A small tax imposed on plastic bags led Orthodox Jews to lasting hostility against measures to protect the environment, a study found. They see policies against plastic as elite contempt
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A green tax imposed on single-use plastic four years ago — and later repealed — led to a long-term drop in support for environmental issues among ultra-Orthodox Jews, a new study shows.
The ultra-Orthodox community viewed this as a direct attack upon its way of life. Israel is one of the world’s leading per capita users of single-use plastics, partly due to the Haredi community, which uses more single-use plastics than any other demographic.
In November 2021, the government coalition headed by prime minister Naftali Bennett introduced a tax on disposable plastic plates, bowls, cups, and straws. The environment minister at the time, Tamar Zandberg, predicted that it would reduce purchases of plastic items by 40%.
This became a major political issue, including during the national election. The Haredim joined the coalition headed by Benjamin Netanyahu. The repeal of the plastics taxes were the first decision by new Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich of the far-right Religious Zionism Party.
The ultra-Orthodox community … use disproportionate amounts of disposable kitchenware
Is this because it’s kosher? I remember once a family member was going to host an ultra-orthodox person and had to figure how to cook for them. Everything got cooked in tin foil because that’s fresh and new and won’t be contaminated. I wonder if the disposable kitchenware is the same thing.
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banningslightly increasing the price of plastic forks is anti-semiticwrote last edited by [email protected]It’s not really a question of antisemitism - this is a kerfuffle between Jewish groups.
The ultra orthodox in Israel are on a whole new level of Judaism with prescribed clothing, hairstyles, foods, language, sabbath rules, and marriage practices. Many in-groups around the world insulate themselves by creating all these little divides with the out-group. “Oh no, you can’t eat with them - their food is contaminated and dirty. Of course you can’t marry one of them!”
So there’s quite a cultural divide between them and every other Jewish person there, many of whom are devout but live a modern lifestyle, and many of whom are just cultural members of Judaism, citizens of Israel, and not religious at all.
The reason disposable cookware is a division point has to do, I expect, with keeping kosher / observing the sabbath. Kosher isn’t just for food - a plate or spoon can be kosher to use or not, depending on whether it has ever touched anything “unclean.” Single-use plastics new from the box have never touched anything. And washing dishes counts as doing work (a sabbath tabboo) but dropping a plastic plate in the trash might not count. Hence: anything that affects single-use plastics may have an acute impact on the orthodox because they believe they need these things to adhere to their religious and cultural prohibitions.
I’m not justifying, just explaining. I think this shit is cuckoo.
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The ultra-Orthodox community … use disproportionate amounts of disposable kitchenware
Is this because it’s kosher? I remember once a family member was going to host an ultra-orthodox person and had to figure how to cook for them. Everything got cooked in tin foil because that’s fresh and new and won’t be contaminated. I wonder if the disposable kitchenware is the same thing.
How can it be, it's millions of microplastic particles. Am I wrong? Those single use plastics produce a ton of microplastics, right?
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A green tax imposed on single-use plastic four years ago — and later repealed — led to a long-term drop in support for environmental issues among ultra-Orthodox Jews, a new study shows.
The ultra-Orthodox community viewed this as a direct attack upon its way of life. Israel is one of the world’s leading per capita users of single-use plastics, partly due to the Haredi community, which uses more single-use plastics than any other demographic.
In November 2021, the government coalition headed by prime minister Naftali Bennett introduced a tax on disposable plastic plates, bowls, cups, and straws. The environment minister at the time, Tamar Zandberg, predicted that it would reduce purchases of plastic items by 40%.
This became a major political issue, including during the national election. The Haredim joined the coalition headed by Benjamin Netanyahu. The repeal of the plastics taxes were the first decision by new Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich of the far-right Religious Zionism Party.
I guess washing stainless steel is against their religion.
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A green tax imposed on single-use plastic four years ago — and later repealed — led to a long-term drop in support for environmental issues among ultra-Orthodox Jews, a new study shows.
