Comments on: Vacations are almost banned

By: Yerachmiel Lopin

Yerachmiel Lopin — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 01:24:38 +0000

Heshy, this is awesome. You should enroll as a gadol. You could churn out bans faster than an Olympic runner, and leap over logic with more courage than Evil Knivel. You did forget my favorite, The Lakewood Stocking Ban, http://wp.me/pFbfD-2Q .

An askan must be skilled and helpful. For example, they need to swipe the glasses of the gadol. Then they offer to read the relevant documents. They determine that the subject of the ban is not able to respond or has the chutzpah to refuse to respond. Then they have to be willing to sign for the gadol to save him time, or because he is dead (in one case). It is not an easy job, because then they also have to defend the honor of the gadol without exposing themselves or the gadol to ridicule.

The word askan is a shorthand slang for AskOne for a ban. However it is a misnomer, becuase they usually can rustle ten or more signatories just by proffering the first signature.

By: Moshe

Moshe — Sun, 16 Aug 2009 06:59:33 +0000

All gefirte fish should be banned and replaced with sushi. And by sushi I mean real sushi and the American Jew crap. The crimes against sushi that are perpetrated by Glatt Mart and Pomegranate…

By: Daily Deist

Daily Deist — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 20:12:09 +0000

In Gateshead yeshiva, my mashgiach gave a talk about how chinese food and pizza should be banned. quite right. one could god forbid come to enjoy oneself if one ate something other gunks of cholent.

By: Phil

Phil — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 14:22:48 +0000

Flash,

I guess money wasn’t the only thing he screwed at Hadassah. I guess she must feel like a real loser now.

By: Flash

Flash — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 14:17:56 +0000

Heshy
you gotta pick up on the latest Madoff news, the head of Hadassah in NY had an affair with Madoff- just on CNBC- this will make a great fodder- shidduch crisis??

By: anon

anon — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 06:20:22 +0000

@eyekanspel
yes, it comes from “osek”. in this case “osek betzorchei tzibur” lit. “toils for the needs of the community.

(insert “nofal letzorchei tzibur” joke here)

By: eyekanspel

eyekanspel — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 23:58:20 +0000

@Mark
I’m not quite sure on this, but I think “askan” comes from the word “osek”, which I believe means to toil (as in “osek ba’Torah”, to toil in Torah study). So an askan is (or at least should be or once was) one who toils for the benefit of the community. In this generation, the title of “askan” can be referring to either the “old style” askan, who toils for the benefit of the community, or the unfortunate modern askan, who pushes his own agenda by manipulating gedolim.

By: Frum N' Flipping

Frum N' Flipping — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 19:41:12 +0000

E.Fink- sweatshirts with hoods are already banned in israel. They are “modern”.

And the GAP ones ,Kal VeChomer- letters on the front on a sweatshirt is totally assur.

By: Miriam Tzipora

Miriam Tzipora — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 17:45:10 +0000

An Askan is a 49th-Stater who denies their Arab roots… Al-Aska.

I don’t know. I can’t even write that joke well. Time to go drive my SUV.