Taliban Judaism

Quote from comments on Emes Ve-Emunah: "If having a JewishTaliban would guarentee 2 million more Shomer Shabbos, are you saying that you'd rather have a non Talibanic state and those 2 million people be Mechalel Shabbos instead? ed | 04.16.07 - 12:52 pm."

Is this where the Chareidi world is headed? Forcing people to do things? What happens to Bechira Chofshis. Of course, this type of Judaism, which is not Judaism at all, would be the dream culmination of those who keep heaping on the Chumras, wouldn't it?

It is a sad day when Jews want to rule with an iron fist and force people to do things rather than teaching b'nachas. As the line went in Star Wars: A New Hope: "The more you tighten your grip, the more will slip through your fingers."

When will this rabbinic/Chareidi tyranny end? What happened to Judaism being a religion of Ki Karov Eilecha? Dovbear asked a beautiful question a few days ago on his blog:

Answer me this with every ounce of honesty that you can summon from your tainted and subjective human soul: If Avraham, Yitzchak, Yaakov, Moshe, Aharon, Dovid, Yosef, the Tannaim, the Amoraim, the Geonim, or any of the Rishonim were to time travel into Boro Park [or any Chareidi community] would they recognize the rituals, customs, chumras and forms represented by the people as authentic and essential to Judaism?

My answer: ABSOLUTELY NOT!!! They would, however, probably die (a second time) laughing hysterically!! Unfortunately, this is no laughing matter.

There is a paradigm in right wing Jewish Orthodox thought. On the one hand, we can't change any halacha set forth by the generations before us (a concept I think is completely wrong - see my post on Minhag Avoseichem B'Yedeichem). On the other, that same camp keeps putting forth more and more chumras to be treated as halacha, adding and adding until one really lives in a state of Talibanism. And apparently, from the quote above, this is what they want!

I don't think it's possible to include such people as part of the Jewish Orthodox world anymore. They are, in how they treat other people, especially women, simply not frum. They are not a version of kosher, halacha following Judaism.

Talibnist Judaism is an oxymoron. It really just has to stop.