This year, throughout the month of September, a group of radical Charedi (ultra-Orthodox) Jews would continuously throw eggs and rocks at girls from the Orot School, a Dati Leumi (Israeli equivalent of Modern Orthodox) girls school for grades K-6 in Beit Shemesh. The school sits around the "border" of two neighborhoods, one Dati Leumi and the other Charedi. It has fueled anger among many Charedim, many of whom do not want a Dati Leumi presence - especially a female one - near their residences. These Charedim feel that the Dati Leumi girls at this school, ages 5-11, dress immodestly. So they throw things at the girls...makes sense, right? (I really hope you sensed the sarcasm in the last sentence.)

Now, inappropriate dress would obviously not be a valid reason for Charedim to throw rocks and eggs at little girls. But here's what makes the story even weirder: the girls do dress according to extremely high standards of Jewish law and sensitivity. They wear sleeves past their elbows, skirts below their knees, and shirts above their collar bone. So why, again, were these Charedim throwing things at the girls? Couldn't be inappropriate dress...

I wouldn't be writing this post if it were not for even more recent events, which occured in the past week. (For a while, it seemed that tensions had cooled down somewhat, but recent events prove otherwise.) Last week, an eight-year-old girl named Na'ama from Beit Shemesh was walking either to or from school (to be honest, I forget which). A Charedi found her clothing to be inappropriate, even though she was presumably keeping to the strict rules of the school, and he spat at her. This man was arrested, and since the event, Na'ama has experienced a serious degree of trauma. Why this Charedi  is worried about eight-year-olds is a great question, probably with a very sad answer.

Also in the last week, a different Charedi male threw a rock at a woman he claimed was dressing immodestly, which got him arrested.

The city of Beit Shemesh, in collaboration with the police, also decided to knock down the hundreds of signs and graffiti on public walls put up by Charedim essentially requiring women to dress modestly, or else... These posts, besides vandalizing public property, create a mob-type law and order system in the streets of Beit Shemesh that goes against the State of Israel's law and ethics. The police and city plan to complete the project of removing the illegal posts in the coming weeks.

All of the above events have spurred huge ongoing Charedi protests against - seemingly - everyone else. The Charedim have thrown rocks at news cameras and police. Why are they so often violent in their protests? Who knows...

With the exception of some Charedim, the entire Israeli populous, both secular and Dati Leumi, seem to understand a basic fact: Discrimination against women and violence against those who we might not fully agree with are not acceptable.

Last night, an enormous gathering of thousands of Israelis from Beit Shemesh and elsewhere stood together in an emotional protest against the horrible acts of these Charedim. My many friends who attended came back with delightful reports and some very nice Facebook statuses, expressing that we will not give up on Beit Shemesh, a city that is for the religious and non-religious alike.

Multiple female Members of Knesset plan to travel tomorrow in the front of the 418, a gender-segregated bus line that runs between Beit Shemesh and Jerusalem. I wish I could be there to experience this amazing act, but unfortunately I will be in classes at yeshiva. My heart will be with these women, who will be publicizing the sexism displayed by the Charedim who force women to the back of buses.

Beit Shemesh is a city that I love. In just four months, I have fallen in love with the spectacular views of mountains, the kind people, and (some of) the restaurants. I will not let Beit Shemesh fall prey to sexists who want to segregate sidewalks and bus lines and force women to dress a certain way.

Newt Gingrich

Newt Gingrich. If you are an American currently residing in the United States, you definitely know who I'm referring to (and if you don't, then all you need to do is read, listen to, or watch ANYTHING in the media or simply leave your house just once).

If you are an American currently studying in yeshiva or residing outside of the US, then I will give you a brief description (almost as brief as Gingrich's quick rise to Republican primary poll leader, where he currently sits)... Newt Gingrich was the Speaker of the House of Representatives some time in the 1990s. For one reason or another, he decided that he would be the best candidate to kick Obama out in 2012 and bring the country back to where it belongs. Just a few months ago, maybe 10 percent (probably less) of Republicans polled said they would vote for Gingrich. Up until the last couple of months, he was practically a no-name when it came to candidates. The big candidates four or five months ago were Ron Paul, Mitt Romney, Herman Cain, and maybe Michelle Bachmann.  But definitely not Newt Gingrich. In fact, up until recent weeks, the first thing that came to mind when I saw the name Newt was "Maybe this is a new nickname for my hometown Newton...?!" I think you get my point.

