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From: samet@sfmag.UUCP (A.I.Samet)
Newsgroups: net.religion.jewish
Subject: Re: tolerance
Message-ID: <499@sfmag.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 22-Feb-85 14:29:34 EST
Article-I.D.: sfmag.499
Posted: Fri Feb 22 14:29:34 1985
Date-Received: Tue, 26-Feb-85 08:09:35 EST
References: <873@eisx.UUCP> <293@mhuxi.UUCP>
Organization: AT&T Bell Laboratories, Summit, NJ
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> [] 
> > The soldier
> > may carry his gun on Shabbat but he should also avoid the neighborhoods
> > inhabited by those who would be offended by his driving down the street.
> > Sam Saal ..!{ihnp4}!eisx!sms
> 
> Does this mean that the soldier should only guard non-shomer shabbos
> neighborhoods?  My opinion is that anyone should be offended by a soldier
> carrying a gun at anytime and any place, but sometimes self defense
> against terrorists and hostile neighbors is needed.   

I believe that Torah    authorities find  little  or no  halachic
problem  for  a  soldier on duty carrying his gun. Also, soldiers
don't  get   stationed   in   neighborhoods.    More   typically,
neighborhoods have their own mishmar ezrachi, a voluntary defense
arrangement. There are civil guards  stationed with guns  at  the
Western  Wall  (sometimes  with  beards and yarmulkas) and I have
never  heard  about  complaints.   In  practice,   soldiers   are
generally  respectul,  and  virtually  no one really gets uptight
about them.

On the other hand,  the status quo is to avoid  OFFICIAL  Sabbath
desecration  by  the  government or its representatives. Menachem
Begin felt  strongly  about  this.   Thus,  while  what  he  does
privately  is  not  clear, he considered it incompatible with his
office, or for the State, to openly desecrate  Shabbos,  and  was
willing  to  walk  at  Sadat's funeral. Similarly, he ate no meat
during his visit to Washington during the nine  days.    Whatever
his inner beliefs, he impresses me as a mensche.

It's sad that people with axes to grind regard such sensitivity as
insensitivity to themselves or submission to coercian.

					Yitzchok Samet