There's been some friction over the past few years in the area of the Mir Yeshiva. Some have felt that the restaurants open late at night full of yeshiva bachurim is inappropriate and a bad influence in the area. They want the restaurants closed at night. The other side of it is the bachurim and the restaurants who want their night life and the booming business.
After years of threats and warnings and debate, the restaurants around the Mir are being shut down at 11pm. The order has come down from the neighborhood council. This is being enforced with a threat that the Badatz Eida hechsher will be removed from any restaurant that does not comply.
The administration of the Mir Yeshiva is playing along, or has their own agenda in putting an end to this phenomenon as well. The administration has announced that the bachurim are not allowed to be in the local shops after 11pm during the week, including Thursday nights and Motzei Shabbos - especially in the shops that have no hechsher.
To strengthen their position, the Mir further announced that they will be putting out light refreshments nightly for the boys between the hours of 11:00pm and 11:30pm.
That's some serious nightlife excitement in the Mir!
The restaurant owners are not making a public fight of this, despite this taking a bit hit on their income, and at least publicly, are expressing support for whatever decision the rabbonim come to.
source: Behadrei
without being critical of the decisions made, as it is not my place to discus that and the yeshiva has the right, or obligation, to keep their boys in line, and the neighbors deserve peace and quiet at night, I think the yeshiva solution is funny.
First of all, how long will it actually last? Will they stop putting out food after 4 nights or 7? Maybe they might make it two weeks?
Second, will the soda pop and rugelach really be enticing to the boys who until now were eating shawarma, hamburgers, shnitzel, pizza and the like?
Third, night life is about more than light refreshments, and more than about food. They go out to hang out, shoot the breeze with the friends, get into a different atmosphere. The yeshiva won't be able to replicate that, even if they put out good food and keep it going for months.
Fourth, if they cannot go to the shops right around the yeshiva and the pop and rugelach in the yeshiva dining room are not a good enough replacement, the boys will not just go to sleep, or back to the beis medrash, instead. They will look for their night life excitement elsewhere, further away from the yeshiva.
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