Keilar: GOP's reasons against impeachment don't hold up

He’s Israel’s ‘prince of Torah.’ But to some, he’s the king of Covid.

 https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/29/world/hes-israels-prince-of-torah-but-to-some-hes-the-king-of-covid.html

The backlash exaggerates both the rabbi’s role and that of the ultra-Orthodox in general. Ultra-Orthodox society is not monolithic, and other prominent leaders were far quicker to comply with antivirus regulations.

Ultra-Orthodox leaders say most of their followers have obeyed the rules, although their typically large families, living in tight quarters under what is now the third national lockdown, have inevitably contributed to the spread of the contagion.

Rabbi Kanievsky’s position has also been more nuanced than sometimes portrayed. But he has nonetheless contributed to one of the biggest-ever showdowns between the Israeli mainstream and the ultra-Orthodox.

Burnett: This is the kind of thinking the GOP is embracing

Why Republicans Can’t Win on QAnon-Supporting Marjorie Taylor Greene

 

https://time.com/5934133/republicans-qanon-marjorie-taylor-greene/

But now Greene is in Washington, one of 435 voting members of the U.S. House and a pin-wearing member of the Republican conference. She arrived under heightened scrutiny and has done little to calm the nerves of her fellow Republicans. She wore a “Trump Won” facemask on her first day in office, sported a “censored” mask on the day she tried to derail the counting of the Electoral College and then refused to wear one at all as she and colleagues hid from the insurrectionists who stormed the Capitol. We’ve since learned, via CNN’s reporting, that she once seemed to lend support to executing prominent Democrats before she herself was an elected official. Last night, a reporter at a town hall in Georgia tried to ask her about her past social media posts. The reporter was threatened with arrest.

 

Marjorie Taylor Greene blamed deadly forest fire on Rothschilds and space lasers

 https://www.timesofisrael.com/marjorie-taylor-greene-blamed-deadly-forest-fire-on-rothschilds-and-space-lasers/

 Multiple Democrats are seeking to expel Greene from Congress, citing her expression of conspiracy theories and past social media posts threatening violence against lawmakers. They include Representative Lois Frankel of Florida who said, “Many members of Congress are afraid to be in the building with her.” But a two-thirds majority of Congress would need to approve for that to happen.

 Republican leaders have appointed Greene to the House Education Committee.

Joe Scarborough: This Is What Republicans In The Senate Want You To Forget | Morning Joe | MSNBC

Pakistan's top court frees men convicted of kidnapping and murdering Daniel Pearl

 https://edition.cnn.com/2021/01/28/asia/daniel-pearl-pakistan-intl-hnk/index.html

Pakistan's Supreme Court has ruled that four men convicted of kidnapping and murdering American journalist Daniel Pearl should go free.

The court said the men had "suffered irreparable harm and extreme prejudice" after spending 18 years behind bars prior, and in December ordered all four to be set free, but both the Pearl family and the Pakistani authorities appealed to the country's Supreme Court, which on Thursday ruled against them.

 

 

לאחר חתונה המונית: עשרות נדבקו בקורונה

 https://www.kikar.co.il/384312.html

שבוע לאחר השמחה הגדולה בחצר חסידות באבוב בארצות הברית - בהשתתפות המונים, החלה התפרצות קורונה בקרב עשרות חסידים • הודעה דחופה נשלחה לכלל החסידים

 

Malka Leifer silent in first Melbourne court appearance on 74 charges of child sexual abuse

 https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jan/28/malka-leifer-silent-in-first-melbourne-court-appearance-on-74-charges-of-child-sexual-abuse

Malka Leifer has not applied for bail during a hearing at a Victorian court less than a day after landing in Melbourne following her extradition from Israel, and almost 13 years after she left Australia amid allegations of child sexual abuse.

Appearing before the Melbourne magistrates court via video link on Thursday morning, Leifer did not speak when asked if she could hear the magistrate, despite police confirming the technology was working.

On Wednesday, the principal of the Adass Israel School, Aaron Strasser, announced it would offer an evening of counselling to current and former students, parents and staff, while warning the community not to make any comments to journalists in light of the significant media attention the case has drawn.

“We recognise that Mrs Leifer’s presence in Australia may evoke a range of reactions for our school community, including our staff, students and parent body, and you may be asked questions about the matter in the coming days,” he said.

“We want to assure you that Adass Israel School fully supports the legal process in place and will do all that is requested by the authorities to assist in the processing of this case,” Strasser said.

US suspends $23 billion sale of F-35s to UAE that followed Abraham Accords

 https://www.timesofisrael.com/us-puts-hold-on-sale-of-f-35s-to-uae-that-followed-abraham-accords/

The Biden administration has put a temporary hold on several major foreign arms sales initiated by former US president Donald Trump, including the deal to provide 50 F-35 advanced fighter jets to the United Arab Emirates, which was fast-tracked by Washington after Abu Dhabi agreed to normalize relations with Israel. In addition to the massive $23 billion transfer of stealth F-35 fighters to the United Arab Emirates, another deal being paused is the planned major sale of munitions to Saudi Arabia. Both sales were harshly criticized by Democrats in Congress. 

 

Enfeebled and enraged, Haredi society feels forsaken on all sides

 https://www.timesofisrael.com/enfeebled-and-enraged-haredi-society-feels-forsaken-on-all-sides/

Monday afternoon in the Knesset. MK Moshe Gafni of United Torah Judaism heads to the dais to speak about a bill advancing through parliament that will allow police to slap steep fines on schools that violate virus restrictions and even to close them by force.

He’s visibly angry; his comments are short and to the point. 

“You’re only bringing this bill to vilify the Haredi public!” he declares.

Then he adds, in comments that would later go viral on Israeli social media, “It’s not our fault! You, who sent us to live in such crowded conditions, it’s your fault!”

 

 

Yulia Navalnaya's husband was poisoned and detained. Now she is piling pressure on Vladimir Putin

 https://edition.cnn.com/2021/01/27/europe/who-is-yulia-navalnaya-intl/index.html

But in late August, her husband was poisoned with nerve agent Novichok. As he lay comatose in a clinic in Omsk, Navalnaya suddenly stepped into the center stage of a battle with the Russian state -- and her image of a stoic, calm, and collected woman became a story in its own.

IDF Persecuting Epileptic Religious Ethiopian Girl

BS"D

URGENT -- PIDYON SHVUYIM:

Reported Israeli Army Persecution of an Epileptic Religious Ethiopian Girl 

 בס"ד

13 Shvat, 5780 °°  Parshas Beshalach  °° Jan. 26, '21

By Binyomin Feinberg

Our readers may have seen our recent post about the plight of a religious girl recently imprisoned in Military Prison over her refusal to submit to the Israeli Army female draft (http://daattorah.blogspot.com/2021/01/BSD-is-israel-asking-for-yet-more.html). B"H, she obtained military draft exemption and was released shortly after that post.  However, today, we've received credible information that, right now, a mitzvah-observant, 24 year-old young woman with epilepsy is suffering in Military Prison Six, in Northern Israel, for her refusal to submit to the female military draft. Tadalah bas Mantjavush hails from a religious Ethiopian Jewish family in central Israel. She was recently imprisoned for her steadfast refusal to compromise her Jewish faith or her personal purity.

