Libi BaMizrach

    I wish that I could say that the esteemed Rosh Yeshiva -- whom I am privileged to know a little bit, having been the lucky Rabbi of the shul that hosted a weekly shiur from him for many years -- ever read this blog, or even heard of it.      But when I read this Dvar Torah of his today, I wanted to place it here, in order to honor his Divrei Torah, and because he mentions the famous statement from where I took the name.     For those who cannot follow the entire discussion, the bottom line is that despite the shrinking of the world given the advanced technology of transportation available today -- in which one can literally go from one end of the world to the other in less than 24 hours -- North America may be considered truly far away from Israel geographically (and spiritually).     I will also note that I sometimes tell people that I when I started this blog living in Oregon, I truly felt that I was בסוף המערב (the end of the west),...

Sometimes you wonder what Hashem makes of all this. In recent years, elections have become truly insane – both in Israel and in the United States.   The anger, vitriol, and malicious vilification by all sides of the other sides is staggering.  But, in at least one way, they did one thing more effciently in Israel.  In America, they are trying to undo an election for over two years.  Here it was undone in only five weeks! After all the Sturm and Drang, the victory proclamations, the claimed vindication of Daas Torah by the Chareidi parties, the humiliating defeat of those who did not pass the threshold — we get to throw out that result and start over again.  Everyone has an opinion on who is to blame (most blaming Avigdor Liberman), and more importantly, what is likely to result.  Will the next election result in a strong majority coalition of at least 65 votes, or will be back at square one once again? Here is what seems likely to this observer. ...