharisees, so the latter went to the Romans. Pharisees were the Haredim of those times, those who stuck by the ancient laws, Oral Laws. Mishna and Talmud today are the equivalence of the ancient Oral Laws, the equivalence of antiquity in relation to secular laws of the State. l

Zionism was a larger act of blind faith than anything the Haredim ever did. As you say yourself, the Haredi position adapts to whatever they perceive is needed for survival.

i will just comment on one talkback to give equality to woman. In judaism the woman is the most important in the family, thats why every friday night our husband sings to us "a woman of value", women doesnt really have to put tefillim or be part of a minyam for i.e. because we as women are holy, our husbands needs to pray and study cause they are far away from holiness and this is torah halachot. In this modern world, we want to be equal to men (don't get me wrong me myself have an engineering diploma). besides all the work we have out there, then we have to come back home, make food, clean, be with our children and all that. because thats our nature, we wake up in the middle of the night to feed our babies, do men do that? After a while with all that load on us, we get Stressed, Depressed, Angry, Exhausted...this is what men equal to women means. You people need to see the whole picture. I am not Charedi, but i love this people and i believe Judaism relies on them rather than in secularism that what it does is only trying to copy the diaspora life and forget what judaism is really about. and seeing people driving in shabbat i feel (unfortunately) that im back in miami rather than in israel.

God forbid the native population becomes a majority in Israel, or else the racist system of favoring the Jewish immigrant population might crumble to the ground like it should.

Israel is surrounded by ennemies who want to destroy us,and you promote a civil war? United we stand,divided we fall. I can t believe you want the latter.

I am sorry you did not understand me fully. When you tell people how many children they can have, you are on a very slippery slope. What will you do next? Sterilize? Forced abortions? The bedroom and family should be sacrosanct and no one's business but my own. Isn't that what Gay Pride is all about? (BTW - my religious affiliation is none of your business, as yours is none of mine. Live free, my friend.)

Well, a rising problem will be who pay the bills? Haredi dont have a job? Yes? They are not a part of the value-adding econony!? That will mean that every working israeli will have to support more and more not working haredim? How that can work? Sooner or later the israeli economy will collapse when the working class has to support an overwhelming not working but soical benefits reciving part of the people. That cant work? What to do?

Yarom is forgetting that many especially the young are searching for the truth and finding it in Torah and Mitzvot. Thet are fed up of the empty life. Remember Jews are here only because we are the chosen nation who G-D gave the Torah and Mitzvot. There were many more powerfull natuions that were oblitirated the romans greeks etc...