Sunday, October 11, 2026
Russia will supply US and global markets with diesel, Trump says
https://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/6139544-trump-putin-us-diesel-supply-high-costs/
Ukrainian President Voldoymyr Zelensky rejected the U.S. move on Friday and said Ukrainian strikes are retaliation for Russia’s targeting of Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, in particular electrical grids, depriving people of light, heat and water.
The Treasury Department said Friday that it would be lifting sanctions on Russian diesel to allow the fuel into the global marketplace. A few weeks ago, Trump signed a bill into law that authorized further sanctions on Russia.
“There must be support for Ukraine in protecting lives, and there must be pressure on Russia for its war. And today, there was a conversation between the leaders of America and Russia. A conversation that leads to something different,” he posted on X.
Commentary Op-ed Republicans are victims of a discredited economic ideology
https://www.brookings.edu/articles/republicans-are-victims-of-a-discredited-economic-ideology/
Sometimes people do inhumane things. The Senate health care bill is a case in point. It denies health care to a large group of poor, disabled, and elderly Americans to give a big tax cut to a small group of very wealthy people.
But are Senate Republicans evil people? Do they lack a moral compass? I don’t think so. I think they are simply victims of a once-successful but now discredited economic ideology. That ideology says tax cuts for the rich will create jobs for the middle class. It says cutting benefits, including health benefits, for the poor will cause them to work harder and behave more responsibly. Granted there is a grain of truth in these propositions but they have now become a cartoon of their once-legitimate, Chicago-school ancestors.
Republicans have become trapped in their own rhetoric, crafted during years of being in opposition. As Ross Douthat noted in a recent New York Times column, drawing on new analysis in a report by Lee Drutman, that rhetoric is now well to the right of the beliefs held by the broader Republican electorate. Republican leaders have failed to recognize the fact that the economic views of those who voted Republican in 2016 “lean only slightly to the right.” Republicans could have used the Trump election to effect a political realignment—one that would have combined a more moderate set of economic policies than the Republican elite currently supports with a more moderate set of cultural positions than those espoused by leading Democrats.
CMV:Republicans have never passed a law that benefited the middle and/or lower class that did not favor the elite wealthy.
https://www.reddit.com/r/changemyview/comments/dxk0oa/cmvrepublicans_have_never_passed_a_law_that/
So change my mind. Tell me any law or set of laws the Republicans ever passed into law that favored the middle class over the wealthy class. Because in my 58 years, it's never happened that I know of.
GOP lawmakers reject U.S.-Russia diesel deal, Trump’s Zelensky comments
https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/6140871-republicans-oppose-trump-russian-diesel-deal/
Several Republicans voiced objections to the Trump administration Russian diesel deal and President Trump’s suggestion that Ukraine needed a new leader.
Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas), former Chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, stated he was “concerned the lifting of sanctions on Russian oil will only fund the Kremlin’s war machine—emboldening more violence and destruction, as we have seen in recent days.”
He added that Congress already passed the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act which “gave the president significant authorities and leverage against China and Russia to bring Putin’s war to an end with a negotiated settlement.”
Trump can’t stop talking about vomit and Texas barbecue
https://www.washingtonpost.com/style/2026/10/10/trump-cant-stop-talking-about-vomit-texas-barbecue/
Republicans need President Donald Trump to use his swagger to hype up embattled U.S. Senate candidate Ken Paxton. He keeps talking about barf.
This year’s midterm mudslinging has largely focused on substantive topics such as corruption and affordability. When it comes to the U.S. Senate race in Texas, however, President Donald Trump has an additional issue he’d like the electorate to consider: vomit.
Crowds at the campaign stops typically laugh intermittently when Trump talks about imagined vomit. But all of Trump’s retching rhetoric offended one Texas GOP operative’s Southern sensibilities.
