Saturday, February 27, 2021

Passover reliefs could be at risk as thousands break Purim guidelines

 https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/covid-19-hundreds-party-in-jaffa-many-without-masks-as-curfew-looms-660405

Police had feared underground parties or haredi (ultra-Orthodox) tisches would keep them busy over the Festival of Joy, and indeed there were reports of packed synagogues against violations and yeshiva events that broke restrictions on gathering. However, the Jaffa Flea Market turned out to be the greatest challenge for police.

 

 

Why didn't Mordechai divorce Esther?

 One of the most dramatic moments in the Megila happens when Mordechai tells Esther to take the initiative and go to the King with the hope of persuading him to help save the Jewish people

 Esther (chapter 4)

13. Then Mordecai commanded to answer Esther, Think not yourself that in the king’s palace you shall escape, any more than all the Jews.
14. For if you remain silent at this time, then shall relief and deliverance arise to the Jews from another place; but you and your father’s house shall be destroyed. And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?
15. Then Esther bade them return Mordecai this answer,
16. Go, gather together all the Jews who are present in Shushan, and fast for me, and neither eat nor drink three days, night or day; I also and my girls will fast likewise; and so will I go to the king, though it is against the law; and if I perish, I perish.

The gemorah Megila (15a)R. Abba said: It will not be she said according to the custom of every other day. Till now I have associated with Ahasuerus under compulsion, but now I will do so of my own will.  And if I perish, I perish. As I am lost to my father's house so I shall be lost to thee.

The gemorah is saying that Esther was married to Mordechai and up to this point she was vied as being raped by the king and thus was still allowed to remain married to Mordechai.  But now 

Mordechai is ordering her to go of her own free will to the king and commit adultery thus henceforth she will be forbidden to Mordechai. Tosfos asks why Moredchai doesn't simply divorce her 

He answers because the king might find out about it since all gittin require witnesses. the Nodah beyehuda says he could divorce her without witnesses.

תוספות מסכת מגילה דף טו עמוד א
כשם שאבדתי מבית אבא כך אבדתי ממך - וא"ת אמאי לא היה מגרשה ותהא מותרת להחזירנה י"ל לפי שכל מעשה הגט הוא ע"פ עדים והיה ירא פן יתפרסם הדבר למלכות.



Friday, February 26, 2021

The Equality Act Poses an Unprecedented Threat to Religious Freedom

 https://www.christianunion.org/publications-media/christian-union-the-magazine/past-issues/summer-2019/2388-the-equality-act-poses-an-unprecedented-threat-to-religious-freedom

AW: At its core, the Equality Act is not viewpoint neutral. It says that progressive understandings of sexual orientation and gender identity are government orthodoxy. By default, it must treat the historic Christian sexual ethic as a force for animus and discrimination. Any person, or any institution, on the wrong side of this orthodoxy will, by necessity, find themselves on the wrong side of government policy and cultural opinion.

 

Gay conservative: Equality Act would crush religious freedom. Trump is right to oppose it.

 https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2019/05/20/lgbtq-equality-act-fails-fair-religious-freedom-provisions-accommodation-column/3731197002/

 The bill purports to protect LGBT Americans like me by prohibiting discrimination “based on sex, sexual orientation and gender identity in areas including public accommodations and facilities, education, federal funding, employment, housing, credit and the jury system.” On the surface, this sounds unobjectionable — after all, no one deserves to face discrimination. Yet the bill defined “public accommodations” so loosely and called for regulations so sweeping that it would crush religious freedom and radically reshape American society.

Rabbi Avi Shafran Biden and Democrats in Congress voting for Equality Act are undermining religious rights

 https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/biden-democrats-congress-voting-equality-act-are-undermining-religious-rights-ncna1258787

 Now, no religious American of goodwill wants to see gay or transgender people threatened in any way. But millions of religious Americans of goodwill have deep, faith-based convictions about marriage and sexual identity, including, for example, that marriage is a holy commitment made by a man and woman to each other before God and that the Creator bestowed DNA and morphology as the only arbiters of gender identity. By vilifying those ideas, the Equality Act would vilify all who hold them to be true.

Health minister to pre-Purim revelers: You are to blame for the coming dead

 https://www.timesofisrael.com/health-minister-to-pre-purim-revelers-you-are-to-blame-for-the-coming-dead/

 Health Minister Yuli Edelstein berated Tel Aviv party-goers Thursday morning, saying that those who had taken part in mass gatherings the night before, a day ahead of a nationwide nightly curfew over Purim, were responsible for future coronavirus infections and deaths in Israel.

With Purim parties banned this year due to severe limits on public gatherings and a curfew between 8:30 p.m. and 5 a.m. on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights, revelers reportedly took part in a number of large parties Wednesday night.

Bernie Sanders slams Israel for not sending COVID vaccines to Palestinians

 https://www.jpost.com/diaspora/bernie-sanders-slams-israel-for-not-sending-covid-vaccines-to-palestinians-660136

 As Israel began its vaccine rollout late last year, some activists and foreign media outlets criticized Israel for not including the Palestinians, arguing that under international law, Israel is the “occupying power” and must vaccinate them.

Israel, has pointed out that the internationally recognized Oslo Accords state that the PA is responsible for its population’s healthcare, including vaccinations.
Regardless of legal matters, the government has already sent thousands of doses of coronavirus vaccines to the PA and facilitated the entry of Russian donations of the Sputnik V vaccines.

NBC pulls episode of show which smeared religious Jews

 https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/297474

NBC on Wednesday pulled an episode of the show Nurses from its digital platforms amid criticism over a scene that has been widely condemned as anti-Semitic for the way it portrayed a Hasidic patient who refused a bone graft from non-Jews, an Arab or a woman, Fox News reports.

The scene in question appeared on a February 9 episode of Nurses and featured a Hasidic Jewish patient who needed a bone graft from a deceased donor in order to treat a serious leg injury. The patient’s father then chimes in, "A goyim leg. From anyone. An Arab, a woman?"

 

After spat over Trump support, Young Israel council replaces entire board

 https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/after-spat-over-trump-support-young-israel-council-replaces-entire-board/

 The National Council of Young Israel replaces its entire executive board, a stark move away from its vocally pro-Donald Trump leadership, whose statements have led to controversy in the Orthodox synagogue association.

Inside a 'Patriot Party' rally where Trump loyalists search for a path forward

 https://edition.cnn.com/2021/02/23/politics/patriot-party-trump/index.html

The "Patriot Party" is somewhere between a meme and a movement of Trump loyalists.

 In the last days of his presidency, Donald Trump floated the idea of starting a new party, CNN has reported. The Wall Street Journal reported he wanted to call it the Patriot Party. Trump campaign adviser Jason Miller then told CNN that Trump is not currently considering launching a third party.

But some of his followers are trying to do it themselves. The Trump campaign had to file a notice with the Federal Election Commission that it had "no affiliation" with a Patriot Party that had claimed in its own filing to be working with Trump's campaign.

Donald Trump's other, tragic big lie

 https://edition.cnn.com/2021/02/22/opinions/trump-covid-big-lie-reiner/index.html

 The January 6 attack on the United States Capitol was a vivid demonstration of the havoc that can result when a really big lie is repeatedly injected into the body politic.

