Ep 93Clappy's Rants: The Frum Lifestyle Isn't Sustainable
Poor families are spending $10,000 on bas mitzvahs, and it has to end today
Bas mitzvahs should be $300.
Israel "Clappy" Clapman
Clappy's Rants: The Frum Lifestyle Isn't Sustainable
The lifestyles we're living today are not sustainable and something drastic has to happen and really quickly.
More moments · 6
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Quotes
“Today anybody with 50 cents is flashing money.”
“If you don't go to Florida, you're a nebbach case, a rachmanus case.”
“We brought it upon ourselves and we're the only ones that can stop it.”
“Our kids want our love and attention. They don't need first class to Miami.”
“Our children's tuition comes way before jewelry, comes before a fancy car.”
“The fastest way to feel wealthier isn't to earn more, it's to need less.”
“Bas mitzvahs should be $300.”
Takeaways
- 1 Clappy (Yisroel Clapman) grew up in Crown Heights, the son of a sofer, in a lower-middle-income home where money was never discussed and nothing felt lacking.
- 2 Wealthy people used to live simply and give tzedakah. Today spending is visible everywhere, and middle-income families spend far beyond their means to keep up.
- 3 He believes most frum families are living in debt. Florida for yeshiva week, summer homes and Pesach programs have turned into status symbols.
- 4 Summer bungalows used to put the wealthy and the poor in the same simple conditions. They're now $300,000-600,000 homes with HOA fees and pricey day camps.
- 5 Many Pesach-program guests don't pay their own way: grandparents pay for whole families, and about 200 staff per 1,000 guests get discounts. Things are not always what they seem.
- 6 Prices keep climbing: Chanukah doughnuts went from three for a dollar to $10 at the top end.
- 7 A 9-to-5 salary has limits. He works a full-time sales job and runs a Judaica, art and antiques business on the side, with over 90% repeat customers.
- 8 Side-hustle ideas he mentions: baked goods and platters, DJing and photography, simple party planning, meat boards, power washing, and one specialty item sold with low overhead.
- 9 On tuition: a community school that raises from everyone should accept every child, and every family should pay what it can afford. Very expensive schools are a luxury, not an obligation.
- 10 He praises Satmar for keeping tuition and camp affordable through community support.
- 11 Host's note: his views are his own and don't necessarily reflect the podcast's.
- 12 He argues bas mitzvahs never existed historically and some families now spend $10,000 to $100,000 on them. His view: 'Bas mitzvahs should be $300' - friends, pizza on motzei Shabbos and an arts and crafts project.