1. just like where we have kosher food available the people eat kosher food and not the triefa food so to if we would have (real) kosher technology available people would use it and not use so called triefa technology. We sent Tefillin to the former USSR and they put them on- if we would have kosher technology available, the people will use it. It ain’t simple though. The Vaad hatzalah in the former USSR had to be “mikarev” the people and only then did the people wear Tefillin. We must be “mikarev” ourselves to wanna use the kosher technology. And my friends only then will we wanna use it. Lets face it- just self control is not good enough anymore. Its good enough (for most i think) when walking down 5th Avenue. But the internet is another whole story. The reason is simple- Pritzus (If you have Fear of Heaven and look away quickly) can be combated with self control. Znus cannot. Its uncomfortable to write and talk about this topic i”m sure, but we don”t have a choice anymore. (P.S. ATT Moderator: Post this message- the people want to hear it.)

2. whats thd TAG phone number?

3. TAG: 267-295-1954

4. how do I listed to the jewish radio on my phone??

5. Happy to see that people are ‘Slowly’ realizing that technology is not something we can ignore, rather we must teach how to use it in the proper way.
   Technology & the Internet is not going away. The world uses it to basicly run almost all functions of daily living. If we don’t teach NOW how to use it correctly & how to protect ourselves from using it improperly, because we want to shelter ourselves from the negative effects, the results will be counterproductive. Slowly, more & more of basic & daily living needs are run by technology. We MUST teach & learn now the proper way of using it before things get even worse in our yiddishe families. Everyone (yes, you will ofcourse find Yechidim Sh’byechidim that won’t) will eventually use the internet, if not taught early enough how to make Gedarim, & how to protect oneself from the negative & impure content, it will ChaS V’Sh be used improperly. It becomes addictive, it can take over your life, it can ruin & destroy your & your families lives.
   I have been trying to send this message for a long time now, but people (Mechanchim, Parents) don’t seem to want to listen, they don’t want to believe. Listen now. Listen before its too late.

6. we all know the capabilities of technology. the good and the bad. you know what it is, and how it can get out of control. everyone just has to watch themselves. if we’re gonna sit at the breakfast or dinner table with the kids and be on our smartphones or tablets and ignore our loved ones and the ones that matter the most even a little bit; thats bad! but if we’re going to use the technology for good; kol hakavod!

7. thanks: Here are a few stations.
   Kol Brama: 712 432 4212
   Radio Hidabroot: 712 432 4217

8. truth of the matter is, I love my smartphone , all of the apps features. etc. you would think I would have more time to learn etc. but instead I find myself addicted wasting precious time hours on end.
   the asifa is well intended.but I think once someone has embraced internet filtered or not, you are transformed and become a part of this new world. and its so highly addictive theres no turning back.
   there really is no eitza its like a mousetrap. once you get in. , you cant get out. Hashe_ m yeracheim.

9. Thanks Dovid, excellent article. Very positive attitude.

10. Filters are useless, banning is fruitless, Tefila is our only eitza

11. Does anyone know of a filter that I can download and install on my Blackberry? thanks

12. Dr Laura not true!! Filters CAN and WILL work!!!

13. The goal of the citifield asifa, according to the rabbanim behind it, is to make anyone who doesnt use a filter into a “second class citizen”.

14. When the car, telephone, even the newspaper were introduced, I sure the Rabbonim were very concerned about their impact on the klal. Bittul z’man, loshon horah, etc.. yet we’ve managed to integrate them into our society for the benefit of all. Yes, the internet & technology can be extremely problematic, but the reality is that there here to stay and we must learn how to appropriately take advantage of all the positive aspects of them

15. so you are saying I can just put my phone on speaker and call the number and I can listen to the jewish radio, even if I dont live in lakewood? this would be great when we go to the mountains for the summer

16. Anonmymous (sic):

    I am not aware of any BB filters but I believe there is a way of having your BB go through YeshivaNet which would then have it filtered.

17. in my humble opinion, it’s stupid to say you can’t get away from it or can’t stop looking or checking your device. self control people!!!! If you’re addicted then seek help!!!

18. To dr. Laura: filters are only useless to those who want to find a way around it. They are very useful for all of us who don’t want to see all the shmutz. And you’re right about tefilla, we must daven for any of our hishtadlus to be successful.

19. Just like we don’t have police monitering our food intake, whether or not it is kosher, it is not quite possible to moniter our Internet use. It is up to us what we put into our mouths, our heads etc. Just like not everything that is sold as kosher food meets everyone’s standards of kashrus, so it is with the internet. There are many frum kosher eating people out there that fill themselves with every “kosher” fresseri on the market. Is that the way we are supposed to eat? Eating can be spiritual and it can be very base. When we give in to every “Taiva”, whether it is sushi, or fancy deli or eating out in public etc., we are giving in to the baser side of eating. When we elevate our eating by making brochos with kavana and thinking of how nourishing the food is and how beautiful the colors of the natural fruits and vegetables are, that Hashem gave us to delight in, then we are fulfilling the ruchnius of eating. It is the same with internet. If we are careful in it’s use, it can be used for spiritual things or gashmiusdik things. Rabbonim can’t tell us what to do but, they can guide us. For instance I try to listen to shiurim on line and I have gained very much that way. Then again, I also waste a lot of time checking on all the news, going shopping, comparing prices, doing research etc. I have to know myself where to draw the line. Even by only looking at 4 or 5 frum websites every day and a playing a few short games, I waste a lot more time then when I didn’t have internet. I pay bills on line and sometimes it takes longer than putting the check in the mail! You get the drift. I am not about to say Internet should be forbidden completely, just kept wisely in check.