 But there was another big lie in 2020, also propagated by former President Donald Trump, involving the coronavirus pandemic. It was a lie that systematically downplayed the severity of Covid-19 and the utility of face masks. It very likely resulted in the unnecessary deaths of hundreds of thousands of Americans.

Response to Michael Che's SNL joke is unreasonable

 https://www.jpost.com/opinion/response-to-michael-ches-snl-joke-is-unreasonable-659839

On the most recent episode of NBC’s popular American television show Saturday Night Live, comedian Michael Che dropped a stupid joke about Israel and the coronavirus vaccine: “Israel is reporting that they’ve vaccinated half of their population,” Che said. “I’m going to guess it’s the Jewish half.”
It was a bad joke, an insensitive joke, a joke that not only distorted reality but played into all the ugly antisemitic stereotypes about selfish Jews caring only about themselves. It’s a joke that would have been better off left unspoken. It was also completely wrong. All Israelis over 16 are eligible to receive the vaccine, and that includes seven million Jewish citizens and two million Arab citizens.
 
But still, a little proportion is in order.
Did the American Jewish Committee really have to issue a statement, organize a petition, and demand an apology?

Supreme Court allows release of Trump tax returns to NY prosecutor

 https://edition.cnn.com/2021/02/22/politics/supreme-court-trump-taxes-vance/index.html

 The Supreme Court cleared the way for a New York prosecutor to obtain former President Donald Trump's tax returns, dealing a massive loss to Trump who has fiercely fought to shield his financial papers from prosecutors.

The documents will be subject to grand jury secrecy rules that restrict their public release.
The ruling is a bitter loss for Trump, even if the tax records are shielded from public disclosure, after he consistently argued that the subpoena issued by Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance was overbroad and issued in bad faith.

Trump to tell CPAC he is Republican 'presumptive 2024 nominee' – report

 https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/feb/22/trump-cpac-republican-presumptive-2024-nominee

 Donald Trump will reportedly tell the Conservative Political Action Conference in Florida this week he is Republicans’ “presumptive 2024 nominee” for president.

 Trump will address CPAC on Sunday, his subject the future of the party he took over in the 2016 primary then led from the White House through four tumultuous years. On Monday, citing anonymous sources, the news site Axios reported his plan to assume the mantle of challenger to Joe Biden – or another Democrat, should the 78-year-old president decide not to run for a second term.

Saturday Night Live under fire for anti-Israel joke

 https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/297243

The popular comedy show “Saturday Night Live” is under fire for a joke that suggested Israel is vaccinating only its Jewish citizens against COVID-19.

“Israel is reporting that they’ve vaccinated half of their population, and I’m going to guess it’s the Jewish half,” said Michael Che on this past Saturday night’s show.

The joke sparked outrage by Jewish groups which have demanded that the show apologize.

Former New York State assemblyman and head of Americans Against Antisemitism tweeted, “Unsurprising coming from SNL as they have a long record of antisemitism.”

 

Monday, February 22, 2021

Inside the craziest meeting of the Trump presidency

 https://www.axios.com/trump-oval-office-meeting-sidney-powell-a8e1e466-2e42-42d0-9cf1-26eb267f8723.html

Last month, Axios published "Off the rails," a series taking you inside the end of Donald Trump's presidency, from his election loss to the deadly Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection that triggered his second impeachment — and a Senate trial set to begin next week.

In this bonus edition, we take you back into those final weeks — to one long, unhinged night a week before Christmas, when an epic, profanity-soaked standoff played out with profound implications for the nation.

Sunday, February 21, 2021

Why are Israelis held in Gaza ignored amid Syria prisoner exchange?

 https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/why-are-israelis-held-in-gaza-ignored-amid-syria-prisoner-exchange-659672

The lengths to which the government went to release a woman held in Syria is in contrast to the way it has appeared to ignore the pleading from the families of Shaul, Goldin, Mengistu and Al-Sayed. This has led to questions of whether racism or other factors underpin the less rigorous attempts to get back two living Israelis held in Gaza. Many on social media have expressed concern that the Gaza cases have been ignored.

 

Family of deceased pregnant woman: We opposed vaccine

 https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/297200

 Family members of Osnat Ben Shitrit, the pregnant woman who died last night at Hadassah Hospital in Jerusalem, opposed receiving the Covid-19 vaccine.

Ben Shitrit, 32, who was in her 30th week of pregnancy, died in the intensive care unit at Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital, and the efforts to revive the fetus also failed.

Ben Shitrit's brother-in-law told Kan News: "I founded one of the most successful groups on Facebook against the vaccines, after this case I disabled it. When it comes to you, you understand that you have to think differently."

 We call on everyone to go get vaccinated now."

NHS saves children’s lives with world-first ‘dead’ heart transplants

 https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/nhs-saves-childrens-lives-with-world-first-dead-heart-transplants-b0httn8lb

 Using a pioneering machine, NHS medics have been able to reanimate hearts from donors whose hearts had stopped. The technique has saved the lives of six British children aged from 12 to 16, and the transplants have all taken place during the pandemic.

Rabbi Karlinsky: “Can Chumros Be Bad For Your Neshamah?”

 https://darchenoam.org/rabbi-karlinskys-article-can-chumros-be-bad-for-your-neshamah/

Rav Wolbe continues: Proper service of G-d has to be built on “da’at” – an accurate, deep intelligent understanding of what G-d wants from us, acquired through clear thinking and a deep analysis of Torah.  The Talmud (T.B. Sotah 21b; Talmud Yerushalmi Sotah 3:4) illustrates the concept of “chasid shoteh” (a pious fool) with two examples. (It is truly ironic that one of them is an extreme example of what seems to be taking place in front of our eyes, no pun intended.) A woman is drowning, and a man with the ability to save her says to himself that it is not proper to look at women, and does not save her. A child is drowning and a person delays saving him until he removes his tefillin (since jumping into the water while wearing tefillin is  disrespectful for them). By the time he has removed the tefillin, the baby has drowned.  The common denominator of these examples, explains Rav Wolbe, is following a spiritual instinct without da’at, that clear and intelligent analysis and understanding of what is required of a person in every specific situation.  The result of actions rooted in instinct rather than da’at can be the source of distancing one from G-d, rather than bringing one closer to Him.  Becoming closer to G-d must be based on a deep understanding of the process of connection to Him, rather than imaginary notions of spiritual accomplishments.  This requires clarity about what G-d demands of a person in every situation, having our feet planted firmly on the ground, operating in reality rather than in some self-generated fantasy world. A true relationship with G-d is rooted in proper actions in the real, physical world.  The drive and excessive focus on “getting closer to G-d” (especially in our quick-fix, microwave society) emanates from “frumkeit,” that instinctual desire to reach spiritual heights, with the yetzer hara seducing us to find ways to get there without the requisite time and effort necessary.