Everything has changed. Now Gingrich has the lead in the polls for Republican candidates by a LOT, with around 35 percent of the poll (the current runner-up has about 20 percent). Now the Democrats are trying every last possibility to make fun of this guy. Why? Because they're SCARED of him. Just like they were scared of Mitt Romney and therefore started the whole business of Mitt being a hypocrite by criticizing Obama-care. That's why they overplayed the whole Herman Cain sexual abuse fiasco (not that I believe that Cain is innocent or that sexual abuse is okay- I never said either of those things). Democrats have, in their blood, a potentially-successful-Republican-OH-NO monitoring system. When the system beeps, these Democrats have to find a reason, whether bogus or minor, to get this guy off the stage.

So how can Democrats get Gingrich off the stage? Hmm...let's think hard. Maybe they can taunt him for making a historically ACCURATE statement, and consider it as if he embarrassed himself. Oh, man , I think I'm a little late with this idea! The Democrats are so genius that they came up with this one a few weeks before I did!

Let me explain: The entire Democratic party and media went crazy when Gingrich stated in an interview on The Jewish Channel that "we've had an invented Palestinian people, who are in fact Arabs, and were historically part of the Arab community." True statement. Palestinians are a newly invented union, comprising descendants of Arabs who lived in Israel around the time of 1948. According to polls, most "Palestinians" in the West Bank approve of suicide bombs against Israel. Palestine? Never a sovereign state. And if you don't believe me, look at the long list of historical rulers of Israel. Not a single ruler called the "Palestinians."

But, as I said, the Democrats saw the rise of Gingrich, and their monitors began beeping extremely loudly just a few weeks ago. So, when given this opportunity, they lashed out at and mocked Gingrich for this statement, in addition to taking it out of context. (The context was the Palestinians' continued stubbornness and inability to negotiate with Israel, NOT their nonexistence.) All the liberal media went crazy, and the Democrats (and even Mitt Romney, who used this quote as an example of how he, unlike Gingrich, will have a reasonable foreign policy record as president) attacked Gingrich. By the way, this marked the end of my support for Romney. I like Gingrich's honesty and sharp, hard-lined stances against evil a lot more than I like Romney's self-proclaimed "reasonable" politics.

Newt Gingrich is very reminiscent of Ronald Reagan. They both speak the truth, they both take very hard and necessary positions on unions and other economy-destroyers, and Democrats hate them both because of their sharpness and success. Root for Newt!

Patriots

All you haaaters can suck it. The Patriots, with the all time-worst defense, are still 10-3. Lovin' it........

I love Shmuley

Shmuley Reece is the coolest madrich ever. I love him. David is obsessed with him. Shabbat Shalom peopleeeeeee!

Johnny Damon -MYOB

Former Red Sox centerfielder Johnny "Traitor" Damon... After the 2005 season (just a year after reversing the curse with a World Series win), he picks four years and $52 million with the Evil Empire over four years and $40 million with the Fenway Faithful.

Apparently, that's not enough. Johnny Damon has to irritate Boston more. How so? Some background: In one of the most tense times for the Red Sox in decades, Red Sox DH David "Big Papi" Ortiz is annoyed--and rightfully so. He made a brief, vague comment, a couple weeks after the most horrible ending of a season ever, about how he would enjoy the possibility of playing for the Yankees. This five-word coment put the media in a frenzy. Well, who knows where Big Papi wants to play next year? I certainly don't. The Yankees don't. And as much as the media thinks they know anything and everything about professional athletes, they don't know either.

