These days we all chuckle at the complete lack of shame on the part of politicians, who are doing exactly what they screamed and protested against when they were in a different position. What didn't they say about Norwegian law, about appointing ministers and deputy ministers for trivial matters, about a bloated government, about managing the coronavirus – and now they are doing all of this on a much larger scale.
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Unfortunately, we have become accustomed to a culture of lies, in which arguments and justifications are thrown into the air not out of practical motives, but for various political needs.
But it is at least worth remembering this, so as not to be misled by all sorts of empty arguments, even if they are repeated over and over again and the media echoes them. It is important to remember the position and the real interest behind things.
Look for the interest
Now the issue of kashrut has come up on the agenda. Behind all the beautiful slogans about 'privatization', 'efficiency' and 'discounting' stands one interest - to weaken the power of the Rabbinate as the central body overseeing religious affairs.
This is the common interest of certain politicians, secular media outlets, Reform and Conservative organizations, and also of business owners who seek an easy life, without a real commitment to kashrut requirements.
The media is happy to give a free hand to restaurant and food factory owners who shed crocodile tears over kashrut requirements. If a specific failure is found somewhere, they will brandish it as representing the entire kashrut system.
And that there are no failures in the health care, security, banking, etc. systems? And that this is a reason to discredit the entire system?
For every failure in the kashrut system, dozens of cases can be cited in which business owners have tried to deceive the supervisors and bring in non-kosher products. Of course, there are honest and decent business owners, but alongside them there are quite a few who are driven by greed. They try to sneak in pig meat or other non-kosher products in order to increase their profits.
It is clear that they really want to weaken supervision, so that they can celebrate as they wish and still flaunt the "kosher" sign.
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Of course, there is much to streamline and improve in the kashrut system, but this cannot be done by weakening the system and decentralizing its powers to entities whose quality of work is uncertain. Kashrut is a very complex profession, and it requires extensive and up-to-date knowledge and the ability to maintain strict control. It is not possible to open such a serious field to any whim.
misleading
Yes, kosher costs money. It is much more expensive and difficult to grow insect-free leafy vegetables. With fancy slaughtering, the rate of spoilage is greater. Inspection systems involve costs. Kosher raw materials are often more expensive. Every household that keeps kosher knows this.
But there is a price to pay for the fee. The additional cost ensures that the food that comes to our mouths is kosher. Still, these are negligible costs within the overall expenses of the business.
The vast public that consumes kosher food will not be able to be familiar with the quality of supervision and oversight by all sorts of bodies that will be established as a result of the planned reform. They will believe that the kosher seal does indeed guarantee that the food is kosher, and will not know that they are actually being deceived. This destruction must be prevented.
