YNet: Haredim "Conquer" Secular "Stronghold"
I'm sure this article has value.
I'm sure that the rental of the old Histadrut building on Strauss Street in Jerusalem has historical significance and is representative of a shift in the Israeli zeitgeist. And, journalistically, one would be remiss not to note an event of such significance.
Nevertheless, it still strikes me as the same old virulent anti-charedi prejudice that plagues many secular Israeli journalists. The inflammatory language and spin-inducing choice of quotes serve to make at least this journalist's mentality readily apparent to any reader.
J'lem: Haredim 'conquer' Histadrut strongholdUnder the banner "Blessed be He who uprooted idol worship from our land," a haredi journal over the weekend praised the great victory of the Old Yishuv in Jerusalem over the harbingers of socialism in Israel , namely that three floors of the Histadrut building in Jerusalem were rented out to the girls' seminar Mishkan Sarah, in which 350 haredi girls study.
The Histadrut building on 17 Strauss Street in Jerusalem has for many years been considered a symbol of the strength of the Mapai presence in Jerusalem.Or, as the haredi journal put it: "The great house… which was essentially intended to form a wall against the spread of the haredi public and to be an assembly place for all kinds of manifestations of destruction and uncleanliness, may such a thing never befall us, will from now on become and be used as a new seat for this pedigreed and splendid seminar."
For this quote, I will judge my journalistic counterpart favorably. Most haredi journals are written in the language of haredi Jews -- "that of Torah and halacha", as Haaretz once said -- and therefore use language of Scripture interchangeably with modern terms. Hence, words like tumah, "impurity" (from Leviticus) or to'evah, "abomination" (from Leviticus) will be used to describe everything from bugs on vegetables to the downfall of society. To the untrained, non-haredi eye, these look like terms which rain down curses upon the subject, when in actuality, they are more descriptive than anything.
But this article goes further. Further into anti-Orthodox prejudice, and further into a mindset overlaid with a thin, yet glistening layer of secular paranoia:
The spot where the building is situated represents essentially the last secular stronghold in the area...[Histadrut Jerusalem District Chairman Danny] Ben-Sheetrit added that the section in which the Hisadrut offices are located today are not included in the rental agreement. Other secular strongholds in the area of historical and sentimental value that have recently gone haredi include Edison Movie Theatre, which was purchased by Satmar haredim, and Lemel School, which is currently being used as a Talmud-Torah by the Radzin hassidim."With the perspective of many years," admitted [Former MK Uzi] Baram, "the effort my father made didn't succeed. The step that was taken didn't succeed in stemming the tide. Jerusalem has undergone a demographic revolution."
What is this, Platoon?
Secular strongholds? Are we talking about fortresses which fly Playboy magazines at half-mast whenever a yarmulke is found inside the barracks? MK Baram's quote sounds akin to the end of a martial arts flick: "My father's efforts were to no avail...and now it is up to you, grasshopper..."
I almost can't fathom it.
In the mind of this journalist, there is not only a war, but a "save yourself" situation in play on the streets of Jerusalem.
It seems some would rather move Xs around the giant RISK board and divide, re-divide, re-re-divide, and conquer -- rather than even attempt to work toward piyus/reconciliation and unity.