About six years ago, shortly after being drafted into the IDF, Tadalah fled the promiscuous Army environment, after witnessing  first-hand the exploitive Army hefkeirus, which, many argue, renders the Army wholly unfit for any woman. Just recently, Tadalah was caught by the government in the course of an unrelated interaction with a law enforcement officer. After identifying her, they flagged her for being absent from the Army, for a period of approximately six years.

The Israeli government ensures that religious objectors suffer deprivation and indignities in Military Prison. What compounds the difficulty for Tadalah is that she reportedly has epilepsy, which is potentially life-threatening.  Thus she needs constant supervision - not reliably being provided in jail.  Consequently, this is piku'ach nefesh, even more so than the average case of girls incarcerated in Military Prison.

Why the formidable Israeli military needs an epileptic soldier remains somewhat of a mystery.  This case  is also reminiscent of the past (antireligious) persecution of individual girls and women, which, throughout history, has a demonstrated capacity to bring on awesome Divine Retribution. For example, the Pirkei DeRebbi Eliezer, ch. 48, relates how the Egyptian persecution of one Jewish mother triggered the downfall of the mighty Egyptian empire via the Exodus (quoted by Rav Meshulum Dovid Soloveichik Shlit"a, Droshos, end; cf. Radal ibid., 93, 99).

Tadalah faces a hearing tommorow, Wednesday Jan. 27, reliant on a government lawyer. If, Chas VeSholom, her case doesn't fare well, she could be facing grueling months in Military Prison  for her "absence" from the Army.

Tadalah is just one of multiple religious Ethiopian girls imprisoned in recent months and years over their principled resistance to the military draft. Another heartbreaking case we covered in The Jewish Press and online is that of Ziva bas Mazal M., https://daattorah.blogspot.com/2020/01/religious-persecution-of-ethiopian-girl.html,  https://daattorah.blogspot.com/2019/10/racial-profiling-or-pure-antireligious.html,  https://daattorah.blogspot.com/2019/10/making-racism-great-again.html.

The antireligious secularist Israeli Establishment has exhibited a  penchant for racism against Ethiopian Jews - and other Jews of color - commensurate with it's well-demonstrated anti-Torah, anti-Jewish animus. Ethiopian Jews suffer incarceration in Israeli Military Prison in disproportionate numbers. Because they are naturally refined, they don't take well to the very un-Jewish, coarse mistreatment rampant in the Army. Many even commit suicide, R"L, under the abusive mistreatment they endure under the pervasive secularist military regimen.

»» The tzibbur is requested to please take a few seconds to daven for Tadalah bas Mantjavush.

»» For more information, please text or call  845.642.1679.  