The ultra-Orthodox community viewed this as a direct attack upon its way of life. Israel is one of the world’s leading per capita users of single-use plastics, partly due to the Haredi community, which uses more single-use plastics than any other demographic.
In November 2021, the government coalition headed by prime minister Naftali Bennett introduced a tax on disposable plastic plates, bowls, cups, and straws. The environment minister at the time, Tamar Zandberg, predicted that it would reduce purchases of plastic items by 40%.
This became a major political issue, including during the national election. The Haredim joined the coalition headed by Benjamin Netanyahu. The repeal of the plastics taxes were the first decision by new Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich of the far-right Religious Zionism Party.
My parter watched that show Shtisel and everybody was always carrying around single use plastic bags to the point that it was noticable. I still don't get it.
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A green tax imposed on single-use plastic four years ago — and later repealed — led to a long-term drop in support for environmental issues among ultra-Orthodox Jews, a new study shows.
The ultra-Orthodox community viewed this as a direct attack upon its way of life. Israel is one of the world’s leading per capita users of single-use plastics, partly due to the Haredi community, which uses more single-use plastics than any other demographic.
In November 2021, the government coalition headed by prime minister Naftali Bennett introduced a tax on disposable plastic plates, bowls, cups, and straws. The environment minister at the time, Tamar Zandberg, predicted that it would reduce purchases of plastic items by 40%.
This became a major political issue, including during the national election. The Haredim joined the coalition headed by Benjamin Netanyahu. The repeal of the plastics taxes were the first decision by new Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich of the far-right Religious Zionism Party.
orthodox jews tend to be very religious and don't usually believe in environmentalism.
they go by the philosophy that "בשבילי נברא העולם" (the world was made for me). meaning that they can do whatever they want because God made the world for them specifically.
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Don't forget the eruv circling Manhattan so they can ignore other Sabbath rules wholesale while going about their days.
Yeah, that's dumber than magic underwear. That might be the dumbest religious thing (with the exception of, you know, wars) that I've seen. Calling all of Manhattan your (and specifically your) domicile doesn't stretch the meaning of domicile, it completely ignores it.
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It’s not really a question of antisemitism - this is a kerfuffle between Jewish groups.
The ultra orthodox in Israel are on a whole new level of Judaism with prescribed clothing, hairstyles, foods, language, sabbath rules, and marriage practices. Many in-groups around the world insulate themselves by creating all these little divides with the out-group. “Oh no, you can’t eat with them - their food is contaminated and dirty. Of course you can’t marry one of them!”
So there’s quite a cultural divide between them and every other Jewish person there, many of whom are devout but live a modern lifestyle, and many of whom are just cultural members of Judaism, citizens of Israel, and not religious at all.
The reason disposable cookware is a division point has to do, I expect, with keeping kosher / observing the sabbath. Kosher isn’t just for food - a plate or spoon can be kosher to use or not, depending on whether it has ever touched anything “unclean.” Single-use plastics new from the box have never touched anything. And washing dishes counts as doing work (a sabbath tabboo) but dropping a plastic plate in the trash might not count. Hence: anything that affects single-use plastics may have an acute impact on the orthodox because they believe they need these things to adhere to their religious and cultural prohibitions.
I’m not justifying, just explaining. I think this shit is cuckoo.
wrote last edited by [email protected]need these things to adhere to their religious and cultural prohibitions
i guess orthodox jews didn’t exist until the ~60s if the tools to practice their religion weren’t available before then… i always assumed they were around much longer than that! /s
also, thanks for the explanation!
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How can it be, it's millions of microplastic particles. Am I wrong? Those single use plastics produce a ton of microplastics, right?
Maybe the Ultra ortodox want to have not one but TWO credit cards embedded in their grey matter.
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need these things to adhere to their religious and cultural prohibitions
i guess orthodox jews didn’t exist until the ~60s if the tools to practice their religion weren’t available before then… i always assumed they were around much longer than that! /s
also, thanks for the explanation!
I mean I see the point that people used to live without these things but I’m not sure how much it matters. Any of us could be exhorted to give something up and it would be a poor consolation to say “people lived without xyz for centuries!”
