One last post of non-seriousness before tonight's arrival of Tisha B'Av. But the day before Tisha B'Av, the fast day during which Jews commemorate/mourn the loss of the Temple in Jerusalem (or two Temples, and/or the expulsion from Spain, or any other number of tragedies that befell the Jewish people), the JPost brings us this story of true woe: some of the bars on Rivlin Street (behind Zion Square, hence the barely acceptable holiday-related headline) are closing after serving underage drinkers.
Rehov Rivlin establishments Zolli's Pub, Nadin Pub and Kings Bar were shut down for 10 days by a court order from July 23, spokesman for Jerusalem Police Shmulik Ben-Ruby said on Wednesday.
Just a reminder, the Israeli drinking age is 18. And for those of you who have been there, Zolli's is the one that has people in the streets actively targeting young Americans, pitching them in English to come and drink with them - they have hardcore drink specials, like buying a beer and getting free tequila shots, or buying a hookah and getting free beer, things like that.
Even before these bars were serving underage kids with such transparency and frequency, downtown - especially Zion Square - has always been the place that young kids go to get drunk and dance. (Those of you who were with me on Ramah Seminar all those years ago remember what I'm talking about.) A few of my female friends have been sexually assaulted there, and you basically can't walk down that alley without seeing high school age kids putting the "high" in high school.
Every once in a while, the kids have to bust loose. I get that. And that the drinking age in Israel is 18 is probably tied to the age that most Israeli kids become adults by going to serve in the army. But underage drunken American kids in the alleys of downtown Jerusalem don't give us nachas. They give us a bad reputation. And videos like the one that got 400,000 views in one week before getting removed by YouTube and inspiring the video's creators to create the sequel. So call me a buzzkill, but I'm with the Jerusalem Police on this one.
And on that note, a meaningful Tisha B'Av to all of you.
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