»» A 24-hour Israeli Hotline for any female, independent of religious background, who encounters problems with the Draft Offices, or who has encountered sexual mistreatment in or by the Israeli Army, is 03.721.3337.

~~~~~

"... And if someone, like Pinchos, is one among a multitude, and every man is against him when he dares to speak out for truth and to fight for the Law -- the more lonely his stand, the greater the number of his adversaries, the more powerful is his word, the mightier his deed."

--  Rav Shamshon Raphael Hirsch OB"M (1808-1888), (in "Judaism Eternal," vol. 2, p. 293)

Rioters are bums (full text)

 

Rioters are bums - Rav Chaim Kanievsky

 

Rioters are bums

 

ט"ו בשבט הגיע: כך תמנעו מאכילת תולעים

 https://www.kikar.co.il/384141.html

 מנהג ישראל בט"ו בשבט, ראש השנה לאילנות, שיחול מחר - יום רביעי, בערב, לאכול פירות שנשתבחה בהם ארץ ישראל, ורובנו אוכלים פירות יבשים; כיצד נזהה אם הפרי נגוע ואיך נמנע מאכילת תולעים?!

Increased child infection rates cast doubt on school reopenings

 https://www.timesofisrael.com/increased-child-infection-rates-cast-doubt-on-school-reopenings/

 According to figures presented by Gallant this week during a meeting with local government heads on the potential reopening of the education system, 54% of the students diagnosed with the coronavirus are ultra-Orthodox.

Malka Leifer, alleged sexual predator, finally extradited to Australia

 https://www.jpost.com/opinion/malka-leifer-alleged-sexual-predator-finally-extradited-to-australia-656672

 Extradited. That is what the case was about, not convicting her of crimes or litigating her actual case, just a routine extradition to Australia where she is wanted on 74 counts of sexual abuse against minors.

Why do I have to be scared to publish this?

 https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/yesterdays-violent-response-to-covid-enforcement/

And I ask, who are we fooling? Yes, of course, the average Charedi on the street probably isn’t participating in the demonstrations. I would imagine that many of them aren’t the greatest supporters of them. But is it really a fringe phenomenon?

Where they burn buses: What the press is saying about Haredi unrest, more deaths

 https://www.timesofisrael.com/where-they-burn-buses-what-the-press-is-saying-about-haredi-unrest-more-deaths/

• Israel Hayom, which is closely aligned with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, runs a column by David Zildon urging the Haredi leadership to thank, not spank, the cops, and certainly not keep silent: “While cops are risking their lives to protect you and keep the virus from taking your lives, you are keeping a loud silence and not condemning the attacks on the cops, and thus are full participants in the [violence.]”

גדולי הרבנים: לא לריב עם שוטרים - גם בעת אכיפת הנחיות

 https://www.kikar.co.il/384100.html

בב"ב חותמים כעת גדולי הרבנים על מכתב, בו הם קוראים לתושבים להימנע מכל מריבה עם שוטרים, גם כשהם אוכפים הנחיות; הקצינים הבטיחו: ננהג באיפוק • זו התכנית להשקטת עיר התורה

 

 

Anarchy in Bnei Brak as ultra-Orthodox vandals run riot

 https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/anarchy-in-bnei-brak-as-ultra-orthodox-vandals-run-riot-656596

Violent riots continued late into the night in Bnei Brak against the background of police enforcing COVID-19 regulations in the ultra-Orthodox city and the intense opposition to such measures by radical elements in the community. 

A bus driver was assaulted and chased off his bus, which was then set on fire and went up in flames in the middle of the city, causing damage to the apartment buildings adjacent to the conflagration. 

Ultra-Orthodox politicians condemn police response.

Chief rabbi condemns ‘delinquent’ Haredi rioters for ‘desecrating God’s name’

 https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog-january-25-2021/

After series of violent incidents, including torching of bus in Bnei Brak, Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef says perpetrators are a minority ‘tarnishing the name of the entire Haredi public’

Health officials: UK variant running wild, hitting children at a worrying rate

 https://www.timesofisrael.com/mutated-covid-19-strains-are-stymieing-efforts-to-curb-spread-virus-czar-says/

The government’s coronavirus czar said Monday that mutated COVID-19 strains brought into the country by returning travelers are hampering efforts to contain the disease outbreak.

Nachman Ash told Radio 103FM that over the past couple of days information from the UK, where the so-called British variant was first detected, has indicated that the strain causes serious symptoms at a 30 percent higher rate.

13 years after bolting, 6 since arrest, Malka Leifer extradited to Australia

https://www.timesofisrael.com/12-years-after-bolting-6-since-arrest-malka-leifer-extradited-to-australia/ 

Israeli authorities extradited alleged sex abuser Malka Leifer to Australia early Monday morning, nearly 13 years after she fled Melbourne as allegations against her were coming to light and after a six-year legal process during which a court determined that she had feigned mental illness in order to avoid facing justice.

Not unlike the manner in which the former school principal was ushered out of Melbourne by board members of the Adass Israel Haredi girls’ school in 2008, the Israel Prisons Service operation that transferred her from Neve Tirza women’s prison to Ben Gurion Airport took place in the middle of the night.

 

Galus even when Jews live in Israel

אמת ליעקב שמות פרק יב פסוק ב
(ב) החדש הזה לכם ראש חדשים.
פירש"י וז"ל: הראהו לבנה בחדושה ואמר לו כשהירח מתחדש יהיה לך ראש חדש עכ"ל. אמנם הרמב"ם [פ"א מהלכות קידוש החודש הל"א] כתב בזה"ל: ונאמר החדש הזה לכם ראש חדשים כך אמרו חכמים הראה לו הקדוש ברוך הוא למשה במראה הנבואה דמות לבנה ואמר לו כזה ראה וקדש עכ"ל. לכאורה היה אפשר לומר כפשוטו, דכיון שהיה בר"ח עצמו כדמוכח במסכת שבת [דף פ"ו ע"ב]11, א"כ אפשר שהראהו הלבנה בחידושה ממש12. ועיין בלשון הפירוש [על הרמב"ם שם] שכתב וז"ל: באמרו הזה רמז על מה שהעתיקו רז"ל שהקב"ה הראה למשה בסיני במראה הנבואה דמות לבנה בהתחדשותה ואמר לו כזה ראה וקדש עכ"ל. והנה [תיבת "בסיני"] ודאי היא כינוי לקבלת נבואה, כמו שאמרינן [מכות דף כ"ג ע"ב]: תרי"ג מצוות נאמרו למשה בסיני13, אף על פי שהרבה מהם נאמרו בערבות מואב14. ואפשר שכוונתו [בתיבת "בסיני"] ששם ראה את הלבנה בעמדו במצרים, אבל לענין זה מה נשתנה סיני משאר מקומות. ועוד, הא בשעת המולד רואים אותה במערב, ואין סיני במערבה של מצרים, אלא ודאי דכוונתו ל"מראה הנבואה" שכתב הרמב"ם, וא"כ שוב קשה אמאי לא נפרש כפשוטו, וצ"ע..
החדש הזה לכם ראש חדשים15.
כתב הרמב"ן וז"ל: וכבר הזכירו רבותינו [ירושלמי ר"ה פרק א' הלכה ב'] זה הענין ואמרו שמות חדשים עלו עמנו מבבל כי מתחלה לא היו להם שמות אצלנו כו' אבל כאשר עלינו מבבל כו' חזרנו לקרוא החדשים שנקראים בארץ בבל להזכיר כי שם עמדנו ומשם העלנו הש"י כי אלה השמות ניסן אייר וזולתם שמות פרסיים ולא ימצא רק בספרי נביאי בבל ובמגלת אסתר וכו' עכ"ל. והנה יש לתמוה, מדוע באמת עזבו לשון התורה ונקטו לשון פרס, ובפרט בשמות החדשים שיש בהם שמות ע"ז כגון תמוז. ובאמת מצינו שבימי בית שני היתה השפה המדוברת בישראל לשון ארמי, ורק דברי תורה כתבו בלשון הקודש, והלוא במצרים היו משבחים אותם שלא שינו את לשונם16?
