OPINION
ON ECONOMICS
ART
We Need a Pitcher, Not a Belly Itcher
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FOR DETROIT
SPEAKERS' CORNER
Everyone Has an Agenda
Kiruv organizations are no exception.
By Joshua Einstein
The myth of the free lunch should be
widely known, but many parents in the
1.1 Jewish community are genuinely sur-
prised when their child comes home Torah
observant after spending a year in Israel
involved with Aish HaTorah or Chabad.
For the collegiate and young-adult set,
there is no shortage of free or subsidized
trips, Shabbat programs, supplementary
classes and — ostensibly Jewish — alcohol-
infused parties and meals aimed at drawing
them into Orthodox religious observance.
These programs are part of the outreach
attempt by kiruv (Orthodox proselytizing)
organizations whose raison d'etre is to make
every Jew Torah and mitzvot observant; as
such, they are substantively different from
mainstream Jewish organizations serving
college students and young adults.
Whereas Hillel, Birthright Israel, Birth-
right Israel Next and Moishe House are
nonsectarian umbrella groups, exposing
young adults to broad-spectrum Judaism
and empowering them to make their own
informed choices, kiruv organizations are
the opposite.
Campus groups like Chabad, and groups
which specifically target young adults
such as Aish HaTorah, portray their take on
Judaism — which disenfranchises women
and posits that non-Jews do not have a
neshama (soul) — as the sole authentic one.
Kiruv organizations deflect criticism of
their evangelism by claiming they are mere-
ly trying to educate assimilated Jewry, that
they are "just Jewish" and do not preach a
specific brand of Judaism. While a discern-
ing adult can see that these responses are
tailor-made for a culturally assimilated and
religiously undereducated audience, stu-
dents and many young adults cannot.
This begs the question: Is the best way to
inculcate Jewish identity in the college and
young-adult age groups to support institu-
tions outside the Jew-
ish mainstream?
The answer is a re-
sounding no. Yet, oth-
er than some meager
campus outreach,
the main branches
of liberal Judaism fail
to effectively engage
the young-adult corn-
munity.
For the young
16 October 2011 I
RED
Coming in November:
Aish in the Woods responds
to Mr. Einsteins editorial.
adult who grew up Conservative, Reform or
Reconstructionist — and is lucky enough
to live in a big city — there may be an
independent minyan, Moishe House-style
residence or other community for them to
join. In lieu of a liberal religious community,
there may be a pluralistic or nonsectar-
ian Jewish institution such as a Y or JCC.
But in most metropolitan areas, the kiruv
organizations play an outsized role in the
young-adult scene.
Wherever young people congregate,
kiruv organizations are there and using the
same general tactics — free or inexpensive
food and alcohol followed by innocuous
sounding classes — aimed at familiarizing
participants with an anesthetized version of
their heritage.
The picture these organizations paint is
clear: All the Jews of yesteryear were a link
in a continuous chain of a singular Judaism
practiced the same way since Mt. Sinai. If
one accepts this premise, the logical con-
clusion for each individual is that they too
should be religiously observant.
The fallacy is apparent to most, which
is why the vast majority of young Jewish
adults who go through their doors ulti-
mately do not adhere to Orthodox tenets.
The issue isn't the kiruv organizations' low
success rate, or the naivete of some parents;
rather it is that the kiruv organizations are
the only theological movement presenting
their case.
Young Jewish adults are presented with a
false choice between a religious Jewish un-
derstanding of the world that is only repre-
sentative of Orthodoxy, usually a black hat
if not haredi version, and the secular world.
That the Orthodox kiruv organizations do
not represent the values of the broader
Jewish community goes without saying.
What needs saying, or rather asking, is why,
when it comes to Jewish young adults, are
the Conservative, Reform, Reconstructionist
and even Modern Orthodox branches miss-
ing in action? :R7
Housing market needs leadership, not low interest rates.
By Mark Phillips
ow interest rates, tax credits
and cheap housing prices
haven't made a dent toward
a recovery in the housing
market. People don't need
to be coaxed into buy-
ing a house. They need to
believe they are taking a
smart step toward their long-
term happiness. Unfortunately,
nowadays people believe that buy-
ing a house is a risk that puts their
financial future in danger.