Apparently, however, Johnny Damon knows where Papi HIMSELF wants to go. At Papi's annual celebrity fundraising event, Damon was quoted as saying, "I was trying to tell him [Papi] that if he went to New York his 30 home runs turns into 40." (This is because of Yankee Stadium's short distance to its right field fence.) He elaborated in his words of absolute wisdom by saying that as cool as it would be for Papi to stay in Boston, sometimes it's better for players to go elsewhere because of less drama. SO YOU'RE TELLING ME, DAMON, THAT HE SHOULD THEREFORE GO TO YANKEE STADIUM, DRAMA CAPITAL OF THE BASEBALL WORLD?????? Fool. You are so dumb.

I wish Papi the best of luck, no matter what he decides to do. But Johhny Damon seriously needs to swallow his Yankee pride and mind his own business. The only person who truly knows what is right for David Ortiz is David Ortiz.

Muslim Brotherhood...couldn't be worse

OF COURSE, the Muslim Brotherhood won the election in Egypt. For all you crazy idiots who didn't listen to Glenn Beck the entire time when he warned the world against the so-called "Arab-awakening," "Arab Spring," or WHATEVER incorrect term you want to use to describe it, now you all learned your lesson.

Hosni Mubarak might have been an oppressing dictator who didn't help Egypt and instead starved his people; but at least he kept peace with the West and Israel. Now what have the Egyptian people inflicted upon themselves? A radical Muslim group that is the umbrella organization for the terrorist group Hamas. The Muslim Brotherhood even admitted that they will make Israel pay--for being a good country that gives Arabs rights?! Who knows... But either way, the West is screwed, and specifically Israel is screwed.

I love Glenn Beck. I hate liberals who didn't wake up and smell the radical Islamic coffee last year. To quote yours truly, "Arab Spring? No...I'd rather call it Arab Fall." It's no coincidence the Arab Fall fell out in the fall.

Bobby Valentine--Good Manager, Bad Timing?

Bobby Valentine has a brilliant baseball mind. He managed multiple successful teams in both the US and Japan. I don't care that he had an short playing career plagued by a major injury and retired at age 29. That has nothing to do with his ability to manage a baseball team.

Valentine helped the Mets win the wild card in both 1999 and 2000, and led them in their highly successful 2000 playoff bid (in which they lost the World Series to the dynastic Shmankees). Valentine clearly knows how to manage baseball on the field; he understands the technicalities.

But here is the issue with this seemingly great manager: he has a history of off-the-field rants against his own teammates and bosses. A perfect example would be the REASON HE WAS FIRED BY THE METS IN 2002 (Valentine had a lengthy conflict with the Mets' general manager and couldn't control himself in this angry battle.)

The Red Sox had one of the most historically awful downfalls in September of this season. Ahead by almost 10 games over the wild card heading into the final month, they blew it. Why? Not because of on-the-field issues. Rather, they fell apart off the field, which then caused their play to deteriorate on the field. Terry Francona, the manager this past season, even had a personal issue of his own with his wife. To bring in a guy, specifically at this current time, who is known to be great on the field but less than average off the field might be as risky as any move since selling away Babe Ruth to the Evil Empire. (Am I exaggerating? Decide for yourself...)

Therefore, I am very concerned about the fact that this guy who sometimes just can't shut up is becoming the manager of a team who needs the opposite. Let's hope I'm wrong.

Nuclear Iran?

Yesterday I was infuriated about the British embassy attack in Iran that created a hostage situation. Today I have much happier news about Iran. The Times of London reported that an Iranian uranium facility was attacked and was "clearly showing billowing smoke and destruction." This will apparently slow down the Iranian nuclear process significantly. Israeli intelligence members stated that there is "no doubt" that the genocide-building facility was damaged severely by the attack, which they called "no accident."

You attacked the West's civilians yesterday. Back at you, Iran!

Western Embassies in the Middle East

Today in Iran, a group of protesters stormed the British embassy in Tehran. They created a hostage situation, in which the six workers at the embassy were literally being held captive by some crazy, fundamentalist Iranian students. Iranian forces were slow to react strongly, and only when this hostage situation had already been created did they stop the protesters.