 

Dealing with abused husbands and wives in the Orthodox communoty

 https://mishpacha.com/were-only-addressing-half-the-problem/

 The first assumption about abuse in the Jewish community was that the abuse ran in only one direction, and female perpetrators and male victims of domestic abuse were virtually nonexistent. Prominent Jewish writers, echoed by many others in the field, asserted that 95 percent of victims of physical abuse in a marriage are women and only 5 percent are men — a 16:1 ratio.

However, this belief turned out not to be substantiated, as study after study has shown that women are perpetrators of domestic abuse at rates comparable to men. Furthermore, the belief that patriarchal views explained most instances of domestic abuse turned out to be false. Many of the most rigorous studies suggest that other factors, such as individual personality characteristics, impulse control, and life stressors have much more to do with domestic violence than do patriarchal beliefs of men in society.

 For too long the Jewish community has denied the painful reality of male domestic abuse victims and the catastrophic outcomes — for the men as well as their children — that the abuse inflicts. Unfortunately, some men turn to alcohol or substance abuse. Some struggle with suicidality. These maladaptive responses to their anguish tend to feed negative stigmas that our society has toward men, who instead deserve compassion as victims of domestic abuse.

 The Jewish community can do better. It must do better. The effects of domestic abuse, whether the victim is a woman or a man, can be catastrophic, and ignoring this reality costs families and communities dearly. Over the past 30 years, the Jewish community has done an incredible job of addressing half of this problem. The time has come to stop ignoring the other half.

In exchange for captive, Israel said to buy $1m of Russian COVID doses for Syria

 https://www.timesofisrael.com/israel-said-to-purchase-russian-covid-vaccine-for-syria-in-exchange-for-captive/

 Israel is said to have agreed to purchase an unknown number of Russia’s Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine doses for use in Syria as part of the deal for the return of an Israeli woman who was held by the Syrian regime after crossing the border two weeks ago. The woman arrived in Israel on Friday via Moscow and was being debriefed this weekend by the Shin Bet security agency. 

 According to a report (Arabic) in the London-based Asharq Al-Awsat on Saturday, Israel is funding the purchase of Sputnik V doses for Damascus as part of the prisoner exchange deal with the Assad regime. The Ynet news site reported Saturday that Israel’s purchase of the vaccine doses was to the tune of over a million dollars.

Saturday, February 20, 2021

Covid why frum people ignore halacha to daven and have weddings and funerals and keep schools open

 Rav Shlomo Wolbe(Alei Shur 2:4): On the narrow path to Truth in serving G‑d there is a major impediment which is called “frumkeit” (religiosity) – a term which has no clear and exact translation. “Frumkeit” is the natural urge and instinct to become attached to the Creator. This instinct is also found amongst animals. King Dovid said, “The lion cubs roar for their prey and ask G‑d for their food” (Tehilim 104:21). “He gives to the beast his food and to the young crows who call to Him” (Tehilim 247:9). There is no necessity that these verses should be viewed as mere metaphors. Animals have an instinctive feeling that there is someone who is concerned that they have food and this is the same instinct that works in man – but obviously at a higher level. This natural frumkeit helps us in serving G‑d. Without this natural assistance, serving G‑d would be extremely difficult.  However this frumkeit, as in all instinctive urges that occur in man, is inherently self-centered. Therefore frumkeit pushes man to do only that which is good for himself. Activities between people and altruistic actions are not produced by frumkeit. One who bases his service of G‑d entirely on frumkeit remains self‑centered.[...] With this we come here to the essence of the issue of frumkeit. The opposite of frumkeit is self-abnegation and humility. Frumkeit is an egoistic drive like all other instinctive drives. Therefore there is not the slightest aspect of humility and subservience and consequently there is also not true closeness to G‑d. That is because it is obvious that the Divine Presence does not rest with the self-centered ego. In fact the opposite is true. Only by self-abnegation does a person get progressively farther from egoism and in that manner he becomes a pure vessel for G‑d to cause His Divine Presence to be with him….

Thursday, February 18, 2021

The Christian Prophets Who Say Trump Is Coming Again

 https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2021/02/18/how-christian-prophets-give-credence-to-trumps-election-fantasies-469598

 Not all prophets have doubled down on their Trump prophecies since the election, however. And as some have backed away from Trump, a schism has emerged. At least six recognized prophets who initially predicted a Trump reelection have acknowledged those prophecies were wrong. They now say they are deeply troubled by their peers’ refusal to acknowledge the same—and worry that allegiance to Trump could threaten the prophetic tradition itself.

No, frozen wind turbines aren’t the main culprit for Texas’ power outages

 https://www.fox4news.com/news/no-frozen-wind-turbines-arent-the-main-culprit-for-texas-power-outages

 Frozen wind turbines in Texas caused some conservative state politicians to declare Tuesday that the state was relying too much on renewable energy. But in reality, the lost wind power makes up only a fraction of the reduction in power-generating capacity that has brought outages to millions of Texans across the state during a major winter storm.

 While Webber said all of Texas’ energy sources share blame for the power crisis, the natural gas industry is most notably producing significantly less power than normal.

"Gas is failing in the most spectacular fashion right now," Webber said.

 "It appears that a lot of the generation that has gone offline today has been primarily due to issues on the natural gas system," he said during a Tuesday call with reporters.

Still, some have focused their blame on wind power.

Escalating Antireligious Female Draft

 BS"D 


Antireligious Israeli Leftists Making Religious Israeli Girls Bait Again: The Escalation of Drafting Religious Girls Into the Israeli Army

6 Adar, 5781  February 18, '21   Parshas Zochor /Terumah

By Binyomin Feinberg  FeinbergBinyomin@gmail.com

B"H (thank G-d), recently, two Israeli girls being assisted by volunteers with Chomosaich have received notice that they are to receive their religious 
exemptions from military service - Ester A. bas Nilli, a yesomah (orphan), and Talya bas Chana. Ester just received formal notification by letter from the Israeli Army immediately after her draft date, this Monday, Feb.15.

The fact that both girls needed lawyers to solve problems that (even by Army standards) should not have been an issue altogether speaks volumes about Army draft policy, as dictated by the antireligious Army Establishment: it's not that the Army pursues girls who encounter technical problems. It's that girls encounter significant problems because the Army wants to pursue easy targets.

Another girl, Loren bas Miriam, is a  recent Ba'alas Teshuva (someone who rediscovered their religious roots). She embarked on her spiritual commitment subsequent to her commencement of the enlistment process. In the eyes of some, that ostensibly raises suspicion. However, she stands willing to endure military prison to avoid being drafted. That is one powerful argument dispelling naysayers.

Loren has still not received any  religious exemption notice.  The Army set her a draft date for March 18, which happens to be shortly before her wedding, BE"H. 

(Our comment: Apparently, as far as the Army Draft Office is concerned, freedom of religion is a one way street: once secular, always secular - no way out.  Religious freedom isn't free in Israel, at least not if you're a Ba'alas Teshuva not yet ensconced in the correct voting bloc.)

Question: What avenue is there for someone to rediscover their religious Heritage - stolen by the dominant, established secularism of the Israeli WASPs -  if they happen to have started the enlistment process?

Yes, some will argue that the Army must ferret out fakers. Firstly, even according to the religious Zionism to which the government pretends to pay homage, the Israeli government has no right to draft any girl into the military, religious or not. 

