Why You Think Ty Cobb Was a Racist (When He Wasn't)

 https://www.newsweek.com/2024/07/26/why-you-think-ty-cobb-was-racist-when-he-wasnt-1907257.html

After that Cobb's reputation was in the hands of the masses—who retold and freely embroidered on his legend. Over the decades, repetition became truth. Instead of being seen as a specific human being, he became a kind of blank canvas on which people could paint a portrait of a miscreant, being as inventive as they pleased. It was fascinating to imagine a racist psycho at large in the major leagues. The bad Cobb—reiterated and further fictionalized by Stump in a 1985 book called Cobb—was someone they could shake their head at, denounce, and feel superior to. Spinning stories in a way that made Cobb look immoral was an artful way of saying, "I am not a racist because I reject this man who is." Cultures change as values change, wars are waged and the harvest waxes and wanes, but a villain who inspires self-congratulation makes for one hell of a tenacious myth.

Utilizing Signs

 Rabbeinu Yona (Sefer Hayira) And we are not to utilize any sign except what the Sages said, and if a person has a mitzvah to do, such as review a gemora or have his son to begin to study Torah, he will not say I will wait until Rosh Hashonna or until Pesach... and those who are not concerned will never be effected, but those who are concerned the devil stands at their right to harm them with their error

Shulchan Aruch (YD 179) We have the custom to not begin things on the second or fourth days of the week (Monday or Wednesday) and we only take wives during the full moon. [Comment of Rema: And therefore, we have the custom as well to begin study on Rosh Chodesh, because even though there is no divination, there is a sign(SM"K 136). What a person knows to be inauspicious, they should not do, and they should not rely on miracles. However, one must not investigate this matter, because one should be "wholehearted" (Responsa of Ramba"n 286) as will be explained.] 

Shulchan Aruch (YD179:04) A child's or a woman's house: even if there is no divination, there is a sign. [Comment of Rema: If one has succeeded afterwards three times, or not (B"Y citing Rashi). And similarly one may say to a child, "Tell me your verse of current study" (Tur). Some say that one may make a sign about something that is still to happen, like Eliezer, Abraham's servant did, or Jonathan (Tur and R"D Kimchi) but some forbid it (Rambam and SM"G). But one who proceeds wholeheartedly and trusts in Hashem will be surrounded by kindness.]

Rabbeinu Bachya (Kad HaKemach mezuza) The common practice of the world, that they do not carry women with a partial moon but only with a full moon, there is no prohibition in this, and it is not significant, since it is nothing but simply a sign, and the intent is merely a good sign that the marriage will be complete and not lacking, and this is similar to what we practice on the night of Rosh Hashanah, and it is the custom of the Gaonim. This is also similar to the custom of anointing the kings next to a spring. as a good sign that their kingdom would last. And anyone who views the matter of marriage and the success of homes other than a sign, this is the way of the Amorites, and it is the custom of the nations who think that the success of homes depends on the star system... 

Meiri (Meishiv Nefesh 02:02) ...The simonomim of Rosh HaShanna are to increase the remembrance of G-d at every moment to avoid sin. Thus we place on the table Kara, Rubia, Kerti, Salka, Tamari, according to what is stated in Krisus anf Horious. And in order that they be viewed as simple signs and not divination, we recite appropriate words asking for forgiveness and repentance

Sefas Emes (Rosh HaShanna 5632) We have signs on the night of Rosh Hashanah, because on Rosh Hashanah, one does not ask for the needs of this world, as they said in Zohar and Tikkunim, we only ask for fear of G-d and His rule. Therefore our needs are only asked by hints

Lending Money the Halachic Way

 https://torah.org/learning/business-halacha-5757-vol4no1/

Our Chazal forbade us from lending money to others without witnesses present, or without a contract signed by witnesses. The custom today is to rely on one witness seeing the transaction, or a note either handwritten by the borrower, or signed by him, affirming that he has borrowed money from the lender. It is also sufficient if the borrower gives the lender some collateral to guarantee repayment of the loan, such as a check made out for when the loan is due, or some item equivalent to or greater in value that the loan.Without any of the above, even today we may not lend.