והנראה בזה, בהקדם מה שיש להבין הא דאיתא ביומא [דף כ"א ע"ב] שבבית שני חסרו חמשה דברים, והראשון מהם הוא הארון אשר נגנז בימי יאשיהו המלך. ולכאורה משמע דהטעם שחסר הארון בבית שני הוא משום שנתעלם מן העין. אך לא כן משמע במסכת שקלים [פרק ו' משנה א'], דאיתא התם: מעשה בכהן אחד שהיה מתעסק וראה את הרצפה שהיא משונה מחברותיה בא ואמר לחבירו לא הספיק לגמור הדבר עד שיצתה נשמתו וידעו ביחוד ששם הארון נגנז עכ"ל המשנה, הרי אף שידעו איפה הארון נגנז אעפ"כ לא העלוהו למקומו בבית קדשי הקדשים, ובהכרח שהיתה סיבה מיוחדת שבבית שני לא יהיה הארון במקומו. מדוע?
נראה שעולי בבל, שבנו את הבית השני, ידעו כי לא זה הבנין אשר יעמוד לעולמים, ואין חזרתם לארץ ישראל בתקופה זו הגאולה השלמה. דעתם היתה כי בנין הבית בתקופה הזאת לא נועד אלא להכין את העם לתקופת הגלות הארוכה. על פי שורת הדין היו הם צריכים לישאר בבבל עוד זמן רב, אלא שראתה ההשגחה שכבר לאחר שבעים שנה של גלות בבל כבר נטמע ונתערב רוב העם עם הגויים, וברור כשמש היה כי אם יתעכבו בני ישראל בגלות מאות ואלפי שנים שאז בודאי לא יצליח העם להשאר בזהותו המיוחדת ושוב לא יהיה את מי לגאול, ולכן חמל ה' על עמו והוציאם מבבל והחזירם, באופן זמני, לארץ ישראל, ובנה להם את בית הבחירה, והכל בכדי שישובו ויתחזקו ביסודות האמונה ויהיו מחוסנים לקראת תקופת הגלות המרה17. בכדי להדגיש ולהמחיש לעם שעדיין הם לא נגאלו וכי בעצם עדיין הם בגלות, לא העלו את הארון, מקור הקדושה בבית הראשון, ממקום שנגנז והשאירוהו במקומו, כי עדיין אין הגאולה שלמה18.
מחמת הכרתם זו, שעדיין לא הגיעה הגאולה השלמה, הנהיגו עולי בבל כמה וכמה ענינים שיהיו עושים כמו שהיו נוהגים בתקופת הגלות, להראות שבאמת תקופת גלות בבל עדיין נמשכת והבנין הנבנה אינו אלא ארעי ועתיד להחרב. מחמת זה כשעלו מבבל חזרו לקרוא את שמות החדשים בשם שנקראו בבבל, וכמו שכתב הרמב"ן: "להזכיר כי שם עמדנו ומשם העלנו הש"י", כלומר, כדי לזכור שבאמת לא נגאלו באופן מושלם. ולכן גם לשונם נשאר בלשון הגלות - לשון ארמי, ולא חזרו לדבר בלשון הקודש, מה שהיה מראה כאילו הם נגאלו באופן סופי19. ונראה שזה גם הטעם מדוע נכתב התלמוד הירושלמי בארמית, דבשלמא הבבלי שנכתב בבבל נכתב בשפת המדינה, אבל הירושלמי שנכתב בארץ ישראל מדוע נכתב בארמית, אבל לדברינו נעשה זה מהטעם הנ"ל.
[ועיין לעיל בפרשת ויחי [מ"ט פ"י] שביארתי לפ"ז מדוע באמת לא קם מלך ממלכות בית דוד בתקופה זו, כי להעמיד מלך מזרע המלוכה היתה באותה שעה כנגד רוח המקום, כי המלכת מלך ממשפחת דוד המלך היתה מתפרשת כאילו הגיעו קץ הימים והגאולה העתידה, ולכן לא העירו חכמי ישראל לבית חשמונאים על שהמליכו עצמם אף שהיה זה באיסור וכמש"כ הרמב"ן שם, ועיי"ש.]
לאור זה נבין דבר תמוה בסדר הנביאים, שהרי נבואת חגי, המתייחסת ברובה על בנין בית שני, נאמרה לאחר נבואת יחזקאל המבשרת לנו על אודות בנין הבית השלישי, ואדרבה עיקר שליחותו של חגי היתה לצוות לראשי יהודה לא לצפות ולהמתין לאחרית הימים אלא לבנות בינתיים מקדש שני. אבל זה צריך ביאור, מדוע נצטווה יחזקאל על הבית השלישי קודם שנצטווה חגי על הבית השני, לאיזה צורך הקדימו את המאוחר? אמנם לפמש"כ שפיר ניחא, דנבואת יחזקאל אודות הבית השלישי בהכרח היתה צריכה להיות מוקדמת, כי זהו הבית שסימן את גאולת ישראל השלמה, ולנבואה זו ציפו בני ישראל מעת חורבן הבית הראשון - לגאולה העתידה, משא"כ חגי נצטווה על בית שני שהיה ארעי ובא בזמן גלות חלקית, ולכן נבואתו באה באחרונה, ודו"ק היטב בכל זה20.
ולפי דברינו אלו יש לנו לבאר הפסוק להלן בפרשת בשלח [ט"ו פט"ז]: עד יעבר עמך ה' עד יעבר עם זו קנית, ובגמרא ברכות [דף ד' ע"א] איתא: עד יעבר עמך ה' זו ביאה ראשונה עד יעבר עם זו קנית זו ביאה שניה כו' אלא שגרם החטא, ועיי"ש, והיינו שבאמת היו צריכים רק לשני ביאות, היינו בנין בית ראשון בימי שלמה ובנין בית שלישי בימי המשיח, אבל גרם החטא שנתערבבו ונתבוללו בין הגויים והוצרך הקדוש ברוך הוא לגאלם באופן ארעי ולבנות בית שני כדי שלא ישתקעו באומות, ודו"ק.
 

Who were the rashoim who died during the darkness in Egypt?

 אמת ליעקב שמות פרק י פסוק כב
(כב) ויהי חשך אפלה בכל ארץ מצרים1.
פירש"י וז"ל: ולמה הביא עליהם חשך שהיו בישראל באותו הדור רשעים ולא היו רוצים לצאת ומתו בשלשת ימי אפלה וכו'. הנה אף שבאמת כל בני הדור ההוא לא היו נחשבים כצדיקים, שהרי מצינו שטענו מלאכי השרת הללו עובדי עבודה זרה והללו עבודה זרה, הרי שהמלאכים לא היו יכולים לראות שום הבדל בין ישראל למצרים, וא"כ מדוע מתו דוקא רשעים אלו ולא כל הרשעים. ונראה משום שאלו היו רוצים לעכב בידיהם של האחרים מלצאת, דהם סברו שמכיון שקבלה בידם שישתעבדו ד' מאות שנה א"כ עדיין לא הגיע זמן הקץ, ופחדו שאם יצאו קודם הזמן אז יארע להם כמו שיארע לבני אפרים שיצאו קודם הזמן, ולא האמינו לדברי משה והזקנים שחישב ה' את הקץ בזכות האבות, ולכן המיתן הקדוש ברוך הוא. אבל הכלל כולו, אף שבעיני המלאכים היו בגדר עובדי עבודה זרה, אבל רק הקדוש ברוך הוא יש לו את הראייה למרחוק להבין שאומה זו שעכשיו הם עובדי עבודה זרה יהיו בעוד שבעה שבועות מוכנים לעמוד בהר סיני ולומר "נעשה ונשמע", ופנימיות כזו גם המלאכים אין מרגישים בה, עד שהוצרך הקדוש ברוך הוא להוכיח את זה למדת הדין על ידי מה שהראה להם ארונו של יוסף [בראשית רבה פרשה פ"ז אות ח'], והיינו שהוכיח להם שאומה זו תוך תוכם ממקור אחר נחצב, וביארתי זה היטב להלן בדברינו ריש פרשת בשלח [י"ג פי"ט], עיין שם.
ונצייר נא לעצמנו מה היתה הרגשתם של בני ישראל במשך ימי מכת חושך, שהרי רואים הם שישראל לוקין יותר מן המצרים, שבמשך ג' ימים מתו יותר מב' מליונים גברים לבד מטף וזקנים ונשים, והלא לא ידעו טעם מכה זו, ובודאי שהיו ישראל תמהין ואומרין מה זה עשה ד' לנו. וזוהי נחמתנו במצב זה2 שאנו מתרעמין כביכול על הנהגת השי"ת בנוגע לכלל ישראל, אבל לפ"ז משמע שאנו קרובין לגאולה..

'Fat but fit' is a myth when it comes to heart health, new study shows

 https://edition.cnn.com/2021/01/21/health/fat-but-fit-study-scli-intl-wellness/index.html

"While the controversy about the precise contribution of weight versus exercise to cardiovascular health will likely continue, to optimize health and minimize the risk of cardiovascular disease, patients should pay attention to both: maintaining a healthy weight and being physically active," said Dr. Anthony Rosenzweig, chief of the cardiology division at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston and a professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School.

 

Hundreds of shuttles seen unloading children at Haredi schools in Beit Shemesh

 https://www.ynetnews.com/article/BkPegpLJO#autoplay

Hundreds of private shuttles were seen on Thursday morning unloading children at ultra-Orthodox schools in the predominantly Haredi city of Beit Shemesh. 

 

Police vehicles around the schools were observed watching the students get off the shuttles but appeared to have ignored clear violations of the nationwide coronavirus lockdown that prohibits the reopening of the education system.

Police made secret deal not to enforce lockdown in Bnei Brak - report

 https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/police-made-secret-deal-not-to-enforce-lockdown-in-bnei-brak-report-656496

 Police reportedly have reached an understanding with the heads of various Bnei Brak yeshivas that COVID-19 regulations will not be enforced so long as yeshiva students refrain from attacking police, yeshiva heads told Haaretz on Saturday night.

According to the yeshiva heads, the deal was supposedly made back in September after several instances of police officers being attacked while trying to enforce the coronavirus lockdown.

New light shed on Charles Darwin's 'abominable mystery'

 https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-55769269

Darwin feared this inexplicable puzzle would undermine his theories of evolution, says Prof Richard Buggs.

Forgotten historical documents show a rival scientist was arguing for divine intervention in the rise of the flowering plants.

Darwin coined the phrase, abominable mystery, in 1879. In a letter to his closest friend, botanist and explorer Dr Joseph Hooker, he wrote: "The rapid development as far as we can judge of all the higher plants within recent geological times is an abominable mystery."