LevinAt11: Chillul HaShem &Elections
תכנית ראדיו רב יהודה לעוין, שליט"א, ערב שבת פרשת בראשית, תשפ"ז~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~Tefillah request, for refuah shelaima of:1. Rav Yehuda ben Masha HaLevi (Levin);2. Shimon ben Masha;3. Lea bas Freeda;4. Reuven ben Chava;5. Yechezkel ben Feiga Zlota;6. Neryah Dov ben Chana (Leiter).~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~Topics Included:~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~1. Parsha-based insights into the severity of murder (4:25, כי הרגו קין; also: the Gemara Rosh HaShana 3a regarding possible meanings of כי). This relates to the NY elections being held in wake of the (preventable) passage of Physician-Facilitated Murder.
• The Torah's universal vision for all Mankind (vs. the self-serving tunnel-vision of some faux* Jewish leadership) is referred to at the beginning of the Haftarah of Beraishis (not read this year due to מחר חודש).
* See last week's program, calling out artificial Jewish leadership - not despite the need to respect authentic Torah authority -- but specifically because of it.
2. Elections and massive, public Chillul HaShem - see letter copied below;
• If any candidates ask for your support - ask them what they've done to address the foundational moral threats we face (see letter below).
https://nyassembly.gov/leg/?
~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~• Important News: How inexpensive it is to save girls from the Female IDF Draft (Giyus Banos)~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~- From Chomosayich, an established volunteer women's organization in Israel, which has saved and assisted thousands of girls from the ongoing IDF escalationsagainst "easy-target" girls, over the years. Q) How far can your donation go in saving girls from falling into the Israeli Army?In other words, for how little can you save one neshomoh?A) FACT: For as little as TEN DOLLARS YOU CAN SAVE A TEENAGE GIRL FROM BEING DRAFTED INTO THE EXPLOITIVE ARMY!FACT: GIRLS LOCATED FURTHER AWAY FROM CHAREIDI CENTERS CAN BE SAVED FOR A MERE 15 DOLLARS.The cost of saving these neshomos is, in many cases, so low that it's scandalous that we're not seeing far more donations. Inexcusably, most of the tzibbur is simply being kept in the dark.
However, it's also because many of those "Shaineh Yidden" who do hear about this crisis, and the work being done to address it, fail to properly spread the word. Too many of us are focused on issues far less important, and/or too timid to be seen as "controversial."
••• See the half-page ad in the new Upstate Jewish Business Directory. •••Call Today.~~~~ ~~~~
https://www.chotam.org.il/
(* This very publication is a stinging indictment of the Israeli Army Draft Office, and the antireligious Establishment behind its escalating crusade to rob Torah-observant / traditional girls of their legal entitlement to a religious exemption from military service. The very need to publish such a guide speaks volumes of the danger posed to the next generation of Jewish mothers by "fellow Jews." The professional, psychological-warfare techniques that these 16- and 17-year-old girls need to be trained to defend against, all alone - without even legal counsel or a family member - are almost as outrageous as they are anti-Torah. The institutionalization of such techniques indicate how intent the Israeli military is on drafting increasing numbers of Torah-observant girls, and to what depths they're willing to stoop to do so.)
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A Good Shabbos to our supporters and partners, and wishes for a good, sweet, productive and uplifting year.
Rabbi Noson Shmuel Leiter,
Executive Director,
Help Rescue Our Children
Email: torahjewsfordecency@
gmail.com Direct: 771.215.8892
Israeli Helpline: 03.721.3337
Heard weekly on New Jersey's WSNR Radio 620AM, co-hosting the renowned Levin At Eleven program, every Thursday evening, 11pm to midnight (ET).
