An Organization dedicated to helping teens at risk. The proceeding video features such Rabbonim and educators like Rabbi Dr. Yaakov Salomon, (of "Seattle Menorahs" fame)
Rabbi Chaim Cohen of the Flatbush Gerrer Shtiebel, Rabbi Mordechai Twerski, parents of some of those children, and former at-risk teens themselves. They speak of how they felt at the time, and what they felt was missing from their lives at the time. Lots of the stock video footage they show is from the '80's, and quite cheesy, like something you'd show to a five year old, so I'm not sure what they're trying to dramatize here. There's also casual drug use, sirens flashing, speeding ambulances, fires, accidents and the like, presumably the outcome of such at-risk behavior.
(viewing time of 54 minutes and 29 seconds)
What I do find troubling is when showing the before and after pictures of some of the program graduates not much seems to change other than the fact that previously one guy wore a Mets cap and now he wears a black Yarmulke. Or that he now wears a white shirt as opposed to his "before" picture where he was wearing a sleevless "muscle shirt." That shows me that these people who run this very worthy program still have this idea that how you look is what's most important. The fact that you now wear a black Yarmulke as opposed to a baseball cap somehow shows that you've been transformed. Why am I not impressed. Obviously this is overall a very worthy and noble project, no less than serving non-religious Jews, and should be supported to the utmost degree. I guess פטור בלא כלום אי אפשר, so I need to criticize something.
If the video won't work click on "Google Video" in the bottom right corner of the little screen, then click on "Go to Google Video." That'll take you to the page in Google Video. You can play it there too.
12 comments:
as a amshinover chusid that davens in Hornostiple and gets to hear Rabbi Mordche Twerski every shabus ,and gets to see him in action hugging all of our shuls misspalalim and schmoozers I can tell you my shul and my rebba rock.HE is beyond reproach be carful goat boy RMT is my rebba and to him i say Yechi
Amshi
where in my comments did you see one negative word about Reb Mottel? All I spoke about was part of the video presentation! Man, you Amshinovers are sensitive.
and paranoid.
THE VIDEO WONT WORK
Harry Maryles has another cartload of cholent droppings posted.
Tell us about it, Hmmmm. Maybe write a post that summarizes his puke and a response?
It is even more inane than the usual drivel on the web. He walked into his shul one morning, saw that a bunch of high school girls had mistranslated "Atzmus Umehus Melubash BeGuf", and drew the obvious conclusions that we are R"L Christians.
somebody fardreid the conversation into a YU slugfest!
Ok H, I watched the clip. Pretty depressing stuff.
I'm not sure I follow your critiqe of the white shirt thing, since I'm sure you would agree that the way we dress says something about us - and if you were hoping that they'd all be Roshei yeshiva or modern-day Maggidim I wonder what would have made you expect that.
The bottom line is that there are big numbers of kids that fell through the cracks - they (and others like them) are trying to do something about it. Kol hakavod lachem! Zol zei hubben greis hatzlocha.
But IMHO this is like trying to bail water from a sinking boat with a schnapps-glezel. Will there be community changes? Yeshiva changes? Any significant attempts at repairing the causes?
Not likely.
Better them than us, Tzig.
Hmmm
better them what?
slugging YU instead of us.
very true, Hmmm.
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