Jungle Warfare
With the fierce aggressiveness of a monster in the jungle, do everything you can to protect the most precious gift Hashem gives you: Your family.
What this internet company did is outright illegal.
About 30 times a day, my browser shows me pop up ads. Even when I am not online, at the bottom right corner of my screen a small box will spontaneously appear asking me if I tried the latest version of some video game. For months they were harmless. Then came the enemy.
Balak’s army of Moabite women began to invade my personal computer. One by one, they all invited me to click on the box for more. It got worse.
Women began to appear with their name, distance from my home, and more if I would click this one time. I have never been on any site where I had to confirm that I am over 18 years old. I could have been a child and the browser would not have known the difference.
There is no such thing as a safe space on your computer.
It wasn’t coming from some third-rate ad company located in central Pakistan. The company posting these ads is the largest internet browser on earth.
What Happens Next Is Scary
After a succession of such “invitations,” I tried to disable this filth. I went so far as to disable all images on my browser. The browser is slippery as a snake. When it detected that I tried multiple times to disable the ads, the browser kept sending them, but without the suggestive ads.
They are force–feeding us poison.
The images burned into my brain. As it stewed in my gray matter, I could feel the demons emerge. After over ten years, I was reminded of how they do what they do.
Here are some of the things that happened:
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Fulfilling this lust became the top priority for me. Even if I was fighting to suppress the desire, it was unconsciously guiding every decision I made.
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My family and work responsibilities began to feel like a huge annoyance.
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I became resentful towards my wife. I almost snapped at her for asking me to help watch the kids while she washed the dishes.
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The prospect of reciting the afternoon prayers felt like a massive weight on my shoulders.
I hadn’t felt this way since I escaped.
Discovering the Naked Truth about Filth
Hashem commands us to recite the Shema when we get assaulted by immoral thoughts. A good Daf Yomi Shiur is like acid on your mind; it can wipe out the corroded parts.
Following the King’s orders, the demons left as quickly as they came. This entire episode left me with a terrifying thought:
What about the people in this world who don’t disable the images?
Their demons stay. They take over. They take control of your spirit, your mind, and your decisions. Here are some of the consequences:
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We waste untold amounts of money and time on physical appetites. It comes at the expense of everything else.
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Our children serve as constant reminders that we cannot fill our fantasies. We get blinded from seeing them as blessings and perceive them as burdens.
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Our wife is the ultimate reminder that we can NEVER have this. Every time the images appear and you want it, you resent her for the holy commitment you made. She doesn’t even know why.
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Every mitzvah is an act that tears you away from this intoxicating world. On a very real level, you perform them begrudgingly. It’s not because you don’t want to, G-d forbid. It’s because you have been brainwashed into preferring the other option to holiness.
The internet is a jungle filled with hi-tech monsters that do anything illegal, unethical, or downright evil to take your money. Their images serve as warning signs for what lies ahead if we keep going.
Don’t rely on anyone but Hashem to keep you safe. Get ad blockers. Use filters. If you see anything suspect, contact a Kosher Internet group on how to block it.
Assume your children know how to use the computer better than you. Assume that anything you see, they will eventually see.
With the fierce aggressiveness of a monster in the jungle, do everything you can to protect the most precious gift Hashem gives you:
Your family.
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David Ben Horin is the writer and trader for Endurance Investing & Trading Daily. He lives in the Jezreel Valley with his wife and children, lots of Jews, Arabs, and the occasional shepherd.
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