The above prohibition applies even if the lender is a Talmid Chacham (Torah scholar), a relative to the lender, or a wealthy person about whom there is no doubt that he will easily be able to repay the loan. (1)However, if the lender knows the borrower to be a G-d fearing person who would never deliberately lie, and the lender decides that if this borrower should ever deny that he owes the money he will forgive the debt entirely and will not seek recourse in Bais Din, if necessary he may lend the money without witnesses, notes, or guarantees. It is still preferable to follow the words of our Chaza”l even in this case. (2)

Rabbi Shmuley Boteach: 'Ben Shapiro only fired Candace Owens because of me'

 https://www.jpost.com/j-spot/article-804169?dicbo=v2-eOJ9xxM

Let’s be clear. Not only did Dennis Prager and Ben Shapiro fail to speak out and their silence became deafening, but they actually did speak out and they defended her. Dennis Prager has been a friend and mentor to me for three decades. Our friendship has been severely tested by his choice to proactively defend the foremost female antisemite in America. I was shocked when he did that, and we discussed it. I said, ‘Dennis, I fear that you have forever stained your legacy. In the past, your legacy was being a champion of Israel, a champion of Jewishness, and now you’re defending the foremost Jew hater in America. A woman who says that Israel is genocidal, a woman who promotes the idea that Jews drink the blood of Christians. A woman who says that Jews control Hollywood and run sex rings there.’ She is psychotic, and he is defending her. Even worse, though, is Ben Shapiro. At the very least, Dennis Prager didn’t make money from it, but Ben Shapiro profited and we don’t even know how much. I’m guessing to the tune of millions of dollars because for two years after knowing what Candace Owens was, for two years after she came out and defended Kanye West, who said he loved and proclaimed Hitler, Ben Shapiro continued to profit from her daily broadcast.

Rashi was right: Machine learning confirms unique status of some Talmudic tracts

 https://www.timesofisrael.com/rashi-was-right-machine-learning-confirms-unique-status-of-some-talmudic-tracts/

Rabbinical commentators on the Talmud noted in the medieval era that a handful of sections of the great corpus stood out linguistically from the rest. Over generations of scholars, the existence of these so-called “special tractates” was considered to be a clue that could further elucidate how the Talmud was compiled and edited.

Now via modern data analysis, a team of contemporary researchers has shown that these “special tractates” do indeed display a distinct use of language. After feeding nearly the entire Talmudic corpus into machine learning algorithms to parse the Aramaic, they confirmed the theories of Rashi and other medieval scholars.

Lara Trump's Remarks About Larry Hogan Raise Eyebrows

 https://www.newsweek.com/lara-trumps-remarks-about-larry-hogan-raise-eyebrows-1907230

Peter Henlein, a self-described political junkie, wrote: "There you have it folks. The Co-chair of the RNC, Lara Trump, is going to withhold support for viable candidates if they don't worship Trump sufficiently. Saying nice things about Trump matters more than the GOP winning the senate. Larry Hogan represents a once in a lifetime opportunity for the GOP to pick up a seat in Maryland. Hogan won't win on a MAGA platform. He can't win talking about how awesome Trump is."

He added: "But now that Trump's daughter-in-law runs the RNC, that type of obvious reality doesn't matter. What is best for the party doesn't matter. Only what is best for the Trump family matters."

Emunas Chochomim

 Just received a disturbing email from a lawyer. 

He claims that a godol asked him to do legal work and promised to pay him. There was no written contract

The godol refuses to respond to requests for payment.

This brings up the issue of whether you are allowed to question the trustworthiness of a godol?

This applies to many fields. 

A woman goes to a rav for marriage advice. He does inappropriate things in the name of Torah. Should she submit?

The same applies when a parent or rebbe molests a child

We had the case of Rabbi Greenblatt giving a heter based on claims said in the name of a godol - without checking whether they were true

Bottom line a godol should not be given leniencies such as an oral contract or allowed to do disgusting things in the name of Torah

Trump Pretends He Never Called for Hillary to Be Locked Up

 https://www.thedailybeast.com/trump-pretends-he-never-called-for-hillary-to-be-locked-up?ref=home?ref=home

Three months later, he told a North Carolina crowd that “for what she’s done, they should lock her up” and a Pennsylvania audience that “‘lock her up’ is right.”