The federal government and
the banks have been the loud-
est proponents of technical
fixes for the housing market.
Their wishes have been fulfilled
as mortgage rates are now
at historic lows.This is, of
course, largely courtesy
of the Federal Reserve's $2
trillion buying binge of mortgage-backed
securities, conducted over the last two
years. And Fed chairman Ben Bernanke
has made explicit promises of keeping
rates low over the next 24 months.
What effect has this had? Other than
protecting the banks, facilitating short
sales and allowing some individuals to
improve their balance sheets — as well as
giving mortgage brokers a prayer to ding
to — the housing market has remained
relatively stagnant.
This is because the housing market
relies on ... wait for it ... people buying
houses. When people are scared about
their future, they don't spend money. They
certainly don't buy big-ticket items. It has
become increasingly apparent that con-
sumers no longer believe in their house as
a valuable or"safe" asset.
Unfortunately, that has significant
ramifications for the U.S. economy. Every
sustained economic recovery over the last
100 years has included a recovery in the
housing market. The only recovery that
didn't see a rebound in housing in 1981; it
was followed by a recession in 1982.
The relationship is neither casual nor
insignificant as it reflects the level of
consumer confidence in the recovery.
Ergo, when confidence is lacking, housing
suffers. With a depressed housing market,
the economy drags regardless of how well
businesses are doing.
Look at the 1990s or the beginning of
the 21st Century. People paid mortgage
rates nearly double today's rates — and
were willing to enter into complex
adjustable rate or balloon contracts that
guaranteed rising interest rates in the
future. They didn't care how much risk
they took on.
They believed in the future and wanted
to claim their stake in it, with housing a
seeming and worthwhile asset. Confi-
dence was so strong that property could
be collateralized purely on the belief of
L
30-Year Mortgage Rates
January 1978 - August 2011
future demand. Sadly, that is no longer
the case.
Today, the banks received all they've
asked for, and listing prices are around
30 percent lower than before the bubble
burst, yet people still aren't buying. In fact,
the housing market is now 8 percent down
from the start of the recovery. Instead
of viewing this as a buying opportunity,
people are sitting on the sidelines, afraid.
The bottom line:The housing market is
suffering from a lack of leadership in the
economy.
Being the season of Sukkot, I'm
reminded of how the Jews wandered in
the desert for 40 years with nothing but
temporary shelters and clouds protect-
ing them. Why temporary? Because they
knew they were going somewhere.
Today's housing market needs that in-
jection of forethought. People will endure
houses built on leveraged balance sheets
and the promise of something better if
they believe that the promise can be real-
ized and they are going somewhere. Thus,
the secret to the recovery for the housing
market is economic leadership. We have
to believe we are going somewhere.
Unfortunately, what we're currently pre-
sented with is muddling from one crisis
to the next. Each crisis (housing, employ-
ment, debt) seems to catch our leader-
ship off guard and brings with it a round
of negotiations, the gains from which
seem short-term — moving one political
campaign or another forward — but not
moving us closer to a better economic
future.
The American public can take setbacks
and hiccups on the road to a promised
land. Give us a vision, give us a plan, and
we're happy to trudge through the mud
to get there. But without leadership pur-
suing a vision for a better tomorrow, we
feel as exposed and scared as wandering
in the desert — alone. EtaT
Average Home Price in Detroit vs.
Average Price of New Car, 1994-2011
.tventge fl trait
Rom Moe
91,
1•9,X,
1$9
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2'310
How to Submit an Op-Ed Article
JOSHUA EINSTEIN, 29, is a graduate of Rutgers
Red Th read magazine welcomes editorial submissions on any topic. The
suggested length is 700 words, but pieces of any length will be considered.
To have an editorial considered for publication, please submit by email
with the article attached as a separate document. Kindly include your full
name, address and phone number.
University and a founding resident of the Hoboken, N.J.,
Moishe House. He is on staff at Taglit-Birthright
Email: editorial @ redthreadmagazine.com
SUPPORT FOR THIS PAGE HAS BEEN UNDERWRITTEN, IN PART, BY
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