On September 9 (less than three months ago), some crazy, fundamentalist Egyptian protesters stormed the Israeli embassy in Cairo, Egypt. The Egyptian forces didn't even try to stop this crime. A hostage situation was created, in which the workers at the embassy were literally being held captive by the protesters. Only hours later did Egypt even begin trying to do anything about the hostage situation, and because of their slowness (as you will see soon, "laziness" is not the right word) hundreds of people were seriously injured. Sound familiar?

It is not a coincidence that the embassy storming is all happening now, in the midst of the so-called Arab Spring. Granted, most protesters in the Middle East and North Africa have had at least somewhat positive intentions. Most have tried to free their countries from their tyrannic dictatorships and their own unemployment and fatal hunger. However, because of these protests, millions of more extremist people living in these countries have been inspired by the good protests and decided to begin their own, much more evil protests. The effect: crazy free-for-alls across the Middle East and North Africa. Innocent civilians killed, Western foreign embassies attacked, etc.

But that's not where it ends. I mentioned that it would be wrong to describe the Egyptian and Iranian governments' lack of a response to Israeli ad British embassies being attacked as an effect of their laziness. It is not so. Rather, this is another way in which countries all over the Middle East are quietly attacking modern society and democracy. Basically, Egypt and Iran are telling the West, "We don't like you, so we are going to let our people attack you and thereby scare you." This is completely contrary to morality and international law.

Arab Spring? No...I'd rather call it Arab Fall.

Lovin' the Pats

Yesterday, to conclude my rant about the dominance of Boston sports, I said I had no doubt the Patriots' game against the Eagles would be an easy win. Well, it sure was.

After getting off to a 10-0 lead over the Pats, the Eagles were horrendous on both sides of the field. I don't have much time for this post, as I have a Packed schedule today (pun intended...). Basically all I want you people to know is that Boston sports are amazing and much better than you. Have a good day!

Boss-Town Sports

As many of you may know, I'm from the great city of Boston. I love everything about Boston. (OK, maybe not its politics, but still...) The highlight of my town is, without a doubt, its sports.

Seven championships in less than seven years, including at least one from all four teams.

Last time any Boston team ended a season with a losing record: 2007-08. The Celtics. The next season they won the championship with the then-newly formed Big Three.

The Patriots, Red Sox, and possibly Celtics teams in the past 5-10 years have represented some of the best franchises in any sport ever. Am I exaggerating? No.

What makes our sports so awesome? It would be hard to argue that it's our population size, given that Boston is around the 10-largest metro area in the US, and many of the metro areas that are larger than Boston have terrible sports teams.

Is it the amount we pay our players? I doubt it, given that only the Red Sox - and not the other three Boston teams - actually pay their players a lot more than the average payroll in their league.

I believe it is our fan base which makes Boston sports so awesome. If not, then I guess it must just be the "Luck of the Irish" that brings us so much success. Either way, I'm very excited to see that last night the Bruins won their 11th game out of 12 (after losing Friday night in a heartbreaking shootout to end their prior 10-game winning streak).

I hope to post happy news tomorrow about the Patriots. The game against the Eagles today should extremely easy. With a two-game winning streak and the best offense in the NFL, the Pats have what it takes to get past the Eagles shaky - though recently impressive - defense. I really hope I didn't just jinx it...

Lockouts: Looking back

In just the last four months, two of the United States' big four sports have had major lockouts. Each negotiated, often fiercely, but in the end of the day both were solved.

The NFL lockout ended on July 24. Unlike the NBA, the NFL found a way to play all 16 games and all but one preseason game. Because of diligence, hard work, some dedicated owners and players, and (possibly) the lack of competition from leagues around the world, all the players stayed in America and have been able to play a full season of football.