Secondly, who is to determine religiosity, the antireligious Army Establishment? Secular and secularist draft officers? 

Thirdly, by what right does the Israeli government have to argue against fakery when the entire female draft is based on one massive fraud after another, including the myth of the need for women, and the true goals of the female draft having more to do with immorality than any national security need?
°°°
IDF Draft Office Advances Their Escalation Against Fully Religious Girls

The ongoing IDF macro-escalation of drafting religious girls can be illustrated "in micro" by reviewing  several current cases of refusenik girls - 
who have required legal counsel - currently being helped by  Chomosaich volunteers, for example.

° Anna bas Miriam, a religious Ukrainian girl, apparently lacking anything that would be expected to flag Draft Office interest, has been subjected to Army harassment for many months on end. Evidently, there is no rationale for this, other than the fact than she's an easy target hailing from one of the many immigrant backgrounds favored by IDF human traffickers. Her case seems to be one of a "random error," however, one that's been quite unrandomly allowed to evade "correction" for many months. During this period, apparently underemployed draft officers are very  intentionally trying to harass her with phonecalls. She's B"H not buckling. Given the Draft Office track- record on recent Chomosaich cases, hers seems to be "par for the course:" 

° Ester bas Nilli, a very religious 18-year-old sefardi orphan, until her exemption notification this week, was being harassed over the signature of the Dayan (religious court judge) on her Religiosity certification being below the line. This - despite her being orphaned from her mother, and being desperately needed to assist her Alman father with nine younger unmarried siblings remaining at home.

° Another religious girl, Talya bas Chana, until she was notified of her religious exemption over a week ago, had been literally persecuted by the Draft Office, despite - or perhaps by virtue of - her being from a broken family, in acute financial straights, and homeless.

°  Shuly bas R., 19, has also been cruelly persecuted, facing potential arrest, over her refusal to submit to the draft. The health issues with which she's recently been dealing, render it clear that the Army has no [legitimate, legal] use for her, and is pursuing her for reasons unrelated to national security.

° Now add to these the cases of other religious girls - under the care of other organizations - being persecuted by the IDF - including the two French girls reported on recently, e.g. see https://firstamendmentactivist.blogspot.com/2021/02/biting-hand-that-sacrifices.html. The Israeli Army Draft Office is clearly escalating their ongoing antireligious crusade against religious girls. And it's happening in great measure because we don't protest sufficiently. And that's something over which we have immense control. We ought to use the ability to speak out while we have it. G-d willing, in that merit, we won't lose that ability. 
~~~

“Nothing is to be more dreaded than the national government meddling with religion.” — John Adams, 1812

° Some of these girls are being or had been blackmailed into submitting to a "Rayon Dat," a Religiosity Interview/ Interrogation. For these girls, that's not only prohibited by Torah Law, and practically hazardous; it's also inherently self-contradictory.  For girls who follow the historically mainstream Rabbinic position that a Rayon Dat is prohibited, the Army forcing them into one (a) constitutes antireligious coercion, and (b) is also legally incoherent - if not downright Orwellian --demanding these girls "demonstrate" their religious values by contravening them.

° The merit of these heroic souls, and those who assist them, is truly incalculable - "Le'fum tza'arah agrah" [Avos]. And for that reason it's all the more incumbent on us to raise awareness - and funds - to stand by those noshim tzidkaniyos, in whose merit so many Jews are very possibly being saved from missos meshunos and untold tzoros.
### 

"... 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)
~~~~~
Binyomin Feinberg. FeinbergBinyomin@gmail.com


Texas weather: Are frozen wind turbines to blame for power cuts?

 https://www.bbc.com/news/world-56085733

 So when critics pointed to a loss of nearly half of Texas's wind-energy capacity as a result of frozen turbines, they failed to point out double that amount was being lost from gas and other non-renewable supplies such as coal and nuclear.

Fox News turns Winter Storm Uri into a cudgel to own the libs

 https://www.vox.com/2021/2/17/22287469/fox-news-winter-storm-uri-windmills-ercot-greg-abbott-hannity-carlson

 As nearly 3 million Texans languished without electricity Wednesday afternoon amid the ongoing fallout from Winter Storm Uri, Republicans and Fox News have teamed up to turn the disaster into a culture-war wedge issue.

 Fox News’ treatment of Uri illustrates how, for a large segment of the Republican Party, everything is now a culture war. On Fox, the coronavirus pandemic is recast around the struggle of aggrieved business owners and parents to overcome purportedly unnecessary public health regulations imposed by Democratic public officials; the January 6 insurrection at the Capitol becomes about Nancy Pelosi’s alleged failures; President Joe Biden’s efforts to prevent conflicts of interest in and around the White House is covered, while the egregious conflicts of interest in the Trump White House were defended.

Wednesday, February 17, 2021

Smoking and halacha

 https://ohr.edu/this_week/insights_into_halacha/5717

The Gadol Hador, Rav Moshe Feinstein zt”l, in a brief, albeit pivotal teshuva dated several months after the Surgeon General’s initial report,[14] wrote that although it is certainly appropriate to abstain from smoking, nevertheless, one cannot say that smoking is outright assur, as there are many people that smoke. Therefore, smokers fit into the category of “Shomer Pesaim Hashem, Hashem watches over fools.”[15] Rav Moshe adds that especially since many Gedolim smoked, it is impossible to say that such an act is truly forbidden.[16] This responsum seems to be the primary justification for many a smoker.

 In fact, even Rav Moshe himself, in subsequent teshuvos dated 1981,[24] took a much stronger stance against smoking due to the health risks involved. Although he still would not call smoking outright assur, he nonetheless rules that due to the dangers of second-hand smoke, it is forbidden to smoke where it will bother others (a psak later echoed by many other authorities)[25] including Batei Midrash and shuls, and concludes with an exhortation that everyone, especially Bnei Torah, should not begin to smoke due to the chashash sakana, adding that it is assur to ‘get addicted’.

 Several years ago, his son, Rav Dovid Feinstein shlit”a, was quoted as saying that with the current knowledge of the harm smoking causes, it is pashut that had his father, Rav Moshe, still been alive today, he would have prohibited smoking outright, as his dispensation was only based on the ‘fact’ that smoking endangered only a small percentage of smokers.[26] Indeed, in a newly discovered and recently published teshuva of Rav Moshe’s, dated Elul 5732, he himself wrote that his famous lenient psak was based on the facts as they were known at the time.[27] He added that if the metzius would change and the percentages of those proven harmed by smoking would increase, then certainly it would be prohibited to smoke, at least the amount the doctors considered harmful to one’s health.

False Allegations of Domestic Violence: More Common Than You Think

 https://www.aggressivelegalservices.com/false-allegations-of-domestic-violence/

 False allegations of domestic violence occur at a high frequency in divorce proceedings. Some people even use this type of tactic as a tool in child custody battles. 25% of all divorces include allegations of domestic violence. The courts in 48 states must consider these allegations while making rulings in child custody hearings. Protection orders are clearly meant to offer protection in serious situations. Now, they have been turned into a weapon in divorce cases. This system is ripe for abuse, and something needs to change.

