Featured Post
Free The Hostages! Bring Them Home!
(this is a featured post and will stay at the top for the foreseeable future.. scroll down for new posts) -------------------------------...
Jan 1, 2009
The Sam Malone method for the violence in Bet Shemesh
Since the violent incident in Bet Shemesh on a Friday night a few weeks ago, many have asked what the police and the new mayor are doing to curtail the spread and increase of such incidents. The answer given has been, from the police, that they are investigating. From the mayors office we have heard that they will not tolerate violence and there must be talks between groups and he is checking out the situation. blah blah blah.
I was wondering how long it takes to investigate an incident that everyone in Bet Shemesh, and many elsewhere, know exactly who perpetrated. It has started to seem like the police and the mayor have simply just been trying to push people off as a way of buying time hoping everyone would forget as the flames die down, and just hope no more incidents happen to re-enflame the situation.
I personally am a big fan of the Sam Malone method to problem solving (i.e. If you ignore a problem long enough, it will go away). but I am not the mayor of a city.
The following update appeared yesterday on the Bet Shemesh email list:
I asked someone about it and he told me that Oz Eliasi, the head of the Bet Shemesh police, called in a number of activists in Sheinfeld and Aviv for a meeting.
Eliasi told them that the police will not protect them. Moreover, Eliasi told them that if anyone from Sheinfeld tries to protect their children from the kannoim, they will arrest them!
There are basically two possibilities as to what happened - either the police have been threatened by the rabbonim of the kannoim (mainly Rav Rosenberger and Rav Kopshitz), and the police, as usual prefer to not stand up to the threats of rioting and violence. Or, and this might be even worse, the mayor himself told the police to back down.
So, because the police are afraid of the hooligans, now the victims are under threat of arrest if they dare to protect themselves. Looks like when Abutbol said he wants to give the city back to the residents, and to let the residents win, he meant only a few residents who threaten violence.
I was wondering how long it takes to investigate an incident that everyone in Bet Shemesh, and many elsewhere, know exactly who perpetrated. It has started to seem like the police and the mayor have simply just been trying to push people off as a way of buying time hoping everyone would forget as the flames die down, and just hope no more incidents happen to re-enflame the situation.
I personally am a big fan of the Sam Malone method to problem solving (i.e. If you ignore a problem long enough, it will go away). but I am not the mayor of a city.
The following update appeared yesterday on the Bet Shemesh email list:
I have been informed that the police chief has notified people in our community that:It is therefore clear to me that the police in no way intend to help protect the citizens of Bet Shemesh from continued violent attacks by those elements of the chareidi neighborhoods who are the true instigators of the confrontations and the violence.
- he does not plan on having an increased police presence at the Hayarden location to protect the people who will undoubtedly show up
- he actually plans on arresting anyone from our community who shows up to that location on Friday night as "instigators".
I asked someone about it and he told me that Oz Eliasi, the head of the Bet Shemesh police, called in a number of activists in Sheinfeld and Aviv for a meeting.
Eliasi told them that the police will not protect them. Moreover, Eliasi told them that if anyone from Sheinfeld tries to protect their children from the kannoim, they will arrest them!
There are basically two possibilities as to what happened - either the police have been threatened by the rabbonim of the kannoim (mainly Rav Rosenberger and Rav Kopshitz), and the police, as usual prefer to not stand up to the threats of rioting and violence. Or, and this might be even worse, the mayor himself told the police to back down.
So, because the police are afraid of the hooligans, now the victims are under threat of arrest if they dare to protect themselves. Looks like when Abutbol said he wants to give the city back to the residents, and to let the residents win, he meant only a few residents who threaten violence.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Related Posts
what can we do to change the status quo? is the cheif of police elected? appointed (if so, by whom)? can the press play a role (emabarass him into doing what policeman are supposed to do)? or is all just hopeless? maybe we should all just move to somewhere like neve deaniel or yad binyamin and leave bs to the lunatics?
ReplyDeleteI thought he was a Nazi...
ReplyDeletewho did you think was a Nazi?
ReplyDeleteRafi, Mike's comment was a sardonic prod at the graffiti in RBS-B that calls Oz Eliasi a Nazi.
ReplyDeleteIf the mayor and police are in collusion, then it appears that the only way to break this up is by escalating it - either within the police, or in the national media (much as I would cringe at the Chillul Hashem in that).
But whatever is to be done is probably going to have to wait until after the dust has settled in Gaza, because before then, our little turf wars in this backwater town here are not going be of concern to anybody else.
shaul, if the only option is, in your opinion a major chillul hashem, how can you call that an option?
ReplyDeleteChillul hashem is a halacha. It is the most chamur aveira (as rabbeinu yonah explains in shaarei teshuva, brought down by the rosh yeshiva in his drasha at the gra shul before the elections). Just because you dont like what someone does, does not mean that we can be mechalel sheim shamayim.
Looks like we need another otpion
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteAnon 4:39:
ReplyDeleteThe Chillul Hashem has already been created. The Pilegesh B'Giv'a is dead. We would simply be sending her body parts for viewing among the other sh'vatim, to extend a rather nasty analogy.
(My comment self-censored. For those who saw the original version and took offence, my apologies...)
Further to what Shaul said, the mere existence of these terroristic Chareidim is a Chilul Hashem. Every moment they are enabled to continue their evil ways is an ongoing Chilul Hashem. Not to mention, a sakana to the surrounding population.
ReplyDeleteAnything we can do to stop them can and must be done.
Besides it's a moot point. Some local politicians were so incensed by this latest police meeting that they've already escalated the situation to the MK's and the media.
Our collective goal should be to drive them out of Beit Shemesh so the good Chareidim and the rest of us can live in peace.
I agree with Menachem (hi there!). This has to be taken to a higher level, and mk's must be dragged into this, if this is really the reaction of the police.
ReplyDeleteWhat a tragedy. :( My husband's suggestion is that people just need to go in there with baseball bats one night because all they understand is violence. How about bringing a bagatz for violating your civil rights to a police investigation of a violent crime?
Abbi - see my latest post.
ReplyDeletehey...give credit to the guy who taught you about the Sam Malone method of management you ingrate!
ReplyDelete