However, the NBA lockout ended today. Why? Because of stubborn players and owners and a failed commissioner, David Stern. Stern, who for months has been attempting to make both sides stay civilized and come to an agreement, humiliated the NBA's image and the lockout negotiating process. If NFL commissioner Roger Goodell ran the NBA, this lockout would have been over two months ago. All teams would have played 82 regular season games as usual, fans would not have felt betrayed nearly as much, and all NBA players would be in America (as opposed to Europe, Israel, and other locations around the world where they now are because of the lengthy lockout). But no. David Stern had to fail as always.

Am I happy that the NBA lockout is over? I guess... Am I happy that each team is only playing 66 games and many players are not going to be in America for the season because of David "Idiot" Stern? No. How could I be?

One Hour in Jerusalem

"Israel is a racist, apartheid state. Jerusalem, in particular, exhibits Israel's racist ways." I am simply paraphrasing much of the content on most media sites in the Western world today.

Have any of these journalists cared to visit Israel? Have they seen how things really work? First things first, Israel is a democracy. A Jewish state in name and slightly in character, Israel gives members of all religions, races, and ethnicities the rights to vote, protest, and access Israel's public services. Often Palestinians in Israel protest directly against Israel, a legal and acceptable form of protest in Israel (unlike Syria, Egypt, Libya, Lebanon, etc. -- i.e. all the countries around Israel that hate and want to destroy it). There are multiple Arabs who hold seats in the Knesset, Israel's parliament. Racist? I don't think so.

One thing about which the Western media attacks Israel is its "occupation" of East Jerusalem. In East Jerusalem, unlike Judea & Samaria (a.k.a. the West Bank), Palestinians qualify for Israeli citizenship and can vote in Israeli elections. The new Jerusalem light rail goes through many East Jerusalem neighborhoods and makes access to the rest of the city much easier for Palestinians there, not to mention it connects people of different cultures and religions from both sides of the city. So why, in a BBC opinion article, does Matthew Teller spew that "The new tram line passes uninterrupted from sovereign Israeli territory in West Jerusalem into the occupied Palestinian territory of East Jerusalem?"(http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-15590267) For that matter, when has this territory ever belonged to a group known as the Palestinians (never), and then from whom is Israel occupying it?

Today I woke up at 5:45 here in Beit Shemesh to take a morning trip to Jerusalem. I arrived in Jerusalem at the Central Bus Station at 7:15 and then took the light rail to the City Hall bus stop right outside the Old City. I was again impressed by the fact that Palestinians, Jews, and tourists from multiple ethnicities could sit together so peacefully on the train. At the same time, I'm sure the New York Times was once again publishing lies about Israel's continuous "racist torture of the Palestinians."

Just after 7:30, I entered into Jaffa Gate and made my way into the Old City. The scene: an Arab merchant standing next to a Christian priest, selling bread to an observant Jew. All three of them are allowed to practice their religion freely in Israel. All of them have full rights as Israeli citizens. Next to them were a group of Asian tourists enjoying their experience in the Old City. I also saw two black priests and a bunch of Christian European tourists. Then I went to the Kotel (Western Wall) and prayed to G-d next to two Asians who I could tell were not Jewish. If this is racism, then every country in the world is horribly racist. In this day and age, that is not true. In less than one hour, I saw dozens of cultures and at least three religions coexisting peacefully in Jerusalem. THIS IS NOT RACISM!

I dare reporters and journalists to visit Israel and see how things truly operate here. I bet their hateful and negative anti-Israel views would fly out the window.

Thanksgiving in Israel

Today is a today to be thankful. Today is a day on which - instead of whining, screaming, and complaining like we so often do - we appreciate what we already do have.

I am in Israel for almost a year studying at yeshiva. I am thankful for the opportunities which my yeshiva has provided to me to grow as a Jew and as a person in general. I am thankful that instead of completely overlooking the American holiday of Thanksgiving and considering it yet another "foreign, secular evil," our yeshiva decided to emphasize the positive focus of this holiday. We ate turkey for Thanksgiving "Dinner" at 12:30 pm, and then many of us played football for the next two hours. My day was incredible, and I am thankful to all my friends and rabbis for making it so nice.