Tuesday, February 16, 2021

Impeach an Ex-President? The Founders Were Clear: That’s How They Wanted It

 https://www.politico.com/amp/news/magazine/2021/02/11/donald-trump-impeachment-ex-president-founders-468769

 The majority of Donald Trump's defense against his second impeachment so far is that the trial being held in the Senate right now is unconstitutional. His lawyers devoted half their brief and half of their speaking time this week to arguing that the Senate cannot try former officers. Senate Republicans voted 44-6 in agreement.

But what did the authors of the Constitution say about the timing of impeachment? That answer should matter a lot to Republicans, who are known for placing great weight in “originalism” when they invoke the Constitution—the meaning of the document when written in 1787 and then ratified by the public.

Monday, February 15, 2021

COVID-19: 40% of new serious cases are under 60 - here’s why

https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/covid-19-40-percent-of-new-serious-cases-are-under-60-heres-why-658917 

There is a very disturbing increase in serious cases of COVID-19 among young people, according to a report released Sunday by the Coronavirus Knowledge and Information Center.
“There is a clear decrease in serious illness among those ages 60 and older,” the report said. “There is an increase in the number of patients in serious condition among younger groups, which last week constituted about 40% of new serious cases.”
According to Health Ministry data, almost 75% of people diagnosed over the weekend were under 40 years old, while only around 7% over 60.
On Sunday morning, 1,008 people were considered in serious condition, a slight increase from the day before, when 973 people were in serious condition.
Of the serious cases, 38% were under the age of 60. Last week, only around 34% of cases were younger people. At the peak of the third wave, around January 20, it was only 26%.
This constitutes a 53% increase in the number of serious cases under the age of 60 in the last month.
The cause, according to Prof. Cyrille Cohen, head of the immunotherapy laboratory at Bar-Ilan University, is two-fold. On the one hand, the more the older population is protected by the vaccine, it is inherent that the younger, less protected population will contract the virus and therefore be the relatively dominant population in the hospitals.

 

Sunday, February 14, 2021

McConnell criticizes Trump after Senate acquittal

 https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/296771

US Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell on Saturday criticized former US President Donald Trump and said that he was "practically and morally responsible" for his supporters' deadly attack on the Capitol.

The speech came shortly after the Senate acquitted Trump on charges of “inciting insurrection” at his impeachment trial. McConnell voted in favor of acquitting Trump.

Do Israel's haredim really live off the state?

 https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-do-israels-haredim-really-live-off-the-state-1001359942

In an election period, attacking the haredi orthodox community yields political gains, but the figures show the attacks are off the mark.

 

Senate votes Trump impeachment trial is constitutional

 https://www.foxnews.com/politics/senate-decides-constitutionally-of-trump-impeachment-trial-after-day-one-of-arguments

The Senate voted Tuesday to move ahead with the unprecedented impeachment trial of former President Trump after listening to nearly four hours of arguments on whether it is constitutional to try a president who is already out of office. 

The vote was 56-44.

The six Republicans who joined with the Democrats on voting to continue the trial were Sens. Susan Collins of Maine, Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Mitt Romney of Utah, Ben Sasse of Nebraska and Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania.

Cassidy changed his vote from January when he was among the 45 Republicans who supported a motion by Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., that declared the trial unconstitutional. Cassidy said he was persuaded by the House impeachment managers' arguments on Tuesday.

 

Tuesday, February 9, 2021

IDF Vs.Girl Duped to Volunteer


BS"D

Why Is the IDF Persecuting a Deeply Religious Girl Duped Into Volunteering from France?

27 Shvat, 5781, Parshas Mishpatim (21:16) °° 9 February, '21

(Reposted here by Binyomin Feinberg)

BELOW IS THE ORIGINAL* LETTER OF A 19 YEAR-OLD, ERLICH, FRUM FRENCH GIRL, N.D., WHO WAS DECEIVED INTO "VOLUNTEERING" FOR THE ISRAELI ARMY.

She recently fled the Israeli Army, and is at risk for arrest - and abusive imprisonment in Israeli Military jail. The Army refuses to exhibit even basic decency in recognition of the fact that this young lady opted to volunteer, and did so out of a desire (albeit misinformed - due to no fault of her own) to help.

Her January 31, '21 letter is a window into the crisis striking at the core of the Jewish People, Bnos Yisroel, via  international efforts by the IDF to dupe innocent, naive girls - including frum and erlich girls - into "volunteering" for the Israeli Army - under pretenses that are as premeditatively false as they are convincing.  Realize that in France, as unbelievable as it seems, even many Chareidi girls are totally unaware of the prohibition of enlistment in the Israeli Army; many imagine it's simply not done by Chareidim, but not necessarily a severely prohibited act.

* The version below is slightly edited, primarily for English punctuation. (She wrote in both French and English, but the latter is not her natural language.)

It's authenticity can be verified by contacting Merkoz Hatzoloh, the Orthodox organization assisting her.

°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°

‪Date: יום א׳, 31 בינו 2021, 12:31‬

 French passport: ...
 Born in Paris on June ..., 2001
 Date of entry into the army: 13/09/2020

 I joined the army by "Mahal" (1 year and a half volunteer)
 בס״ד

 My name is N... D... I have been in Israel for 1 year without my parents and I have decided to voluntarily enlist in the army for 1.5 years with a visa.

 If I decided to join the army, it is quite simple because I was ready to help the Jewish people, while being a French citizen.

 I grew up in a religious family, {Ed.: please note THIS shocking fact!!! ===»»» } but no one warns us of the risks and dangers of joining the military.  In France we are not aware of what is prohibited for young girls - due to lack of information.  We think of an ideal, that to make the Army is something great - but it is not the reality.

 The decision was difficult because my parents are not with me and it is very difficult not to be with them every day, to be alone in Israel.

 I only wanted to serve in the army under certain conditions, one of which was very important to be able to return to France.  I was promised that when I wanted I could leave and be with my family, and when I requested it was refused, especially when I unfortunately learned that my father had had an accident and that he was in the hospital (and) that it was urgent for me to return to be with him.  I have been denied a right which is indispensable and which I do not accept.

 I haven't seen my parents for over a year, and, especially in this very difficult time for my family, I need to be there.

 I was also promised that the army would be kosher, that the Tsniout would be respected both in clothing and in speech.

 I have seen and heard things that are the opposite of what I was promised and said -- unlike what I know and where I come from.

 I was promised that the Shabbat would be respected, and all the opposite happened.  Music on speakers all Shabbat is something that is not respectful, and I would even say contempt[ful] for religion; it is absolutely forbidden on Shabbat; the lighting of the plata in the middle of Shabbat because they had forgotten, or that the only way to drink is with an electric dispenser; [these are] are prohibitions that oblige me to break Shabbat - because I am prohibited from eating a dish that has been cooked on Shabbat, or from drinking from an electronic source.  In France, we usually go to the synagogue with our family on Friday and Saturday to pray. There was a synagogue - but an empty one - where I cannot follow the Shabbat prayer, which is very important to me. Being the only one in my whole base shomeret Shabbat is something that is not bearable, and that I live very badly.  I spend the day alone every time without my family, without my friends, and in a place that does not suit me.  I have never in my life spent Shabbat like this, and when I tell my officers when I ask them to be able to at least be at home on Shabbat, I am told that this is impossible even if it is very hard for me.  Also, the mix of Girls and Boys is unacceptable for me to always be together and see things that are against my values.

