A big-picture view of modern hareidi communities

R' Ahron Lopiansky on the growing pains of the American Jewish community at large, and the idea of kehilla:

Are We a Klal?

Many of the writers in this forum (and possibly readers) grew up in the post-war years in America. The Charedi community was miniscule and insignificant, its continuity uncertain. The stature and vision of a handful of great men, the tenacious and heroic efforts of a few capable askanim, and an extraordinary amount of siyata d’shmaya produced in half a century an incredible tzibbur. It would seem to us that we are in for a whopping kal v’chomer: if we could do it when the cards were stacked against us, certainly we can do it today when we have such incredible resources and such a wonderful track record.

But the reasoning is as flawed as that of the fellow who tried to turn his mom and pop outfit into a national corporation....