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| When thinking about Charedim - think: R' Yaakov |
I am offended by the generalizations made by some of the commentators on this blog. They frequently invoke Chareidi stereotypes that simply do not apply to me, to my family, or to the Israeli and American communities that I’ve lived in all my life.
People read your comments and project them on me. That’s not conjecture, they’ve told me so.
I am old enough to know that these commentators must have had some pretty bad experiences. I feel for them. I don’t think it justifies dragging my name through the mud.
I’ve let my frustration show - most likely without helping the cause. But there it is.
Harry himself is generally fair minded so I enjoy reading his opinions in life. Sometimes I agree; sometimes I don’t.
I only hope that other readers are able to differentiate between balanced opinion and undeserved bias.
First let me say that I appreciate his description of my posts being ‘generally fair minded’. I do try. But I also agree with the more important part of his comment. There is a tendency among some commentators here to generalize – painting all Charedim with the same negative broad brush – often using the lowest common denominator to describe them all. This is unfair and highly prejudicial. I assume AI is part of the vast majority of mainstream Charedim that are nothing like the generalized negative description I so often see here.
I want to personally apologize to him for that. And to every Charedi like him that has been unfairly characterized by people they might know based on some of the negative generalizations found in the comments section here. I hope – as he does – that readers can ‘differentiate between balanced opinion and undeserved bias.’ That - and my commitment to allow for full and free expression of all points of view is the reason I have allowed those kinds of comments to be made. As long as my guidelines are followed.
It is wrong to generalize that way about Charedim. That does not mean I agree with their Hashkafos and approve of everything they say or do. What it does mean is that I respect their right to be who they are based on what they believe to be the true Derech HaShem. Just as I believe my own Hashkafos are.
Elu V’Elu.
I would ask that in the future when commenting on specific incidents of bad behavior by Charedi looking Jews, that it not be applied to the entire Charedi community. Most of the time it is limited to a specific set of Charedim and not the entire world of Charedim.
For example, in the previous post the Charedi looking Jews of Jerusalem and Ramat Bet Shemesh B that protested violently do not represent the entire Charedi wolrd. They represent only the Charedi looking Jews in those communities. It is wrong and unfair to say or imply that Charedim are all like that. They clearly are not and that should be made abundantly clear by anyone that comments on a post like that in the future.
That being said I want to add - to those of you who comment frequently here, thank you so much for your participation. It enhance the blog and I have personally learned a lot from you. Even when I disagree. I hope I can count on your cooperation in this matter.