 I don't feel comfortable, I am feeling very bad, and I don't feel able to stay in an environment like this.  All the things that the Army had promised me are not respected, and I no longer have the strength to remain in this environment, in this living environment which does not suit me.  If I had known I would never have committed and would never have agreed to sign the contract.  They have exploited my naivety and my ignorance of the fact that I am a young French girl wanting to help, and I have been deceived (in)to (making me) believe things which are nothing but pure lies. I consider this to be dishonesty. I have been deceived.

 I no longer wish to stay in the Army because all the conditions for which I am enlisted are not respected.

 I demand the immediate cancellation of my engagement in the army because I suffer humiliation from day to day.  All the promises they made to me have no value.  I never thought I would be subjected to such an aberration, a swindle.

__________________________________________________________
{End of English letter; French letter below:}  
__________________________________________________________
Le 31 Janv. 2021 à  

D... N...  
Passport fronçais : ...
Née à Paris le ... juin 2001
Date d’entrée à l’armée : 13/09/2020
Je me suis engagée à l armée par Mahal (1 an et demi volontaire )
בס״ד

Je m appelle N... D... je suis en Israël depuis 1 an sans mes parents et j ai décidé de m engager volontairement à l armée pendant 1 an et demi à l’aide d un visa.
Si j ai décidé de m engager à l’ armée c est tout simple parce que j était prête à aider le peuple juif , tout en étant une citoyenne française .
J ai grandit dans une famille religieuse mais personne ne nous préviens des risques et dangers a s’engager à l’armée. En France nous ne sommes pas au courant de que ce qui est interdit pour les jeunes filles à cause du au manque d’informations . Nous pensons à un idéal, que de faire l armée est quelque de super mais ce n’est pas la réalité.
La décision a été difficile car mes parents ne sont pas avec moi et c est très compliqué de ne pas être avec eux tous les jours ,d’être seule en Israël .
J ai voulu faire l armée seulement sous certaines conditions dont une très importante qui était de pouvoir rentrer en France. On m as promis que lorsque je le voudrait je pourrais partir et être avec ma famille et lorsque j ai fait la demande on me la refusée surtout lorsque j ai appris malheureusement que mon père avait eu un accident et qu’il était à l hôpital. Qu il était urgent pour moi de rentrer pour être avec lui. On m a refusé un droit qui est indispensable et que je n accepte pas.
Je n ai pas vu mes parents depuis plus d un an et particulièrement dans cette période très difficile pour ma famille j ai besoin d être là.
On m as également promis que l armée serait cacher, que la Tsniout serait respectée aussi bien dans le vêtement que dans la parole .
J ai vu et entendu des choses qui sont à l inverse de ce que l on m avait promis et dits.
A l’inverse de ce que je connais et de l endroit d ou je viens .
On m as promis que le Shabbat serait respecté et tous l inverse s est produit. La musique sur des enceintes tout le Shabbat est quelque chose qui n est pas respectueux et je dirais même du mépris envers la religion c est absolument interdit Shabbat , l’allumage de la plata en plein Shabbat parce qu ils l avaient oubliée ou encore que la seule manière de boire est avec un distributeur électrique sont des interdictions qui m obligent de transgresser Shabbat car il m est interdit de manger un plat qui a été cuit pendant Shabbat ou de boire d une provenance électronique . En France on a l’habitude d aller à la synagogue en famille vendredi et samedi pour prier. Il a effectivement une synagogue mais une synagogue vide ou je ne peux pas suivre la prière de Shabbat qui est très importante pour moi .Etre la seule de toute ma base shomeret Shabbat est quelque chose qui n est pas supportable et que je vis très mal. Je passe la journée seule à chaque fois sans ma famille sans mes amis et dans un endroit qui ne me convient pas. Je n ai jamais de ma vie passe des Shabbat comme ça et lorsque j en parle à mon mefaqued lorsque je fais la demande de pouvoir au minimum être chez moi à Shabbat on me répond que cela est impossible même si c est très dur pour moi . De plus,le mélange Filles et garçons est inacceptable pour moi d être toujours ensembles et de voir des choses qui sont à l encontre de mes valeurs.
Je ne me sens pas à l’aise et je ne me sens pas capable de rester dans un environnement comme ça. Toutes les choses que l armée m avait promis ne sont pas respectés et je n ai plus la force de rester dans cet environnement, dans ce cadre de vie qui ne me convient pas . Si j avais su je ne me saurais jamais engagée et n aurais jamais acceptée de signer le contrat . On a exploitée ma naïveté et mon ignorance du fait que je sois une jeune française voulant aider et on m as trompé à me faire croire des choses qui ne sont autres que de pures mensonges .Je considère ceci comme de la malhonnêteté .On m a trompé.
Je ne souhaites plus rester à l armée car toutes les conditions pour lesquelles je me suis engagée ne sont pas respectés.
J exige l annulation immédiat de mon engagement à l’armée car je subis une humiliation de jour en jour. Toutes les promesses que l ont m’a accordes n ont aucune valeur . Jamais je n’aurais pensé subir une telle aberration, escroquerie.

«# END #»

Trump impeachment: Fact-checking the Senate trial

 https://www.bbc.com/news/55955588

 The Senate is determining whether to convict Mr Trump based on the president violating his oath of office, rather than if he acted illegally.

Yeshiva deans urge students to get COVID vaccine

 https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/296502

 “In order to protect oneself from harm and to also to avoid harming others…therefore there is a great obligation to take every possible precaution.”

“We are obliged to obey the regulations from our rabbis…and yeshiva deans who instructed married students [Avrechim] to get the vaccine against COVID, in accordance with doctors’ opinions that it is safe to use.”

“Therefore, we call on all married students [Avrechim] who can to follow the doctors’ advice and get vaccinated.”

The letter cites the opinions of Rabbi Chaim Kanievsky and Rabbi Gershon Edelstein.

Videos by anti-vaxxer ‘rabbi to the stars’ said fueling vaccine distrust

 https://www.timesofisrael.com/videos-by-anti-vaxxer-rabbi-to-the-stars-said-fueling-vaccine-distrust/

 The claims of a popular, anti-vaccination rabbi are fueling fears of the coronavirus shot in Israel and have reportedly been blamed by health officials for a slowdown in the country’s vaccination campaign.

Rabbi Yuval Hacohen Asherov, who advises numerous Israeli celebrities, has released videos falsely claiming the vaccines cause infertility and damage to the immune system, and can even be fatal. “There are fears that the coronovirus vaccine can be fatal, causes infertility… and severe allergies that can be fatal,” he said in one clip. “Scientists are saying this. It’s not me who’s saying this.”

Sunday, February 7, 2021

Fox News cancels Lou Dobbs Tonight

 https://www.theguardian.com/media/2021/feb/05/fox-news-lou-dobbs-tonight-canceled

 Fox Business Network has canceled the show of Lou Dobbs, the ardent Donald Trump supporter with a history of espousing misinformation who promoted baseless conspiracy theories of voting fraud after the election.