Medieval times are hardly some kind of healthy baseline everyone should be prepared to return to. Much though we may all be just about to.
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Yeah, that's dumber than magic underwear. That might be the dumbest religious thing (with the exception of, you know, wars) that I've seen. Calling all of Manhattan your (and specifically your) domicile doesn't stretch the meaning of domicile, it completely ignores it.
wrote last edited by [email protected]if god is real, i truly believe people like this will not “pass” whatever test life is… if you think “god” is rules lawyering you’re a complete idiot… what you’re gonna sovcit an all seeing, all powerful entity? either strictly follow all the rules or make the choices based on the intent of the rule or the origin (ie someone saying people always get sick from eating X so god must not like it is, imo, not valid when we find out about allergies and food poisoning but was probably a good general rule before then!)
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How can it be, it's millions of microplastic particles. Am I wrong? Those single use plastics produce a ton of microplastics, right?
Have microplastics been declared non-kosher?
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The ultra-Orthodox community … use disproportionate amounts of disposable kitchenware
Is this because it’s kosher? I remember once a family member was going to host an ultra-orthodox person and had to figure how to cook for them. Everything got cooked in tin foil because that’s fresh and new and won’t be contaminated. I wonder if the disposable kitchenware is the same thing.
wrote last edited by [email protected]I'm don't know any ultra-Orthodox but do have several friends/family that keep kosher, and all of them are satisfied with just keeping two sets of dishes (although some just have one set and are satisfied that washing them count).
The disposable dishes, cooking in foil, and such comes up when they visit someone like me who does not maintain a kosher kitchen (and even then, only one family actualy cares enough; but, as I said, they are not ultra Orthodox)
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I mean I see the point that people used to live without these things but I’m not sure how much it matters. Any of us could be exhorted to give something up and it would be a poor consolation to say “people lived without xyz for centuries!”
Medieval times are hardly some kind of healthy baseline everyone should be prepared to return to. Much though we may all be just about to.
wrote last edited by [email protected]absolutely! it’s the “need” that i have issue with. we need to protect the environment from plastic. they don’t need to reduce their burden by washing a few dishes the next day
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Orthodox Jewish families managed to do just fine without plastic for thousands of years.
These ones think they need to destroy the environment instead of learning to wash.
Orthodox Judaism is only a couple hundred years let alone a couple thousand. It's a modern practice and it's ultra orthodox subsect is barely older than scientology.
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Don't forget the eruv circling Manhattan so they can ignore other Sabbath rules wholesale while going about their days.
wrote last edited by [email protected]"There'a a warmth in the house the minute you light the candles," she says, "because you're rushing, rushing, rushing, making sure all the lights are on, making sure the candles are in there, making sure all the food is cooked. ... Then you just light the candles and just like let go of everything."
This reads like the compulsion of the Godspoken on Path from Xenocide.
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need these things to adhere to their religious and cultural prohibitions
i guess orthodox jews didn’t exist until the ~60s if the tools to practice their religion weren’t available before then… i always assumed they were around much longer than that! /s
also, thanks for the explanation!
i always assumed they were around much longer than that! /s
Not even a joke, but orthodox Judaism is an invention of modern times, and ultra orthodox Judaism didn't come about until the early 1900's and was popularized until after WW2.
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Have microplastics been declared non-kosher?
They're everywhere, i'm not sure that's even physically possible.
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absolutely! it’s the “need” that i have issue with. we need to protect the environment from plastic. they don’t need to reduce their burden by washing a few dishes the next day
They don’t need to do 90% of the shit that they do, but “it’s their culture” and everything.
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See, this is how I know religious people are full of shit. "God is all-seeing, all-knowing, and all-powerful! Anyway here's one of a couple simple tricks we do to get around his rules."
It's not really about fooling god. The rules they are following amount to an ancient health and safety manual, and also employer/employee relations. Theyve gotten a little carried away over time, that's why loopholes, same as OH&S bullshit today
