In the olden days, Halachic questions were decided by people who were qualified experts in Halacha. Today they are decided by anyone with a computer....
People who have no training in paskening shylos, people who can't read a Gemara, people who are certified ignoramuses, write articles, blog, tweet, facebook etc. their opinions on Halachic matters.
Wonder of wonders.
One example is the question of printing the pictures of women in Jewish publications. It is CLEAR that there is no Halachic basis for not doing. It is extremist. Misogynistic. Debases women everywhere. A sham. As one popular lecturer on the Internet likes to say - Totally against everything the Torah stands for!!!! [Or something like that]. So we are told by pundits everywhere.
Rav Moshe Feinstein didn't have a website, twitter account or a blog ["igrosmoshe.blogspot.com" would have been a possible name]. But all would agree that he was the primary Halachist in the US in the 20th century. This is what he writes:
It is ודאי - definitely, FORBIDDEN for a man to look at a woman!!! EVEN if she is modestly dressed!!!!! When one walks down the street his eyes should be DOWN.
If he HAS to then he may. But it should be avoided if possible.
That is his unequivocal psak.
If a person wants to find other opinions - it is a free country. But it is important to know that THE Posek Hador in America says that a male may not look at a female unless absolutely necessary. Printing pictures in magazines or on websites doesn't count as absolutely necessary.
This is not misogynistic. If it is against anyone it is against men. It is a commentary on our almost insatiable sexual appetite and our innate shallowness. It ensures that women remain modest and are not viewed in pictures by men which often objectifies them.
One might argue that when he looks at a woman his thoughts are totally clean. That may be true. However, many men look at women and their thoughts aren't so pure. And even if one doesn't literally imagine himself in bed with the women, any healthy heterosexual male knows that the amount of pleasure he has when looking at an attractive woman far outweighs the pleasure he has when looking at a good looking male or a pretty flower. The very pleasure which on the surface is not of a sexual nature is in itself impure. One should be attracted to one's wife and one's wife only. It takes a guy one fifth of a second to see and be attracted to a woman [that is what research says]. If a guy says that he is not attracted to ANY pretty woman he sees then he is either blind, lying or a homosexual.
An additional problem is that after seeing an attractive women she STICKS in the man's mind - sometimes for a long time afterward. It is our nature.
Every day we need to work on our Kedusha both in סור מרע and עשה טוב. The סור מרע is being careful where we go and what we see both on our devices and in real life. עשה טוב is to learn mussar and chassidus about עניני קדושה and to be involved in Torah generally. As the Rambam writes in his immortal words [Issurei Biah 22-21]:
וְכֵן יִנְהֹג לְהִתְרַחֵק מִן הַשְּׂחוֹק וּמִן הַשִּׁכְרוּת וּמִדִּבְרֵי עֲגָבִים שֶׁאֵלּוּ גּוֹרְמִין גְּדוֹלִים וְהֵם מַעֲלוֹת שֶׁל עֲרָיוֹת. וְלֹא יֵשֵׁב בְּלֹא אִשָּׁה שֶׁמִּנְהָג זֶה גּוֹרֵם לְטָהֳרָה יְתֵרָה. גְּדוֹלָה מִכָּל זֹאת אָמְרוּ יַפְנֶה עַצְמוֹ וּמַחֲשַׁבְתּוֹ לְדִבְרֵי תּוֹרָה וְיַרְחִיב דַּעְתּוֹ בַּחָכְמָה שֶׁאֵין מַחְשֶׁבֶת עֲרָיוֹת מִתְגַּבֶּרֶת אֶלָּא בְּלֵב פָּנוּי מִן הַחָכְמָה. וּבַחָכְמָה הוּא אוֹמֵר (משלי ה יט) "אַיֶּלֶת אֲהָבִים וְיַעֲלַת חֵן דַּדֶּיהָ יְרַוֵּךָ בְכָל עֵת בְּאַהֲבָתָהּ תִּשְׁגֶּה תָמִיד":
Similarly, a person should distance himself from levity, intoxication, and flirtation, for they are great triggers and steps [leading] to forbidden relations. A man should not live without a wife, for this practice leads to great purity.48 And [our Sages gave] even greater [advice], saying: "A person should always turn himself and his thoughts to the words of the Torah and expand his knowledge in wisdom, for the thoughts of forbidden relations grow strong solely in a heart which is empty of wisdom." And in [Solomon's words of] wisdom [Proverbs 5:19], it is written: "........ You shall be obsessed with her love."