Dobbs is still considered the highest-rated host on the Fox Business Network, and he has remained under contract even though he is not expected to reappear on a new show. His show’s slot, which airs twice on weeknights, will now be filled with a show called Fox Business Tonight, which will feature Jackie DeAngelis and David Asman as hosts.

News of the cancellation came one day after Dobbs, 75, was named as a defendant in a defamation lawsuit filed by Smartmatic, an election technology company and voting machine maker, which accuses Dobbs and other Fox News anchors of promoting unfounded claims that Smartmatic was involved in a scheme to hand the presidency to Joe Biden.

 

COVID: Just 0.06% Israelis sick after two shots, no one serious – study

 https://www.jpost.com/health-science/covid-just-006-percent-israelis-sick-after-two-shots-no-one-serious-study-657871

 From a segmentation of the infections that did occur, it appears that the immunity increases as the days go by. Among the 254 people who contracted the virus, 76 of them were infected after seven days, 44 on the eight day, and 24 on the ninth day. Between day 22 and 24 – when the test period ended – no one was infected.

According to the studies conducted by Pfizer, the vaccine had an efficacy of about 95%, which is considered very high.

 

Trump’s Orthodox impeachment lawyer asks for pause if trial runs into Shabbat

 https://www.timesofisrael.com/trumps-orthodox-impeachment-lawyer-asks-for-pause-if-trial-runs-into-shabbat/

Former US president Donald Trump’s lawyer in the upcoming Senate impeachment trial, who is an Orthodox Jew, has asked for the proceedings to be paused from Friday evening due to Shabbat, the New York Times reported on Saturday.

A spokesperson for Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, who is also Jewish, said accommodations would be made.

Fox cancels Lou Dobbs' show

 https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/296361

 Fox News has canceled the show of Lou Dobbs, who is considered the most ardent supporters of former US President Donald Trump, AFP reports.

The decision on Friday came a day after Fox News and Dobbs were sued for defamation by voting technology firm Smartmatic, which is claiming $2.7 billion in losses from the network for promoting false claims that the company was involved in fraud in November's presidential election.

Saturday, February 6, 2021

רה"י מסביר: "צריך שיאמרו - אשרי החרדים"

 https://mobile.kikar.co.il/article/384981

 בשיחה שמסר הגאון רבי גרשון אדלשטיין, הוא הסביר מדוע חרדי חייב לשמור על ההנחיות ולהתחשב בדעת החילונים; 'שיאמרו אשרי מי שלמד תורה, אשרי מי שהוא חרדי'. צפו (ארץ)

Friday, February 5, 2021

Taylor Greene kicked off US House committees for hateful conspiracy theories

 https://www.timesofisrael.com/taylor-greene-kicked-off-us-house-committees-for-hateful-conspiracy-theories/

 11 Republicans support move as Georgia representative backtracks from support of QAnon and 9/11 trutherism, but fails to apologize for anti-Semitic, racist and violent comments 

 Addressing her colleagues, Greene tried to dissociate herself from her “words of the past.” Contradicting past social media posts, she said she believes the 9-11 attacks and mass school shootings were real and no longer believes QAnon conspiracy theories, which include lies about Democratic-run pedophile rings.

But she didn’t explicitly apologize for supportive online remarks she’s made on other subjects, as when she mulled about House Speaker Nancy Pelosi being assassinated or the possibility of Jewish-controlled space rays causing wildfires. And she portrayed herself as the victim of unscrupulous “big media companies.”

Can you still transmit Covid-19 after vaccination?

 https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20210203-why-vaccinated-people-may-still-be-able-to-spread-covid-19

 There are two main types of immunity you can achieve with vaccines. One is so-called "effective" immunity, which can prevent a pathogen from causing serious disease, but can't stop it from entering the body or making more copies of itself. The other is "sterilising immunity", which can thwart infections entirely, and even prevent asymptomatic cases. The latter is the aspiration of all vaccine research, but surprisingly rarely achieved.

מלמד אצלי נפטר מקורונה -ה' ירחם - אלמנה ו 10 יתומים !

 

המצב של הקמפיין מאוד קשה, אנו רחוקים מהיעד של מיליון וחצי שקל ואין אנו יכולים לחשוב שלא יהיה לאלמנה והיתומים את המוצרים הנצרכים מדי חודש בחודשו זהו החיוב שלנו להציל את המשפחה.
הרב נפתלי ברנשטיין, מלמד אצלנו בחיידר בית אליהו, רמת בית שמש א', נפטר מקורונה, בן 47 בריא ללא מחלות רקע.
השאיר 6 ילדים יתומים לא נשואים! 
החסד הגדול ביותר הוא להחזיק ידי אלמנה ויתומים ,



Thursday, February 4, 2021

'Jewish space lasers' funny? Marjorie Taylor's antisemitism is real


 https://www.jpost.com/diaspora/jewish-space-lasers-funny-marjorie-taylors-antisemitism-is-real-657734

 You see, this 100% tracks with Greene’s many terrible beliefs that we already knew about: She’s a known supporter of many anti-Semitic and Islamophobic conspiracy theories. A recently resurfaced video shows her verbally abusing Parkland survivor David Hogg and claiming that he is being paid by George Soros — yet another popular modern anti-Semitic canard. Greene believes that the Parkland, Newtown and Las Vegas shootings were staged. She also believes that 9/11 was an inside job, and that “former secretary of state Hillary Clinton murdered a child during a satanic ritual and drank her blood.” She is a supporter of QAnon — another trove of anti-Semitic conspiracy theories.

'What will the deniers of the pandemic say to the heavenly court?'

 https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/296193

 I do not know what all those people who have spread and are spreading that 'there is no pandemic' and convince others not to take vaccines will say in heaven. How will they stand before the heavenly court and explain why they brought upon the deaths of so many people, when the mortality rate in Israel is skyrocketing?

 How dare people still say that there is no pandemic when the mortality rate in some countries has almost doubled. What would have happened if the government had not done all the lockdowns and preventive measures?

Third wave: Increase in rate of infection among babies

 https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/296186

 Recent morbidity data shows an alarming increase in the number of children under the age of two who have become infected with the coronavirus, Channel 12 News reported.

According to the data, in November 377 babies were diagnosed with the coronavirus. In December that number rose to 1,526 and in January it ballooned to 5,780.

It is believed that the sharp rise in infant morbidity is due to the spread of the British variant of the coronavirus, a mutation which is even more contagious than the original strand of the disease.

House Republican leader punts on punishing Marjorie Taylor Greene as Democrats move toward removing her from committees

 https://edition.cnn.com/2021/02/03/politics/marjorie-taylor-greene-committee-assignments/index.html

 During his meeting with Greene, McCarthy asked if she would apologize for her past comments and views, which she did not agree to, a person with knowledge of the matter told CNN. Another person familiar with their conversation also said that McCarthy provided a slew of options to her, including that she could show remorse and apologize.