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ערב שבת, הושענא רבה, תשפ"ז
Previous week's program:ערב סוכות:Writeup and supplemental material:~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~Broadcast of preceding week, Shabbos Shuva: פרשת האזינוWrite-up:~~~ ~~~Previous week's broadcast:ערב ר"ה...An initial write-up and brief overview, w/ supplemental info appears here:~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~Preceding week's broadcast: נצבים-וילךLinked here is the LevinAt11 radio broadcast of Sept. 3, '26.*An initial write-up and brief analysis/ overview appears here:Sept. 17:~~~~~~~~~~~~~PS: A published version of last week's letter, Living the Legacy of the Chofetz Chaim, appears (edited) in the current MonseyMevaser.com p.14, 16.----------
Broadcast weekly over: Davidzon Radio: davidzonradio.com (718) 303-8000Sept. 24:~~~Circulated recently:יג תשרי, תהא שנת פדיון זוכותA simple עצה for those seeking גדרי צניעות in electronic communicationWhen communicating electronically with the opposite gender, when practical, one may prefer to not respond immediately, or to at least send the response on a timed-delay, as in the "schedule send" option for emails.This delay reduces the sense of a live-time interaction. The recipient then may feel a bit more like they're responding to the חפצא (object) of the email communication, rather than to the גברא (person) sending it.When not possible to delay in responding, even a momentary delay, when done as a geder, may help; that too can help maintain a sense of awareness. (Such brief delays are often beneficial in any case, to avoid errors and impulsive reactions.)Please feel free to share this.This is being disseminated for the zechus of all the Bnos Yisroel in Israel currently braving threats of arrest and legal pursuit, over their heroic refusal to submit to Army Draft Office orders to appear at the Draft Office - in the process of seeking a religious exemption (or otherwise). Likewise, circulated for the merit of those girls silently enduring the indignities of arrest, military tribunal, and incarceration at the hands of the Israeli military police, court and prison system.May their collective mesiras nefesh for Kedusha and Tzniyusserve to protect Klal Yisroel from all of our enemies - those threatening us from within and without - in ruchniyus and gashmiyus. To share in helping assist and rescue such girls, please partner with the established Chomosayich women's volunteer organization. They're silently bearing the burden incumbent on us all. To donate from the USA, CALL OR TEXT: (347) 661-0172. Please mention where you saw their number.###TTI~~~~Relevant to Doctor-"Assisted Suicide" legislation:~~~~~
October 1 Link:
Rabbi Noson Shmuel Leiter,
Executive Director,
Help Rescue Our Children
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Trump says Ukraine should get a new leader as he spars with Zelensky over US-Russia diesel deal
“You know what I suggest? I suggest they get a new leader who can make a deal because he could have made many deals and for some reason, he never does,” Trump told reporters at the White House.
Zelensky, meanwhile, has slammed the agreement between the US and Russia, casting the new deal as an “investment in a war that must be ended, not prolonged.”
The back-and-forth between the leaders, who have long had a tumultuous relationship, came after Trump said Friday that he secured a deal from his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, to supply markets with Russian diesel fuel as he works to bring down energy costs ahead of the midterm elections. Ukraine’s continued refinery attacks were part of what led Trump to strike the deal, according to the US official.
The president went on to slam Zelensky for striking Russian refineries, claiming the Ukrainian president “wants to make problems for the world.”
‘Not great, not terrible’: Why nobody trusts Russia to tell the truth about plague
https://www.politico.eu/article/plague-russia-laboratory-truth-trust-transparency-health-risk/
As whispers circulate of plague in faraway Siberia, it’s worth remembering that Russian obfuscation is so ingrained that it’s become a meme.
The death of a 28-year-old employee at the Irkutsk Anti-Plague Institute of Siberia and the Far East last week triggered unease across the globe due to her laboratory work — and a local Russian official linking her death to a case of plague.
Russia was quick to clamp down. Rospotrebnadzor, the country’s national public health agency, said that the employee died from “pneumonia of unknown etiology” and that no microorganisms associated with her work were identified in the patient sample.
Still, Russian health authorities placed nearly 200 people under supervision and local media reported that several hospitals were placed under quarantine. Rospotrebnadzor said Thursday these measures were taken due to “the patient's professional activities.”
Netanyahu calls Nobel laureate Navi Pillay a 'bigot' after prize win
https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-911248
Netanyahu responded to the decision by calling Pillay a “bigot” and the prize committee “misguided.”
“The Nobel Prize committee has lost its moral compass,” the Prime Minister’s Office wrote on X/Twitter. “It has awarded its highest honor to a bigot who built her career around inventing and propagating blood libels against the only Jewish state.”