And is the mystery solved?

In short, no. "One hundred and forty years later, the mystery's still unsolved," says Prof Buggs. "Of course, we've made lots of progress in our understanding of evolution and in our knowledge of the fossil record, but this mystery is still there."

Chareidim and the virus

One of the most astounding calls I got during shiva was from a relative from America - Lakewood to be precise.  He expressed sadness over the loss of my mother and the terrible suffering  we have in Israel from the virus and added that it is much better in America. "no one is dying from the virus." I noted that 3000 Americans have been dying everyday in America and hospitals are overwhelmed in a number of states. . He said he has not heard recently of anyone in Lakewood or Boro Park dying from the virus and was not aware of any problems related to the virus and that basically it was not a major issue in America. My daughter was recently in New York i.e. Boro Park and she said the frummer elements act as if there is no virus because so many people have had the virus they think they have immunity

Is Israel Asking for Yet More Divine Retribution?

 BS"D 

Is Israel Asking for Yet More Divine Retribution?

ISRAELI PERSECUTION OF ANOTHER RELIGIOUS GIRL IN MILITARY PRISON

4 Shvat, 5781, Parshas Bo °°  January 17, '21

By Binyomin Feinberg

We received confirmation of yet another religious girl, Odel bas Oshras Sorah, incarcerated in Military Prison Number Six. She hails from a Chassidishe family of longtime ba’alei teshuva in Southern Israel. She's been imprisoned for two weeks, in wake of her refusal to enlist in the Israeli Army.

According to Rabbis from across the spectrum, it's absolutely prohibited for any girl to enlist in the Army. In Judaism, some prohibitions rise to the level of "Yai'horaig Ve'al Ya'avor," requiring us to do everything possible to avoid transgression, including sacrificing one's life, if need be (Shulchan Aruch, Yoreh Daiyoh 157:1). As stated by numerous Torah leaders over approximately the past 70 years, women serving in the Israeli Army is included under the rubric of "Yai'horaig Ve'al Ya'avor."

°  In recent months, the Army has been summoning religious girls to submit to a Rayon Dat (religiosity interview, or interrogation) - on the pretext that they studied at a non-religious school, and therefore ostensibly need to confirm their religiosity (to a panel of military officers intent on leveraging the Torah to undermine it). However, in the wake of widespread neglect by the Media, some askonim and Rabbonim, and most of the public, the Army is continuing their escalation of Giyus Banos.

This case of Odel is just one of an increasing number of religious girls recently being targeted by the Draft Offices - even without the pretext of a non-religious school.  Other religious girls being currently targeted include Anna bas Miriam and Shulamis bas Shoshana Bas Sheva (19 y/o). The Draft Offices are persecuting both, and in an apparently lawless manner.

° In addition, we've also received credible information that Odel is being severely mistreated in prison. Having covered these female refusenik cases for about two years, we know for a fact that this is a frequent occurrence - clearly part of an Israeli Army policy, a policy hard to construe as anything less than antireligious, specifically: anti-Jewish.   Sometimes they'll deny the principled refusenik kosher food. Sometimes they'll deny or severely limit communication with family or legal counsel. Sometimes they'll even deny critical healthcare. Additionally, intensive verbal abuse appears to be a staple of the military prison regimen for female religious objectors.

°  Another frequent example of how many girls are persecuted in Israeli military prison is the widespread refusal to allow girls to wear skirts.  The hypocrisy is glaring: When the IDF wishes to market the Army to women around the world, they feign compatibility with Judaism and basic modesty by ensuring religious recruits have easy access to skirts. However, when a religious girl in military prison insists on wearing a skirt, in compliance with the Mesorah (religious tradition) of observant Jewish communities throughout the world, the IDF suddenly encounters acute clothing shortages. They employ a ridiculous rationing of skirts,  extending to the point that the prisons will often only provide makeshift skirts. They take pants,  cut open the legs, and ostensibly resew them, forcing the religious girl to walk around in a bizarre imitation skirt, as if to punish her for her resolve to maintain her modesty and the Jewish Minhag.  Thus, those women who cooperate with the Army's "Mizron Tzahali" paradigm merit designer quality uniforms (for reasons best left unsaid here), while girls who insist on following the Torah are condemned to walk around in abnormal, if not disgraceful garb.

°  Worse, many girls are denied skirts altogether. Some have even been punished by solitary confinement for merely insisting on their religious and civil rights to wear a skirt. Solitary confinement in Israeli military prison is emotional tormenting. The room is intentionally undersized, often with poor ventilation. It's a form of psychological warfare designed to break and severely punish those who insist on their human and religious rights.

°  Another reason for the Military Prison's "Thou Shalt Wear No Skirt Before Me" policy is that the religious girls must be made to feel that they're really not religious. There's a concept of "gaslighting," convincing you to question your own convictions.  This is a technique often employed against religious girls seeking to secure their legal entitlement to a military service exemption, in the Religiosity Interview ("Rayon Dat") process. This trend is more than alluded to in the recently published Chotam Guidebook (for girls to avoid conscription: 
https://www.chotam.org.il/media/61762/pinkaskis-orange-english.pdf?fbclid=IwAR1hBP9tHJxSIfF07n8ywx27I_kWn0jfd9EOBy7fYfRe1xNChBPBU4qLLo0 ).

°  The Army also seeks to compel the girls to violate the Halacha, and their own moral principles and sensibilities (see also
http://firstamendmentactivist.blogspot.com/2020/02/creep-state.html ). Thus, even if the girl ultimately prevails in obtaining her exemption, the antireligious establishment feels it still has had an impact - in eroding the inherent Jewish modesty nurtured by generations of Jewish mothers for four thousand years.

[As an aside, we in America ought never forget the benefit we in America have had, inasmuch as the Founders who drafted the Constitution held that rights aren't given by Man, thus can't be removed on the whim of Man. The socialist system in Israel isn't encumbered by any such constitutional inhibitions.  (And all of the idealistic olim who have moved to Israel have not been successful in changing the modus operandi of the statist government.)]

What is somewhat ironic is what was just re recently reported in the JNS: "Netanyahu calls mob attack on US Capitol ‘disgraceful,’ says American democracy will prevail"

Netanyahu was quoted:

“Lawlessness and violence are the opposite of the values we know Americans and Israelis cherish,” 

... except when perpetrated by the Army against Israeli girls...

