Torah Talk: Yitro (Exodus 18:1–20:23)

Posted on February 12, 2017 by Luke Ford

This week’s Torah portion is Yitro (Exodus 18:1–20:23)

My second discussion of the parasha is with a fellow convert to Judaism.

* Yitro is one of two Torah portions named for a non-Jew (along with Noach). Many non-Jews are portrayed positively in the Torah. First expression of “Baruch HaShem” is by Yitro, a goy. The father of Jewish judiciary is a Midianite priest.

* Why do we have parasha Yitro following the warning against Amalek? Lest Jews think all non-Jews are enemies.

* God says Jews will be precious to him as long as they keep His covenant. If not, no?

* How important is faith in Judaism? Some Orthodox rabbis I’ve known are atheists:

“Most of them are still there because they love community life, their friends, the Kiddush after the Shabbat morning prayer. Most of them are 40 and 50 years old – not exactly an easy age to start a ‘cultural emigration.’ Moreover, and that’s a very important parameter, most of them make a living off the profession, and their livelihood depends on their faith, even if just outwardly.”

John Updike wrote in his novel SEEK MY FACE: “Or perhaps, if she is Jewish, she is unable to put the question of God quite the way a Christian would put it, in urgent terms of either/or. For the chosen people, the relation has evolved beyond the possibility of dropped acquaintance into that of a familiarity that breeds contempt…”

* Why does God introduce Himself in the Ten Commandments by saying I am the God who brought you out of Egypt, rather than I am the God who created Heaven and Earth? This is an ethno-nationalist God who has a particular relationship with a particular people.

* “I am God” is for the intellectuals, “who brought you out of Egypt” is for the people. (Ibn Ezra)

* Why were the 10 Commandments not given in Israel? To stress their universal applicability.

* Why did you have to avoid women (meaning, your wife) for three days prior to the revelation?

* The Sabbath commandment also includes the injunction to work six days a week.

* When God spoke to man, He spoke Hebrew.

* Social cohesion vs a free market.

* How do you use your Judaism?

* Tweet: “Equality means believing that a child living 5,000 miles away is a precious as the one sleeping in your nursery right now.”

* Goy: “I am interested in how the people only believe Moses because they see a miracle (19:9) and how it’s Jethro, not Hashem, who sets up the bureaucracy… and the 2nd commandment has always perplexed me. And also about how this all relates to the modern idea of nation states.”

* “Judaism is filled with non-entitlements.” (Dennis Prager)

* Without Jews/Torah, ancient Egypt would not be known as a house of slaves. The ancient Egyptians were brilliant. The Germans were brilliant and they brilliantly created Auschwitz. (Dennis Prager)

* Leanne:

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The Conversation

Posted on February 11, 2017 by Luke Ford

Comments at Steve Sailer:

* “Have you noticed how the once innocent word “conversation” has recently taken on Stalinist connotations of indoctrination and censorship.”

Have you noticed how the once innocent word “pride” has recently taken on Stalinist connotations of indoctrination and censorship?

Have you noticed how the once innocent word “dissent” has recently taken on Stalinist connotations of indoctrination and censorship?

Have you noticed how the once innocent word “gender” has recently taken on Stalinist connotations of indoctrination and censorship?

* The NYT comments on this review agree with you, Steve, overwhelmingly, which must tell us something though I’m not sure what. Multi-cultural revisionists coming out of the woodwork? Or out of the closet. The cultural winds continue to shift.

* The problem is that the cultural achievements of Western civilization are overwhelmingly the work of stale pale males and no amount of whistling past the graveyard can totally cover that up. There wouldn’t be a ton of art of literature to enjoy or discuss otherwise.

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Let’s Jew People Up!

Posted on February 10, 2017 by Luke Ford

Steve: You test your people, Luke Ford.

Seth: I’ve always asked the question can you Jew someone up.

Luke: I love it. Can you Jew someone up? I say we need to reclaim and remake these slurs, like gays did by embracing “queer” and rappers did by embracing n…

I gave charity this morning and Jewed the guy up.

I shared ancient Hebrew wisdom this week with a goy and did a big mitzvah. I really Jewed him up.

I blogged about the benefits of social cohesion and high public trust that comes from ethno-nationalism. I really Jewed them up.

Israel is a light unto the nations. We’re Jewing up humanity just like Isaiah demanded.

When I see a guy with a yarmulke, I know that even if we might hate each other normally, when stuff goes down, he’s got my back.

It’s a shame that whites don’t have the equivalent of Jewish Community Centers where they can enjoy unity, cohesion and trust. I think a White Community Center would really Jew these guys up.

I just flirted and joked with an ugly shiksa and made her day. I really Jewed her up!

How can Jews reclaim the k*** word so that it connotes something positive? Asking for a friend at the ADL.

Amy Schumer’s not fat, she’s zaftig.

When the moshiach comes, the goyim will be lining up to invest in my hedge fund.

That shayg should be grateful a Chosen One even took his case, and he should not kvetch about fees. Yeshivas are expensive!

Yeshiva boys don’t tend to be PC. One I know has named his chickens “David” and “Duke.”

I’m ready to talk publicly about my addiction to self sabotage.

Just told a wife with laryngitis, “Your husband must really miss the sound of your voice.”

When I get caught doing something wrong, my motor functions freeze. It’s like a mini-stroke and it gives me away that I’m guilty. Must overcome! But how?

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Social Cohesion Vs Free Market

Posted on February 10, 2017 by Luke Ford

In Daf Yomi, we’re studying the Talmudic tractate Bava Batra (laws of property) where this week we’ve been learning rules for social cohesion. Jews, I think, are the only group to have survived as a distinct people while living for thousands of years in a diaspora (until recently, a majority of Jews have lived outside of Israel for the past 2500 years). Judaism is a particularly powerful and effective form of ethno-nationalism and evolutionary group strategy.

One of the rules we learned this week is that every town must provide schooling, even for those who can’t afford to pay. Education is essential for group cohesion and strength. What the Talmud does not demand is that Jews pay for the schooling of non-Jews. When America was cohesive and largely homogenous, the public schools were great. People don’t mind paying for social services for people like themselves. As America becomes more diverse, people become more reluctant about funding schools and other social programs for people unlike themselves. To be blunt, I’d estimate that 60% of American whites don’t want to fund social welfare programs for other groups.

The other law I studied this week was regulation of where you could start a business. From the perspective of the Jewish tradition, a Jew can’t just move anywhere and compete with anyone. There are rules and restrictions. You can’t set up a business next to somebody already operating without the permission of the rabbis.

America’s social cohesion has been destroyed since 1965 by vast immigration. It has driven down the wages of the working class and thereby diminished their life prospects. People frightened about the future have fewer children. Social cohesion, public virtue, social trust are often more important than the free market and slightly higher economic growth.

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Provocations

Posted on February 9, 2017 by Luke Ford

* I sometimes wonder if I put so much effort into provoking people because I like attention, it is my substitute for meaning and love.

* Ever notice women once they hit their forties often cut their hair real short and then all their older female friends praise them for it?

* Tell him you were tired, and struggling with Trump.

* Many Jews/Irish/Japs/blacks/Muslims do not like to hear anything that confirms stereotypes, even if it’s a compliment or a joke.

* How many friends would I lose if I suggested that America treat Israel like any other nation?

* So he manipulates money instead of working with his hands, right?

* It’s sad that Kuwait hates Muslims.

* It’s a shame Saudi Arabia doesn’t have an activist court system to stop this horrible expulsion of unwanted refugees.

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