tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20257999.post8776363275287583347..comments2024-03-28T15:14:16.180+02:00Comments on Life in Israel: BS elections guest post; Meeting Eli Cohen, Beit Shemesh Mayoral CandidateRafi G.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00699851287106903971noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20257999.post-55926706157583880352013-10-03T17:44:00.643+03:002013-10-03T17:44:00.643+03:00Given that they are attacking Eli Cohen as a relig...Given that they are attacking Eli Cohen as a religious concern – it just shows that there is nothing to argue regarding his capabilities to better fix up our city. I don’t recall ever hearing anyone claim that Moshe Abutbul is a better mayor than Eli Cohen would be. The standard complaints against Eli Cohen are that he is not personally fully religious (which I’m not sure why that is necessarily an obstruction to being a good mayor – See Pesachim 112a that Rabbi Akiva instructs his son not to live in a city whose mayor is a talmid chacham since he will be spending his time learning and not properly taking care of the municipality requirements) and of course that now infamous “Believe it” campaign that Eli Cohen has some nefarious plan to initiate mass chillul Shabbat in the city by running busses in RBS on Shabbat and opening pig stores on Shabbat in the city. I also heard of his “plans” to close or stop funding of all chareidi schools and take away their buildings. The fact that Eli Cohen, or any of the people on his list for city council, or any of the numerous supporters, campaign staff or supporters (whom many, if not most, are fine religious people) have never mentioned or heard of this “plan” – and at almost every opportunity he has claimed just the opposite – that he will ascertain the religious and traditional sentiments of the entire city, is irrelevant to his detractors. It astounds me to hear people, who are otherwise quite intelligent, propose these claims that not only so blatantly false, but do not make any sense! Even if he wanted to, why would he promote busses (who would ride them?) and open pig stores on Shabbat in a predominantly religious and traditional city?? Why would he so antagonize 80-90% of the city’s population?? Except of course for his irrational “hatred of the religious” – as “proven” by the fact that Eli Cohen’s party, Bet Shemesh Chozeret, joined with the Bayit Yehudi party of Bet Shemesh, who are of course connected ideologically and financially with the national Bayit Yehudi party, who is headed by Naftali Benet, who wears a small kippa, and joined in the Kenesset with the Yesh Atid party, headed by Yair Lapid, who is of course known as anti-Chareidi, chad gadyah, chad gadya….ynoreply@blogger.com