~~~

There is much more to report on this topic of Giyus Banos, but suffice this sample for the moment. 

Some Modest Observations:

°  We know that HaShem detests immorality, and especially within the Land of Israel (see VaYikra 18, end; Ramban 18:25).  We know how much more severe immorality is when it's violated by POLICY - as opposed to remaining a mere aberration (Akeidas Yitzchak, parshas VaYaira, 20). It's fair to say that we're seeing a great deal of Divine Justice lately. Apparently, for those running the Israeli Army, that's really not enough.

°  Those who refuse to learn from their intelligence are compelled to learn from experience. Let us not share their horrific fate. Let us separate ourselves from them by taking an intelligent, public, vocal stand.  Spread the word. Demand results, not excuses. The alternative is simply not an alternative.

»»»  Please daven for Odel bas Oshras Sorah, Anna bas Miriam and Shulamis bas Shoshana Bas Sheva, and for the thousands of Israeli girls and women who are in some sense even less fortunate than her - who have enlisted, or who are silently enduring untold suffering within the dark recesses of the military prison system. HaShem hears their cries even if we don't, nay, much more so when we don't.

°  The lesson of Sodom, "HaKetza'akosoh" (Ber. 18:21, Sanhedrin 109b) - illustrating the horrific consequences of abusing even one girl - reverberates to this day. If HaShem wouldn't exact retribution from those responsible for what is perhaps the largest ongoing abuse of Jewish girls and women in the past 76 years - He wouldn't have annihilated Sodom. 

 

°  See Brachos 5a, Rashi "Pishpaish," and Ru'ach Chayim on Avos 4:14, regarding how HaShem's Han'hogah of "Middah Keneged Middah" provides us vital guidance in identifying what messages HaShem is conveying to us via the tribulations he sends our way.  The Middah Keneged Middah of the "Biddud," the isolation of the Coronavirus era, is strikingly reminiscent of the experience of these girls who endure excruciating pain in Israeli military prisons. Perhaps that's one of the lessons we're supposed to glean from this seemingly unending Corona plague. (That's certainly far more plausible than some of the politically-correct, pedestrian "hashkofoh" being circulated since last March.)  In any case, this national travesty of the mass- abuse of Jewish women and girls is something we must rectify regardless.

