Are ANY OF YOU Flipping Out That THIS is WW3???!

PinkFridge

Wed, Nov 18 2015, 9:22 am

shoshanim999 wrote:

I've said this before and I'll say it again- in spite of the the terrible events going on in the world today, there is no time period in the last 1000 years that jews have been more prosperous and have lived in greater peace than in the last 75 years since the holocaust ended. If what I'm saying is not true please specifically identify what 75 year time frame was better than what we are enjoying now.

You're right. I've heard that often after cataclysmic events in our history Hashem gives us extra resources to regroup and rebuild.
But things are changing. Prosperity now is not what it was a generation or two ago. The climate re morality is the pits. We can't be complacent that the RBSh"O will let the peace and prosperity continue - we need to daven for it, and to hope for more.

PinkFridge

Wed, Nov 18 2015, 9:26 am

DrMom wrote:

I think if this whole issue were addressed in a serious and forceful manner a few years ago, it would not have festered and metastasized into the situation we have today. Now that we have waited so long, WWIII is possible.

B'derech hateva, I agree. Obama has accused the Republicans of being cynical haters and reacting to Paris with panic and fear because they don't want to take in refugees. This from the president who drew and redrew red lines and watch Syria implode and did nothing.

But OTOH, when the RBSh"O wants history to unfold, He will make sure it does. If it means temporarily paralyzing the brains of world leaders, then that's what He'll do. Or something else that we might not have seen.

ETA: I see the discussion on p. 2 and realize this is along the line of mandksima.
I don't know the interface between free will and lev melachim v'sarim b'yad Hashem.

Last edited by PinkFridge on Wed, Nov 18 2015, 9:29 am; edited 1 time in total

shoshana2

Wed, Nov 18 2015, 9:36 am

ValleyMom wrote:

I 100% beieve Moshiach is here.
I have my outfit picked out for when I hear that shofar blowing.

I still dread the fact that there are so many terrorists out there and their murderous tendencies are not out there for all the world to witness.

I'm not sleeping.

I worry about the world we are leaving for our children- such a mess.

Great idea! Gonna pick out my outfit too!

freedomseek

Wed, Nov 18 2015, 9:43 am

shoshanim999 wrote:

I believe the Jews periodically enjoyed peaceful and prosperous times. Germany was a bastion for wealth, peace and Torah with occasional anti Semitic outbursts before the 20 th century.
Jews in Spain enjoyed affluence and Torah as well before the expulsion...
I can go on and on. Hashem does give us respite to collect and rebuild ourselves.
It's an opportunity for us!

shoshanim999

Wed, Nov 18 2015, 10:14 am

DrMom wrote:

Why are we limited to 75-year time-frames?

I can compare Jewish life now with 20 or 30 years ago (ahem, or 7 years ago...) and say that there is more Antisemitism in the world today, and it is becoming increasingly accepted in the West, which was (say, 75 years ago) a safe-haven for Jews.

I don't agree that there is more anti antisemitism now than 20 or 30 years ago. My father was afraid to wear his yarmulka to work 30 years ago. (probably closer to 40 years to be fair.) Back then frum jews would have to choose between losing their job or working on shabbos. Have you heard any kind of story whatsoever in the last 20 years about a frum person being asked to work on shabbos? I doubt it. Of course their will always be isolated incidents of antisemitism such as swastikas being scrawled on property or a shul being vandalized, but I don't think there's any question that in America, this is the exception and not the norm.

etky

Wed, Nov 18 2015, 10:17 am

I don't think the current situation is about the Jews necessarily.
I think it's bigger than that.
I also think that the 21st century world is a qualitatively different place than the world of even 25 years ago.
Therefore all the dredging up of Jewish history is pointless. There are no instructive parallels.
This is terra incognita - an unfamiliar script.
I think we need to look not back but ahead: both from an emuna perspective - asking ourselves what our hishtadlut should be and remaining constant in our belief in Hashem, and from the standpoint of the strategies that we (as in Israel and as in world Jewry) need to adopt to survive in this new world.

shoshanim999

Wed, Nov 18 2015, 10:43 am

ora_43 wrote:

Literally any 75 years that didn't include the Holocaust, Chmielnicki massacres, or crusades?

Even the inquisition was better than the last 75 years. The last 75 years have seen Jews expelled from nearly every country in the Middle East. In the USSR millions of Jews were forbidden to practice Judaism.

Plus there were five full-scale wars against the Jewish state and several more smaller-scale wars. A lot of people died in those wars.

I agree that there's a lot of good in this time period, too. Huge amounts of good. The establishment of Israel, its survival in the face of all odds, the fact that Jews expelled from so many countries were able to find a safe home - there's a lot to be grateful for, and I am grateful.

But to say that Jews are more prosperous and live in greater peace than ever is, I think, insensitive to the suffering that's occurred in much of the Jewish world in that time. Yes, some parts of the Jewish world escaped unscathed, but that's always been the case, during any 75 years out of the past 1,000 that you can think of.

Its true that jews were forced to leave many middle eastern countries, but ultimately that turned out to be a good thing. Hundreds of thousands left Yemen, Iraq, and Egypt for Israel or the United States. I don't think there is a single jew that either left or was forced out that regrets leaving. Also, since the yom kippur war over 40 years ago, Israel has not suffered heavy casualties during war. Boruch Hashem Israel is much stronger than its enemies and has been able to defend itself without heavy casualties. In the last two Gaza wars combined, fewer than 90 soldiers died in battle. Obviously each and every soldier is a big loss but lets not compare it to hundreds of years ago when antisemitic countries would openly force jews to sell their businesses, convert, and outlaw open practice of Judaism. Fortunately, 99% of jews today have found homes where they are not subject to the abuses of the past.

mandksima

Wed, Nov 18 2015, 11:01 am

DrMom wrote:

But it sounds like this is what you are doing. You say that politics and military activity are pointless because HaShem controls everything. You appear to be ignoring hishtaldut.

