[Avodah] Glass

[Zev Sero]

Shoshana L. Boublil wrote on Areivim:

> What's wrong with buying glass from a goy?  Morally? - nothing. Torah? - 
> nothing. So why make it more difficult to buy glass from a goy by 
> demanding halachically that you have to immerse the keilim (Gezeirat 
> Tu'ma on Zechuchit)?
> 
> We all know the answer - economy.  The Jewish glassmaker's union went to 
> the rabbis and complained that the new imports from (well it wasn't 
> China back then) were damaging their businesses and they couldn't make a 
> living.  So the rabbis Gazru Tu'ma and apparently this was sufficient to 
> help them.

Huh?  First of all, tevilat kelim and tum'ah are two unrelated things.

If tevilat kelim is derabbanan then glass was always included, and if
it's de'oraita then the rabbanan added glass because it can be melted
and reconstituted like metal.

As for the gezera derabbanan that glass kelim can be mekabel tum'ah,
the gemara (Shabbat 15b) says the reason is because it's made from
sand like ceramics.  I can't find any mention of an economic reason
for the gezera.


-- 
Zev Sero               Something has gone seriously awry with this Court's
zev at sero.name          interpretation of the Constitution.
                      	                          - Clarence Thomas