°  Time is apparently not on our side. By now, we've had a lot of that. This week, Parshas Bo, is exactly two years from when a critique of the Israeli female draft appeared in The Jewish Press  (Jan. 11, '19, p.9). Since that Op Ed appeared, we've had the merit to report on a range of Israeli female draft abuses - which were generally just the tip of the iceberg - many times, and in venues not suspect of anti-Zionist biases, including the Jewish Press. B"H, we've seen positive results. However, where is the massive outrage?  The Orthodox community can do far, far better.  What precisely will we have to say for ourselves when Eliyahu HaNovi actually arrives, to alert us to prepare for the Final Redemption?  It will be too late to start then.

~~~~~

"... And if someone, like Pinchos, is one among a multitude, and every man is against him when he dares to speak out for truth and to fight for the Law -- the more lonely his stand, the greater the number of his adversaries, the more powerful is his word, the mightier his deed."

Baruch Dayan Haemes [my loving mother]

 I am now an avel for my mother who passed away Friday night.at the age of 103

 Levaya will be in Baltimore at three p.m.

My Rav said that since I am in Israel the Avelus starts already.

She was totally selfless. All that she cared about was helping and giving to others

I will be sitting Shiva in Jerusalem  but because of the virus no personal shiva visits

my phone is 054 846 1470 

American number 9174750533

https://memorials.sollevinson.com/esther-eidensohn/4493097/?_ga=2.136833206.708254832.1610887125-312675395.1610887125

Chareidim and virus : Mishpacha headline

 

Meme makes false claims about media's 2016 and 2020 election coverage

 https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2020/11/25/fact-check-false-claims-medias-2016-2020-election-coverage/3770232001/

“2016 MEDIA: RUSSIA STOLE THE ELECTION,” reads a meme ForAmerica posted to Facebook Nov. 12. “2020 MEDIA: OUR ELECTIONS ARE LITERALLY IMPOSSIBLE TO STEAL.”
The meme includes two images of CNN anchor Don Lemon and makes a blanket statement about “the media.”
USA TODAY's analysis of 2016 and 2020 election media coverage concludes the media did not report Russia stole the election in 2016 and is not now reporting the 2020 election would be impossible to steal. Rather, major media outlets have reported that Russia sought to use misinformation to influence American voters in 2016 and are now reporting that 2020 election fraud claims are unsupported. In both cases, this reporting is consistent with information provided by government officials in intelligence, law enforcement and the courts.

Trump claims fraud cost him popular vote 2016

Donald Trump Continues 'Rigged' Election Message 2016

A guide to Donald Trump's 'rigged' election

 https://www.politico.com/story/2016/10/donald-trump-rigged-election-guide-230302

Dead Democrats who “absolutely vote.” “Phony” polling and the colluding media “refusing” to report on his imminent victory. Paul Ryan’s backstabbing “months-long campaign” to get Hillary Clinton elected president. Donald Trump and his supporters keep adding to their list of the dubious ways they’ve been boxed out from winning the White House.

US election 2016: Trump says election 'rigged at polling places' - Deja vu

 https://www.bbc.com/news/election-us-2016-37673797

His comments appear to contradict his running mate Mike Pence, who told NBC Mr Trump would "absolutely" accept the election result, despite media "bias".

Mr Trump's adviser Rudy Giuliani has also accused Democrats of "cheating".

Polls suggest Mr Trump is losing ground in some key battleground states against Democratic rival Hillary Clinton.

Mr Trump has questioned the legitimacy of the election process in a series of tweets, the latest of which said on Monday: "Of course there is large scale voter fraud happening on and before election day.

"Why do Republican leaders deny what is going on? So naive!"

An earlier tweet said: "The election is absolutely being rigged by the dishonest and distorted media pushing Crooked Hillary - but also at many polling places - SAD."

 

 

How effective is a single vaccine dose against Covid-19?

 https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20210114-covid-19-how-effective-is-a-single-vaccine-dose

 According to Pfizer data published in December 2020, the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine is roughly 52% effective after the first dose. Out of 36,523 participants in the phase three trial – the final stage of testing where people either received two full doses, 21 days apart, or a placebo – who had no evidence of existing infection, 82 people in the placebo group and 39 in the vaccine group developed Covid-19 symptoms.

Pikuach Nefesh Shabbos

 there have been false repeated claims made that it is wrong for a Rav to write tshuvos about pikuch nefesh

below is a list of Rav Moshe's tshuvos that he wrote on this topic

The 15 most notable lies of Donald Trump's presidency

 https://edition.cnn.com/2021/01/16/politics/fact-check-dale-top-15-donald-trump-lies/index.html

Trump's big health care plan was eternally coming in "two weeks." So were a bunch of other plans and announcements.

Trump is, at his core, a huckster. Every moment of his presidency was a chance for him to sell someone on something, whether or not that something actually existed. And if they asked when they could actually see the magic elixir he said was being brewed just over there behind the curtain, he would just have to delay them until they forgot about it.

 

Capitol riots: Who has the FBI arrested so far?

 https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-55626148

• Nicholas Rodean - The Maryland man was fired from his job after he was seen wearing his work ID badge to the riot
• Aaron Mostofsky - The 34-year-old son of a Brooklyn judge was freed after posting a $100,000 bail. Pictures from the riot showed him wearing furs and a police tactical vest that he is accused of stealing
• William Pepe - The New York City transit worker was suspended without pay after officials said he called out sick from work to travel to Washington and participate in the riot
• Andrew Williams - The Florida firefighter was arrested after a picture online showed him wearing a Trump hat and pointing to a placard bearing the name of Democrat Nancy Pelosi
• Josiah Colt - The Idaho man was pictured dangling from a Senate balcony after rioters stormed the chamber and is facing charges of disorderly conduct and trespassing
• Adam Johnson, 36 of Florida, was photographed holding up the House speaker's lectern and smiling during the Capitol siege. He has been charged with theft of government property and the lectern has since been returned
• Jenny Cudd, the owner of a flower shop once ran for mayor in Midland, Texas. According to officials, she posted a video where she said: "We did break down Nancy Pelosi's office door"
• Klete Keller, a two-time Olympic gold medallist swimmer, has been charged after online sleuths spotted that he wore his Olympic jacket to the Capitol
• Robert Sandford, a recently retired firefighter from a Philadelphia suburb, is accused of assaulting officers by throwing a fire extinguisher at them
• Jacob Fracker and Thomas Robertson, off-duty police officers from Rocky Mount, Virginia, are accused of trespassing and violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds

Donald Trump just pushed Rudy Giuliani under the bus

 https://edition.cnn.com/2021/01/14/politics/donald-trump-rudy-giuliani-impeachment/index.html

"Trump has been blaming his longtime personal attorney and many others for the predicament he now finds himself in, though he has not accepted any responsibility in public or in private, people familiar with his reaction told CNN. Giuliani is still expected to play a role in Trump's impeachment defense but has been left out of most conversations thus far."

 

Trump, you see, is incapable of self-reflection. Or of accepting blame. Therefore he is endlessly in search of scapegoats for any "wrong" that befalls him. Nothing is ever his fault. It is always the fault of those who have somehow betrayed him. And everyone -- with the notable exception of those to whom he is related by blood and marriage -- eventually betrays him.

The most surprising vote for impeachment came from this Republican

 https://edition.cnn.com/2021/01/14/politics/tom-rice-south-carolina-impeachment/index.html

"Once the violence began, when the Capitol was under siege, when the Capitol Police were being beaten and killed, and when the Vice President and the Congress were being locked down, the President was watching and tweeted about the Vice President's lack of courage.

"For hours while the riot continued, the President communicated only on Twitter and offered only weak requests for restraint ...

"... It has been a week since so many were injured, the United States Capitol was ransacked, and six people were killed, including two police officers. Yet, the President has not addressed the nation to ask for calm. He has not visited the injured and grieving. He has not offered condolences. Yesterday in a press briefing at the border, he said his comments were 'perfectly appropriate.'"

The Day That Shall Live in Infamy

 

BS"D

The Day That Shall Live in Infamy: 

By Binyomin Feinberg

Rosh Chodesh Shvat, 5781 °° January 14, '21 °°  Parshas Va'Eira