I don't know if this is connected to Moshiach or not -- but that has no impact on the political/military actions I favor.

I stuck a "no" in there by mistake. Hishtadlut is very important and required of us all in all aspects of life but I do believe if Hashem wants certain events to unfold, they will irregardless of what we try to change.

I hear so many people saying that this is just like every other war we have had, nothing different and this too shall pass. I don't feel that though at all. I feel this is it. It may be the middle or end depending on how long Hashem will drag it out but this IS the war before Moshiach and the world is not like it was.

Imhappy!

Wed, Nov 18 2015, 11:02 am

I have a lot of anxiety and I am struggling to deal with it.
I know hashem wants us to continue living. having babies. raising our kids on the path of mitzvos and torah and continue our torah life.
I learn sefer of emunah and I try to strengthen my belief that all hashem does is good.
my grandparents went through hell. they pushed fwd. becuse that the will of hashem.
we need to do the same.
maybe hashem grant us a time of peace so we can raise his kids with love and simchah. may we be zocha to moshiach now.

Imhappy!

Wed, Nov 18 2015, 11:05 am

and I dont listen/ read the news. ( my anxiety doesnt allow me the luxery of being current with the news)
I hear plenty from the street/ friends/ other ppl listening to clips etc... even this post is making my heart race faster.
some ppl may say that I burying my head in the sand.
I am not
I am trying to cope with the anxiety hashem granted me. what will "knowing" help me??
may god grant us peace so we can do His will.

PinkFridge

Wed, Nov 18 2015, 11:18 am

shoshanim999 wrote:

I don't agree that there is more anti anti semitism now than 20 or 30 years ago. My father was afraid to wear his yarmulka to work 30 years ago. (probably closer to 40 years to be fair.) Back then frum jews would have to choose between losing their job or working on shabbos. Have you heard any kind of story whatsoever in the last 20 years about a frum person being asked to work on shabbos? I doubt it. Of course their will always be isolated incidents of antisemitism such as swastikas being scrawled on property or a shul being vandalized, but I don't think there's any question that in America, this is the exception and not the norm.

Do you know what's going on on college campuses now? There is uber political correctness so that no one should be hurt; these same demonstrators, when they have nothing else to do, are chanting anti-Israel rants. If you put it all on a scale, I don't know what side will be heavier, now or a generation or two ago. But there's a lot going now that's extremely sobering.

PinkFridge

Wed, Nov 18 2015, 11:21 am

shoshanim999 wrote:

Let's leave aside Yaldei Teiman.

I can identify. My grandparents didn't regret leaving Poland before the war either, even though they weren't able to leave with much. (I respect you too much to eyeroll Wink

)

shoshanim999

Wed, Nov 18 2015, 11:22 am

[quote="PinkFridge"]Do you know what's going on on college campuses now? There is uber political correctness so that no one should be hurt; these same demonstrators, when they have nothing else to do, are chanting anti-Israel rants. If you put it all on a scale, I don't know what side will be heavier, now or a generation or two ago. But there's a lot going now

Let's appreciate how good we have it now. Because a couple of whacky's are demonstrating on campuses doesn't lesson that we are way better now than we were a few decades ago and I'm grateful for that.

PinkFridge

Wed, Nov 18 2015, 11:31 am

[/quote="PinkFridge"]Do you know what's going on on college campuses now? There is uber political correctness so that no one should be hurt; these same demonstrators, when they have nothing else to do, are chanting anti-Israel rants. If you put it all on a scale, I don't know what side will be heavier, now or a generation or two ago. But there's a lot going now

[/quote="Shoshanim"]
Let's appreciate how good we have it now. Because a couple of whacky's are demonstrating on campuses doesn't lesson that we are way better now than we were a few decades ago and I'm grateful for that.[/quote]

Believe me, I'm very grateful. As I just said to a woman I learn with, I personally don't do a Thanksgiving turkey dinner but I am constantly grateful for living in this malchus shel chesed. That doesn't mean that I can't be concerned about societal shifts.

And it's not just a few whackies. There is a lot of disturbing anti-Israel sentiment out there.
Trying to remember the source....the reason the ancient Egyptians worshipped the lamb was because of a tendency to root for the underdog. This can be a noble sentiment. Or when misplaced, lead to evil. When they felt outnumbered and threatened by the growing Bnei Yisrael population, they started rooting for themselves and attacking the enemy.

I think that that is what is motivating much of the politically correct programs out there. And we can't be ostriches.

DrMom

Wed, Nov 18 2015, 11:43 am

shoshanim999 wrote:

PinkFridge wrote:

Let's appreciate how good we have it now. Because a couple of whacky's are demonstrating on campuses doesn't lesson that we are way better now than we were a few decades ago and I'm grateful for that.

First of all, it's not a "couple of whackies,"it's lots of students. It's at some of the most elite universities in the US. It's Yale, Amherst, Claremont McKenna, Columbia, U. Washington, etc. These are universities which are educating the next generation of leaders.

http://www.wsj.com/articles/th.....58587

Imhappy!

Wed, Nov 18 2015, 11:55 am

I hear ya all...
but what can little me do about all these scary info??
go nuts and stay hidden under blankets??
all of us agree that it is difficult times. and the moshiach is on its way.
we are all scared and worry for ourselves and our future.
but the question remains... what can we/ are we doing about this?
perhaps some of you are in the power of protesting/ activating etc... as for myself ( and others like me) we need to pray/ do more good deed and beg Hashem for His mercy and that we should SEE and FEEL the good in all He does.