Consumer Advisory Alert
Don't lose your pants!
Here at Irrationalist Modoxism, we are committed to warning our readers about intellectual frauds of all types that lurk on the fringe of the Orthodox world. With that in mind we present the following public service announcement:
There's an individual who shall remain nameless who, in the age-old spirit of getting something for nothing, is taking advantage of the passing of a recent gadol to part his clueless followers with their hard-earned money. His gig is an old one - he repackages recycled garbage and sells it in closed boxes while hawking it as something scintillating and exciting that you can only find out what it is once you've paid for it.
The perpetrator, who generates no actual income but rather lives off public funds and private donations, now seeks to pad his revenue stream1 through a side hustle of selling regurgitated hate. His wares are already available for free all over the internet, most notably in the archives of his own blog, but he's picked up some old huckster tactics of promising that his latest offering contains "sensitive material" that can only be imparted to an exclusive audience (read: an audience that puts up some moolah).
We won't reveal here exactly what that exclusive material is, as that may border on geneiva2. But before you get suckered rest assured there's nothing more or less 'sensitive' - nor particularly interesting or intelligent - in there than everything else he flings around. The entirety of his revelation is that - surprise! - chareidim are primitive idiots who fall for everything, while rationalists are wise and discerning.
And if you slapped down the dough to find this out, we'll just assume you're chareidi.
Another old trick: he solemnly assures customers that all proceeds go to a nonprofit. The nonprofit, in fact, supports his institutions and pays his stipend.
One of the 613 commandments, the violation of which would taint one's neshama and bring displeasure to our creator (or for our rationalist friends: would be "unethical" and "societally detrimental", which is bad. Cuz it is.)
What does that mean he generates no actual income? If a janitor works for a museum, is that also not income, since it's from public funds?
It took me some time to get this one but I am assuming your point is that everyone seizes the opportunity to make a buck when offered.
Honestly I was pretty disgusted when pants of a Gadol went up for auction. That's a real bizayon.