Pillay’s “proudest achievement was to legitimize a corrupt prosecutor who turned to her fabrications against Israel, hoping that by joining her bigoted lynch mob, [ICC prosecutor Karim Khan] would beat a rape charge,” the post went on to say.
Nobel Prize for hypocrisy – the judge redefining genocide to target Israel
https://www.israelhayom.com/2026/10/09/nobel-peace-prize-navi-pillay-genocide-israel/
There is nothing new about the peace prize going to someone who never brokered peace, but rather wrote indictments. The Oslo committee redefined peace long ago, shifting from ending wars to documenting their crimes. In 2022, for instance, the prize went to Belarusian human rights activist Ales Bialiatski, the Russian organization "Memorial," and Ukraine's Center for Civil Liberties. The idea is sound and well-reasoned, since law and justice prevent violence, and the prize is meant to remind us that a safer world rests on strengthening international law.
But Pillay's selection isn't another step in that logic. It deals that logic a fatal blow. It is, once again, evidence of the deep anti-Israel politicization that has spread through international institutions. After the commission she chaired determined in September 2025 that Israel had committed "genocide," Pillay became the darling of prize committees, first receiving the Sydney Peace Prize, then the Olof Palme Prize in Stockholm, and now the Nobel in Oslo.
That's no coincidence. Her anti-Israel stamp of approval has become a springboard to the biggest prize of them all. A spokesman for the Nobel Committee explicitly stated that Pillay's position that Israel committed genocide was one of the reasons she was chosen to receive the prize.
Saturday, October 10, 2026
Why Are Republicans in Danger?
https://mishpacha.com/why-are-republicans-in-danger/
History has been unkind to the president’s party in midterm elections, with the party holding the White House losing Congressional seats in 19 of the past 22 contests since 1938. This year appears likely to reinforce that pattern — and, in the process, could severely undermine Donald Trump’s ability to govern, and also loosen his grip on the Republican Party during his final two years in office.
Taken together, the evidence points away from Iran or gas prices as the primary source of Republican weakness. The deeper problem is the perception that the party has failed to deliver on its domestic promises. Trump retains ardent supporters who trust his judgment on the international stage and view him as a last line of resistance against an America headed for a massive reset.
Friday, October 9, 2026
Propohets Replaced Diviners
Derashos HaRan (12) "When you come to the land which the L-rd your G-d has given you, do not learn to do according to the abominations of those nations. Let there not be found among you one who passes his son or daughter through fire, a diviner… For these nations which you shall inherit heed the soothsayers and diviners, but the L-rd your G-d has not rendered you thus… I shall raise up a prophet…" It is seen, then, that the idea of the prophet is to suppress those arts and to outdo them. And this was, indeed, effected in the beginning of the prophesying of the faithful prophet Moses. At that time, the magicians and soothsayers were humbled and suppressed. And it was a Divine stratagem to have all of this transpire in the very hotbed of necromancy Egypt, where the grandeur of his signs would be more clearly discriminated than in a land devoid of such arts. This is the intent of: "Yochni and Mamre said to Moses: 'Are you bringing straw to Ofraim, the city of straw!' He answered: 'People say: "Take greens to the place of greens."' The meaning is as follows: Yochni and Mamre assumed that these signs displayed by the faithful prophet were produced through the agency of those stratagems common to necromancy. They, therefore, took him to task for deceiving the people according to their wretched minds) in the midst of a land full of such trickery. And Moses countered: "People say: 'Take greens to the place of greens.'" That is, the excellence of one who is perfect in something cannot be recognized except in a place where that thing is present to a certain extent. By way of analogy, if one possesses the most excellent of greens, he will be more apt to sell them in a city where there is an abundance of greens and where their relative superiority would, in consequence, be more easily recognized. This was precisely Moses' situation. We find, then, that the prophet outdoes all that the diviners do, and with a greater degree of perfection. For just as the diviner foretells matters affecting the individual, so does the prophet. Therefore, when the Torah interdicted these occult arts, prophecy was provided as a replacement.