tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2096776708897685863.post4013956073415953904..comments2024-02-23T04:39:49.329-05:00Comments on Conversations in Klal: Defining Hiddur MitzvahProfKhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17954446826821665314noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2096776708897685863.post-48643860508654360162009-10-11T10:32:28.896-04:002009-10-11T10:32:28.896-04:00I found that here in Israel- you can get such a de...I found that here in Israel- you can get such a deal from the shuk, but if you want to be picky- for example, picking out your hadassim individually by opening packages, or getting the 'Deri' lulavim, sometimes more money has to be spent. Sometimes there is truly a worthwhile value to what they charge. (I'm not saying extravagant charges though.)nmf #7https://www.blogger.com/profile/02930286227301917330noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2096776708897685863.post-65771293582498172112009-10-08T14:15:12.709-04:002009-10-08T14:15:12.709-04:00It's not so much a question of honesty Harry-e...It's not so much a question of honesty Harry-er as it is of price gouging. Two different sellers of esrogim with the same hechsher can be selling those esrogim for hundreds of dollars difference in price.<br /><br />It bothers me that the price gouging comes attached to something that is a mitzvah. If you want to hike up the price of a suit or a pair of shoes I can choose to buy or not to buy. I have no Jewish attachment to the items. But to put the price tag on a lulav and esrog in the multi-hundred range, when you know that some people are going to take the idea of hiddur mitzvah very seriously is dead wrong.Shimonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2096776708897685863.post-10597754348479814882009-10-07T15:39:58.739-04:002009-10-07T15:39:58.739-04:00The hechsherim on esrogim very often come from dif...The hechsherim on esrogim very often come from different orchards which have different yichus. by yichus it means that the esrog tree in question had never been grafted. there are in fact not many orchards which can claim this and the price reflects it.<br /><br />If a person does not feel the need to purchase from a tree which hasn't been grafted for many generations of this tree's ancestors, one can find many esrogim at reasonable prices if one is an astute buyer. <br /><br />If you pick up an esrog and it says 'Aleph' on it, and its not, go onto the next one, or alert the seller. I have seen many sellers change the rating based on a customers complaint. Obviously there may be dishonest ones or price gougers, but there are honest jews in the worldharry-er than them allhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07957506180776134351noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2096776708897685863.post-68971162612213091432009-10-07T13:43:42.288-04:002009-10-07T13:43:42.288-04:00We spent the first few years we were married way o...We spent the first few years we were married way out of town in the heartland. We were a very small kehila. We had placed an order for lulavim and etrogim from NY and the order came in wrong, with less than 1/3 of the lulavim arriving. We all pooled the lulavim and arranged schedules so that everyone could bentsch lulav and esrog. Know what? It worked out just fine. JS is right that it didn't used to be the custom that everyone had their own lulav and esrog. Sometimes a shul would buy a few and all the members would come to use them. Why are we so quick to spend megabucks today?Tamarnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2096776708897685863.post-49192143220318781842009-10-07T13:10:08.720-04:002009-10-07T13:10:08.720-04:00Retailers figured out a long time ago that you can...Retailers figured out a long time ago that you can slap the label "hidur mitzvah" on something and jack up the price to your heart's content.<br /><br />There is absolutely no discernible difference in the arba minim sets. It's completely subjective. You're still performing a mitzvah regardless of what set you're using. It's almost like one saying it's a hidur mitzvah to only give tzedaka with brand new, crisp bills as opposed to old, crumpled bills.<br /><br />No one will admit it, but arba minim sets nowadays are nothing more than guys bragging "My lulav is bigger than your lulav." It's a real embarrassment how much money is wasted on this shtus instead of people giving to tzedaka or paying down their own bills (or, heck, accepting less tuition assistance).<br /><br />Fact is, people went for years with sharing the few arba minim sets that could be had in the town - just HAVING a set was a hidur. Now, even the cheapest, "ugliest" set is better than anything available just a few short decades ago.JSnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2096776708897685863.post-46476558038498151632009-10-07T12:56:37.863-04:002009-10-07T12:56:37.863-04:00If you are ready to spend $100, an option for a re...If you are ready to spend $100, an option for a real hiddur mitzvah (actually at least 2 of them) would be to buy the arba minim for $20 and donate the other $80 to tzedaka!<br /><br />MarkAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2096776708897685863.post-4505502879181306292009-10-07T08:43:28.770-04:002009-10-07T08:43:28.770-04:00$11?!!!!! I saw some sets for $25 but that price i...$11?!!!!! I saw some sets for $25 but that price is unbelievable. How does he get them so low?Kaylanoreply@blogger.com