Why is it that Chareidim riot every so often? Lets put aside "Blood libels", "SHABBOS!" "Autopsies" and other excuses.
Its quite simple (well, maybe not, but might just be one of the reasons).
Boredom.
Having been to a few fun riots on Bar Ilan Blvd and having lived in Geulah, I can attest to that.
Life is boring in Charidei Town.
Maybe some kids would stroll over to Gan Sacher for a game or two of basketball (like me)but its frowned upon. What else is there to do?
Rioting is the answer.
Go throw stones at chilonim, burn garbage cans, assault gov workers, stone buses and other sundry mischief.
It's fun.
I know. I've been there. And there is nothing more exciting to a young bochur than getting chased by cops on horseback. Or that crazy water cannon firing at will into the crowds, trying to ruin that $1000 streimel.
Is there a solution? Maybe some Charidei basketballs courts where kids can work off their energy less violently.
Better yet. Jobs. It's kinda hard to to riot when you have to be at work.
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Sometimes I think that many (most?) of the problems in the Charedi community are due to the culture of not working.
Mark
B"H
I agree with you on these issues:
1. You're right about the Haredi youth looking for "action."
2. The Haredi leadership has really no clue as to how to approach this problem in their community, save for some pockets here and there. IMHO Sefardim tend to be more successful in dealing with reality then Ashknazim.
But, also...
3. A good of thumb is don't believe I single thing the Israeli news {including the JPost} says about why Haredim do what they do, or that it's ALL their fault, until you here it from other sources, like haredi bloggers, Hyde Park, Rotter.net, etc. The Israeli media takes every chance it gets to bash Haredim and [real] settlers, and are not the least bit objective.
4. Too bad settlers aren't paying attention. Violence pays.
BY - Violence pays.
Not always. And not always in the long run. I have the sense that the Chilonim in Israel are reaching a "breaking point" of sorts and there will soon be some changes that wrest away some significant power that traditionally was held by Charedim. Sure, politically, they will almost always hold the "balance votes", but they are very close to losing some institutional powers. And there will be violent demonstrations ... but they will still lose some of those powers.
Mark
A frum punk says that Israel is an entomologists dream come true. If there are too many bugs, give the charaidim the swatters like the one you got at amazing, and that should keep them busy for a while.
"Better yet. Jobs. It's kinda hard to to riot when you have to be at work."
Yes, yes, a thousand times yes!!! The whole "we don't work" thing got old a LONG time ago.
Excuse me. A lot of Hassidim DO work.
It's the Litvaks who think it's beneath them.
I agree, though that the attitudes toward work must change.
The Ramba"m states that the ratio of work to learning for a Talmid Hacham should be nine hours to three hours.
IOW, if a Talmid Hacham shuld work, what about someone who's not a Talmid Hacham {who has finished his two or three years of learning as a young adult}?
But, hey, what does the Ramba"m know, right?
Working is assur because it's what chilonim do.
Don't you know that working leads to going to nude beaches and eating pork on Yom Kippur?!
If anyone thinkw that the Palestinian Post, Ma’aravi, Idiot Aharonoth, and Am HaAretz can give an objective and accurate report of what occurs in the Haredi or for that matter the [real] settler community, you're not living in reality.
{not addressed to any commenter in particular}
In 1932 when the rav of jerusalem harav chaim zonnenfeld zt"l passed away the Rabbis declared on the day of the funeral that all shops should be closed and that no one should go to work. However, the problem is that since then, the rabbonim neglected to inform everyone that's it's alright to go back to work...
The problem's even worse. Since the rabbonim of 1932 were greater than the rabbonim of now, today's rabbonim can't overrule those rabbonim.
True, the Litvish chareidim tend to eschew gainful or legal employment, while chassidim aren't afraid to get their hands dirty, so to speak.
That said, it cracks me up to hear about frum folks pretending to be emergency responders, police officers, firefighters. As for the real ones -- it's a great escape from the tedium of kollel, I suppose. Man, and the crowds of frum kids that emergencies draw.....
Of course, we can't forget the free, chareidi magazines that show no other news except random accidents and fires.
excuse me i dont know what you are talking about! my family is litvish as they come and my father WORKS AND WEARS A WHITE SHIRT! If my brother ever went to one of those hafganos and burnt/destroyed someone's property he would get such a smack he wouldn't be able to sit for a week! For some reason in the pictures I don't Litvish people burning garbages
In general, Chareidim are anti-violence.
Its only a small number of lunatics that rile everyone up -- the Toldos Aharon and neturay karta Chassidim.
The Eida Chareidit is overall calm.
Why do you think there are never riots in Bnei Brak -- which has just as many Chariedim if not more?
Because they don't have the Jerusalem Toldos Aharon wackos there.
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