Greene told the Examiner Democrats are "stupid" for moving toward stripping her of her committee assignments, adding, "I'm pretty amazed at how dumb they are." She said she's not worried about losing her assignments.

 

Wednesday, February 3, 2021

Fact check: Trump's official response to impeachment includes obvious lies

 https://edition.cnn.com/2021/02/03/politics/fact-check-trump-impeachment-response-senate/index.html

 Former President Donald Trump continues to defend the ludicrous lie that led him down the road to a second impeachment -- even in his legal team's official response to that impeachment.

The legal team's initial written response to the House's article of impeachment against Trump, submitted to the Senate on Tuesday, focuses on debatable constitutional arguments, particularly the claim that someone who is no longer in office can't be convicted by the Senate. (Many legal scholars disagree.) But the response also includes defenses of some Trump claims that are very obviously not true -- including the bonkers claim that he actually won the election.

Trump lashes out at 'squad': 'They hate Jewish people'

 https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/476737-trump-lashes-out-at-squad-they-hate-jewish-people 

President Trump lashed out at a group of progressive lawmakers at a rally with evangelical supporters Friday, accusing the freshmen congresswomen of being anti-Semitic.

“These people hate Israel. They hate Jewish people,” Trump said at a campaign event in Miami launching his “Evangelicals for Trump” coalition.

“I won’t name them. I won’t bring up the name of Omar, Tlaib, AOC. I won’t bring that name up. Won’t bring it up. I will not bring it up,” he added, referring to Reps. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.).

Trump’s and Miller’s Attacks on ‘The Squad’

 https://www.factcheck.org/2019/07/trumps-and-millers-attacks-on-the-squad/

President Donald Trump and his top immigration adviser continue to criticize four progressive Democratic congresswomen known as “the squad,” but some of their claims twist the women’s words.

We’ve dealt with a couple of these assertions before, including a false claim that Rep. Ilhan Omar has expressed pride for al Qaeda. But Trump and senior adviser Stephen Miller have pointed to other instances in which they claim the lawmakers expressed anti-American or anti-Semitic remarks. Below, we present some of these claims and a fuller context of the comments made by the congresswomen.

 The claim: “They can’t talk about ‘evil Jews,’ which is what they say: ‘evil Jews.'” — Trump, July 19

What Omar said: “Israel has hypnotized the world, may Allah awaken the people and help them see the evil doings of Israel.” — via Twitter in November 2012. It has since been deleted.

To be clear, we could find no evidence that any of the four congresswomen have ever uttered the phrase “evil Jews.”

Ilhan Omar apologizes after Pelosi denounces tweet as anti-Semitic

 https://www.politico.com/story/2019/02/11/house-democrats-ilhan-omar-antisemitism-1163728

 Rep. Ilhan Omar apologized for anti-Semitic comments Monday after coming under pressure from Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other top Democrats.

Republicans are accusing Democrats of hypocrisy, because they were quick to punish Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) last month after he defended white nationalism and white supremacy, which McCarthy said recently were equivalent, or even “more so,” to the rhetoric of Omar and Tlaib. The full House rebuked King on the House floor, while the GOP stripped King of his committee assignments.

“When a member on our side of the aisle said something, they were very clear about what they thought should happen,” McCarthy said. “We took action on our own side. When they stay silent, they are just as guilty.”

The Ilhan Omar anti-Semitism controversy, explained

 https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2019/3/6/18251639/ilhan-omar-israel-anti-semitism-jews

 It’s true that Omar’s comments on Israel keep falling into well-worn anti-Semitic tropes — and her defenders often prove too willing to paper this over and dismiss criticism from even progressive Jews as “smears.”

It’s also the case that Republican officials frequently call on anti-Semitic tropes and say worse about other minority groups without nearly so much bipartisan condemnation. Pushing for a House vote on anti-Semitism really did feel like unfairly singling out Omar — and whitewashing the GOP’s record in the process. That’s why progressives rallied to Omar’s defense, and why the Democratic leadership has been forced to reconsider its initial resolution.

 Omar deleted the original tweet and said she “unequivocally” apologized. And for a few weeks, that seemed to settle the matter. But then, at the panel with Tlaib last Wednesday, Omar tried to address her anti-Semitism problem again. And that’s when things went south.

 “At the event last week, Rep. Omar reiterated the remorse she feels for her comments last month—and the pain she knows they caused. As she said in her apology, we must distinguish between criticism of a particular faith and fair critiques of lobbying groups,” Slevin said. “She has consistently spoken out about the undue influence of lobbying groups for foreign interests of all kinds and her comments were about just that. To suggest otherwise is an inaccurate reading of her remarks.”

Trump's speech is probably defensible in every court — except, perhaps, the Senate

 https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/donald-trump/trump-s-speech-probably-defensible-every-court-except-perhaps-senate-n1254258

Even if there is proof that Trump "intended" to cause violence with his speech, and even if there is proof that the violence he intended to cause was the storming of the Capitol, there could be an issue of whether the violence was "imminent" enough to be criminal.

Some will conclude that words like "fight" and "strength" gave the crowd the detailed instructions to violently enter the Capitol. The Senate can still convict even if reasonable minds can differ over those factual conclusions. A criminal jury must be unanimous.

A criminal jury is bound by the reasonable doubt standard. The Senate is not. It is bound by the two-thirds supermajority vote standard — and not much else.

‘We will never concede’: How Donald Trump incited an attack on America

 https://fortune.com/2021/01/07/trump-speech-capitol-attack-riots-pence-we-will-never-concede-maga-rally/

Many top political figures are converging on a stunning consensus: President Donald Trump personally incited a violent attack on the U.S. Capitol building on Jan. 6, leaving four dead and an indelible scar on American democracy. Those assessments are coming not just from Trump’s political opponents, but also from members of his own party and even former members of his administration.

They include Gen. James Mattis, Trump’s first secretary of defense, who said last night that the “effort to subjugate American democracy by mob rule…was fomented by Mr. Trump.” Gen. Joseph Dunford, former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff under Trump, also laid blame on the President. Republican Sen. Mitt Romney directly blamed Trump for last night’s events, and Republican Rep. Adam Kinzinger of Illinois this morning called for the invocation of the 25th Amendment, which gives the Vice President and the cabinet the power to remove an unfit President.

Trump’s statements leading up to and during the storming of the Capitol building, however, did not include explicit calls for a violent attack on America’s democratic institutions. Instead, those laying blame on Trump are pointing in part to rhetoric that agitated his followers with conspiratorial lies and instilled a sense of imminent doom—while relying on them to make the final decision to act. This is a version of the “stochastic terrorism” tactics common to authoritarian leaders around the world.

 

Capitol riots: Did Trump's words at rally incite violence?

 https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-55640437

 Thousands gathered at a "Save America" rally organised to challenge the election result and they listened as Mr Trump spoke to them near the White House.

In a 70-minute address, he exhorted them to march on Congress where politicians had met to certify Democrat Joe Biden's win. The attack began moments after he took the applause.

Those words have now played a central part in his second impeachment, which happened after a day of debate in Congress.

So what did he say? Here are five key quotes, followed by some legal analysis from Professor Garrett Epps of the University of Baltimore.