There is no doubt that I wish I could be at home watching three football games in a row. However, at the same time, I get to appreciate something different today in Israel- the Torah. I appreciate everything that G-d gave us, and all the blessings He continues to give us every day. Instead of having today off to be lazy on my couch for 10 hours, we have today "on" to learn, grow in, and appreciate Torah.

I am thankful to my parents for giving me such an amazing upbringing and for supporting me through both my easy and hard times. I also appreciate that they are supporting me not only emotionally in my year of study in yeshiva, but also financially with both yeshiva and college. I don't know what I would do without my mom and dad.

So? Is that it? Will I never complain again? Is every day going to be a day of Thanksgiving?  This reminds me of a very similar question many Jews ask themselves during the Neilah prayer of Yom Kippur. However, today's question is different- it is much more basic. On Yom Kippur, we ask ourselves whether or not we can keep our ENTIRE religious life and personality in the high and spiritual place for the rest of our lives. Today, we only ask ourselves one thing: can we appreciate? Can we stop complaining and asking for more nonstop, and instead self-reflect and see how much we already have? I think so...

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Parental Control

Good morning from Beit Shemesh, Israel! Without boring the heck out of you, I will just get right into the point of this post.


I am a libertarian in most ways. What does this mean? It means I prefer that authorities of all types stay out of their subjects' lives. Governments should stay out of people's pockets, teachers and professors should stay out of their students' public lives, and parents should (for the most part) stay out of their children's business.


A few hours after I started this blog and posted for the first time, I got an email from my mother:

David,

I just noticed you started a blog. I assume it will be about sports. If it is going to be about anything else, I suggest you ask your Rabbis whether they think it is permissible. Remember, everything you ever do on the internet is trackable by future employers, friends and colleagues....

Love, Mommy

Tell me this wouldn't make you angry if you got the same email from your mother. I am 18 years old, a full adult by the law. I love both my parents very much, and I respect them fully, but please, I don't need to get these friendly reminders anymore. Parental control has become such an immense part of our society that it exists even from 6,000 miles away.

Interestingly, with the development of - bluntly put - crime video games, the national crime rate for the US has gone down. In the early 1990s, the national crime rate was at its highest ever, at almost 15 million crimes per year. It began to drop very slowly throughout the mid-90s. Yet in 1997, there were still over 13 million crimes. This is where it all began to change. Grand Theft Auto was released for the first time that very year. By 1999, the number of crimes had dropped to 11.6 million. Then, in 2003, Call of Duty was first released. Today the majority of my friends (as well as the majority of the US without a doubt) play these games all the time. How many crimes were there in 2010? Just over 10 million. Even more shocking is the fact that in 1997, there were 5,997 crimes per 100,000 US residents. Today? 3,345.

What do all these incredible statistics show? I can guarantee you one thing: THEY DON'T SHOW THAT PARENTAL CONTROL IS A POSITIVE THING. The more our society, especially the children, plays violent games, the less it wants to be violent. Players of these video games realize how bloody our society would be if it looked like the scene in Call of Duty. A common mistaken belief is that by playing these video games, people (especially children) will want to go out onto the street and repeat these crimes in real life. WRONG, as shown by these statistics.

Mommy and Daddy- if you're reading this, I love you, and deeply care about you. I realize you care about me too, and that's why you sent me that email. But next time you want to send me a similar email, just remember this blog post.

I hope everyone has a great day. Remember to read my daily posts and follow...see ya!

I'm just about ready to get heeeeeeated

Hi guys. My name is David Schwartz. Or, more appropriately, Baaaastin David.

I will just say this right out: I am not going to be polite in this blog. I am going to express my views in their explicit form. I will always be honest, which sometimes means horribly rude. But don't get me wrong: I don't have any prejudices. I just hate you and your group because you already did something wrong.

Today I will not directly express any of my views and/or what makes me angry. You will have to wait in suspense for tomorrow's post, in which you can bet that I will lash out completely at someone. (Might it be you? You will just have to wait and see.)

All right. Enjoy your night (assuming you are on my side of the Atlantic). I love you all. Just kidding.