20. The Jnet 866-866-5638 has a filter for BB you can either block the web and just have email or have filtered internet. There is also a free app to block your browser and allow email on the http://www.guardyoureyes.org website. Having a filter on your phone is to me like keeping shabbos, if you dont have one to me you are not a frum jew. Don’t think you can have self control. We are all suffering from this and don’t be irresponsible to your self and to your children. There are tons of kids as young as 4th grade who are falling bec their parents left unfiltered internet thinking ” they are so young” . A filter is a must and if you don’t have one i don’t think your a frum yid even if you never fell.

21. i agree with #20 a guy who tells me he doesn’t have a filter is like eating a cheese burger.

22. Question:

    There are actually a few stations on the phone. I forgot to also mention JewishMusicStream: 712 432 4213.

23. A filter is a helpful tool but should not be the only means of protection. While many of us (including myself) need the internet for work etc. we should not fool our selves that there is no danger. The yetzer horah can be very creative. A filter gives you the few moments you need to remind you where you should not be going. Yiras shamayim + a musar seder goes a long way. Anyone who says they are better than that and will kot succumb to their yetzer horah is fooling them selves.

24. KEEP IN MIND:
    Check your phone carrier before listening to the radio on the phone. I wanted to listen to Radio Hidabroot on the phone since it’s available on the air only in Brooklyn, but I noticed a disclaimer on my phone bill: There are certain area codes in Iowa (among them 712, the area codes for all 3 above-mentioned radio stations) that are used as “conference call” numbers, and the phone companies are charged more for them. Thay pass that on to you, at the rate of (with my carrier, Xchange Telecom) 4 cents/minute – EVEN IF YOU HAVE AN UNLIMITED NATIONAL LONG DISTANCE PLAN. Cell phones may be different, I don’t know. Just check, is all I’m saying!

25. Just wanted to add my voice and say that more effective than filters is one of those systems like webchaver where a record of your online activity is emailed to someone else – use them both together – the filter and the accountability and together with a heaping dose of yiras shamayim, siyata dishmaya may we have the strength to withstand this overwhelming nisayon

26. So here is a little math. To rent out Citi Field, cost in the range of $150,000. Let’s thinks how many tomchai shabbos meals that is.

27. r u reb dovid bender from far rockaway?

28. I don’t know why no one mentioned the accountabilty system- it’s in many ways better than a filter and you always know that your partner can ask you, nu hows it going…. for someone that wants to take control, is there anything better than that? Of course, we still have to daven for the tzon kedoshim to realize the proper path…

29. i hope your not serious, this is way more important and if you think not get help!

30. RL:

    No I am not.

31. I think sometimes that Klal Yisroel needs a reality check, but then I calm down and look around me and see that Hashem has done that and we are not handling it very well!!

    First we need to get some perspective, and then we need to put that perspective in proportion.

    A wise man once said that \the first stage of denial is appearance of jargon. Technology is so rapidly becoming just another catch-all phrase that we (from jews) as a society use to try and not deal with the way that the world is changing.

    The funny thing (or not perhaps) is that Judaism is probably unique in accepting the idea of Yeridos Hadoros. We accept that the further away we are from the point of origin, the lesser things are, not the greater they are.

    I think that the only thing that is constant today is the increase in the rate of change in all things. There is plenty Aggadah, Midrashim, Mishneh Torah, that explains or at least hints at what will happen in the days preceding Yimos Hamoshiach……….

    Guess what is happening to us today.

    Now of course you can call me any name you carte to, but I have yet to hear a better explanation.

    However, I do not think that what is actually happening negates or changes a single piece of Torah or a single Halocho. We are responsible for our own actions. There are no “magic solutions”……..

    Technology (even I am hating the term now and I am a Technologist) provides solutions to many challenges, but at the same time it also give the ability to be self defeating by allowing its very solutions to be circumvented by further iterations and developments of the same technology. Make a stronger lock, and a craftier thief will appear.

    None of us are identical and the way in which we live our life (read that as cope with technology if you like) is the same. We all have our particular weaknesses and strengths, we must be aware of that.

    There are many people who will be inspired by a huge gathering and it and its attendant jargon will help them to deal with their challenges…….

    There are also many who will be totally turned off by it.

    There is no single general solution to each individuals specific circumstances. We cannot pass along our responsibility for ourselves, we must grasp it, be honest with ourselves and realize that at best there are tools that can help. That is the same as every other facet of existence, that is how hashes created the world.

    What I am afraid of is that we will make (as a society) the same mistake that we did with the “kids at risk” challenge. THERE ARE NO KIDS AT RISK….. ONLY ADULTS IN DENIAL.

    Let, us please drop the labels and just realize that these are the challenges of today, just like radical politics was 100 years ago, and the haskallah 250 years ago and avodah zora was 2000 years ago.

    Today we cannot (baruch hashem) understand the tremendous temptation there was to avodah zorah two thousand years ago……that was the challenge of that time………

    I am sure that anyone with a sense of discernment can complete the thought.

    And one last thing to consider……

    The story of Zimri and Kosbi….happened in the middle of the machaneh, Moshe Rabbeinu was there but he did not know what exactly to do.

    I am not suggesting that anyone should take it upon themselves to try and do a Pinchos, because only Pinchos could…….. but there have been times in history when daas torah is neither clear or revealed.

    Hatzlochoh and a Gutten Shabbos

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