Unfortunately, we have bad news to report in NJ regarding recently debated legislation advancing LGBT exploitation in public schools and in healthcare facilities (see last week's post on Jersey Conservative, or the NJ Jewish Link (letters), or http://daattorah.blogspot.com/2021/01/saving-public-school-kids-matters.html).  On Monday January 11, NJ's infamous Public School indoctrination bill (A4454) passed the Assembly, 46 to 29, generally along party lines, with four not voting altogether, including Passaic Assemblyman Gary Schaer. The LGBT long-term healthcare facilities bill also passed - and with almost no opposition.  It's noteworthy that there was a surprise "No" vote on the education bill - by Jamal Holly of Elizabeth. In marked contrast to the opposition of that well-know leftwing Assemblyman, Assemblyman Gary Schaer - often caught actively voting on the wrong side of moral issues - opted for passivity this time. By not voting, NJs "only Orthodox Assemblyman" willingly enabled this antireligious LGBT indoctrination to pass without a multicultural show of opposition from within the Democratic Party.  Does Schaer - now exposed as a fraudulent "Jewish advocate" by Assemblyman Holly - ever lose an opportunity to lose an opportunity?

MOREOVER, THE FACT THAT SCHAER'S FELLOW PASSAIC ASSEMBLYMAN CALABRESE ACTIVELY VOTED FOR NOT JUST ONE BUT BOTH OF THOSE ABUSIVE BILLS EXPOSES WHAT SCHAER'S OWN INACTION DOESN'T SHOW: SCHAER DIDN'T EVEN HOLD BACK HIS OWN FELLOW ASSEMBLYMAN FROM ACTIVELY ADVANCING THESE INHERENTLY ANTIRELIGIOUS BILLS, EVEN BEHIND THE SCENES.

On the other hand, we must HEARTILY commend Assemblyman Parker Space for taking a heroic stand against the healthcare facilities perpetration legislation. FOR THOSE OF US WHO UNFORTUNATELY FAIL TO LEARN FROM AVROHOM AVINU, PINCHOS, AND MANY OTHER TORAH ROLE MODELS, LEHAVDIL ALFEI HAVDOLOS, his principled stand - against the transgenderization of healthcare facilities in NJ - reminds us of what we must demand of ourselves, and then of our wayward legislators. And if the desires of the legislators - and their enabling ethically challenged askonim - to swap fighting government sanctioned brutality for procurement of government largesse, then we must choose: grow a spine or forgoe the sho'chad (bribery). Once government benefits serve to enable our silence in the face of victimization of the innocent, they  cease to be benefits (IF they ever were), and must be identified as such.

Now, before rushing to praise the Republicans for their opposition to the "educational" indoctrination bill, realize the import of their failure to oppose the abusive healthcare facilities bill. Also consider that, prior to the onset of the Trump Era, it would have been almost unthinkable - EVEN for leftist Democrats - to openly vote for an LGBT propaganda bill for kindergarteners. Realize just how far we've fallen.

Additionally, even this showing by Republican comes only after vigorous campaigning by both Orthodox and non-Jewish activists. And, even after all of that, the GOP still split their gambit by caving on the Healthcare facilities bill, thereby ensuring an easy, "no-cost" victory for the opposition.

We somehow doubt that the Republicans' virtual foray into selective heroism would have played better if they wouldn't be facing an election season later this very year. 

What does this all tell us about ourselves? The blatant shortfalls of our defaulting representatives reflect our own. Do we not have enough communal will, acumen and resources to muster a serious campaign to save our own elderly from legislation that makes Sodom just a local trip? Even from a purely "pragmatic" perspective (as some askonim relish posturing), we'll wind up expending far, far more resources dealing with the fallout of this antireligious edict than we would have spent on an intelligent, broad-based campaign against the bill. 

Where are the self advertising askonim busy fundraising as if they're taking care of the tzibbur, and not just themselves?  Have we heard the Call of Corona to mend our ways? There's still time; but, given recently developing stories, perhaps not much. THE ONGOING CHILLUL HASHEM INVOLVED IN ABANDONING THE WAR FOR INNOCENT SOULS ENDANGERS OUR COMMUNITY.

 

The Orthodox public DESERVES more activists WHO TREAT THE ORTHODOX COMMUNITY WITH THE DIGNITY THAT THE COMMUNITY DESERVES. WE NEED TO BE ALERTED TO HELP SAVE OTHERS, EVEN IF THEY AREN'T WITHIN OUR OWN IMMEDIATE CIRCLES. THE TZIBBUR WILL RISE TO THE CHALLENGES OF OUR GENERATION. SELF SERVERS: MOVE ASIDE; LET MY PEOPLE GROW.

###

feinbergbinyomin@gmail.com

Trump Pride: Gay Republicans on why they're backing the president

 https://www.nbcnews.com/feature/nbc-out/trump-pride-gay-republicans-why-they-re-backing-president-n1243469

Trump made a halfhearted effort to court the LGBTQ community in the run-up to the 2016 presidential election. He called the massacre of 49 mostly LGBTQ people at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida, that year an "assault on the ability of free people to live their lives, love who they want and express their identity."

At the 2016 Republican National Convention in Cleveland, Trump swore "to protect our LGBTQ citizens from the violence and oppression of a hateful foreign ideology."

And two days before Election Day, he grabbed an upside-down Pride flag inscribed with "LGBT for Trump" at a rally in Colorado and waved it around.

Soldiers and rape

Ohr HaChaim(Devarim 21:11): Why did G‑d command this procedure of Yofas To’ar in which a man defiles himself by sexual relations with a non‑Jewish woman? This is especially problematic since it is done during the time that G‑d is doing miracles to produce victory in the battles and thus it would seem more appropriate to increase spiritual purity and closeness to G‑d. So why does G‑d permit a Jew to do such a debasing act which we know is despised by G‑d and causes greater weakening of our attachment to G‑d? It is understandable why G‑d permits eating unkosher food during battle because as the Rambam (Hilchos Melachim 8:1) correctly explains - it is allowed only if the person is hungry. However this act is not needed for his survival and is inherently disgusting. Our Sages (Kiddushin 21b) state that the only justification for this act is a tactic to deal with the Evil Inclination. This makes the question stronger since the Torah should be serving to help subdue and control the heart of the holy people during this time of battle since in fact it is G‑d doing the fighting. The answer to this question is based on an important principle that is stated in Zohar Chadash(Parshas Balak page 53). It says that with the sin of Adam many precious souls were captured by the Sitra Achara (forces of evil) and these are the souls of gerim. If you investigate you will find that a great number of great people came from the nations of the world as Ruth the Moabite illustrates. We also find (Sanhedrin 96b) that many great scholars came from the nations such as Shmaya and Avtalyon, Onkelos and many others. I will also reveal another principle that we find a pure soul attached to an impure soul and the pure soul does not have the power to positively influence the impure soul. The pure soul is thus trapped until the moment comes to be freed. An example of this is that the soul of Rabbi Chanina ben Tradyon was attached to the soul of Shechem the son of Chamor.  [Shechem was the rapist of Yaakov daughter Dinah.]. This reality is alluded to by the first letters of the words in Bereishis (34:21) as has been explained by the Kabbalists. We find that the soul of Rabbi Chanina ben Tradyon did not positively influence Shechem and departed Shechem when Shechem raped Dinah. In fact Rabbi Chanina ben Tradyon’s soul attached itself to the soul of Dinah instead of Shechem. This is alluded to in Bereishis (34:3), “His soul attached itself to her soul. [Which is usually understood to mean that Shechem loved Dinah.] It is important to keep this principle in mind… Kiddushin (21b) states that she is a married woman and of course the words of your Sages are true. However if the expression “eishes yofas to’ar” only meant that she was married it should have simply said that she was an “eishes ish.” Thus this phrased informs us that as a result of the soldier being involved in performing a mitzva (fighting for Israel) – G‑d opened his eyes  so that he could recognize that in this non‑Jewish woman that there was some inner beauty. In other words the soldier was able to recognize her holy soul which is called “yofas to’ar”. That is because holy souls radiate a powerful spiritual light. Thus the soldier is in a sensitive spiritual state because he is involved in doing a mitzva and is attached to the divine presence. He is therefore  able to recognize her holy soul and that is what he is attracted to and what he desires in her. This can also be deduced from the fact the verse says “he desires something in her” and doesn’t say “he desires her.” That is to draw attention to the fact that he does not desire the woman per se but something beautiful within her which is the aspect of good which is the pure soul. Thus even if she is physically ugly she is permitted to him because it is the beauty of her soul not her body which is determinant. In this situation there is no physical lust as I have already explained.

Donald Trump is going home a loser

 https://edition.cnn.com/2021/01/13/opinions/trump-impeachment-going-home-loser-axelrod/index.html

 Biographers tell us that, early on, a cutthroat New York real estate developer imparted a dark lesson to the son who would become president of the United States.

There are two kinds of people in the world, Fred Trump explained to his apprentice child. There are killers, and there are losers.

The message was clear: You play to win, whatever it takes. Rules? Norms? Those are for losers. And Fred Trump had no time for losers.

It's a lesson Donald Trump learned all too well.

 

The threat of legal action and disbarment from public office in the future still looms. But the President already has suffered the most painful penalty of all: Fred Trump's boy will go home a loser.