Interesting Posts and Articles #206

1. An Oh Nuts Rosh Hashanah giveaway, here at parshablog.
   
   
2. Orthononics is appalled at a "spoiled brat" writing in to an advice column in the Five Towns Jewish Times, who apparently expects that everything is coming to her, and who is annoyed at her in-laws for not helping out.
   
   
3. A movement organizing people to ignore / boycott World Net Daily.
   
   
4. At Rationalist Judaism, the final two parts of the review of Chaim BeEmunasam. In part thirteen, the three paths of "guidance" the sefer provides to dealing with "inconvenient" sources: that it has been disqualified because we now have the kabbalistic revelations of the Arizal, that we should consider ourselves not to have understood their meaning, and that one shouldn't think about such things. And a reaction. In part fourteen, a summary to the critique, which stresses that this sefer is not a mere compilation of sources which represent the masorah -- well, it depends on how one defines "masorah".
   
   Finally, Rabbi Slifkin posts the full article / critique in a single PDF.
   
   
5. Also, see the Daat Torah blog, where he puts up the full article, as linking to someone who does not deserve the attention and which a commenter notes seems quite the lunatic. But Daat Torah posts in the comments, about the critical blogger, and the unfortunate sefer:
   

   It unfortunately characterizes many of R' Slifkin's critics. They perceive a need to get him - they are not too particular about the means. The book being reviewed is a good example. it is simply an embarrassment. Gedolim support something which is not only poor scholarship - but it presents a distortion of Torah.
   
   If Slifkin had written a sefer like this he would have been laughed out of town.
   
   There are definitely issues to criticize R' Slifkin - but producing such a sefer and claiming that it is the true version of Torah - is extremely damaging to the credibility of gedolim and anti-Slifkin forces...

6. Also, Mystical Paths (here and here) and Wolfish Musings post on the silliness of that particular blogger, who has apparently been sending out emails advertising his blog. Though they don't link to him. Which is a good idea. What this fellow writes is silly, and he does not engage in rational discourse. Not every crackpot should get a link, and attention.
   
   
7. In the second post of his series, Eruv Online puts forth evidence that Rav Moshe Feinstein did not really sign the 1979 kol korei against the Flatbush eruv.
   
   
8. Hirhurim reviews Rabbi Hayyim Angel's Revealed Texts, Hidden Meanings.
   
   
9. Emes veEmunah on a meaningless call to end the violence, in the protests in Meah Shearim. And I thought so as well. But according to Life In Israel, Rabbi Shternbuch joined in (once again) in speaking out against violent protests. And also:
   

   The shabbos protests of this past shabbos, that passed peacefully, clearly show that when the Eidah wants to, they do have control of their people. Despite what they say at other times, that they can tell people to stop but nobody listens. For the most part they listen. Let's hope they stay in control of their people and keep it reasonable...

10. This week's Haveil Havalim.
    
    
11. At parshablog, start preparing the parsha (Nitzavim - Vayelech) with my list of online seforim for study of parshat Nitzavim.