He deployed the infamous phrase as recently as 2020. On the same January night the Justice Department closed its two-year probe into Clinton’s emails, Ohio fans chanted “lock her up” at a Trump rally. “You should lock her up, I’ll tell you,” he agreed.

“You should lock them up,” Trump added that October in Georgia. “Lock up the Bidens, lock up Hillary.”

"Trump derangement syndrome" is real — but it's not what they say it is

 https://www.salon.com/2023/12/10/trump-derangement-syndrome-is-real--but-its-not-what-they-say-it-is/

We can apply the diagnosis of TDS to the man-child himself or his followers, but not those of us over here in the reality-based community. If we react reflexively to Trump, it's because he lies reflexively, claiming that he's got good ideas and is the man for the job. He’s proven, time and again, that he’s not the man for any job. Now he increasingly speaks of himself in divine terms, which as many experts agree is terrifying, whether it represents genuine delusion or just another cunning maneuver to draw his cult members in even deeper.

Applied to those who see him for who he is, TDS was always a psychological projection. But it is real — and it's a clear and present danger.

5 takeaways from Jim Jordan’s NYC hearing into Alvin Bragg and crime

 https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/3955513-5-takeaways-from-jim-jordans-nyc-hearing-into-alvin-bragg-and-crime/

The centrality of the former president to the proceedings was obvious from the opening moments.

Jordan, in the process of making the broader argument that Bragg was too lenient on criminals, asserted that “the scales of justice are weighed down by politics” in Manhattan.

The GOP aimed to hit Bragg with a combination punch — arguing that the DA and his party are soft on crime, while also suggesting Bragg is wrongfully focused on Trump’s alleged wrongdoing for partisan reasons.

Trump ally complaints aside, crime is down in Manhattan

 Trump ally complaints aside, crime is down in Manhattan

 In a statement, Trump’s campaign claimed that “[r]ather than stopping the unprecedented crime wave taking over New York City, [Bragg] is doing Joe Biden’s dirty work.” Again: Crime in New York is not “unprecedented” and is, in fact, on the decline.

‘Now he’s seen as a symbol’: Republicans rally around Trump

 https://www.politico.com/news/2024/06/01/republicans-rally-around-trump-while-dems-chant-lock-him-up-00161154

House Speaker Mike Johnson intensified his defense of Donald Trump before headlining a party fundraiser in Illinois on Saturday, as even this deep blue state’s Republicans seized on a Manhattan jury’s guilty verdict as a rallying cry for the former president.

Johnson, who like many one-time critics of Trump has long since come to his defense — and who said immediately after the verdict in Trump’s hush money case that the Supreme Court should “step in” — told reporters here Saturday that if he was Trump’s attorney, “I think I would make an appeal to the Supreme Court.”

How a Mysterious Tip Led to Trump Conviction

 https://www.wsj.com/politics/policy/trump-hush-money-stormy-daniels-707fa959?mod=hp_lead_pos7

When The Wall Street Journal uncovered an illicit payment to porn star Stormy Daniels, the now-former president tried to brush it aside. It didn’t work.

Trump’s post-conviction monologue was filled with false claims

 https://edition.cnn.com/2024/05/31/politics/fact-check-trump-post-conviction-speech/index.html

Trump repeated a claim he has made before about “the Congo” and migration, again without specifying whether he was referring to the Democratic Republic of Congo or the neighboring Republic of Congo. He said: “The Congo has just released a lot of people from jail – Congo, Africa – just released a lot of people, a lot of people, from their prisons and jails, and brought them into the United States of America.”

Facts First: Trump’s claim is baseless. Experts on the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Republic of Congo, plus both pro-immigration and anti-immigration organizations in the US, told CNN they have not seen any evidence of Congolese prisons being emptied, let alone evidence of either country somehow having “brought” ex-prisoners into the US. Trump’s presidential campaign and an allied super PAC did not respond to requests to provide any evidence. A CNN search of two media databases turned up no evidence. And federal figures show that there is no “very big” influx of Congolese migrants of any kind, let alone former prisoners in particular.